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[music]

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Have you ever lost something
that really mattered to you

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and you couldn't find it?

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You were searching
everywhere for it?

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And then you found it.

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Remember how happy you were?

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Your keys,
your purse, your wallet,

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your wedding ring, your kid.

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Seriously,
you ever lost a kid?

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That's a bad day.

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First time we lost
a kid that I remember,

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I asked Grace this morning over
breakfast, and some of you say,

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"Oh, my gosh, I can't
believe you lost a kid."

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If you have not lost
a kid, here's why:

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You don't have a kid.

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As soon as you have a kid,

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eventually you're going to lose
that kid and it doesn't matter

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what kind of eye
you keep on that kid.

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They're like ninjas,
they quietly sneak away.

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They just do.

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When we were a small church
we had lost our building

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and First Pres downtown
took us in

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and they're a big church,
big building.

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We just had an evening service
there and I went over to Grace,

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I was like, "Hey, where's Zac?"

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This is when buddy Zac
was about two or three,

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he was just a little guy.

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She said, "I thought
he was with you."

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I said, "I thought
he was with you."

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Freaked out, we're in
the middle of downtown,

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homeless guys everywhere,
people coming and going

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through this huge, old church.

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Your mind immediately goes
to the worst possible place.

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I wasn't acting
like a Calvinist.

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I was freaking out.

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I did not act like God was
in charge of the universe.

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We're scouring every inch of
the building, cannot find Zac.

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I'm outside running
around downtown Seattle

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trying to find Zac.

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I can't find him.
I'm freaking out.

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I go back in, decided,
"Well, you know,

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"there's only place we haven't
looked and that's the balcony

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that we never use," because our
church was so small

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we could meet in a Suburban.

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We don't need a balcony.
It's not a big deal.

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I go up to the balcony,
there's Zac, just hanging out.

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He's like two or three,
just hanging in the balcony

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all by himself.

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A closed balcony
that we never went in.

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"What are you doing, Zac?"

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"I'm in the balcony."
"Yeah, I know.

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Uh, I'm kind of wondering
why you're in balcony."

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"I could see everything
from up here."

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"Oh, oh, good for
you," you know?

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"Can you see your mom dying?"

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You know, like--well, I was
really glad to have Zac back

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and this is how life works.

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We lose someone or something we
really care about and then when

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we find them what was
lost becomes found,

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we're filled with joy.

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And God wants us to start
with that kind of disposition,

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to know that for
people who are lost,

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his heart is filled with joy
when they are found.

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And so Jesus is going to
tell us two parables today,

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which are little stories
that teach big truths,

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one about a lost sheep,
the other about a lost coin,

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in Luke 15:1-10 where we examine
the joy of God

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in finding lost people.

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The first one we'll look at
is lost sheep, Luke 15:1-7,

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"Now the tax collectors,"
bad guys, "and sinners,"

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other bad guys, "were
all drawing near to hear him."

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Jesus was getting
really popular.

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"And the Pharisees
and the scribes,"

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here come the religious guys.

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They “grumbled, saying, 'This
man receives sinners

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"'and eats with them.'

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"So he told them this
parable: 'What man of you,

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"'having a hundred sheep,
if he has lost one of them,

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"'does not leave the
ninety-nine in the open country,

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"'and go after the one that
is lost, until he finds it?

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"'And when he has found it,

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"'he lays it on his shoulders,
rejoicing.

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"'And when he comes home, he
calls together his friends

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"'and his neighbors, saying
to them, "Rejoice with me,

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"'for I have found my
sheep that was lost."

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"'Just so, I tell you, there
will be more joy in heaven

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"'over one sinner who repents
than over ninety-nine

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righteous persons who need
no repentance.'"

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So, Jesus is God.

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He comes to earth and he's
having meals, which is,

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in that culture,
building friendships with

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two groups of sinners.

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Now, the first group were
upper-class sinners.

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The other is a class
of lower-class sinners.

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The upper-class sinners,
they're the tax collectors.

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These are professional
extortionists and thieves.

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And they were hated and despised
because they were ripping off

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their own people.

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The way it worked,
this horrible,

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in the eyes of God's people,
foreign government, the Romans,

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came in, took them over,
subjugated them,

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imposed on them very high
taxes, hired their own people

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to extract tax money
from them,

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a percent going to
the evil empire

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and the rest going
to the tax collector.

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Now, imagine in our day, this
would be like the Canadians

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invaded us, okay?

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I didn't want to scare you

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so I picked something
that cannot happen.

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But imagine for a moment all
the Canadians got together

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and they all grabbed hockey
sticks and stormed the border.

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And we didn't see it coming
and they took us over.

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And next thing you know,
everybody's saying, "Eh,"

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and there's a bunch of French
guys and things are really bad.

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And to help pay
for this imposition

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from this evil empire,

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imagine the Canadians
started recruiting members

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of our own church, people
in your community group.

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And they allowed those people to
be the tax collectors to squeeze

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as much money
out of each of us

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as they possibly could.

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You would be so frustrated and
disappointed with the people who

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still claim to worship God but
are ripping off God's people.

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They were so against
the tax collectors that

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the tax collectors
were rejected.

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They were not allowed to testify
in court because they were seen

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as being so dishonest.

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And when they would
go to synagogue,

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which was the old covenant
equivalent of church,

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they were not even allowed
to give their tithe,

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their financial offering.

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Hey, you know you're a bad
person when the church

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won't take your money, amen?

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None of you
are that bad, okay?

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Now, they were really bad
though, that's the big idea.

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So there's
the upper-class sinners

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and then there's
the lower-class sinners.

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And here they just
call them the sinners.

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That's what the religious
people call them.

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And these are just run-of-
the-mill, regular sinners.

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I think of guys with their pants
around their ankles

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and their big underwear
hanging out,

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walking like pregnant ducks,
guys like that.

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Guys in grills,
gals in clear heels.

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You know, the normal.

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Guys smoking joints,
going to Hempfest.

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People like this
normal, regular

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sinners living their
life, not loving God,

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kind of ignorant and oblivious.

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And so Jesus is having
meals with these people.

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And the religious people
come along and they say,

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"What in the world?

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"Jesus says he's God,
look at his friends.

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Look at his friends."

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And now, you think about it,

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it would still
be controversial today.

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Let's say tomorrow we turn on
the news and lo and behold,

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Billy Graham is hanging out
with Eminem and Lady Gaga

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and they're going to Applebee's
every Tuesday for lunch.

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A lot of religious people
would freak out.

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They would say,
"What is he doing?

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Is he sanctioning Eminem?"

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You know, "Lady Gaga?"

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I mean, well, the truth is,

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she needs to be born again
another way.

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It wouldn't be--that was funny.

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It wouldn't be a bad idea but
a lot of religious people,

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right, would freak out.

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"Oh, my gosh, Billy Graham's
compromised his integrity."

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That's the kind of stuff
they're saying about Jesus.

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And Jesus knows they're sinners
and Jesus hangs out with sinners

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and Jesus eats with sinners
and Jesus never sins and Jesus

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never condones their sin,
but he's trying to save them.

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And here's the truth, if Jesus
never ate with sinners

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he would have eaten all
of his meals alone.

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And so the religious
people stand back,

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as religious people commonly
do, and they say,

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"Oh, well there's upper-class
sinners and lower-class sinners.

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Jesus, you shouldn't be
eating with sinners."

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And the truth is, there's a
third category of sinner called

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religious sinner that's
self-righteous and hypocritical

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and judgmental and proud.

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And Jesus thus far in the book
has already eaten with them

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a number of times and that
doesn't bother them at all.

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And this is how it works
when you're religious.

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You are aware of everyone else's
sin, ignorant of your own.

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You judge God and his people
for loving certain people,

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thinking that you're more
lovely than they are.

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And so Jesus here is
going to love, serve,

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and eat with all three
kinds of sinners,

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upper-class and lower-class
sinners and religious sinners

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who don't even know
how sinful they are.

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And at the end of the day,
the religious sinners

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are going to prove to be
the most sinful of all.

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When it's going to
the position of betraying Jesus

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and crucifying him, it's not
going to be the hip-hop guys

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and the gals in clear heels

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and the guys who are trying to
get medical marijuana legalized

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that are the ones
that are shouting,

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"Crucify him!
Crucify him!"

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It's going to be all
the religious guys

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who think they're better
than everyone else.

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So you and I
need to be careful.

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We need to be careful that we
always guard our heart against

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being religious and if you're
here and you're religious,

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you shouldn't be proud of it,
you should be ashamed of it.

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You should repent
of it as a sin.

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And Jesus illustrates all
of this by telling a story.

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It's a parable.

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And he tells the story about
sheep and a shepherd

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and a rescue.

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And so he gives them
this story.

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He says imagine a man
who's got a flock.

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And when we think “flock,”

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we've got to think in terms
of small business.

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In that day, a flock of sheep
were your assets.

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A hundred flock is not enormous.

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Think of a small business.

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Think of a used
car dealer who's got a lot

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with a hundred cars on it.

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Something like that.

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It's a medium-sized
small business.

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Not super poor, not really
affluent, middle class.

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And he says, now if you had
a hundred sheep and that was

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your financial portfolio and one
of your sheep wandered off,

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walked away, what would you do?

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And he tells this
story, this parable, saying

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a good shepherd would get
someone to watch the 99 sheep

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and go find the lost one.

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Now, this is very unusual

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because oftentimes if you
had that amount of money

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you would pay someone
to go find the lost one.

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But this shows a very
loving, very concerned,

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very hardworking, very
invested and involved shepherd.

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The shepherd takes it upon
himself to walk for miles,

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to comb the hills, to look
everywhere just hoping to find

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that lost sheep
and bring them home.

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And so Jesus says that that is
an illustrative story

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for how God works.

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So we pull back
from the parable,

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00:11:21,333 --> 00:11:22,667
who's God in the parable?

243
00:11:22,750 --> 00:11:24,417
What's the role of God?

244
00:11:24,500 --> 00:11:26,833
Well, the shepherd.

245
00:11:26,875 --> 00:11:30,333
That means where
are we in the story?

246
00:11:30,375 --> 00:11:32,708
We're the sheep.

247
00:11:32,792 --> 00:11:35,333
Okay, that's not a compliment.

248
00:11:35,375 --> 00:11:39,500
Okay, here's sheep, sheep
stink, they get dirty.

249
00:11:39,583 --> 00:11:41,708
Are they a smart
or dumb animal?

250
00:11:41,792 --> 00:11:43,208
They're dumb.

251
00:11:43,292 --> 00:11:47,833
Good luck trying to get
one to fetch, right?

252
00:11:47,875 --> 00:11:51,333
If a sheep gets lost, they
cannot defend themselves

253
00:11:51,375 --> 00:11:53,417
because sheep are weak.

254
00:11:53,500 --> 00:11:56,083
Like, none of you are
terrified of sheep, right?

255
00:11:56,167 --> 00:11:58,708
When our kids can't sleep
at night, we tell them,

256
00:11:58,792 --> 00:12:01,500
"Oh, you're tired, here's the
most relaxing thing you can do.

257
00:12:01,542 --> 00:12:04,333
Count sheep," right?

258
00:12:04,375 --> 00:12:06,208
None of you
are scared of sheep.

259
00:12:06,292 --> 00:12:08,208
Sheep get in a fight,
it's over.

260
00:12:08,292 --> 00:12:09,625
They have no talons.

261
00:12:09,667 --> 00:12:11,000
They have no claws.

262
00:12:11,083 --> 00:12:12,417
They have no fangs.

263
00:12:12,500 --> 00:12:14,000
They're fat, they can't run.

264
00:12:14,083 --> 00:12:15,500
They're awkwardly shaped.

265
00:12:15,583 --> 00:12:17,333
They tend to be a little mushy.

266
00:12:17,375 --> 00:12:20,500
"Baa," it's over,
you got nothing.

267
00:12:20,583 --> 00:12:24,000
Like, tomorrow if you get up
and you turn on your phone

268
00:12:24,042 --> 00:12:27,208
and you get a news alert that
says in your neighborhood

269
00:12:27,292 --> 00:12:29,375
a truck has overturned
and hundreds of sheep

270
00:12:29,458 --> 00:12:32,125
are on the loose,
here's what you'd say,

271
00:12:32,167 --> 00:12:33,208
"That's awesome,

272
00:12:33,292 --> 00:12:35,500
I'm going to go out
and pet one," right?

273
00:12:35,583 --> 00:12:37,375
You're kind of looking
forward to that.

274
00:12:37,458 --> 00:12:42,000
Similarly, if it says hundreds
of lions or bears have escaped,

275
00:12:42,083 --> 00:12:44,292
right, you're going to lock
yourself in the bathroom

276
00:12:44,333 --> 00:12:46,125
and be in
the fetal position, right?

277
00:12:46,167 --> 00:12:48,833
You're not going to go to work
or the grocery store

278
00:12:48,875 --> 00:12:51,208
for a really long time till
they find every one.

279
00:12:51,292 --> 00:12:54,833
Sheep are dumb.
We are sheep.

280
00:12:54,875 --> 00:12:56,833
Some of you go,
"What are we?"

281
00:12:56,875 --> 00:12:58,417
Thank you for
illustrating my point.

282
00:12:58,500 --> 00:13:01,375
We are sheep.

283
00:13:04,000 --> 00:13:05,708
It'll get worse,
just hang in there.

284
00:13:05,792 --> 00:13:07,417
We are sheep.

285
00:13:07,500 --> 00:13:09,708
We tend to be dumb.
We tend to wander.

286
00:13:09,792 --> 00:13:12,208
We tend to stray.
We tend to get in trouble.

287
00:13:12,292 --> 00:13:14,000
And you know what sheep do?
Nothing.

288
00:13:14,083 --> 00:13:15,792
And they never find
their way home.

289
00:13:15,833 --> 00:13:18,792
And if a sheep strays away from
the flock and the shepherd,

290
00:13:18,833 --> 00:13:21,625
they are in grave danger.

291
00:13:21,667 --> 00:13:23,417
They're in grave danger.

292
00:13:23,500 --> 00:13:26,417
And Jesus says
we're like sheep.

293
00:13:26,500 --> 00:13:28,167
In fact, that's
what the Bible says.

294
00:13:28,250 --> 00:13:32,417
Isaiah 53:6, "All we like
sheep have gone astray;

295
00:13:32,500 --> 00:13:36,708
we have turned--every
one--to his own way."

296
00:13:36,792 --> 00:13:40,375
The picture of sin here is that,
"Baa," we just kind of,

297
00:13:40,458 --> 00:13:43,125
"Hey, look, Jack Daniel’s!
Bye, Jesus!"

298
00:13:43,167 --> 00:13:47,333
We just walk away toward some
sort of sin or temptation.

299
00:13:47,375 --> 00:13:50,333
We just kind of get silly
and lazy and foolish

300
00:13:50,375 --> 00:13:52,000
and we wander off.

301
00:13:52,083 --> 00:13:54,333
And we're in real trouble.
And there we are.

302
00:13:54,375 --> 00:13:55,875
We can't find our way home.

303
00:13:55,958 --> 00:13:57,917
We don't know where
our shepherd is.

304
00:13:58,000 --> 00:14:00,833
We're in danger,
now we're dirty.

305
00:14:00,875 --> 00:14:02,833
We're bloodied up,
we're battered,

306
00:14:02,875 --> 00:14:07,792
we're terrified,
we're alone.

307
00:14:07,833 --> 00:14:09,625
And Jesus Christ
is a good shepherd.

308
00:14:09,667 --> 00:14:11,375
That's what he says
in John 10,

309
00:14:11,458 --> 00:14:13,833
"I am the good shepherd."

310
00:14:13,875 --> 00:14:16,500
Our God comes down
looking for us.

311
00:14:16,583 --> 00:14:18,500
And here's the truth,
we're lost.

312
00:14:18,583 --> 00:14:20,083
God's not lost.

313
00:14:20,167 --> 00:14:21,417
We walked away from God.

314
00:14:21,500 --> 00:14:23,917
God didn't walk away from us.

315
00:14:24,000 --> 00:14:28,000
We're responsible
and he's a savior.

316
00:14:29,000 --> 00:14:31,167
So unpack this story
a little bit with me.

317
00:14:31,250 --> 00:14:33,000
Think it through.

318
00:14:33,083 --> 00:14:35,708
Now when Jesus says
he's a good shepherd,

319
00:14:35,792 --> 00:14:39,500
we can't immediately go
to the wonderful picture

320
00:14:39,583 --> 00:14:41,875
of shepherds that we have.

321
00:14:41,958 --> 00:14:44,000
If you grew up in
church, you're like,

322
00:14:44,083 --> 00:14:46,667
"Oh, David is a shepherd
boy," and you got a staff

323
00:14:46,750 --> 00:14:48,083
and you were a shepherd.

324
00:14:48,167 --> 00:14:51,083
And you took the cotton balls
and glued them on the paper

325
00:14:51,167 --> 00:14:53,333
in Sunday school class
to make the sheep, right?

326
00:14:53,375 --> 00:14:55,625
So we tend to think
positively of shepherds.

327
00:14:55,667 --> 00:14:59,417
In that day, they
were pretty weird.

328
00:14:59,500 --> 00:15:02,333
A shepherd was the kind of
job you didn't shoot for,

329
00:15:02,375 --> 00:15:04,417
you fell into.

330
00:15:04,500 --> 00:15:06,083
Right?

331
00:15:06,167 --> 00:15:09,292
Because if you think about it,
does a shepherd live in the city

332
00:15:09,333 --> 00:15:11,125
or out roaming in
the hills alone?

333
00:15:11,167 --> 00:15:12,583
Roaming in the hills alone.

334
00:15:12,667 --> 00:15:14,417
So does a shepherd
interact with people?

335
00:15:14,500 --> 00:15:16,208
Uh, no, they talk to sheep.

336
00:15:16,292 --> 00:15:17,375
Now, that's peculiar.

337
00:15:17,458 --> 00:15:18,917
Oh, do they bathe a lot?

338
00:15:19,000 --> 00:15:20,500
Mm, once every year, maybe,

339
00:15:20,583 --> 00:15:23,125
because they're
out in the woods.

340
00:15:23,167 --> 00:15:25,000
So are their
social skills great?

341
00:15:25,042 --> 00:15:26,875
Not so much.

342
00:15:26,958 --> 00:15:28,083
Where do they sleep?

343
00:15:28,167 --> 00:15:30,500
Wherever the sheep
end up eating.

344
00:15:30,542 --> 00:15:32,500
I saw this
when I was in Israel.

345
00:15:32,542 --> 00:15:35,833
We'd be out touring, you can go
out to the middle of nowhere,

346
00:15:35,875 --> 00:15:38,667
there's nothing around, and
some guy walks out with sheep.

347
00:15:38,750 --> 00:15:40,500
They're still there.

348
00:15:40,542 --> 00:15:44,083
I'll just tell you,
those are some weird dudes.

349
00:15:44,167 --> 00:15:46,708
Okay, so in that culture, the
shepherd was perceived as not

350
00:15:46,792 --> 00:15:50,875
necessarily a bad guy, but
just kind of a peculiar guy.

351
00:15:50,958 --> 00:15:53,375
And Jesus says,
"I'm the shepherd."

352
00:15:53,458 --> 00:15:56,000
And what that means is
that God became a man

353
00:15:56,083 --> 00:15:59,583
and he took a lowly job,
a humble job.

354
00:15:59,667 --> 00:16:02,000
He wasn't rich,
he was poor.

355
00:16:02,083 --> 00:16:04,500
He didn't live in a mansion,
he was homeless.

356
00:16:04,542 --> 00:16:09,917
He didn't have an easy life,
he had conflict all the time.

357
00:16:10,000 --> 00:16:11,708
And he's a good shepherd.

358
00:16:11,792 --> 00:16:16,000
It shows us the humility of
Jesus to even identify himself

359
00:16:16,042 --> 00:16:18,833
with a job that was not
highly esteemed

360
00:16:18,875 --> 00:16:21,708
in the culture of his day.

361
00:16:21,792 --> 00:16:24,917
And Jesus is a good shepherd
and he comes looking

362
00:16:25,000 --> 00:16:26,833
for his lost sheep.

363
00:16:26,875 --> 00:16:28,667
Now this is great news.

364
00:16:28,750 --> 00:16:31,708
For us as Christians, this
should be very humbling.

365
00:16:31,792 --> 00:16:35,500
Jesus is the good shepherd,
we're the lost sheep.

366
00:16:35,583 --> 00:16:39,708
We don't find
Jesus, he finds us.

367
00:16:39,792 --> 00:16:42,833
Furthermore, there's
nothing to brag about.

368
00:16:42,875 --> 00:16:44,833
Some of you say,
"Oh, I'm pretty smart."

369
00:16:44,875 --> 00:16:46,500
For a sheep!

370
00:16:46,542 --> 00:16:48,417
Some of you say,
"I'm pretty tough."

371
00:16:48,500 --> 00:16:50,167
For a sheep!

372
00:16:50,250 --> 00:16:52,208
For a sheep,
that's not that tough.

373
00:16:52,292 --> 00:16:55,417
That's like being tough
for a Tupperware salesman.

374
00:16:55,500 --> 00:16:58,625
It's just not that tough.

375
00:16:58,667 --> 00:17:02,375
We're not tough, we're
not smart, we're not good,

376
00:17:02,458 --> 00:17:04,000
but we have a good shepherd.

377
00:17:04,083 --> 00:17:07,000
And the story is that he
goes and finds the sheep,

378
00:17:07,083 --> 00:17:10,833
and this is days of walking and
hiking and looking and working.

379
00:17:10,875 --> 00:17:14,875
And as soon as he finds the lost
sheep, he picks up the sheep,

380
00:17:14,958 --> 00:17:18,125
the story says, and he puts
the sheep on his shoulders,

381
00:17:18,167 --> 00:17:20,333
maybe weighing
upwards of 100 pounds,

382
00:17:20,375 --> 00:17:26,000
and he hikes the miles that
is required back to the flock.

383
00:17:26,083 --> 00:17:28,583
I want you to see your
relationship with Jesus

384
00:17:28,667 --> 00:17:32,625
and your salvation like that.

385
00:17:32,667 --> 00:17:36,792
Jesus literally put us
on his back, right?

386
00:17:36,833 --> 00:17:39,375
He carried a cross.

387
00:17:39,458 --> 00:17:45,000
He literally carried a cross
weighing about 100 pounds.

388
00:17:45,083 --> 00:17:51,208
He did so carrying our sin on
his back to do all the work

389
00:17:51,292 --> 00:17:54,375
to bring us back to God.

390
00:17:54,458 --> 00:17:58,625
Salvation is Jesus literally
bearing us

391
00:17:58,667 --> 00:18:02,500
and our sin on his back.

392
00:18:02,583 --> 00:18:05,625
And he does all the work
to bring us back.

393
00:18:05,667 --> 00:18:08,000
And so what every lost sheep
needs, number one,

394
00:18:08,042 --> 00:18:12,333
a good shepherd,
number two, a flock.

395
00:18:12,375 --> 00:18:14,625
Jesus is the good shepherd.

396
00:18:14,667 --> 00:18:16,583
Do you know Jesus?
Do you love Jesus?

397
00:18:16,667 --> 00:18:18,625
Do you belong to Jesus?

398
00:18:18,667 --> 00:18:22,625
Additionally, every
sheep needs a good flock.

399
00:18:22,667 --> 00:18:25,000
You need a church
with God's people.

400
00:18:25,042 --> 00:18:26,833
We're not going
to make it alone.

401
00:18:26,875 --> 00:18:28,667
We're built
for community.

402
00:18:28,750 --> 00:18:31,625
We tend to wander off and stray
and get into danger

403
00:18:31,667 --> 00:18:33,625
like a lost sheep.

404
00:18:33,667 --> 00:18:35,417
That's where
the flock helps us.

405
00:18:35,500 --> 00:18:37,625
Stay with your brothers
and sisters in Christ.

406
00:18:37,667 --> 00:18:40,000
Stick at your campus.
Stick at your community group.

407
00:18:40,042 --> 00:18:41,625
Stick in your Redemption Group.

408
00:18:41,667 --> 00:18:43,708
Stick in your relationships.

409
00:18:43,792 --> 00:18:47,583
And that is how God, the good
shepherd, keeps us in his flock,

410
00:18:47,667 --> 00:18:50,208
keeps us on his path,
so we don't stray off

411
00:18:50,292 --> 00:18:51,792
into death and danger.

412
00:18:51,833 --> 00:18:53,500
How's it going?

413
00:18:53,583 --> 00:18:57,333
Do you know your shepherd and
are you part of the flock?

414
00:18:57,375 --> 00:19:00,833
And some of you
have strayed far.

415
00:19:00,875 --> 00:19:03,708
Some of you have
strayed quite far.

416
00:19:03,792 --> 00:19:07,708
Some of you have
strayed for years.

417
00:19:07,792 --> 00:19:10,833
You've walked away from
God and his people.

418
00:19:10,875 --> 00:19:13,875
You've turned your back on the
shepherd and you're no longer

419
00:19:13,958 --> 00:19:17,833
in real community with
the rest of the sheep.

420
00:19:17,875 --> 00:19:20,708
Some of you, this
is new for you.

421
00:19:20,792 --> 00:19:23,333
You've walked a few steps
away from the shepherd.

422
00:19:23,375 --> 00:19:26,917
You've walked a few steps
away from the flock.

423
00:19:27,000 --> 00:19:29,708
Those who have wandered far
and been beaten up and had

424
00:19:29,792 --> 00:19:33,208
their lives endangered and
fallen into sin and death,

425
00:19:33,292 --> 00:19:35,125
they would encourage
you and exhort you,

426
00:19:35,167 --> 00:19:38,583
get back to the shepherd,
get back to the flock.

427
00:19:38,667 --> 00:19:41,000
And here's the good news:

428
00:19:41,083 --> 00:19:44,625
the shepherd is right there,
ready to pick you up.

429
00:19:44,667 --> 00:19:47,333
You don't have to walk yourself
back or work yourself back

430
00:19:47,375 --> 00:19:49,000
or will yourself back.

431
00:19:49,042 --> 00:19:51,417
Just turn around, the
shepherd's there to pick you up.

432
00:19:51,500 --> 00:19:53,292
Jesus is willing
to forgive us all.

433
00:19:53,333 --> 00:19:55,125
Jesus is willing
to embrace us all.

434
00:19:55,167 --> 00:19:56,917
Jesus is willing
to love us all.

435
00:19:57,000 --> 00:19:58,917
Jesus is willing
to serve us all.

436
00:19:59,000 --> 00:20:01,583
Jesus is there for us all.

437
00:20:01,667 --> 00:20:04,083
And it doesn't matter what
you've done and it doesn't

438
00:20:04,167 --> 00:20:06,833
matter how far you've strayed
and it doesn't matter how long

439
00:20:06,875 --> 00:20:09,708
you've been away from
the shepherd and the flock.

440
00:20:09,792 --> 00:20:11,208
He'll take you back right now.

441
00:20:11,292 --> 00:20:13,625
Jesus loves you,
Jesus misses you,

442
00:20:13,667 --> 00:20:17,583
Jesus came to earth for you, and
Jesus is waiting to pick you up

443
00:20:17,667 --> 00:20:20,208
and to take you back.

444
00:20:20,292 --> 00:20:24,167
And now what this requires
of us is to repent.

445
00:20:24,250 --> 00:20:27,333
And repentance is
follow the shepherd.

446
00:20:27,375 --> 00:20:29,500
That's all repentance is.

447
00:20:29,542 --> 00:20:32,125
Sin is where we turn our
back on the shepherd

448
00:20:32,167 --> 00:20:34,417
and we wander off into trouble.

449
00:20:34,500 --> 00:20:38,417
Repentance is turning around and
saying, "Once Jesus picks me up,

450
00:20:38,500 --> 00:20:41,792
"puts me back in the flock, I'm
going to stay with the flock

451
00:20:41,833 --> 00:20:43,625
and I'm going to walk with him."

452
00:20:43,667 --> 00:20:46,500
That's repentance, it's walking
with Jesus and his people

453
00:20:46,583 --> 00:20:48,167
for the rest of your life.

454
00:20:48,250 --> 00:20:52,000
And so Jesus is going
to use in both parables

455
00:20:52,083 --> 00:20:55,625
this word "repent,"
“repentance.”

456
00:20:55,667 --> 00:20:59,333
And let me explain to
you briefly what that is.

457
00:20:59,375 --> 00:21:02,500
It's confession,
contrition, and change.

458
00:21:02,583 --> 00:21:05,333
Those are the three
aspects of repentance.

459
00:21:05,375 --> 00:21:08,333
Confession begins with
your mind and your mouth.

460
00:21:08,375 --> 00:21:11,500
You look at your life and who
you are and where you're going

461
00:21:11,583 --> 00:21:14,833
and what you're doing, and you
think about it and you realize,

462
00:21:14,875 --> 00:21:17,625
"This is wrong.
I'm going the wrong direction.

463
00:21:17,667 --> 00:21:20,125
"I'm doing the wrong things.
I'm getting in trouble.

464
00:21:20,167 --> 00:21:22,500
"This is walking away from
Jesus and his people,

465
00:21:22,542 --> 00:21:24,000
not toward them."

466
00:21:24,042 --> 00:21:26,000
And you confess that
with your mouth.

467
00:21:26,042 --> 00:21:28,000
In prayer, you talk
about this to God.

468
00:21:28,042 --> 00:21:30,000
"Lord, I've sinned, I've
strayed, I'm in trouble.

469
00:21:30,042 --> 00:21:32,000
"I don't know how
to figure it out.

470
00:21:32,042 --> 00:21:35,000
I don't know how to get back.
Please come pick me up."

471
00:21:35,083 --> 00:21:38,292
Okay, you know what
a Christian needs?

472
00:21:38,333 --> 00:21:40,500
Someone to come
and save and rescue them.

473
00:21:40,542 --> 00:21:42,583
His name is Jesus.

474
00:21:42,667 --> 00:21:45,208
A lost sheep is like a lost kid.

475
00:21:45,292 --> 00:21:48,417
All right, just cry out for
a parent to come pick you up

476
00:21:48,500 --> 00:21:50,000
and make it all better.

477
00:21:50,083 --> 00:21:52,167
It begins in the mind.

478
00:21:52,250 --> 00:21:54,917
You understand you're in trouble
and it moves to the mouth,

479
00:21:55,000 --> 00:21:56,125
you cry out to God.

480
00:21:56,167 --> 00:21:58,125
You also cry out
to his people.

481
00:21:58,167 --> 00:22:00,875
You pick up the phone, you
call your Christian friend or

482
00:22:00,958 --> 00:22:04,208
friends, parents, family, "I'm
in trouble, it's not going good.

483
00:22:04,292 --> 00:22:05,708
"Can we get together and talk?

484
00:22:05,792 --> 00:22:07,625
"I need you to pray for me.

485
00:22:07,667 --> 00:22:13,292
What I've done is not good and
where I'm going is not safe."

486
00:22:13,333 --> 00:22:14,917
Number two, it's contrition.

487
00:22:15,000 --> 00:22:17,917
This is your emotions
and your expressions.

488
00:22:18,000 --> 00:22:21,208
It really bothers you,
your sin, your folly,

489
00:22:21,292 --> 00:22:23,875
your rebellion, your wandering.

490
00:22:23,958 --> 00:22:25,333
And it leads to expression.

491
00:22:25,375 --> 00:22:29,375
You can tell that someone is
grieved by what they've done.

492
00:22:29,458 --> 00:22:31,583
It's a heartfelt sadness.

493
00:22:31,667 --> 00:22:33,375
It's looking at
the shepherd and saying,

494
00:22:33,458 --> 00:22:35,417
"Jesus, I walked away from you.

495
00:22:35,500 --> 00:22:37,000
I sinned against you."

496
00:22:37,083 --> 00:22:40,333
Looking at the flock, saying,
"I abandoned you, I ignored you.

497
00:22:40,375 --> 00:22:42,000
"I didn't take your counsel.

498
00:22:42,083 --> 00:22:43,875
I refused your help."

499
00:22:43,958 --> 00:22:45,417
And that leads to change.

500
00:22:45,500 --> 00:22:48,708
In your will, you want to have
a different life, and your works,

501
00:22:48,792 --> 00:22:52,833
out of your new desires
comes a new life.

502
00:22:52,875 --> 00:22:55,917
"I want to walk with
God and his people.

503
00:22:56,000 --> 00:22:58,875
"And by the grace of God,
I'm going to walk with God

504
00:22:58,958 --> 00:23:01,125
and his people."

505
00:23:01,167 --> 00:23:03,833
That's true repentance:
confession, contrition,

506
00:23:03,875 --> 00:23:05,500
and change.

507
00:23:05,583 --> 00:23:10,500
And what does he say
the emotional state is of God

508
00:23:10,583 --> 00:23:13,125
when we repent?

509
00:23:13,167 --> 00:23:15,625
Some of you think when you
repent God is just

510
00:23:15,667 --> 00:23:19,583
furrowed brow, pointed finger,
shaking his head,

511
00:23:19,667 --> 00:23:22,417
just shaming you
and guilting you.

512
00:23:22,500 --> 00:23:25,208
"I told you not to do that.
I told you so.

513
00:23:25,292 --> 00:23:26,625
"You blew it.

514
00:23:26,667 --> 00:23:28,500
Why don't you ever
listen to me?"

515
00:23:28,583 --> 00:23:30,708
Some of you have
that concept of God.

516
00:23:30,792 --> 00:23:34,500
Let me tell you, that's
not the God of the Bible.

517
00:23:34,542 --> 00:23:38,000
Yes, the God of the Bible
is grieved when we sin.

518
00:23:38,042 --> 00:23:42,000
Yes, the God of the Bible
is grieved when we stray.

519
00:23:42,083 --> 00:23:47,333
And the God of the Bible is
filled with joy when we repent.

520
00:23:47,375 --> 00:23:49,917
This includes repentance
for salvation,

521
00:23:50,000 --> 00:23:52,625
when we become a Christian,
and any repentance

522
00:23:52,667 --> 00:23:54,708
throughout the course
of our life.

523
00:23:54,792 --> 00:23:58,125
When we repent, God rejoices.

524
00:23:58,167 --> 00:24:01,500
When we repent,
God rejoices.

525
00:24:01,542 --> 00:24:03,208
God is happy to love.

526
00:24:03,292 --> 00:24:04,875
God is happy to save.

527
00:24:04,958 --> 00:24:06,667
God is happy to pursue.

528
00:24:06,750 --> 00:24:09,417
God is happy to forgive.

529
00:24:09,500 --> 00:24:11,833
That's exactly
what it says here.

530
00:24:11,875 --> 00:24:15,500
Verse 7, "There will be more
joy in heaven over one sinner

531
00:24:15,583 --> 00:24:19,000
who repents than over
ninety-nine righteous persons,"

532
00:24:19,083 --> 00:24:22,708
quote unquote,
"who need no repentance."

533
00:24:22,792 --> 00:24:24,708
Jesus looks at
the religious people, says,

534
00:24:24,792 --> 00:24:27,417
"You guys don't make God
happy at all

535
00:24:27,500 --> 00:24:30,083
because you never repent."

536
00:24:30,167 --> 00:24:31,500
Isn't that amazing?

537
00:24:31,583 --> 00:24:35,583
God isn't just happy
by our religiosity.

538
00:24:35,667 --> 00:24:38,708
He's happy by our repentance.

539
00:24:38,792 --> 00:24:42,292
He's not happy when we boast of
all the good things we've done.

540
00:24:42,333 --> 00:24:46,917
He's happy when we're honest
about the sins we've committed.

541
00:24:47,000 --> 00:24:50,917
When we repent, God
rejoices, he's happy!

542
00:24:51,000 --> 00:24:53,792
Now this also should
affect our disposition.

543
00:24:53,833 --> 00:24:56,875
When someone sins against us,
we need to forgive them

544
00:24:56,958 --> 00:24:59,292
and rejoice.

545
00:24:59,333 --> 00:25:02,583
Be happy, be glad, not say,
"I can't believe you did that.

546
00:25:02,667 --> 00:25:04,125
"I can't believe you said that.

547
00:25:04,167 --> 00:25:06,208
"I told you so.
You've failed me.

548
00:25:06,292 --> 00:25:08,333
You blew it again.
I'm so disappointed."

549
00:25:08,375 --> 00:25:11,583
No, say, "I'm grieved,
but welcome back.

550
00:25:11,667 --> 00:25:15,000
"I'm so glad that you've seen
that because now I feel like

551
00:25:15,083 --> 00:25:17,500
we're close again."

552
00:25:17,583 --> 00:25:19,667
God is happy.

553
00:25:19,750 --> 00:25:22,292
God rejoices when we repent.

554
00:25:22,333 --> 00:25:23,708
Have you repented?

555
00:25:23,792 --> 00:25:25,208
What have you not repented of?

556
00:25:25,292 --> 00:25:28,000
What joy are you withholding?

557
00:25:28,042 --> 00:25:32,792
And see, all of this is what
the Bible calls good news.

558
00:25:32,833 --> 00:25:35,708
Religion has no
good news to offer.

559
00:25:35,792 --> 00:25:38,167
The word "gospel" literally
means good news.

560
00:25:38,250 --> 00:25:39,833
This is good news.

561
00:25:39,875 --> 00:25:41,417
But see,
what religion would do,

562
00:25:41,500 --> 00:25:44,125
religion would come up
to a lost sheep and say,

563
00:25:44,167 --> 00:25:47,333
"You're dirty and
you're stinky and you're lost.

564
00:25:47,375 --> 00:25:49,833
You're a little
beat up and bleeding."

565
00:25:49,875 --> 00:25:52,625
And the sheep would
say, "Yeah, I know."

566
00:25:52,667 --> 00:25:55,000
That's not good news.

567
00:25:55,083 --> 00:25:56,500
"What do I need to do?"

568
00:25:56,583 --> 00:25:58,500
"Oh, well, here's
what you need to do.

569
00:25:58,583 --> 00:26:00,125
"You need
to clean yourself up.

570
00:26:00,167 --> 00:26:01,917
"You need to get
your act together.

571
00:26:02,000 --> 00:26:04,125
"You need to maybe
reincarnate or go to Mecca.

572
00:26:04,167 --> 00:26:05,875
"You need to do
better, try harder.

573
00:26:05,958 --> 00:26:08,083
"You need to find
your way back to God.

574
00:26:08,167 --> 00:26:10,083
"You got to walk
all the way there.

575
00:26:10,167 --> 00:26:11,917
Good luck finding him."

576
00:26:12,000 --> 00:26:15,125
That's not good news.

577
00:26:15,167 --> 00:26:17,875
That doesn't help
a sheep at all.

578
00:26:17,958 --> 00:26:20,583
"Baa," I got nothing, right?

579
00:26:20,667 --> 00:26:22,500
I don't know where
the shepherd is.

580
00:26:22,542 --> 00:26:23,875
I can't clean myself.

581
00:26:23,958 --> 00:26:26,375
I don't know if you noticed
this, I have hooves.

582
00:26:26,458 --> 00:26:28,708
Additionally, along
the way, it's dangerous.

583
00:26:28,792 --> 00:26:30,208
I'm not very tough.

584
00:26:30,292 --> 00:26:32,083
I don't know where
the shepherd is.

585
00:26:32,167 --> 00:26:33,917
I'm lost, I can't
find the flock.

586
00:26:34,000 --> 00:26:36,125
Plus, I'm bleeding.

587
00:26:36,167 --> 00:26:38,292
How many of you,
that's how life feels?

588
00:26:38,333 --> 00:26:40,208
And religion just comes
along and says,

589
00:26:40,292 --> 00:26:42,625
"You blew it,
good luck, fix it."

590
00:26:42,667 --> 00:26:44,417
Jesus comes along
and says, "I'm here.

591
00:26:44,500 --> 00:26:46,417
I'll pick you up
and carry you home."

592
00:26:46,500 --> 00:26:47,833
That's good news.

593
00:26:47,875 --> 00:26:51,875
That's really good news.
That's really good news.

594
00:26:54,750 --> 00:26:56,500
Do you know Jesus?

595
00:26:56,583 --> 00:26:58,125
He's the best.

596
00:26:58,167 --> 00:26:59,708
There's nobody like him.

597
00:26:59,792 --> 00:27:01,667
There's nobody like Jesus.

598
00:27:01,750 --> 00:27:04,125
He's a good shepherd.

599
00:27:04,167 --> 00:27:09,583
He goes on to tell this same
truth in a second parable.

600
00:27:09,667 --> 00:27:12,500
He transitions from
a lost sheep to a lost coin.

601
00:27:12,583 --> 00:27:16,500
Luke 15:8-10, "‘Or what woman,
having ten silver coins,

602
00:27:16,583 --> 00:27:20,000
"‘if she loses one coin, does not
light a lamp and sweep the house

603
00:27:20,042 --> 00:27:22,500
"‘and seek diligently
until she finds it?

604
00:27:22,542 --> 00:27:25,125
"‘And when she has found it, she
calls together her friends

605
00:27:25,167 --> 00:27:27,000
and neighbors, saying,
“Rejoice with me.”'"

606
00:27:27,083 --> 00:27:31,208
There it is again,
repentance and rejoicing.

607
00:27:31,292 --> 00:27:34,292
"'”For I have found
the coin that I had lost.”

608
00:27:34,333 --> 00:27:37,500
"‘Just so, I tell you, there is
joy before the angels of God

609
00:27:37,583 --> 00:27:40,917
over one sinner who repents.’"

610
00:27:41,000 --> 00:27:42,500
So here the story is,

611
00:27:42,583 --> 00:27:44,000
there's a woman.

612
00:27:44,083 --> 00:27:47,208
Maybe she's single,
widowed, we do not know.

613
00:27:47,292 --> 00:27:49,708
She probably lives in
a typical home in that day,

614
00:27:49,792 --> 00:27:53,083
which is about the size
of a one-car garage.

615
00:27:53,167 --> 00:27:55,000
Next time you pull
into a parking stall,

616
00:27:55,083 --> 00:27:58,208
think, in the days of Jesus as
well as many places on earth

617
00:27:58,292 --> 00:28:01,708
today, that's the size
of the average home.

618
00:28:01,792 --> 00:28:04,500
They didn't have the kind of
windows and doors and insulation

619
00:28:04,542 --> 00:28:08,875
that we do today, and so it
tended to be just thick walls,

620
00:28:08,958 --> 00:28:12,583
really dark,
probably dirt floors,

621
00:28:12,667 --> 00:28:14,792
maybe a little
straw on the bottom.

622
00:28:14,833 --> 00:28:18,125
This is a simple,
humble, peasant home.

623
00:28:18,167 --> 00:28:21,167
And in it lives a woman who
doesn't have a bank account

624
00:28:21,250 --> 00:28:23,833
and a huge investment portfolio
and a credit card.

625
00:28:23,875 --> 00:28:26,500
What she has for the sum total
of her wealth

626
00:28:26,542 --> 00:28:29,500
that she has to dole out
carefully for her expenses

627
00:28:29,542 --> 00:28:32,833
are ten silver coins.

628
00:28:32,875 --> 00:28:35,625
These ten silver coins
are the equivalent

629
00:28:35,667 --> 00:28:40,917
to a laborer's day wage in that
cultural context.

630
00:28:41,000 --> 00:28:44,917
So it's almost impossible to
attach a modern-day value to it,

631
00:28:45,000 --> 00:28:47,708
but let's say it's
like 100 bucks.

632
00:28:47,792 --> 00:28:50,875
She's got 10 of these,
so her aggregate wealth

633
00:28:50,958 --> 00:28:53,708
is about $1,000.

634
00:28:53,792 --> 00:28:57,125
And see, she somehow
drops one of the coins

635
00:28:57,167 --> 00:29:00,208
and she needs to find it.

636
00:29:00,292 --> 00:29:01,708
So what does she do?

637
00:29:01,792 --> 00:29:03,708
She gets her lantern
in her dark home

638
00:29:03,792 --> 00:29:05,208
and she's down on the floor.

639
00:29:05,292 --> 00:29:06,708
She's going through everything.

640
00:29:06,792 --> 00:29:08,625
She's looking underneath
all of the furniture.

641
00:29:08,667 --> 00:29:10,792
She's checking every square inch
of the house

642
00:29:10,833 --> 00:29:15,792
until she finds that coin.

643
00:29:15,833 --> 00:29:19,125
How many of you, you drop a $100
bill, you're looking for it?

644
00:29:19,167 --> 00:29:21,625
Right, even you're Puff Daddy,
you drop a $100 bill,

645
00:29:21,667 --> 00:29:23,125
you're looking for it.

646
00:29:23,167 --> 00:29:25,417
You drop a quarter,
you maybe let that go.

647
00:29:25,500 --> 00:29:27,917
Hundred dollar bill?
You're looking for it.

648
00:29:28,000 --> 00:29:31,708
In the story,
who represents God?

649
00:29:31,792 --> 00:29:33,292
The woman does.

650
00:29:33,333 --> 00:29:35,500
The Bible says God is
not male or female,

651
00:29:35,583 --> 00:29:38,208
he's made us male and female
in his image and likeness,

652
00:29:38,292 --> 00:29:42,583
but here God bestows some
particular dignity on the women.

653
00:29:42,667 --> 00:29:47,833
He shows us in this story
that he includes women

654
00:29:47,875 --> 00:29:51,292
in his instruction
for our example.

655
00:29:51,333 --> 00:29:54,292
Luke's gospel includes more
women than any other gospel.

656
00:29:54,333 --> 00:29:57,000
The women that Luke includes
tend to be some very godly,

657
00:29:57,042 --> 00:30:00,333
wonderful, sweet, helpful women,
as well as some women who are

658
00:30:00,375 --> 00:30:04,583
tormented and suffering, whom
Jesus heals and delivers.

659
00:30:04,667 --> 00:30:06,417
And the truth is,
in Luke's gospel,

660
00:30:06,500 --> 00:30:08,417
the women aren't
really the problem.

661
00:30:08,500 --> 00:30:11,375
It tends to be the religious
men who are the real problem.

662
00:30:11,458 --> 00:30:15,125
We see that the women tend to
gravitate toward Jesus

663
00:30:15,167 --> 00:30:18,292
and the religious people tend
to fight with him.

664
00:30:18,333 --> 00:30:22,125
And here we see Jesus
using a woman as an example

665
00:30:22,167 --> 00:30:24,208
to encourage all women.

666
00:30:24,292 --> 00:30:28,917
And he says that God here is
like this woman

667
00:30:29,000 --> 00:30:31,917
and that we therefore
are like what?

668
00:30:32,000 --> 00:30:35,417
The lost coin that
God is searching for,

669
00:30:35,500 --> 00:30:39,792
that God is committed to, that
God is devoted to finding.

670
00:30:39,833 --> 00:30:45,500
Every time you take
out change, currency,

671
00:30:45,583 --> 00:30:50,208
I want you to remember,
"I'm like a lost coin."

672
00:30:50,292 --> 00:30:53,208
Every time you drop a coin
and go to pick it up,

673
00:30:53,292 --> 00:30:55,000
remember Jesus' words.

674
00:30:55,083 --> 00:30:58,500
God treats you like
you treat that coin.

675
00:30:58,583 --> 00:31:02,292
As you pick it up, remember,
that's how God saves you.

676
00:31:02,333 --> 00:31:03,708
That's how God saves me.

677
00:31:03,792 --> 00:31:05,708
That's how God saves us.

678
00:31:05,792 --> 00:31:08,125
And some would say, "Oh,
you need to find God."

679
00:31:08,167 --> 00:31:10,875
You don't need to find God
any more than the coin

680
00:31:10,958 --> 00:31:12,333
needs to find the woman.

681
00:31:12,375 --> 00:31:16,708
You can't find God any more
than the coin finds the woman.

682
00:31:16,792 --> 00:31:19,500
It would be a very foolish coin
if it was boasting

683
00:31:19,542 --> 00:31:21,917
to all the other coins,
"Yeah, I picked myself up,

684
00:31:22,000 --> 00:31:24,917
flipped myself back up off
the floor into the purse."

685
00:31:25,000 --> 00:31:27,583
The other coins would say,
"That's not how that works.

686
00:31:27,667 --> 00:31:29,625
"We were there.
She picked you up."

687
00:31:29,667 --> 00:31:32,000
That's how salvation works.

688
00:31:32,083 --> 00:31:34,625
We sin,
we're spiritually dead.

689
00:31:34,667 --> 00:31:36,208
We don't save ourselves.

690
00:31:36,292 --> 00:31:38,333
We don't know God.
We don't pursue God.

691
00:31:38,375 --> 00:31:40,625
God knows us.
God pursues us.

692
00:31:40,667 --> 00:31:44,583
God literally, in Jesus Christ,
he picks us up

693
00:31:44,667 --> 00:31:46,833
because he cares about us.

694
00:31:46,875 --> 00:31:49,000
And some of us,
he's been looking for

695
00:31:49,042 --> 00:31:52,708
for a really long time, but he
doesn't give up his search.

696
00:31:52,792 --> 00:31:56,125
God never gives up his
search for his people.

697
00:31:56,167 --> 00:31:57,833
He searches
until he finds them.

698
00:31:57,875 --> 00:32:00,417
That's the big idea
of the story.

699
00:32:00,500 --> 00:32:04,875
And when God finds his
people, how does he feel?

700
00:32:04,958 --> 00:32:09,917
Joyful, really joyful.

701
00:32:10,000 --> 00:32:14,833
You need to know that God
is happy when we repent.

702
00:32:14,875 --> 00:32:18,583
Here's what it says,
verse 10, Jesus says,

703
00:32:18,667 --> 00:32:20,625
there's no higher
authority than his,

704
00:32:20,667 --> 00:32:24,208
"There is joy
before the angels of God

705
00:32:24,292 --> 00:32:26,208
over one sinner who repents."

706
00:32:26,292 --> 00:32:30,875
Now, some of you may have
heard this almost accurately.

707
00:32:30,958 --> 00:32:33,875
Some of you have been told, "Oh,
when someone repents of sin,

708
00:32:33,958 --> 00:32:35,708
"when someone turns
to trust in Christ,

709
00:32:35,792 --> 00:32:37,333
"when someone
becomes a Christian,

710
00:32:37,375 --> 00:32:40,917
the angels rejoice in
the presence of God."

711
00:32:41,000 --> 00:32:42,500
Have you heard that?

712
00:32:42,583 --> 00:32:44,792
It's not quite accurate.

713
00:32:44,833 --> 00:32:50,500
We just read, there is rejoicing
in the presence of the angels

714
00:32:50,583 --> 00:32:52,708
when a sinner repents.

715
00:32:52,792 --> 00:32:55,875
That is, to become a Christian,
grow as a Christian,

716
00:32:55,958 --> 00:32:59,792
mature as a Christian,
any sin that we repent of,

717
00:32:59,833 --> 00:33:02,708
God throws a party about.

718
00:33:02,792 --> 00:33:08,333
God rejoices, God is glad,
God shouts in gladness.

719
00:33:09,833 --> 00:33:11,875
And it's in
the presence of the angels.

720
00:33:11,958 --> 00:33:13,792
So the angels watch.

721
00:33:13,833 --> 00:33:17,875
See, normally it is the angels
who are rejoicing

722
00:33:17,958 --> 00:33:19,833
in the presence of God.

723
00:33:19,875 --> 00:33:23,792
They're honoring,
worshiping, glorifying God.

724
00:33:23,833 --> 00:33:29,500
And when we repent, as sinful
as we are, God rejoices.

725
00:33:29,583 --> 00:33:32,333
And all of the angels,
as it were,

726
00:33:32,375 --> 00:33:34,875
perhaps they're even
silenced for a moment,

727
00:33:34,958 --> 00:33:39,125
and God explodes
in enthusiastic joy.

728
00:33:39,167 --> 00:33:41,625
Some of you have struggled
to repent of sin.

729
00:33:41,667 --> 00:33:44,208
Some of you have resisted
repenting of sin.

730
00:33:44,292 --> 00:33:47,917
Some of you are religious and
you strain to repent of sin,

731
00:33:48,000 --> 00:33:51,167
to say things like, "I was
wrong and I am sorry and God

732
00:33:51,250 --> 00:33:53,708
and people, please forgive me."

733
00:33:53,792 --> 00:33:57,167
And some of you would wonder,
"If I come to God and tell him

734
00:33:57,250 --> 00:33:59,000
what I've done, how
would he respond?"

735
00:33:59,083 --> 00:34:00,667
Well, I'll tell you
two things.

736
00:34:00,750 --> 00:34:02,292
Number one,
he already knows.

737
00:34:02,333 --> 00:34:04,917
Let me just get that off--you
say, "I can't tell God.

738
00:34:05,000 --> 00:34:06,375
What will he think?"

739
00:34:06,458 --> 00:34:09,375
Well it's not like you're
going to go to God and say,

740
00:34:09,458 --> 00:34:10,833
"Here's how it is,” and he’ll say,

741
00:34:10,875 --> 00:34:12,333
"You're kidding me.

742
00:34:12,375 --> 00:34:14,333
"You're kidding me.
I took a nap.

743
00:34:14,375 --> 00:34:16,417
I missed it, I had no idea."

744
00:34:16,500 --> 00:34:22,375
No, he knows and, number two,
he rejoices in our repentance.

745
00:34:23,083 --> 00:34:26,375
He rejoices in our repentance.

746
00:34:26,458 --> 00:34:30,375
So we should rejoice in our
repentance and we should rejoice

747
00:34:30,458 --> 00:34:32,917
in the repentance of others.

748
00:34:33,000 --> 00:34:35,500
And some of you may come
here, you may think,

749
00:34:35,542 --> 00:34:37,125
"I need to be religious.

750
00:34:37,167 --> 00:34:40,500
"I need to be a good person,
and if I'm not a good person

751
00:34:40,583 --> 00:34:43,292
I need to fake it
and I need to hide it."

752
00:34:43,333 --> 00:34:48,333
No, confess it, repent of it,
and let us rejoice with you

753
00:34:48,375 --> 00:34:51,125
because our God is
a God who rejoices.

754
00:34:51,167 --> 00:34:53,917
Our God is not
a God of religion.

755
00:34:54,000 --> 00:34:56,500
He's a God of repentance
and rejoicing.

756
00:34:56,542 --> 00:34:59,000
Don't you love that?
He's not a God of religion.

757
00:34:59,042 --> 00:35:03,667
He's a God of our repentance
and his rejoicing.

758
00:35:03,750 --> 00:35:07,833
God loves to forgive.

759
00:35:07,875 --> 00:35:09,500
You've not gone too far.

760
00:35:09,583 --> 00:35:12,917
You've not done too much.

761
00:35:13,000 --> 00:35:14,917
Jesus is looking for you.

762
00:35:15,000 --> 00:35:19,625
Some of you, he's been looking
for a really long time.

763
00:35:19,667 --> 00:35:22,125
And he's here to find you.

764
00:35:22,167 --> 00:35:28,125
And as Jesus saves and as Jesus
forgives and as Jesus transforms

765
00:35:28,167 --> 00:35:32,208
and God rejoices, we are given
this wonderful opportunity

766
00:35:32,292 --> 00:35:36,625
to share in the joy of God by
telling people about Jesus,

767
00:35:36,667 --> 00:35:41,417
the good shepherd, and by seeing
him pick them up

768
00:35:41,500 --> 00:35:45,208
and their sin and shame
and carry them back to God

769
00:35:45,292 --> 00:35:47,708
and put them in the flock.

770
00:35:47,792 --> 00:35:51,083
So I thought it would be fun,
because one of the coolest parts

771
00:35:51,167 --> 00:35:53,917
of my job, I actually love
this part--I love my job.

772
00:35:54,000 --> 00:35:56,375
But I really love
this part of my job,

773
00:35:56,458 --> 00:35:59,708
seeing non-Christians become
Christians and seeing Christians

774
00:35:59,792 --> 00:36:02,708
help non-Christians
become Christians.

775
00:36:02,792 --> 00:36:06,167
It's the coolest thing
in the world, it's the best.

776
00:36:06,250 --> 00:36:09,000
So I posted on
the Ballard City group

777
00:36:09,042 --> 00:36:11,708
yesterday,
just last night.

778
00:36:11,792 --> 00:36:14,833
I said, "Hey, if you've become
a Christian recently, last year,

779
00:36:14,875 --> 00:36:18,125
"or you've introduced someone to
Jesus and he's used you

780
00:36:18,167 --> 00:36:21,292
to help others meet him,
write up your story."

781
00:36:21,333 --> 00:36:25,000
I've got pages,
let me give a few to you.

782
00:36:25,042 --> 00:36:28,125
Don't you love hearing
stories of changed lives?

783
00:36:28,167 --> 00:36:29,833
It's the best.

784
00:36:29,875 --> 00:36:33,333
We never want to be a church
just for all the sheep.

785
00:36:33,375 --> 00:36:36,708
We want to be a church that
welcomes all the lost sheep

786
00:36:36,792 --> 00:36:39,625
to come back to the flock.

787
00:36:39,667 --> 00:36:42,917
Nineteen-year-old kid, he says,
"I grew up in a neglectful,

788
00:36:43,000 --> 00:36:44,917
"abusive,
orthodox Jewish family.

789
00:36:45,000 --> 00:36:47,208
"I practiced
witchcraft, demonism,

790
00:36:47,292 --> 00:36:49,875
"symbolism and incubism
and succubism

791
00:36:49,958 --> 00:36:52,292
for a really long time,
knowing what they were."

792
00:36:52,333 --> 00:36:56,625
Dropped out of high school,
drugs, demons, the occult,

793
00:36:56,667 --> 00:36:58,625
darkness, trouble.

794
00:36:58,667 --> 00:37:01,208
His parents didn't know
what to do with him.

795
00:37:01,292 --> 00:37:04,583
They kicked him out
of the house on Easter.

796
00:37:06,792 --> 00:37:09,500
What happens is he
ends up meeting Jesus,

797
00:37:09,542 --> 00:37:11,333
God changes his heart and life.

798
00:37:11,375 --> 00:37:14,083
He ends up at the Mars Hill
University District campus.

799
00:37:14,167 --> 00:37:18,167
He's allowed back into high
school so that he could finish.

800
00:37:18,250 --> 00:37:20,000
He's getting discipled
and right now

801
00:37:20,083 --> 00:37:21,792
he's living
in a Christian guy's house

802
00:37:21,833 --> 00:37:24,292
with a bunch of buddies
who are walking with him

803
00:37:24,333 --> 00:37:27,125
as a little flock to help
him stay out of trouble.

804
00:37:27,167 --> 00:37:29,625
Changed life,
19-year-old kid.

805
00:37:29,667 --> 00:37:33,667
[applauding]

806
00:37:33,750 --> 00:37:35,500
Here's another one.

807
00:37:35,583 --> 00:37:37,500
There's a brother
who is a Christian.

808
00:37:37,583 --> 00:37:39,792
He's got a sister
who's not a Christian.

809
00:37:39,833 --> 00:37:41,792
And he was really
worried about her.

810
00:37:41,833 --> 00:37:43,417
They're at
the Federal Way campus.

811
00:37:43,500 --> 00:37:46,833
And he kept talking to her about
God and she didn't really get it

812
00:37:46,875 --> 00:37:48,208
and she didn't get Jesus.

813
00:37:48,292 --> 00:37:50,417
So he thought, "Okay,
I'm going to try again.

814
00:37:50,500 --> 00:37:54,208
I'm going to pray for her, have
others be praying for her."

815
00:37:54,292 --> 00:37:57,375
And he took her out to
lunch at Ruby Tuesday's.

816
00:37:57,458 --> 00:38:00,083
Okay, can the Good Shepherd
go to Ruby Tuesday's?

817
00:38:00,167 --> 00:38:01,417
Yes.

818
00:38:01,500 --> 00:38:05,708
You know you're elect if you get
saved at a Ruby Tuesdays, amen?

819
00:38:05,792 --> 00:38:08,083
Yeah, some people, "Oh,
how did you find God?"

820
00:38:08,167 --> 00:38:11,000
"I went to Mecca."
Others?

821
00:38:11,083 --> 00:38:13,333
"I went to Ruby Tuesday's."
You know?

822
00:38:13,375 --> 00:38:16,500
“In fact, the Good Shepherd
just came to hang out with me.”

823
00:38:16,542 --> 00:38:18,500
And he's sitting there,
he explains, he said,

824
00:38:18,583 --> 00:38:21,167
"I was sitting there talking
to my sister about Jesus."

825
00:38:21,250 --> 00:38:23,333
And he said, "I could see
the Holy Spirit

826
00:38:23,375 --> 00:38:25,375
just open her understanding."

827
00:38:25,458 --> 00:38:28,500
By the end of the conversation
she was literally telling him,

828
00:38:28,542 --> 00:38:31,083
"Hey, brother, I would
like to be a Christian."

829
00:38:31,167 --> 00:38:34,792
He got to actually introduce
his own sister to Jesus

830
00:38:34,833 --> 00:38:38,000
in Federal Way over lunch
at Ruby Tuesday’s

831
00:38:38,083 --> 00:38:42,083
and today is her first day at
Mars Hill Church, so welcome.

832
00:38:42,167 --> 00:38:47,125
[applauding]

833
00:38:47,167 --> 00:38:49,000
This one is really cool.

834
00:38:49,083 --> 00:38:52,000
There was a brother, he had
a little sister who was still

835
00:38:52,083 --> 00:38:55,500
in high school, moved out of her
parent's house with a very

836
00:38:55,583 --> 00:39:01,292
violent, abusive, troubled guy
who harmed her, abused her.

837
00:39:01,333 --> 00:39:04,333
He eventually was arrested
and went to jail.

838
00:39:04,375 --> 00:39:06,000
Bad guy.

839
00:39:06,083 --> 00:39:09,000
And the big brother is really
worried about his little sister.

840
00:39:09,042 --> 00:39:12,333
Some of you, this
sounds familiar, right?

841
00:39:12,375 --> 00:39:15,917
So he asks his community
group, gets the flock together,

842
00:39:16,000 --> 00:39:19,625
"Please pray for my sister,
she's a lost sheep."

843
00:39:19,667 --> 00:39:22,125
He's praying for her, the
parents are saying she needs

844
00:39:22,167 --> 00:39:26,833
rehab, she needs medication,
she needs all of these things.

845
00:39:26,875 --> 00:39:28,083
Maybe, maybe not.

846
00:39:28,167 --> 00:39:30,500
What she needs first,
she needs to be found

847
00:39:30,583 --> 00:39:33,125
because this girl is lost.

848
00:39:33,167 --> 00:39:35,333
He's sitting at home.

849
00:39:35,375 --> 00:39:36,833
His sister comes
down the stairs,

850
00:39:36,875 --> 00:39:39,667
she looks at him and says,
"I was reading my Bible.

851
00:39:39,750 --> 00:39:42,708
I decided I love Jesus
and I want to be a Christian."

852
00:39:42,792 --> 00:39:45,917
Can the Good Shepherd go to
somebody's house and hang out

853
00:39:46,000 --> 00:39:47,917
in their living room
and change their heart?

854
00:39:48,000 --> 00:39:49,333
Yes.

855
00:39:49,375 --> 00:39:51,333
How happy do you think
this brother was?

856
00:39:51,375 --> 00:39:54,125
How many of you, emotionally,
man, if it was your brother,

857
00:39:54,167 --> 00:39:56,833
your sister, your mother, your
father, member of your family,

858
00:39:56,875 --> 00:39:58,208
you'd be so thrilled?

859
00:39:58,292 --> 00:39:59,625
He was so happy.

860
00:39:59,667 --> 00:40:01,500
You know who was happier?
God.

861
00:40:01,583 --> 00:40:04,000
As happy as we get,
God gets happier.

862
00:40:04,083 --> 00:40:10,250
As joyful as we are when someone
gets saved, God is more joyful.

863
00:40:11,500 --> 00:40:14,833
Here's another one,
another Federal Way campus.

864
00:40:14,875 --> 00:40:18,000
This guy works at a retirement
home with a number of

865
00:40:18,083 --> 00:40:22,333
senior citizens, and he talks
to them about Jesus.

866
00:40:22,375 --> 00:40:23,833
And he's got a ministry there.

867
00:40:23,875 --> 00:40:26,333
It's very cool, he's down
at the Federal Way campus.

868
00:40:26,375 --> 00:40:29,667
He said that he was talking to
one guy about Jesus and there

869
00:40:29,750 --> 00:40:32,667
was an older guy named Gerald
who was in his 80s, right?

870
00:40:32,750 --> 00:40:35,000
So this is a guy,
if Jesus gets him,

871
00:40:35,083 --> 00:40:38,500
it's been a long hunt
to track down this guy.

872
00:40:38,583 --> 00:40:40,833
This guy's name is Gerald.

873
00:40:40,875 --> 00:40:42,667
And Gerald is sitting
there and says,

874
00:40:42,750 --> 00:40:44,500
"Hey, what are you guys
talking about?

875
00:40:44,583 --> 00:40:47,000
"Are you talking about Jesus?
I got questions about Jesus."

876
00:40:47,083 --> 00:40:49,000
"Well, come on in,
come on in, Gerald,"

877
00:40:49,083 --> 00:40:51,708
which is the most awesome
name ever, "Come on in, Gerald."

878
00:40:51,792 --> 00:40:54,375
And so Gerald says, "I need
to know more about Jesus."

879
00:40:54,458 --> 00:40:57,375
Okay, so the guy from
Mars Hill runs out to his car,

880
00:40:57,458 --> 00:41:00,708
gets one of those free Bibles
we give away, hands it to him,

881
00:41:00,792 --> 00:41:02,125
says, "Read John."

882
00:41:02,167 --> 00:41:04,125
Short time later Gerald
comes to him, says,

883
00:41:04,167 --> 00:41:06,625
"I read John, pretty awesome.
What do I read now?"

884
00:41:06,667 --> 00:41:09,125
And the guy says, "Keep going
until you hit something

885
00:41:09,167 --> 00:41:10,500
"called Concordance.

886
00:41:10,583 --> 00:41:13,333
Just keep reading, there's all
kinds of good stuff in there."

887
00:41:13,375 --> 00:41:15,708
So Gerald keeps asking all
these questions about Jesus.

888
00:41:15,792 --> 00:41:19,917
And this man in his 80s prays to
receive Christ and give his life

889
00:41:20,000 --> 00:41:24,417
to Jesus and the Good Shepherd
shows up at the retirement home

890
00:41:24,500 --> 00:41:28,792
and saves Gerald.

891
00:41:28,833 --> 00:41:31,833
[applauding]

892
00:41:31,875 --> 00:41:33,667
Two other
cool parts of the story.

893
00:41:33,750 --> 00:41:36,333
The first thing he asks is,
"Now that I'm a Christian,

894
00:41:36,375 --> 00:41:38,167
do I have to be a Republican?"

895
00:41:38,250 --> 00:41:41,375
That was his first question,
which is awesome.

896
00:41:42,875 --> 00:41:45,083
Not at Mars Hill.
We always vote for Jesus.

897
00:41:45,167 --> 00:41:47,000
We always do
the write-in candidate.

898
00:41:47,083 --> 00:41:49,333
We're always voting
for the same guy.

899
00:41:49,375 --> 00:41:52,167
What was interesting, too,
then is a few months later,

900
00:41:52,250 --> 00:41:56,833
Gerald's son Tim shows up
at the retirement home.

901
00:41:56,875 --> 00:41:59,833
And Tim was a Christian who had
been praying for his dad

902
00:41:59,875 --> 00:42:02,625
for 40 years.

903
00:42:02,667 --> 00:42:04,208
Isn't that awesome?

904
00:42:04,292 --> 00:42:07,375
That's great!

905
00:42:07,458 --> 00:42:09,792
A few months later, Gerald
died and right now

906
00:42:09,833 --> 00:42:11,917
he's with the Good Shepherd.

907
00:42:12,000 --> 00:42:13,917
That's great, and we
praise God for that.

908
00:42:14,000 --> 00:42:17,333
Here's another one, he says,
"I'm from eastern Washington.

909
00:42:17,375 --> 00:42:19,125
"I moved to Albuquerque
2 years ago.

910
00:42:19,167 --> 00:42:22,292
"I had no idea Mars Hill was
out of Seattle when my friends

911
00:42:22,333 --> 00:42:27,208
"invited me after being saved on
their futon at community group

912
00:42:27,292 --> 00:42:30,417
on the first night
4 months ago."

913
00:42:30,500 --> 00:42:33,417
This guy shows up to community
group in Albuquerque.

914
00:42:33,500 --> 00:42:36,625
The Good Shepherd sits
on the futon next to him

915
00:42:36,667 --> 00:42:38,833
and he goes from lost to found.

916
00:42:38,875 --> 00:42:43,833
You know that God loves you
when you get saved on a futon.

917
00:42:43,875 --> 00:42:47,000
Our God is willing
to sit on a futon with you.

918
00:42:47,042 --> 00:42:49,417
I don't like
to sit on a futon.

919
00:42:49,500 --> 00:42:53,208
Jesus is so humble he'll sit
on a futon and he'll zap a guy

920
00:42:53,292 --> 00:42:54,708
first night at community group.

921
00:42:54,792 --> 00:42:56,417
That's pretty fantastic.

922
00:42:56,500 --> 00:42:59,083
He goes on to say, "God has
changed my hard habits

923
00:42:59,167 --> 00:43:02,125
"and given me an ocean of
love to live in along with

924
00:43:02,167 --> 00:43:04,167
a strong Christian community,
something I've never had."

925
00:43:04,250 --> 00:43:08,167
Now he's in the flock and
others are looking after him.

926
00:43:08,250 --> 00:43:12,000
Here's a gal, "After 26
years of being raised in nothing

927
00:43:12,042 --> 00:43:14,833
"more than, 'This is good
and this is bad,' religion,

928
00:43:14,875 --> 00:43:16,833
"performing music in
hundreds of churches

929
00:43:16,875 --> 00:43:18,583
"with very
hypocritical messages

930
00:43:18,667 --> 00:43:21,500
"and completely turning my back
on Jesus and the concept of God,

931
00:43:21,583 --> 00:43:23,708
"I was gently introduced
to Mars Hill

932
00:43:23,792 --> 00:43:25,375
"by my closest friends.

933
00:43:25,458 --> 00:43:27,708
"By the grace of God
and the Holy Spirit

934
00:43:27,792 --> 00:43:30,208
"working furiously in me through
the teaching and the work

935
00:43:30,292 --> 00:43:32,208
of Pastor A.J.
at the Albuquerque campus,"

936
00:43:32,292 --> 00:43:33,625
I was just down there.

937
00:43:33,667 --> 00:43:35,917
Tons of people getting saved
at the Albuquerque campus.

938
00:43:36,000 --> 00:43:40,083
"I was baptized on
October 10, 2010.

939
00:43:40,167 --> 00:43:42,500
"Since then I've met
a godly man, got engaged.

940
00:43:42,583 --> 00:43:44,208
"We're attending
Redemption Group.

941
00:43:44,292 --> 00:43:47,417
"I am truly amazed
and incredibly blessed.

942
00:43:47,500 --> 00:43:50,833
"About a month before my
baptism a dear friend of mine,

943
00:43:50,875 --> 00:43:53,000
"she is Japanese,
was in dire straits

944
00:43:53,083 --> 00:43:55,625
"and obviously being
demonically oppressed.

945
00:43:55,667 --> 00:43:58,625
"I invited her to church and
she soon attended regularly.

946
00:43:58,667 --> 00:44:01,333
"I preached the gospel
to her as best I could

947
00:44:01,375 --> 00:44:03,833
"as a completely new Christian
as often as I could

948
00:44:03,875 --> 00:44:06,708
"and she began to attend
the Bible study

949
00:44:06,792 --> 00:44:08,375
"at the close friend's home.

950
00:44:08,458 --> 00:44:11,000
"My heart went out to her as
her darkness was something

951
00:44:11,083 --> 00:44:14,333
"I completely submersed
myself in not so long ago.

952
00:44:14,375 --> 00:44:16,667
On January 23,"
just a few weeks ago,

953
00:44:16,750 --> 00:44:19,167
"she came to church with our
usual group of friends

954
00:44:19,250 --> 00:44:21,500
"and I prayed for her during
the entire service.

955
00:44:21,542 --> 00:44:22,917
"Something was different.

956
00:44:23,000 --> 00:44:24,417
"Her body language
was more attentive

957
00:44:24,500 --> 00:44:25,875
"to the message than ever.

958
00:44:25,958 --> 00:44:28,417
"During the response time
I began to break down,

959
00:44:28,500 --> 00:44:30,208
"praying hard
for her salvation.

960
00:44:30,292 --> 00:44:33,208
"She began to cry as well, but
happily I simply looked

961
00:44:33,292 --> 00:44:36,292
"at her asked, 'Are you ready?'

962
00:44:36,333 --> 00:44:39,583
She said loud and clear,
'Yes,'" which is awesome.

963
00:44:39,667 --> 00:44:42,167
"One of the most incredible,
joyful experiences of my life

964
00:44:42,250 --> 00:44:45,083
was watching her get baptized."

965
00:44:45,167 --> 00:44:46,208
Love that.

966
00:44:46,292 --> 00:44:47,875
Here's another one
from Albuquerque.

967
00:44:47,958 --> 00:44:52,375
A guy tells a story that he was
37 years old, had been abused,

968
00:44:52,458 --> 00:44:56,000
was absolutely
depressed and suicidal.

969
00:44:56,083 --> 00:44:59,500
Decided he would
leave his girlfriend,

970
00:44:59,583 --> 00:45:02,208
give his children
to someone else,

971
00:45:02,292 --> 00:45:05,583
so he could go kill himself.

972
00:45:05,667 --> 00:45:07,417
And then the Good Shepherd
showed up,

973
00:45:07,500 --> 00:45:10,208
he who was lost became found.

974
00:45:10,292 --> 00:45:13,833
Not only did he meet Jesus,
so did his whole family

975
00:45:13,875 --> 00:45:15,875
and now he's in Pastor A.J.'s
Bible study

976
00:45:15,958 --> 00:45:20,417
and he's on the Albuquerque
security team serving Christ.

977
00:45:20,500 --> 00:45:22,583
There's another guy
here, his name is Brian.

978
00:45:22,667 --> 00:45:25,208
I played baseball
with him growing up.

979
00:45:25,292 --> 00:45:28,125
He says he was a Catholic
guy, he was moral and good,

980
00:45:28,167 --> 00:45:32,000
distanced himself from God and
God's people because he says,

981
00:45:32,083 --> 00:45:35,333
quote, he felt he was, "Good
enough," a good, moral person.

982
00:45:35,375 --> 00:45:37,125
That's what he thought.

983
00:45:37,167 --> 00:45:40,125
His wife Amy became a Christian
and was baptized as a Christian,

984
00:45:40,167 --> 00:45:43,625
and she obviously longed for
her husband to meet Jesus.

985
00:45:43,667 --> 00:45:45,833
How many of you ladies,
you could say,

986
00:45:45,875 --> 00:45:48,417
"Yeah, that would be great
if my husband met Jesus."

987
00:45:48,500 --> 00:45:51,417
He says, "Just a few weeks
ago, I was baptized with my

988
00:45:51,500 --> 00:45:54,875
two children, Eva and Ben,
with Amy cheering me on."

989
00:45:54,958 --> 00:45:57,125
That was during
the narrow door sermon.

990
00:45:57,167 --> 00:46:00,500
How happy do you think that
woman was to see her husband,

991
00:46:00,583 --> 00:46:04,333
their son, daughter,
all go from lost to found

992
00:46:04,375 --> 00:46:06,708
and get baptized
at the same time?

993
00:46:06,792 --> 00:46:08,875
God was happier than her.

994
00:46:08,958 --> 00:46:12,500
She was happy,
he was happier.

995
00:46:12,583 --> 00:46:14,125
Here's a good one.

996
00:46:14,167 --> 00:46:17,167
"After 30 years of praying
for my Jewish parents,"

997
00:46:17,250 --> 00:46:19,833
you know that's
going to be good,

998
00:46:19,875 --> 00:46:23,000
"I had the amazing gift of
leading both of them to Christ

999
00:46:23,083 --> 00:46:24,708
"before they died.

1000
00:46:24,792 --> 00:46:26,333
"My father's conversion
was profound.

1001
00:46:26,375 --> 00:46:29,833
"I led him to his Messiah in the
hospital 2 weeks before he died.

1002
00:46:29,875 --> 00:46:31,375
"We sang
'Amazing Grace' together.

1003
00:46:31,458 --> 00:46:33,375
"My dad was filled
with the Holy Spirit.

1004
00:46:33,458 --> 00:46:36,167
"Jesus met him in very personal
ways during his last weeks

1005
00:46:36,250 --> 00:46:37,667
"of life on the earth.

1006
00:46:37,750 --> 00:46:40,083
"My mom also accepted Christ
earlier that same year,

1007
00:46:40,167 --> 00:46:41,625
"and on her deathbed we prayed

1008
00:46:41,667 --> 00:46:43,625
"and she called
on the name of Yeshua.

1009
00:46:43,667 --> 00:46:45,000
"God is so faithful.

1010
00:46:45,083 --> 00:46:47,667
Don't give up on praying."

1011
00:46:47,750 --> 00:46:50,333
Can the Good Shepherd go to
a hospital with somebody

1012
00:46:50,375 --> 00:46:53,208
who has lived their whole life
ignoring him and bring them

1013
00:46:53,292 --> 00:46:56,125
from lost to found
on their bed?

1014
00:46:56,167 --> 00:46:58,417
Yes.

1015
00:46:58,500 --> 00:46:59,833
Here's a good one.

1016
00:46:59,875 --> 00:47:05,500
"I am ethnically Turkish
and a Muslim by background."

1017
00:47:05,542 --> 00:47:07,208
All right?

1018
00:47:07,292 --> 00:47:09,292
Just so you know,
Turkey is where

1019
00:47:09,333 --> 00:47:11,333
a lot Paul's trips were taken.

1020
00:47:11,375 --> 00:47:14,083
You look at the maps in
the back of your Bible,

1021
00:47:14,167 --> 00:47:16,583
a lot of those cities where
we're leading a tour

1022
00:47:16,667 --> 00:47:19,125
to this summer, you can
join us if you want,

1023
00:47:19,167 --> 00:47:20,500
are through modern-day Turkey.

1024
00:47:20,583 --> 00:47:22,000
It's where Christianity started.

1025
00:47:22,083 --> 00:47:25,000
Today, I don't know what there
is, 75, 85 million people.

1026
00:47:25,083 --> 00:47:30,333
There are only 3,000 Christians
in the whole nation of Turkey.

1027
00:47:30,375 --> 00:47:35,792
Operation World says it's the
least Christian nation on earth.

1028
00:47:37,083 --> 00:47:40,708
This guy,
"I'm Turkish Muslim."

1029
00:47:40,792 --> 00:47:43,625
Right, you convert that guy,
that's the day you go out

1030
00:47:43,667 --> 00:47:45,125
and buy Lotto tickets.

1031
00:47:45,167 --> 00:47:48,417
It's your day, okay?

1032
00:47:48,500 --> 00:47:50,500
He got divorced
and here's what he says.

1033
00:47:50,542 --> 00:47:54,333
"In July 2010," so last summer,
he met a guy named Donald Johns

1034
00:47:54,375 --> 00:47:57,708
at Starbucks, who worked
for Mars Hill Church.

1035
00:47:57,792 --> 00:48:00,125
Donald sat down with him,
started talking to him

1036
00:48:00,167 --> 00:48:02,208
about Jesus,
they kept meeting.

1037
00:48:02,292 --> 00:48:06,000
Donald would bring his Bible.

1038
00:48:06,042 --> 00:48:09,208
And here's what happened,
"By August I felt a--

1039
00:48:09,292 --> 00:48:11,375
"I felt strongly drawn to Jesus.

1040
00:48:11,458 --> 00:48:13,708
"I felt his love
and the need to repent.

1041
00:48:13,792 --> 00:48:16,917
"Praise the Lord that he worked
in my life to bring me to

1042
00:48:17,000 --> 00:48:20,833
"finally accept Jesus as my Lord
and Savior on August 29, 2010.

1043
00:48:20,875 --> 00:48:23,000
"I felt a spiritual
transformation and fulfillment.

1044
00:48:23,083 --> 00:48:24,792
"The emptiness was gone,
replaced with joy.

1045
00:48:24,833 --> 00:48:26,833
God's amazing grace
and love filled my heart."

1046
00:48:26,875 --> 00:48:30,917
He says, "I met Jesus and felt
the presence of the Holy Spirit,

1047
00:48:31,000 --> 00:48:32,667
"realized I was being saved.

1048
00:48:32,750 --> 00:48:34,583
I have been blessed with
wonderful fellowship,"

1049
00:48:34,667 --> 00:48:37,083
there's the flock, "and have
expanded my knowledge of God

1050
00:48:37,167 --> 00:48:38,333
"through his Word.

1051
00:48:38,375 --> 00:48:42,292
Donald and I now meet every
Saturday to study the Bible."

1052
00:48:42,333 --> 00:48:43,708
Thanks, Donald.

1053
00:48:43,792 --> 00:48:46,708
"I go to a group meeting weekly
and have attended church on

1054
00:48:46,792 --> 00:48:49,708
a regular basis, having been a
believer now for a few months."

1055
00:48:49,792 --> 00:48:51,500
I think he's
at the Bellevue campus.

1056
00:48:51,583 --> 00:48:53,708
There's another person in here,
they were worried about

1057
00:48:53,792 --> 00:48:55,500
their 87-year-old mother.

1058
00:48:55,542 --> 00:48:58,500
She did not love Jesus
and didn't want to hear it.

1059
00:48:58,542 --> 00:49:01,208
So this person thought, "I'm
going to get my campus pastor

1060
00:49:01,292 --> 00:49:02,708
to go talk to my mom."

1061
00:49:02,792 --> 00:49:05,500
I think it was Pastor Bill Clem
from the Ballard campus.

1062
00:49:05,583 --> 00:49:07,208
He is our bearded charmer.

1063
00:49:07,292 --> 00:49:10,000
Grandmothers adore him.

1064
00:49:11,583 --> 00:49:13,125
He is a bearded charmer.

1065
00:49:13,167 --> 00:49:16,500
He is so enjoyable.

1066
00:49:16,583 --> 00:49:18,917
So Campus Pastor Bill Clem,
the bearded charmer,

1067
00:49:19,000 --> 00:49:22,500
goes to lunch with
the 87-year-old grandmother

1068
00:49:22,583 --> 00:49:24,667
and, lo and behold--or the
87-year-old mother,

1069
00:49:24,750 --> 00:49:28,667
and she goes from lost to
found, gives her life to Jesus.

1070
00:49:28,750 --> 00:49:32,417
How happy was her daughter,
her grandchildren?

1071
00:49:32,500 --> 00:49:35,500
God was happier.

1072
00:49:35,542 --> 00:49:39,000
Here's one, this
one starts strong.

1073
00:49:39,083 --> 00:49:41,583
"On January 2, 2011,"
a couple of weeks ago,

1074
00:49:41,667 --> 00:49:45,917
"I was shot in the head while
driving on my way home

1075
00:49:46,000 --> 00:49:47,583
"from working out at the gym.

1076
00:49:47,667 --> 00:49:49,917
"Through the grace of
God, I did not die

1077
00:49:50,000 --> 00:49:51,917
"and was given
a second chance at life.

1078
00:49:52,000 --> 00:49:54,917
"When I woke up at Harborview
and realized I was still alive,

1079
00:49:55,000 --> 00:49:57,417
"I awoke with an amazing
sense of purpose and clarity.

1080
00:49:57,500 --> 00:49:59,792
"I knew without a doubt
I had been given

1081
00:49:59,833 --> 00:50:01,292
"a great opportunity by God.

1082
00:50:01,333 --> 00:50:03,000
"There was an instantaneous
transformation that occurred

1083
00:50:03,083 --> 00:50:04,417
in me that day."

1084
00:50:04,500 --> 00:50:06,208
I think he's
at the Bellevue campus.

1085
00:50:06,292 --> 00:50:07,792
"I underwent a massive
reprioritization

1086
00:50:07,833 --> 00:50:09,167
"of my purposes in life.

1087
00:50:09,250 --> 00:50:10,708
"My faith became
unwavering that day.

1088
00:50:10,792 --> 00:50:13,708
"I received Christ into my life
and nothing anyone can say

1089
00:50:13,792 --> 00:50:15,292
"could change what I believe.

1090
00:50:15,333 --> 00:50:17,125
"My relationship and love
with Christ, family,

1091
00:50:17,167 --> 00:50:19,292
"and friends became
paramount in my life.

1092
00:50:19,333 --> 00:50:20,708
"God saved my life twice,

1093
00:50:20,792 --> 00:50:23,000
"once by allowing me
a second chance at life,

1094
00:50:23,083 --> 00:50:25,708
"twice by allowing me
to be born again as a believer.

1095
00:50:25,792 --> 00:50:27,917
"I have been given my life by
God, Jesus,

1096
00:50:28,000 --> 00:50:30,417
and the Holy Spirit, amen."

1097
00:50:30,500 --> 00:50:32,792
I'll give you one more,
this one's pretty cool.

1098
00:50:32,833 --> 00:50:35,208
There's a ton of them.
Well, here's two more.

1099
00:50:35,292 --> 00:50:37,417
You know when a preacher
says, "Hey, one more,"

1100
00:50:37,500 --> 00:50:38,917
you know what he means?

1101
00:50:39,000 --> 00:50:40,333
Nothing.

1102
00:50:40,375 --> 00:50:42,625
He just wants you to pay
attention, that's all.

1103
00:50:42,667 --> 00:50:44,583
Here's a gal up
at the Shoreline campus.

1104
00:50:44,667 --> 00:50:47,833
She says, "I'm a volunteer
teacher for the UW campus

1105
00:50:47,875 --> 00:50:49,833
ministry and grace center,"
which is involved with

1106
00:50:49,875 --> 00:50:51,500
Campus Crusade for Christ.

1107
00:50:51,583 --> 00:50:54,167
She said, "I had the privilege
to lead six Chinese students

1108
00:50:54,250 --> 00:50:57,000
"at the UW to Christ
since last November.

1109
00:50:57,042 --> 00:51:00,417
"The last two students
received Christ 2 days ago,”

1110
00:51:00,500 --> 00:51:04,375
Chinese exchange students,
“on Thursday night."

1111
00:51:04,458 --> 00:51:05,708
Isn't that great?

1112
00:51:05,792 --> 00:51:08,292
She says, "I experience great
joy when anyone receives Jesus

1113
00:51:08,333 --> 00:51:11,917
into their heart and
life and so does Jesus."

1114
00:51:12,000 --> 00:51:13,333
Here's one more.

1115
00:51:13,375 --> 00:51:15,708
We could do this
all day, it's great.

1116
00:51:15,792 --> 00:51:18,875
"Jesus has been pursuing
me relentlessly," she says,

1117
00:51:18,958 --> 00:51:20,792
"for 30 years."

1118
00:51:20,833 --> 00:51:23,208
That's a long hike.

1119
00:51:23,292 --> 00:51:25,500
"He has surrounded me with
faithful Christians

1120
00:51:25,542 --> 00:51:28,000
who have been praying for me
and witnessing to me."

1121
00:51:28,083 --> 00:51:30,875
They were attending,
she says, a Unity church,

1122
00:51:30,958 --> 00:51:33,833
which they believe whatever.

1123
00:51:33,875 --> 00:51:35,500
It's like a blank--the
doctrinal statement,

1124
00:51:35,542 --> 00:51:38,125
they hand you a blank sheet
of paper and just say,

1125
00:51:38,167 --> 00:51:39,917
"Write something down,
that's fine with us."

1126
00:51:40,000 --> 00:51:42,000
So her husband--I'm not
even making that up.

1127
00:51:42,083 --> 00:51:47,833
Her husband, her husband
becomes a Christian.

1128
00:51:47,875 --> 00:51:52,125
She says, "I became an atheist
after I was raped when I was 16.

1129
00:51:52,167 --> 00:51:55,333
"I proceeded into agnosticism
in my 20s and 30s.

1130
00:51:55,375 --> 00:51:57,667
"I considered myself
a quote unquote seeker,

1131
00:51:57,750 --> 00:52:00,333
"but didn't honestly consider
evangelical Christianity

1132
00:52:00,375 --> 00:52:01,667
even as an option."

1133
00:52:01,750 --> 00:52:04,000
She says, "Oh, wasn't
I so open-minded?"

1134
00:52:04,083 --> 00:52:06,833
"When my husband read an article
in the Seattle Times about

1135
00:52:06,875 --> 00:52:09,292
Mars Hill, he decided that our
family should attend."

1136
00:52:09,333 --> 00:52:11,958
Quote, "I hated it.

1137
00:52:14,292 --> 00:52:18,500
I hated the music,"
which I understand,

1138
00:52:18,583 --> 00:52:23,083
"and I hated the message,"
which I do not understand.

1139
00:52:24,750 --> 00:52:26,500
I have that effect on women.

1140
00:52:26,583 --> 00:52:29,292
It's sort of a thing of mine.

1141
00:52:29,333 --> 00:52:34,792
She says,
"We attended for 6 years."

1142
00:52:34,833 --> 00:52:35,917
All right?

1143
00:52:36,000 --> 00:52:39,417
I don't do anything I
don't like for 6 years.

1144
00:52:39,500 --> 00:52:41,167
"We attended for 6 years.

1145
00:52:41,250 --> 00:52:45,375
In the seventh year,"
in the seventh year!

1146
00:52:45,458 --> 00:52:48,208
I mean, you can see Jesus
saving this woman, he's like,

1147
00:52:48,292 --> 00:52:50,000
"Come on sheep!"

1148
00:52:50,042 --> 00:52:53,667
You know, I mean, 7 years.

1149
00:53:00,083 --> 00:53:01,667
"In the seventh year,

1150
00:53:01,750 --> 00:53:03,667
I began to hear that
still, small voice,"

1151
00:53:03,750 --> 00:53:06,000
that's the Holy Spirit,
"telling me it was time

1152
00:53:06,083 --> 00:53:07,500
"for me to come to Jesus.

1153
00:53:07,583 --> 00:53:09,000
Oh, how I resisted!"

1154
00:53:09,083 --> 00:53:11,208
That's a stubborn
sheep right there.

1155
00:53:11,292 --> 00:53:13,000
"I wanted nothing
to do with Jesus.

1156
00:53:13,083 --> 00:53:15,708
"Finally, in January 2010,
I could no longer resist.

1157
00:53:15,792 --> 00:53:17,792
"The still, small voice
had become too strong.

1158
00:53:17,833 --> 00:53:20,208
"I was baptized and have truly
come to believe that

1159
00:53:20,292 --> 00:53:23,000
"Jesus loves me and that I
am a daughter of Christ.

1160
00:53:23,042 --> 00:53:25,333
"Christ has worked some
big miracles in my life.

1161
00:53:25,375 --> 00:53:28,333
"I have struggled with alcohol
for many years and have tried to

1162
00:53:28,375 --> 00:53:31,000
"quit, cut back, moderate more
times than I care to remember.

1163
00:53:31,042 --> 00:53:32,833
In October," so just
some months ago,

1164
00:53:32,875 --> 00:53:35,833
"the Holy Spirit whispered to
me that it was time to stop.

1165
00:53:35,875 --> 00:53:38,500
"He told me that,
for me, drinking is a sin.

1166
00:53:38,583 --> 00:53:41,500
"I walked out of church that
morning and told my husband

1167
00:53:41,583 --> 00:53:43,000
"what the Holy Spirit had said.

1168
00:53:43,083 --> 00:53:45,500
"The Holy Spirit has taken away
my desire to drink

1169
00:53:45,583 --> 00:53:47,292
"and has made wine
even taste bad.

1170
00:53:47,333 --> 00:53:49,500
"Praise the Lord, after so
many years of struggling,

1171
00:53:49,542 --> 00:53:51,208
"it is not
a struggle any longer.

1172
00:53:51,292 --> 00:53:52,708
God is good."

1173
00:53:52,792 --> 00:53:54,875
God is good.

1174
00:53:54,958 --> 00:53:59,333
[applauding]

1175
00:53:59,375 --> 00:54:01,417
If you're here
and you're not a Christian,

1176
00:54:01,500 --> 00:54:03,792
the Good Shepherd
is looking for you.

1177
00:54:03,833 --> 00:54:05,417
You don't need to do anything.

1178
00:54:05,500 --> 00:54:08,000
He's carried all
your sin on his back.

1179
00:54:08,042 --> 00:54:11,417
He'll take you back to
God and also he wants you

1180
00:54:11,500 --> 00:54:13,417
to be part of this flock.

1181
00:54:13,500 --> 00:54:15,625
We love you, we'd
love to have you.

1182
00:54:15,667 --> 00:54:17,375
For those of you
who are Christians,

1183
00:54:17,458 --> 00:54:19,375
we have this wonderful
opportunity to share

1184
00:54:19,458 --> 00:54:24,000
in God's joy by inviting
people to meet Jesus.

1185
00:54:24,083 --> 00:54:25,833
And like we saw
earlier in Luke,

1186
00:54:25,875 --> 00:54:27,667
this includes
throwing big parties.

1187
00:54:27,750 --> 00:54:31,333
And as we see here, it's giving
people an opportunity to repent

1188
00:54:31,375 --> 00:54:35,417
so that we, along with God,
can rejoice when they respond.

1189
00:54:35,500 --> 00:54:39,500
So, in closing, let me tell you
about a party we're throwing

1190
00:54:39,583 --> 00:54:41,208
I want you to be praying for.

1191
00:54:41,292 --> 00:54:44,417
In the providence of God, we've
been in Luke for over a year.

1192
00:54:44,500 --> 00:54:47,083
I had no idea that the
timing would be so perfect.

1193
00:54:47,167 --> 00:54:48,917
This sermon sets up
where we're going.

1194
00:54:49,000 --> 00:54:50,917
Easter is the day
of the resurrection

1195
00:54:51,000 --> 00:54:53,000
of Jesus Christ from the dead.

1196
00:54:53,083 --> 00:54:55,417
That is the culmination
and completion

1197
00:54:55,500 --> 00:54:58,375
of his great rescue mission
of salvation.

1198
00:54:58,458 --> 00:55:02,875
Those of us who are lost are
found in him, and by his death,

1199
00:55:02,958 --> 00:55:05,792
burial, resurrection, we are
carried back to God

1200
00:55:05,833 --> 00:55:07,417
and made members of this flock.

1201
00:55:07,500 --> 00:55:10,833
So this year we've essentially
outgrown most of our campuses

1202
00:55:10,875 --> 00:55:13,583
in the greater Seattle area,
so we're going to do

1203
00:55:13,667 --> 00:55:15,833
Easter services in Albuquerque.

1204
00:55:15,875 --> 00:55:18,500
We're also going to
do one Easter service

1205
00:55:18,583 --> 00:55:22,500
for all of the Puget Sound
surrounding Seattle.

1206
00:55:22,583 --> 00:55:27,000
Qwest Field is where it's going
to be, where the Seahawks play.

1207
00:55:27,042 --> 00:55:29,500
We're going to set it
up on the 50-yard line.

1208
00:55:29,542 --> 00:55:32,125
We're going to take all of
the seating up one side,

1209
00:55:32,167 --> 00:55:35,000
room for 26,000 people.

1210
00:55:35,042 --> 00:55:38,083
We're going to have
sound, light, video, big,

1211
00:55:38,167 --> 00:55:39,708
awesome epic time.

1212
00:55:39,792 --> 00:55:43,000
Even if it rains, the way it's
set up with winds and such,

1213
00:55:43,083 --> 00:55:46,833
you'll all be dry, you'll
be covered, it'll be great.

1214
00:55:46,875 --> 00:55:49,500
Cost is free,
childcare is not provided.

1215
00:55:49,542 --> 00:55:51,500
I don't know where
we'd put them.

1216
00:55:51,542 --> 00:55:53,000
The locker room.

1217
00:55:53,042 --> 00:55:54,500
We'll do it family style.

1218
00:55:54,542 --> 00:55:56,333
All the kids will sit with us.

1219
00:55:56,375 --> 00:56:00,500
We're going to be setting up all
of Qwest Field with baptismals.

1220
00:56:00,583 --> 00:56:02,875
I'm going to have the great
privilege of preaching

1221
00:56:02,958 --> 00:56:06,333
the gospel, so pray for me that
I do a good job serving Jesus

1222
00:56:06,375 --> 00:56:08,500
by the power of the Holy Spirit.

1223
00:56:08,583 --> 00:56:10,833
Dustin Kensrue from Thrice.

1224
00:56:10,875 --> 00:56:14,000
We are praying for
20,000 people to join us.

1225
00:56:14,042 --> 00:56:16,500
That would be the biggest church
service in the history

1226
00:56:16,542 --> 00:56:18,500
of our multi-state region.

1227
00:56:18,542 --> 00:56:21,333
It will be the first time that
we've all gotten together

1228
00:56:21,375 --> 00:56:25,125
for one service since 1996.

1229
00:56:25,167 --> 00:56:28,833
We're also praying
for 500 baptisms,

1230
00:56:28,875 --> 00:56:32,000
people that respond to
the salvation invitation to go

1231
00:56:32,042 --> 00:56:34,833
from lost to found
and get picked up by Jesus

1232
00:56:34,875 --> 00:56:37,625
and brought
to the baptismal tank.

1233
00:56:37,667 --> 00:56:39,625
Here's what
I need you to do.

1234
00:56:39,667 --> 00:56:43,500
Number one, pray,
pray, pray, pray, pray.

1235
00:56:43,583 --> 00:56:48,000
Serve, plug in at your
campus, volunteer.

1236
00:56:48,042 --> 00:56:51,000
We're going to need
thousands of people to help.

1237
00:56:51,042 --> 00:56:54,667
Number three, invite, invite,
invite, invite, invite, family,

1238
00:56:54,750 --> 00:56:58,000
friends, coworkers, neighbors,
and if you have enemies,

1239
00:56:58,042 --> 00:56:59,208
invite them.

1240
00:56:59,292 --> 00:57:02,625
Wouldn't that be awesome
if they met Jesus too?

1241
00:57:02,667 --> 00:57:07,000
Right now, start thinking about,
"Who am I going to invite?"

1242
00:57:07,083 --> 00:57:11,000
It's your one shot to let them
see what Jesus is doing

1243
00:57:11,083 --> 00:57:13,708
in the city of Seattle.
Make it count.

1244
00:57:13,792 --> 00:57:15,708
And then number four,
give, give, give.

1245
00:57:15,792 --> 00:57:17,292
Here's what we're going to do.

1246
00:57:17,333 --> 00:57:19,292
We're going to take
two special offerings

1247
00:57:19,333 --> 00:57:21,125
March 13th and April 10th.

1248
00:57:21,167 --> 00:57:25,500
The event, doors open at 8 a.m.,
service starts at 9:30.

1249
00:57:25,542 --> 00:57:28,208
We're going to have to pay
for it, so be prepared

1250
00:57:28,292 --> 00:57:33,000
March 13th, April 10th,
two special offerings.

1251
00:57:33,042 --> 00:57:35,500
Details are at marshill.com.

1252
00:57:35,542 --> 00:57:37,417
And here is how
it's going to work.

1253
00:57:37,500 --> 00:57:39,792
On those two special Sundays,
we're going to collect

1254
00:57:39,833 --> 00:57:42,000
our normal offering to
pay our normal bills.

1255
00:57:42,083 --> 00:57:44,125
We're going to collect
a second offering.

1256
00:57:44,167 --> 00:57:47,417
We're asking you to give above
and beyond, to be very generous.

1257
00:57:47,500 --> 00:57:50,125
The money that comes in from
Albuquerque will help them

1258
00:57:50,167 --> 00:57:51,625
get a new facility.

1259
00:57:51,667 --> 00:57:53,917
I was just down there.
They've outgrown their building.

1260
00:57:54,000 --> 00:57:55,917
They don't have
any more kid space.

1261
00:57:56,000 --> 00:57:57,917
A fantastic building
has opened up right near

1262
00:57:58,000 --> 00:58:00,917
the busiest intersection
in the whole state.

1263
00:58:01,000 --> 00:58:02,500
And their special
offering will help

1264
00:58:02,542 --> 00:58:04,000
to open more seats for them.

1265
00:58:04,083 --> 00:58:06,667
All the money that's raised
from the greater Seattle region,

1266
00:58:06,750 --> 00:58:09,667
all the way from the Olympia
campus all the way up to

1267
00:58:09,750 --> 00:58:12,500
the Shoreline campus, over
to the West Seattle campus,

1268
00:58:12,583 --> 00:58:16,625
over to the Bellevue campus, all
of that is going to go toward

1269
00:58:16,667 --> 00:58:19,208
the Sunday expenses for Easter.

1270
00:58:19,292 --> 00:58:20,917
And here's why we're doing that.

1271
00:58:21,000 --> 00:58:24,625
We want to raise
the money in advance.

1272
00:58:24,667 --> 00:58:26,625
One of the big knocks
on Christianity is,

1273
00:58:26,667 --> 00:58:28,708
"All you guys care
about is the money."

1274
00:58:28,792 --> 00:58:30,208
We don't care
about the money.

1275
00:58:30,292 --> 00:58:31,792
We care about
Jesus and people.

1276
00:58:31,833 --> 00:58:34,292
And sometimes to introduce them
to Jesus and serve them

1277
00:58:34,333 --> 00:58:37,792
for Jesus, we need
to spend some money.

1278
00:58:37,833 --> 00:58:40,292
So we'd like to collect
the money in our normal

1279
00:58:40,333 --> 00:58:43,292
Sunday services, and you can
also give online at

1280
00:58:43,333 --> 00:58:45,833
marshill.com,
so that when Easter comes,

1281
00:58:45,875 --> 00:58:48,708
even if we have the money,
I personally would love it

1282
00:58:48,792 --> 00:58:51,625
if we didn't have to
say a word about money.

1283
00:58:51,667 --> 00:58:54,625
I would love it if we could
just talk about Jesus.

1284
00:58:54,667 --> 00:58:57,333
And so I'm asking you to be
generous and help us

1285
00:58:57,375 --> 00:58:59,208
to just pay for it in advance.

1286
00:58:59,292 --> 00:59:01,125
Yes, it's going to
cost some money.

1287
00:59:01,167 --> 00:59:03,208
They don't just leave
the gate unlocked

1288
00:59:03,292 --> 00:59:04,875
and the power on for us.

1289
00:59:04,958 --> 00:59:07,625
We had to negotiate this deal
and it's the only place

1290
00:59:07,667 --> 00:59:10,625
right now that will hold us
this year that's available.

1291
00:59:10,667 --> 00:59:13,708
Are you excited about
the opportunity?

1292
00:59:13,792 --> 00:59:17,375
Absolutely.

1293
00:59:20,292 --> 00:59:22,833
So we are trusting God.

1294
00:59:22,875 --> 00:59:24,833
Can you see it?

1295
00:59:24,875 --> 00:59:28,417
Right, imagine the party we're
going to have when 500 people

1296
00:59:28,500 --> 00:59:31,708
respond to the gospel invitation
and imagine how much bigger

1297
00:59:31,792 --> 00:59:34,708
the party will be in
the presence of God.

1298
00:59:34,792 --> 00:59:37,708
I want you to just keep
that in your heart and mind.

1299
00:59:37,792 --> 00:59:40,417
And if you've not been baptized,
you can sign up online.

1300
00:59:40,500 --> 00:59:42,583
We'd love to dunk
you on that day.

1301
00:59:42,667 --> 00:59:44,583
So here's what we're
going to do now.

1302
00:59:44,667 --> 00:59:46,500
We're going to collect
our normal offering.

1303
00:59:46,583 --> 00:59:49,875
So I will ask the financial
stewards to now come forward and

1304
00:59:49,958 --> 00:59:53,000
you all can immediately start
collecting the offering.

1305
00:59:53,083 --> 00:59:54,417
Okay?

1306
00:59:54,500 --> 00:59:56,417
We love you, we're
glad to have you.

1307
00:59:56,500 --> 00:59:58,000
If you're a believer,
be generous,

1308
00:59:58,042 --> 01:00:00,708
if you're an unbeliever, give
us your visitor card so we

1309
01:00:00,792 --> 01:00:03,208
can connect you to the flock
and answer your questions

1310
01:00:03,292 --> 01:00:04,625
about our Great Shepherd.

1311
01:00:04,667 --> 01:00:06,625
In a moment as well,
we'll take Communion,

1312
01:00:06,667 --> 01:00:08,625
remembering the broken
body, shed blood of Jesus,

1313
01:00:08,667 --> 01:00:11,583
that he has literally carried
our sin on his back

1314
01:00:11,667 --> 01:00:13,292
in that cross.

1315
01:00:13,333 --> 01:00:14,917
And as they're
collecting the offering,

1316
01:00:15,000 --> 01:00:17,500
I want to give you
guys a little heads up.

1317
01:00:17,542 --> 01:00:20,125
I want you to see
what God is doing.

1318
01:00:20,167 --> 01:00:22,500
I want you to see where
you'll be sitting.

1319
01:00:22,542 --> 01:00:25,000
I want you to see where your
family, friends, neighbors,

1320
01:00:25,042 --> 01:00:26,375
coworkers will be seated.

1321
01:00:26,458 --> 01:00:28,875
I want you to see what
we're going to do.

1322
01:00:28,958 --> 01:00:32,375
So I'm going to ask
the guys to roll the video.

1323
01:00:32,458 --> 01:00:34,500
Jesus is alive
and we're going to throw

1324
01:00:34,583 --> 01:00:38,625
an epic celebration
right here at Qwest Field.

1325
01:00:38,667 --> 01:00:43,500
Seating for 20,000.
Praying for 500 baptisms.

1326
01:00:43,583 --> 01:00:45,708
You are welcome to come.

1327
01:00:45,792 --> 01:00:47,792
Bring carloads of people.

1328
01:00:47,833 --> 01:00:51,917
Doors open 8 a.m.,
service starts 9:30 a.m.

1329
01:00:52,000 --> 01:00:54,875
You don't want to miss it.
You don't want to be late.

1330
01:00:54,958 --> 01:00:57,917
In the meantime, pray, sign
up to serve at your campus

1331
01:00:58,000 --> 01:01:04,250
or online, and be asking Jesus
to change people's lives!