302: James Jolly – Exhortation: Comforts in Our Lord

1
00:00:13,280 –> 00:00:14,680
Welcome to good crystallion
talks.

2
00:00:14,680 –> 00:00:15,960
I’m Levi.
I’m Chris.

3
00:00:16,160 –> 00:00:18,360
I’m Jason.
And I’m Brian, thank you for

4
00:00:18,360 –> 00:00:21,160
joining us this week.
On this podcast, we select one

5
00:00:21,160 –> 00:00:24,680
talk a week to help us get the
Bible in our Daily News feed.

6
00:00:24,920 –> 00:00:28,520
Each week we post a talk that we
previewed from suggestions sent

7
00:00:28,520 –> 00:00:29,960
in by listeners from around the
world.

8
00:00:30,080 –> 00:00:33,680
Then we record a short intro
beforehand as a personalized

9
00:00:33,680 –> 00:00:36,480
recommendation to you on why we
are sharing the talk.

10
00:00:36,640 –> 00:00:39,640
And now let’s talk more about
this week’s talk.

11
00:00:50,440 –> 00:00:52,320
This is brother Chris.
For this week, we’re listening

12
00:00:52,320 –> 00:00:56,120
to an exhortation that was given
by brother James Jolly back in

13
00:00:56,120 –> 00:00:59,240
September of 2023.
This was actually given on

14
00:00:59,240 –> 00:01:03,640
Australian Father’s Day in his
exhortation, which is entitled

15
00:01:03,680 –> 00:01:07,080
Comforts in Our Lord.
Brother James is taking lessons

16
00:01:07,080 –> 00:01:10,920
from Second Corinthians chapter
one and generally overall from

17
00:01:10,920 –> 00:01:13,400
the 2nd letter to the
Corinthians, where he’s looking

18
00:01:13,400 –> 00:01:16,520
at the reminders and the lessons
that Paul had for the Corinth

19
00:01:16,520 –> 00:01:18,640
ecclesia and how that applies to
US.

20
00:01:19,280 –> 00:01:22,440
One particular point that he
makes about midway through the

21
00:01:22,440 –> 00:01:26,880
expectation that I really
appreciated was the reminder of

22
00:01:27,000 –> 00:01:30,920
the need to be selfless rather
than selfish.

23
00:01:31,080 –> 00:01:33,960
Because we need to be outwardly
focused rather than inwardly

24
00:01:33,960 –> 00:01:37,880
focused when it comes to serving
and finding our happiness and

25
00:01:37,880 –> 00:01:41,680
our joy.
And that we need to remember

26
00:01:41,680 –> 00:01:44,520
that what we put out is what we
get back.

27
00:01:44,600 –> 00:01:47,120
And the focus on that and the
reminder of that is always a

28
00:01:47,120 –> 00:01:50,480
good reminder.
And as a father myself, as he

29
00:01:50,480 –> 00:01:53,160
was talking about this for
Australian Father’s Day, as I

30
00:01:53,160 –> 00:01:55,920
mentioned, and in the United
States, we just had our Father’s

31
00:01:55,920 –> 00:01:59,400
Day just a little over a week
ago when I’m recording this, it

32
00:01:59,400 –> 00:02:04,240
was a excellent reminder that we
need to focus as much on what

33
00:02:04,240 –> 00:02:05,640
we’re giving as what we’re
getting.

34
00:02:06,040 –> 00:02:07,720
So I really enjoyed this
expectation.

35
00:02:07,720 –> 00:02:12,200
I thought it was a excellent
reminder for us to re center our

36
00:02:12,200 –> 00:02:15,720
focus and to keep our eyes on
the path that is before us.

37
00:02:16,000 –> 00:02:19,960
I hope you find it encouraging
and that it helps you in your

38
00:02:19,960 –> 00:02:22,240
walk and encourages you through
the coming week.

39
00:02:22,640 –> 00:02:24,360
Thank you again, as always for
listening.

40
00:02:24,680 –> 00:02:27,160
And with that, I will turn it
over to our brother James Jolly

41
00:02:27,200 –> 00:02:29,800
for his exhortation comforts in
our Lord.

42
00:02:30,200 –> 00:02:33,400
Happy Father’s Day.
We’ve come to read about a

43
00:02:33,400 –> 00:02:38,360
father this morning, and that
father was Paul, who’s a father

44
00:02:38,360 –> 00:02:43,520
to these people in Corinth.
And the book of Second

45
00:02:43,560 –> 00:02:45,280
Corinthians is a little bit of
an interesting one.

46
00:02:45,920 –> 00:02:48,160
There’s not actually a lot of
notes and stuff on it.

47
00:02:48,720 –> 00:02:52,880
There’s not a lot of writings on
it, and it’s a book of a few

48
00:02:52,880 –> 00:02:55,760
surprises.
When we come to 2nd Corinthians

49
00:02:55,760 –> 00:02:59,960
or or Corinthians altogether,
they’re actually a very

50
00:02:59,960 –> 00:03:03,480
interesting crowd.
To say that the Ecclesia of

51
00:03:03,480 –> 00:03:08,120
Corinth was a rough seaport is
like saying that the Titanic had

52
00:03:08,120 –> 00:03:11,960
a fairly bumpy crossing.
It’s a complete understatement.

53
00:03:12,440 –> 00:03:15,200
This was an ecclesia where they
had divisions, where people

54
00:03:15,200 –> 00:03:19,040
labeled themselves either of
Paul or of apostle or of Christ.

55
00:03:19,360 –> 00:03:21,040
Brethren took each other to
court.

56
00:03:21,240 –> 00:03:24,120
There was poor understanding of
marriage that led to serious

57
00:03:24,120 –> 00:03:28,120
relationship issues.
There were arguments over calm

58
00:03:28,120 –> 00:03:31,800
things like circumcision,
slavery, celibacy, meets offered

59
00:03:31,800 –> 00:03:34,960
to idols, sisters, roles in the
ecclesia, spirit gifts,

60
00:03:34,960 –> 00:03:37,400
resurrection.
There was a deep divide between

61
00:03:37,400 –> 00:03:41,200
rich and poor.
There was slaves, there were

62
00:03:41,200 –> 00:03:46,240
moral purists and there were ex
priestesses from a very naughty

63
00:03:46,240 –> 00:03:49,800
place up on the hill over there
and shaved headed Amazonians

64
00:03:49,800 –> 00:03:54,760
from the Isle of Libos offshore.
It was an interesting place.

65
00:03:55,320 –> 00:03:58,640
Look, we have ecclesias that are
made-up of people who have

66
00:03:58,640 –> 00:04:01,920
differences of viewpoint,
occasional moral issues.

67
00:04:02,480 –> 00:04:06,160
We have to work together and and
sort things out from different

68
00:04:06,160 –> 00:04:08,680
walks of life.
And that’s the same as every

69
00:04:08,680 –> 00:04:12,160
ecclesia around the world except
maybe Corinth.

70
00:04:12,720 –> 00:04:16,360
They’re literally off the charts
when it comes to the sort of

71
00:04:16,360 –> 00:04:20,480
things that Paul deals with.
So the first surprise we have

72
00:04:20,480 –> 00:04:23,880
with the book of Corinthians is
that it’s written at all.

73
00:04:24,880 –> 00:04:27,280
Frankly, if it’d been up to you
and I, we probably would have

74
00:04:27,280 –> 00:04:29,840
given them a post it note that
said too hard.

75
00:04:29,880 –> 00:04:31,800
So sorry, don’t call us, we’ll
call you.

76
00:04:33,160 –> 00:04:36,120
And that would have been that
it’s a very, very difficult and

77
00:04:36,120 –> 00:04:39,960
challenging thing.
And yet Paul wrote 4 epistles.

78
00:04:40,280 –> 00:04:43,320
I know we’ve only got 2, but
there’s a first one mentioned in

79
00:04:43,320 –> 00:04:47,320
First Corinthians 5 verse 9,
where he says Paul comments and

80
00:04:47,320 –> 00:04:49,240
says that he’s already written
to them.

81
00:04:49,560 –> 00:04:51,760
That appears to be the first
book of Corinthians.

82
00:04:51,920 –> 00:04:54,480
Then the second book of
Corinthians is what we know of

83
00:04:54,520 –> 00:04:59,040
as First Corinthians, where he
writes to answer a whole string

84
00:04:59,040 –> 00:05:01,760
of issues and he goes through
and he deals with all these

85
00:05:01,760 –> 00:05:05,440
particular problems 1 by 1.
And then there seems to have

86
00:05:05,440 –> 00:05:11,000
been 1/3, which was mentioned in
Second Corinthians chapter 2,

87
00:05:11,000 –> 00:05:13,680
verse four, if you’re making
notes, and seven verse 12 where

88
00:05:13,680 –> 00:05:16,920
he says as of much affliction
and anguish of heart.

89
00:05:17,200 –> 00:05:19,160
I wrote unto you with many
tears.

90
00:05:19,760 –> 00:05:22,960
It seems that after the one that
we call First Corinthians, There

91
00:05:22,960 –> 00:05:26,280
may have been yet another letter
in between, which was a very

92
00:05:26,280 –> 00:05:30,600
severe slap across the wrist, a
very good solid telling off from

93
00:05:30,600 –> 00:05:35,040
Paul, which he wrote tearfully
worried about what impact would

94
00:05:35,040 –> 00:05:36,960
have.
And you’ll find as you go

95
00:05:36,960 –> 00:05:39,560
through reading Second
Corinthians, he’s hanging out to

96
00:05:39,560 –> 00:05:44,040
find out from Titus what the
response was from this, what he

97
00:05:44,040 –> 00:05:46,800
gets to hear from Titus.
And he gets to hear that they’re

98
00:05:46,800 –> 00:05:49,840
repentant and they actually took
it on the chin and they’re

99
00:05:49,840 –> 00:05:53,600
willing to accept the criticism.
And so he writes Second of

100
00:05:53,600 –> 00:05:56,000
Corinthians that we’ve got in
front of us.

101
00:05:56,360 –> 00:05:59,240
You know, they’re an amazing
bunch of people, these

102
00:05:59,240 –> 00:06:02,240
Corinthians.
It’s the most unlikely place in

103
00:06:02,240 –> 00:06:06,120
the world for the truth to
thrive, the most unlikely

104
00:06:06,120 –> 00:06:08,160
opportunity, you would say, for
an ecclesia.

105
00:06:08,680 –> 00:06:12,680
And yet thrive they did.
And not only thrive, but Paul

106
00:06:12,680 –> 00:06:14,760
felt like he was a father to
these people.

107
00:06:15,240 –> 00:06:18,960
You know, if if anyone we we
meet in our life walk or in our

108
00:06:18,960 –> 00:06:20,920
ecclesia, we think, oh, look,
they couldn’t accept the truth.

109
00:06:21,320 –> 00:06:23,800
Just have this thought about the
Corinthians in the back of your

110
00:06:23,800 –> 00:06:26,480
mind.
Paul not only accepted them, he

111
00:06:26,480 –> 00:06:29,160
felt like a father to them.
And I’m just going to read you

112
00:06:29,160 –> 00:06:32,480
from a a different translation
here from 2nd Corinthians 7

113
00:06:32,480 –> 00:06:35,640
verse four to your face.
I talked about talk.

114
00:06:36,480 –> 00:06:38,360
Sorry I I start again to your
face.

115
00:06:38,440 –> 00:06:42,520
I talk to you with utter
frankness, but behind your back

116
00:06:42,560 –> 00:06:45,000
I talk about you with the
deepest pride.

117
00:06:45,240 –> 00:06:49,080
Whatever troubles we have gone
through together, the thought of

118
00:06:49,080 –> 00:06:52,160
you fills me with comfort and
deep happiness.

119
00:06:52,720 –> 00:06:55,480
That’s the words of a true
father about a a bunch of people

120
00:06:55,480 –> 00:06:58,760
who he truly cares for that no
mod matter their background that

121
00:06:58,760 –> 00:07:01,560
they’ve come from.
Look how well they’ve succeeded.

122
00:07:02,080 –> 00:07:05,960
How well have they succeeded but
in in greatness and and wealth

123
00:07:05,960 –> 00:07:09,760
and wonderfulness that they can
take such criticism, that they

124
00:07:09,760 –> 00:07:13,080
can take such correction and
that they can turn back with

125
00:07:13,080 –> 00:07:17,000
love and and move forward, but
they’ve still got a problem.

126
00:07:17,200 –> 00:07:20,880
There’s still a reason for Paul
to write this second book of

127
00:07:20,880 –> 00:07:23,800
Corinthians, because even though
Titus comes back and says, look,

128
00:07:24,000 –> 00:07:27,360
yes, they’ve accepted all your
particular criticism, all your

129
00:07:27,360 –> 00:07:31,040
answers to their problems, the
people of Corinth still have an

130
00:07:31,040 –> 00:07:34,480
underlying issue.
And the underlying issue is

131
00:07:34,480 –> 00:07:40,160
selfishness, self in all its
manifestations, self-interest

132
00:07:40,160 –> 00:07:44,160
when considering the needs of
others, self importance when,

133
00:07:44,400 –> 00:07:48,960
when when looking at their own
opinion in discussions, self

134
00:07:48,960 –> 00:07:51,480
focusedness.
I mean, we saw a little bit of

135
00:07:51,480 –> 00:07:54,200
it in first of Corinthians.
Remember the first of

136
00:07:54,200 –> 00:07:57,040
Corinthians 11 says that people
were eating and drinking

137
00:07:57,040 –> 00:08:01,760
unworthily.
And unworthily is defined as

138
00:08:02,360 –> 00:08:04,400
eating and drinking when someone
else is starving.

139
00:08:05,080 –> 00:08:07,120
You don’t care about the other
person, the other side of the

140
00:08:07,120 –> 00:08:09,080
room.
You’re going to eat and and to

141
00:08:09,080 –> 00:08:12,440
the full and so that’s what he
criticized about the memorial

142
00:08:12,440 –> 00:08:16,240
meeting.
Now selfishness is, I won’t say

143
00:08:16,240 –> 00:08:19,560
normal, but it’s common.
It’s part of humanity.

144
00:08:19,560 –> 00:08:26,760
It’s it’s it’s it’s normal to us
Philippians 2 verse 21 Paul says

145
00:08:26,800 –> 00:08:30,360
and all seek their own, not the
things which are Jesus Christ.

146
00:08:30,520 –> 00:08:32,440
You can hear this heavy sigh as
he says it.

147
00:08:33,799 –> 00:08:35,200
Aaron just seeks their own
stuff.

148
00:08:36,000 –> 00:08:38,919
Now, is Paul sighing because he
wishes you didn’t?

149
00:08:39,679 –> 00:08:42,600
Well, he’s actually signed
because he feels like you’re

150
00:08:42,600 –> 00:08:45,600
missing out.
If you seek your own things,

151
00:08:46,000 –> 00:08:48,600
you’re actually missing out.
Paul’s going to encourage them

152
00:08:48,840 –> 00:08:53,160
to find the joy of the truth,
the consolation of the truth.

153
00:08:53,320 –> 00:08:55,600
And by the end of this book,
he’s going to give one of the

154
00:08:55,600 –> 00:08:59,760
most rousing appeals to
financial contribution, the

155
00:08:59,760 –> 00:09:02,360
Jerusalem Poor Fund.
Anywhere in the New Testament.

156
00:09:02,680 –> 00:09:05,360
There’s a huge slab at the end
of Second Corinthians, if you’re

157
00:09:05,360 –> 00:09:08,960
reading through it this week,
that’s about you can give to the

158
00:09:08,960 –> 00:09:11,880
Jerusalem poor fund.
He’s taking the selfishness

159
00:09:11,880 –> 00:09:14,640
problem and turns that around to
the point where he’s going to

160
00:09:14,640 –> 00:09:17,000
tell you, why don’t you
contribute to this Jerusalem

161
00:09:17,000 –> 00:09:21,800
poor fund?
So this is quite amazing.

162
00:09:21,800 –> 00:09:24,000
How does he do this?
How?

163
00:09:24,000 –> 00:09:27,800
How can someone turn this around
from talking about this problem

164
00:09:27,800 –> 00:09:30,600
of selfishness and get around to
the point where he’s telling

165
00:09:30,600 –> 00:09:32,120
them, why don’t you give to this
poor fund?

166
00:09:32,120 –> 00:09:36,640
I mean, how do you do that?
Well, actually, there’s another

167
00:09:36,640 –> 00:09:39,960
surprise for you here, and that
is that the first section of the

168
00:09:39,960 –> 00:09:42,080
book, about eight or nine
chapters or so, that at the

169
00:09:42,080 –> 00:09:47,560
start of the book is about Paul.
You know, in fact, the word I

170
00:09:47,560 –> 00:09:54,280
occurs 186 times, which is
approximately 3 to four times

171
00:09:54,400 –> 00:09:56,640
more than any other book in the
New Testament.

172
00:09:57,240 –> 00:09:59,280
Basically, you’ve got a problem
of selfishness.

173
00:09:59,560 –> 00:10:01,400
What does Paul do?
He turns around and talks about

174
00:10:01,880 –> 00:10:07,000
himself in spade force, like if
I if I do that, I make a

175
00:10:07,000 –> 00:10:09,400
complete mess of it.
But Paul can do that.

176
00:10:09,680 –> 00:10:13,800
How is it that Paul can actually
just talk about himself and his

177
00:10:13,800 –> 00:10:16,760
own experience?
In fact, it’s probably the most

178
00:10:16,760 –> 00:10:20,960
we see about the real Paul.
If you want to see a heart on

179
00:10:20,960 –> 00:10:24,440
your sleeve, open frankness
about Paul and some of the

180
00:10:24,440 –> 00:10:27,200
things that went on in his life
that you don’t learn anywhere

181
00:10:27,200 –> 00:10:31,440
else, read Second Corinthians.
He opens up and tells you so

182
00:10:31,440 –> 00:10:33,960
much about his life story.
There’s there’s information

183
00:10:33,960 –> 00:10:36,040
there about maybe how many
shipwrecks he went through and

184
00:10:36,040 –> 00:10:38,680
stuff like that that you don’t
get anywhere else.

185
00:10:38,680 –> 00:10:41,920
He’s he’s been very open and
frank and telling you about

186
00:10:42,080 –> 00:10:46,080
himself in order to help them
overcome selfishness.

187
00:10:46,080 –> 00:10:47,880
Now, how does how could that
possibly work?

188
00:10:48,520 –> 00:10:51,400
Well, the answer is Paul is an
example.

189
00:10:51,400 –> 00:10:56,400
Paul has become Christ.
He’s lost himself in seeking the

190
00:10:56,400 –> 00:10:58,680
needs of others.
He’s all about them.

191
00:10:58,680 –> 00:11:02,200
That’s all he’s interested in.
He’s totally absorbed by the

192
00:11:02,200 –> 00:11:06,760
mission given to him, which is
to save lives eternally.

193
00:11:07,240 –> 00:11:12,120
He is totally empty of self.
He is totally free of

194
00:11:12,120 –> 00:11:16,840
selfishness and constrained by
the love of Christ that moves

195
00:11:16,840 –> 00:11:18,160
him.
You know, he says in another

196
00:11:18,160 –> 00:11:22,400
place that he counted all things
as lost for Christ.

197
00:11:22,920 –> 00:11:26,160
What does he mean by that?
He he counts everything that he

198
00:11:26,160 –> 00:11:30,920
previously had as a waste of
time so that he could do these

199
00:11:30,920 –> 00:11:34,880
things like Christ did, so that
he could be like Christ and give

200
00:11:34,880 –> 00:11:36,680
like Christ did.
Christ gave us all.

201
00:11:36,680 –> 00:11:38,680
That’s what I want to be.
But what did he have?

202
00:11:39,480 –> 00:11:41,560
He had a fantastic
qualification.

203
00:11:42,120 –> 00:11:45,160
He wasn’t just, you know, this
university or that university.

204
00:11:45,360 –> 00:11:47,040
He was under the head teacher in
Israel.

205
00:11:47,280 –> 00:11:52,440
He sat at the feet of Gamaliel.
He was a leader in his class, he

206
00:11:52,440 –> 00:11:56,680
was top of his Pharisee group,
he was top of the table.

207
00:11:57,360 –> 00:11:59,960
And all of that he counted as a
waste of time and useless

208
00:11:59,960 –> 00:12:03,880
because what he really wanted
was to be like Christ, because

209
00:12:03,880 –> 00:12:08,840
Christ just gave so much.
So here’s the understanding that

210
00:12:08,840 –> 00:12:10,440
Paul had.
He can, he’s actually been

211
00:12:10,440 –> 00:12:14,000
transformed so much by Christ
that he can actually talk about

212
00:12:14,000 –> 00:12:17,240
his own life openly.
And that’s an inspiration to

213
00:12:17,240 –> 00:12:20,800
other people because he’s a
minister of the New Covenant.

214
00:12:21,160 –> 00:12:25,200
He’s a man driven and controlled
by the love that he saw in

215
00:12:25,200 –> 00:12:28,400
Christ.
He is ever a cheerful giver.

216
00:12:29,080 –> 00:12:31,440
He is an apostle with proven
authority.

217
00:12:31,720 –> 00:12:36,000
And yet Despite that position
given to him, he’s ever

218
00:12:36,280 –> 00:12:39,160
selfless.
He’s willing to suffer in order

219
00:12:39,160 –> 00:12:43,040
to be selfless.
He could glory even in his

220
00:12:43,040 –> 00:12:47,080
infirmities because he could
cease God’s strength working in

221
00:12:47,080 –> 00:12:49,920
his own life.
He could feel that the things

222
00:12:49,920 –> 00:12:53,560
that were being achieved in him
were God’s work being achieved.

223
00:12:54,240 –> 00:12:56,120
So yes, it’s a very different
epistle.

224
00:12:56,120 –> 00:12:58,520
As you read through it this
week, you might have found first

225
00:12:58,520 –> 00:13:01,400
of Corinthians to be a very
structured set of answers. 2nd

226
00:13:01,400 –> 00:13:03,400
of Corinthians is completely
unstructured.

227
00:13:03,760 –> 00:13:06,880
It’s it’s got a lot of
repetition in there because it’s

228
00:13:06,880 –> 00:13:09,560
a personal heart on the sleeve
conversation.

229
00:13:09,960 –> 00:13:13,600
It’s a sit down on the couch
moment with Paul where he tells

230
00:13:13,600 –> 00:13:15,760
us about what really drives him
in life.

231
00:13:16,400 –> 00:13:19,040
But let’s let’s go back then.
Now, this is not a Bible class.

232
00:13:19,040 –> 00:13:22,520
We, we, we want to talk about
what’s Paul’s secret recipe.

233
00:13:22,920 –> 00:13:26,560
An exhortation is not just to
remember Christ, but also to

234
00:13:26,560 –> 00:13:31,600
think about our week ahead and
to think about how we can be

235
00:13:31,600 –> 00:13:35,240
stood up to love and good works.
How can we actually move

236
00:13:35,240 –> 00:13:37,480
forward?
What was what was Paul’s recipe?

237
00:13:38,160 –> 00:13:41,080
Well, I think one of the first
parts of his recipe, his secret

238
00:13:41,080 –> 00:13:44,360
recipe for actually helping
people around you and helping

239
00:13:44,360 –> 00:13:49,040
those around you to be selfless
is that he admitted weakness.

240
00:13:49,640 –> 00:13:52,640
You know, sometimes we had this
whole eclesial system where

241
00:13:52,640 –> 00:13:56,440
people take roles and it has a
flaw in that sometimes that puts

242
00:13:56,440 –> 00:13:59,760
people up on a pedestal.
Here I am speaking so you assume

243
00:13:59,760 –> 00:14:03,600
I’m I’m fantastic and perfect.
Well, sorry, I wanted to don’t

244
00:14:03,600 –> 00:14:06,360
want to disappoint you too much
by telling you all the details,

245
00:14:06,600 –> 00:14:10,280
but it’s not the case.
And Paul is exactly like this.

246
00:14:10,280 –> 00:14:13,800
Paul is one of those true father
figures who’s not shying away

247
00:14:13,800 –> 00:14:17,280
from his own personal weakness.
He wants you to see that you can

248
00:14:17,280 –> 00:14:20,960
actually have weakness too and
still succeed through that

249
00:14:20,960 –> 00:14:22,720
weakness.
I just want to read you this

250
00:14:22,720 –> 00:14:26,480
section here.
We know the section second of

251
00:14:26,480 –> 00:14:31,040
Corinthians 12, verse 7.
And lest I should be exalted

252
00:14:31,040 –> 00:14:33,800
above measure through the
abundance of the revelations

253
00:14:33,800 –> 00:14:36,560
that were given unto me, a thorn
in the flesh, a messenger of

254
00:14:36,560 –> 00:14:40,120
Satan, was given to buffet me,
lest I should be exalted above

255
00:14:40,120 –> 00:14:42,360
measure.
For this thing I besought the

256
00:14:42,360 –> 00:14:44,320
Lord’s Christ, that it might
depart from me.

257
00:14:44,600 –> 00:14:47,760
And he said, My grace is
sufficient for thee, for my

258
00:14:47,760 –> 00:14:50,080
strength is made perfect in
weakness.

259
00:14:50,480 –> 00:14:54,960
Most gladly, therefore will I
glory in my infirmities and the

260
00:14:54,960 –> 00:14:58,160
power of that the power of
Christ may rest upon me.

261
00:14:58,800 –> 00:15:01,840
Therefore I take pleasure in
infirmities, in reproaches, in

262
00:15:01,840 –> 00:15:05,760
necessities, in persecutions, in
distresses for Christ’s sake.

263
00:15:05,960 –> 00:15:08,160
For when I am weak, then I am
strong.

264
00:15:08,680 –> 00:15:13,080
Now, now, don’t get Paul wrong.
Paul’s not saying here that the

265
00:15:13,080 –> 00:15:15,240
more you suffer, the more
righteous you are.

266
00:15:15,640 –> 00:15:18,360
We shouldn’t go out and flog
ourselves like the Catholics in

267
00:15:18,360 –> 00:15:21,760
the dark ages and say, there you
go, I’m now more righteous

268
00:15:21,760 –> 00:15:25,840
because I sit on a bed of nails.
I make my life hard and

269
00:15:25,840 –> 00:15:27,960
therefore I’m more right.
That’s not what Paul’s saying at

270
00:15:27,960 –> 00:15:31,480
all.
He says when I’m weak, then

271
00:15:31,480 –> 00:15:34,080
there’s an opportunity for
Christ to shine through in me.

272
00:15:34,640 –> 00:15:38,160
The way of following Christ
still works.

273
00:15:38,400 –> 00:15:41,800
You know, in this chapter he
says we we gave up all hope.

274
00:15:42,280 –> 00:15:45,920
Would Michael read it for us?
I’ll read it from a different

275
00:15:45,920 –> 00:15:48,560
translation.
Just look at this in chapter one

276
00:15:48,560 –> 00:15:52,640
and verse eight.
We should like you our we should

277
00:15:52,640 –> 00:15:55,800
like you, our brethren, to know
something of what we went

278
00:15:55,800 –> 00:15:58,800
through in age.
At that time we were completely

279
00:15:58,840 –> 00:16:02,560
overwhelmed.
The burden was more than we

280
00:16:02,560 –> 00:16:04,960
could bear.
In fact, we told ourselves that

281
00:16:04,960 –> 00:16:08,640
this was the end.
Yet we believe now that we had

282
00:16:08,640 –> 00:16:12,240
this experience of coming to the
end of our tether, that we might

283
00:16:12,240 –> 00:16:16,040
learn to trust not in ourselves,
but in God.

284
00:16:16,040 –> 00:16:20,920
Who can raise the dead.
It was God who preserved us from

285
00:16:20,920 –> 00:16:24,320
imminent death, and it was He
who still preserves us.

286
00:16:24,640 –> 00:16:29,280
Furthermore, we trust.
We trust in Him to keep us safe

287
00:16:29,560 –> 00:16:33,240
in the future.
Be honest about your life.

288
00:16:34,000 –> 00:16:37,600
If you’ve even had a brush with
death, you got to see that as an

289
00:16:37,600 –> 00:16:41,760
opportunity because what it does
is it shows you the miracle of

290
00:16:41,760 –> 00:16:45,960
God working in our lives.
If God’s miracle is that we

291
00:16:45,960 –> 00:16:50,520
should live through danger and
out the other side, then the

292
00:16:50,520 –> 00:16:54,280
reason we live out the other
side is to perform His miracles,

293
00:16:55,160 –> 00:16:59,480
to do his work, and to live like
he showed us this.

294
00:16:59,480 –> 00:17:01,760
This is a good answer to the
selfishness problem.

295
00:17:02,200 –> 00:17:05,760
The problem that they had of
selfishness is answered by Paul

296
00:17:05,760 –> 00:17:10,920
who says, look at me, I’m
nothing without Christ in me.

297
00:17:11,240 –> 00:17:15,960
And all I’m hopeful for in my
life is that I’m allowed to go

298
00:17:15,960 –> 00:17:18,599
through all these troubles and
difficulties because then I

299
00:17:18,599 –> 00:17:22,440
could truly see Christ’s work
and how Christ’s answers work in

300
00:17:22,440 –> 00:17:26,800
all circumstances, and how
Christ’s way of living life

301
00:17:27,280 –> 00:17:30,480
actually helps people, the
world’s way of living.

302
00:17:30,480 –> 00:17:33,520
Answers don’t actually fix
problems, but Christ do.

303
00:17:34,520 –> 00:17:38,000
Even in difficult times, they
can help to answer the problems.

304
00:17:38,640 –> 00:17:40,960
All right, OK, enough beating
around the Bush.

305
00:17:41,480 –> 00:17:44,360
Let’s go for the Master.
How does he put it?

306
00:17:45,160 –> 00:17:47,000
He puts it simply.
And if you forget my whole

307
00:17:47,040 –> 00:17:49,320
exhort this morning, fair
enough, you might be tired.

308
00:17:50,320 –> 00:17:54,120
But what about this?
Don’t forget this, Christ said,

309
00:17:54,560 –> 00:17:58,600
For whosoever shall save his
life shall lose it, and

310
00:17:58,600 –> 00:18:02,120
whosoever shall lose his life
for my sake shall find it.

311
00:18:03,000 –> 00:18:06,640
So you could spend your whole
life out there struggling around

312
00:18:06,640 –> 00:18:10,680
trying to find yourself.
And the world offers you this.

313
00:18:10,680 –> 00:18:13,320
It says, buy this, this will
make you somebody.

314
00:18:14,000 –> 00:18:16,160
Get this career that’ll make you
somebody.

315
00:18:17,440 –> 00:18:21,040
And here you are at 40, working
yourself to the bone in this

316
00:18:21,040 –> 00:18:22,800
career that’s supposed to make
you somebody.

317
00:18:22,800 –> 00:18:26,040
What does it make you?
Exhausted, tired.

318
00:18:26,680 –> 00:18:28,960
Does it make you the wonderful
person that they promised?

319
00:18:28,960 –> 00:18:31,200
Does the career bring you the
happiness that they promised?

320
00:18:31,520 –> 00:18:34,760
I tell you it does not, But
Christ does.

321
00:18:35,560 –> 00:18:39,240
Because you might give yourself
to the service of others in some

322
00:18:39,600 –> 00:18:41,400
what the world would consider as
a little way.

323
00:18:42,320 –> 00:18:45,760
Sunday school, preparing a
little talk somewhere, going

324
00:18:45,760 –> 00:18:48,120
down to Beth Salem and sitting
there and spending time with

325
00:18:48,120 –> 00:18:51,000
some older person.
But here’s the difference.

326
00:18:51,440 –> 00:18:54,920
You actually have the answers.
When you live the life of

327
00:18:54,920 –> 00:18:58,160
Christ, you actually do some
eternal good.

328
00:18:59,080 –> 00:19:02,920
You know the father who goes off
to work, He puts his pennies

329
00:19:02,920 –> 00:19:05,480
into a bank account. 2 weeks
later, he doesn’t know where

330
00:19:05,480 –> 00:19:07,400
they all went.
They’ve all vanished, they’ve

331
00:19:07,400 –> 00:19:10,480
all been spent.
But the mother who rocks the

332
00:19:10,480 –> 00:19:15,080
cradle and sings that little
song to her child, her child

333
00:19:15,080 –> 00:19:16,560
will sing that in the
Millennium.

334
00:19:18,920 –> 00:19:23,000
Just don’t forget that the
woman’s position, if she is a

335
00:19:23,560 –> 00:19:26,720
someone who teaches those
children, has a wonderful role.

336
00:19:26,960 –> 00:19:29,520
She can change lives for
eternity.

337
00:19:29,960 –> 00:19:33,360
I can’t, not at work.
I work with computers that did

338
00:19:33,360 –> 00:19:38,680
in three years, you know who’s
got the better opportunities.

339
00:19:38,680 –> 00:19:40,640
Sometimes it’s not always the
case.

340
00:19:40,640 –> 00:19:45,400
I know you need to point people
to the comfort of Christ.

341
00:19:45,480 –> 00:19:48,600
Here’s the other part, the
surprising part of Paul’s key.

342
00:19:48,920 –> 00:19:50,920
You think if he’s going to talk
about all the sufferings he’s

343
00:19:50,920 –> 00:19:53,080
going to have, he’s not going to
talk about comfort.

344
00:19:53,080 –> 00:19:55,920
But he does.
In fact, we read it this morning

345
00:19:56,040 –> 00:19:59,640
in one of the most repetitious
sections of all scripture.

346
00:20:00,200 –> 00:20:03,600
I thought that he also himself
likewise took part of the same,

347
00:20:03,800 –> 00:20:06,640
was saying the same thing over
and over a few too many times.

348
00:20:06,880 –> 00:20:08,960
But just look at what we read
this morning.

349
00:20:09,520 –> 00:20:11,720
Have you ever?
Can you think of another section

350
00:20:11,720 –> 00:20:16,280
of scripture which uses the same
word 9 times for consolation or

351
00:20:16,280 –> 00:20:19,600
comfort in this section?
I read it to you from a a blend

352
00:20:19,600 –> 00:20:21,120
of a couple of different
translations.

353
00:20:21,440 –> 00:20:25,280
I thank God the Father of our
Lord Jesus Christ, that He is

354
00:20:25,280 –> 00:20:28,160
our Father and the source of all
mercy and comfort.

355
00:20:28,600 –> 00:20:32,800
For He gives us comfort in our
trials, so that we in turn may

356
00:20:32,800 –> 00:20:36,560
be able to give the same sort of
comfort to others in theirs by

357
00:20:36,560 –> 00:20:39,680
the comfort we ourselves are
comforted with of God.

358
00:20:39,680 –> 00:20:43,600
Indeed, experience shows us that
the more we share Christ’s

359
00:20:43,600 –> 00:20:47,360
sufferings, the more we’re able
to give of His comfort.

360
00:20:47,720 –> 00:20:53,000
This means that if we experience
trouble, we can pass on to you

361
00:20:53,560 –> 00:20:56,280
comfort and help towards
salvation.

362
00:20:56,720 –> 00:21:00,880
For if we ourselves have been
comforted, we know how to

363
00:21:00,880 –> 00:21:04,520
encourage you to endure
patiently the sort of troubles

364
00:21:04,960 –> 00:21:10,040
that we have ourselves endured.
We are quite confident that if

365
00:21:10,040 –> 00:21:13,560
you have to, you have to suffer
troubles as we have done.

366
00:21:13,800 –> 00:21:18,080
Then, like us, you’ll find the
comfort and encouragement of

367
00:21:18,080 –> 00:21:21,080
God.
Now the Bible, we say, never

368
00:21:21,080 –> 00:21:24,240
wastes words, but that looked to
me like it wasted a whole lot.

369
00:21:24,720 –> 00:21:27,320
It kind of repeated itself.
The word comfort or consolation

370
00:21:27,320 –> 00:21:30,360
occurs 9 times, the word
suffering about six.

371
00:21:31,160 –> 00:21:33,840
That’s a lot.
Paul’s trying to drive home a

372
00:21:33,960 –> 00:21:37,520
particular point.
He’s put this first in his

373
00:21:37,600 –> 00:21:40,560
epistle.
What’s he trying to drive home?

374
00:21:40,600 –> 00:21:42,080
He’s trying to drive home.
Look, if you’re of a

375
00:21:42,080 –> 00:21:45,320
mathematical mind, perhaps you
understand it like this.

376
00:21:45,680 –> 00:21:49,160
Suffering brings comfort.
Did you get it?

377
00:21:49,400 –> 00:21:52,080
You didn’t read again.
It’s all there.

378
00:21:52,480 –> 00:21:54,680
Suffering brings comfort.
Now, don’t get me wrong.

379
00:21:54,920 –> 00:21:57,600
We’re not saying that suffering
is the thing that makes you

380
00:21:57,600 –> 00:21:59,120
righteous.
Why does he suffer?

381
00:21:59,320 –> 00:22:01,800
He suffers the loss of all
things for them.

382
00:22:02,560 –> 00:22:06,400
He suffers because it’s a whole
life of giving.

383
00:22:06,480 –> 00:22:11,680
That’s what his his life is.
He gives totally as Christ did.

384
00:22:11,920 –> 00:22:15,320
That’s what he’s trying to do in
his life and it brings a sort of

385
00:22:15,320 –> 00:22:17,440
suffering.
What’s the result of that?

386
00:22:17,720 –> 00:22:20,320
Where there’s a comfort and
consolation that comes out of

387
00:22:20,320 –> 00:22:21,320
it.
We’re going to, we’re going to

388
00:22:21,320 –> 00:22:23,880
talk about that in a minute.
But first let’s focus in on this

389
00:22:23,880 –> 00:22:28,360
idea of suffering because we
don’t live in an age of

390
00:22:28,360 –> 00:22:30,360
suffering.
You don’t allow yourself to

391
00:22:30,360 –> 00:22:34,240
suffer now you think about self
1st and you go, Oh no, look, I

392
00:22:34,640 –> 00:22:37,320
know that that’s that’s a
problem and I try to avoid that.

393
00:22:37,440 –> 00:22:38,840
No, sorry, sorry.
Just a minute.

394
00:22:39,760 –> 00:22:42,600
We live in an age of
selfishness.

395
00:22:42,600 –> 00:22:45,320
Just this picture for a second.
You have a little conversation

396
00:22:45,320 –> 00:22:47,560
with someone from Athens, right?
One of the people that Paul’s

397
00:22:47,560 –> 00:22:50,720
talked to.
So James, right, you’ve got a

398
00:22:51,080 –> 00:22:54,480
social profile of yourself up on
the Internet for all the world

399
00:22:54,480 –> 00:22:57,280
to see and it’s got a picture of
yourself called an icon.

400
00:22:57,440 –> 00:22:59,600
That’s that’s like an idol,
right?

401
00:22:59,640 –> 00:23:00,800
Of of yourself.
Right.

402
00:23:00,800 –> 00:23:05,440
So you’re not selfish, but
you’ve got an icon of yourself.

403
00:23:06,520 –> 00:23:09,120
Oh, look, everyone does it.
You know, this is normal.

404
00:23:09,960 –> 00:23:11,920
Be realistic.
This is the age we live in.

405
00:23:11,920 –> 00:23:13,160
Everyone.
Everyone does this.

406
00:23:13,160 –> 00:23:13,760
OK.
Right.

407
00:23:13,760 –> 00:23:14,800
Yeah.
OK.

408
00:23:14,800 –> 00:23:17,760
So you’ve got an entertainment
device either in your pocket or

409
00:23:17,760 –> 00:23:20,440
slap to your wall somewhere, and
you spend a few hours on that?

410
00:23:21,240 –> 00:23:22,960
Yeah.
Well, you’ve got to have me

411
00:23:22,960 –> 00:23:25,440
time.
Sorry.

412
00:23:25,440 –> 00:23:26,320
What’s this?
What’s this?

413
00:23:26,320 –> 00:23:30,680
Me time business.
That’s that’s this idea that’s

414
00:23:30,680 –> 00:23:33,040
pushed by the the world around
you that you’ve got to have me

415
00:23:33,040 –> 00:23:35,160
time.
Now don’t get me wrong, I’m not

416
00:23:35,160 –> 00:23:37,160
saying you need to weigh
yourself into the ground without

417
00:23:37,160 –> 00:23:42,160
a hobby, but seriously, the
concept of me time is an excuse

418
00:23:42,160 –> 00:23:47,320
given by the world that that we
need to sorry, did you find

419
00:23:47,320 –> 00:23:49,000
yourself happy from that me
time?

420
00:23:50,560 –> 00:23:56,720
Because Christ found himself
happy from give time from US

421
00:23:56,720 –> 00:23:59,160
time.
You know, there’s a problem.

422
00:23:59,160 –> 00:24:02,160
You hear it in society where
people keep talking about me,

423
00:24:02,880 –> 00:24:05,680
not us.
The world’s desperately trying

424
00:24:05,680 –> 00:24:08,280
to break down the sense of
ecclesia, the sense of family,

425
00:24:08,440 –> 00:24:12,000
the sense of us.
It’s us that makes you happy

426
00:24:12,000 –> 00:24:16,120
when you lose yourself in being
part of giving to us.

427
00:24:16,920 –> 00:24:18,400
That’s how Christ found
happiness.

428
00:24:19,160 –> 00:24:21,600
You know, we look at Christ and
we come here and the churches

429
00:24:21,600 –> 00:24:25,600
look here and say he miserably
suffered on the cross for you.

430
00:24:25,600 –> 00:24:29,880
You know what he said just
before he went to that cross?

431
00:24:30,880 –> 00:24:36,480
My joy I leave with you.
My joy is for you, and that your

432
00:24:36,480 –> 00:24:41,120
joy may be full.
And what I want you to do is you

433
00:24:41,120 –> 00:24:43,240
should love others as I have
loved you.

434
00:24:44,200 –> 00:24:49,520
Was Jesus a happy man or a sad
man for going to the cross?

435
00:24:49,520 –> 00:24:54,960
I’m going to suggest to you that
he was happy to do it because he

436
00:24:54,960 –> 00:25:01,640
had a joy of giving and a sense
of us that he went to the cross

437
00:25:01,800 –> 00:25:04,800
with this sense of us.
His whole life has wrapped up in

438
00:25:04,800 –> 00:25:08,480
US, not me.
And the world teaches us the

439
00:25:08,480 –> 00:25:12,080
wrong thing.
The world teaches us a me

440
00:25:12,080 –> 00:25:14,520
perspective.
It’s a lie.

441
00:25:15,200 –> 00:25:19,640
It will not succeed in bringing
you the comfort of happiness.

442
00:25:19,640 –> 00:25:22,680
It won’t.
You won’t be connected to people

443
00:25:22,680 –> 00:25:25,080
the same way that Paul wants you
to do.

444
00:25:25,520 –> 00:25:29,480
You won’t be finding the
consolation that you should

445
00:25:29,480 –> 00:25:33,520
achieve.
Do you know suffering’s not an

446
00:25:33,520 –> 00:25:35,680
easy thing?
Don’t get me wrong that you

447
00:25:35,680 –> 00:25:38,080
could listen to this talk,
perhaps online and, and go back

448
00:25:38,080 –> 00:25:40,480
across and say, oh, James says
if you suffer, you’re more

449
00:25:40,480 –> 00:25:41,920
righteous or something like
that.

450
00:25:42,560 –> 00:25:44,240
Be careful with this idea of
suffering.

451
00:25:44,320 –> 00:25:47,000
It’s it’s an idea.
You want to see how Paul defines

452
00:25:47,000 –> 00:25:49,160
it in Corinthians.
His suffering is that he was

453
00:25:49,160 –> 00:25:50,880
willing to suffer in order to
give.

454
00:25:51,720 –> 00:25:55,440
It’s a connected thought, you
know he says here in Hebrews

455
00:25:55,520 –> 00:26:00,280
chapter 12 verse 7 and 10.
If he endured chastening, God

456
00:26:00,280 –> 00:26:03,720
deals with you as sons.
For what son is he whom his

457
00:26:03,720 –> 00:26:07,920
Father chasteneth not now, no,
chastening for the present is

458
00:26:07,920 –> 00:26:10,480
joyous, but grievous
nevertheless.

459
00:26:10,480 –> 00:26:14,120
It yieldeth the peaceable fruits
of righteousness unto them that

460
00:26:14,120 –> 00:26:16,920
are exercised thereby.
Just look.

461
00:26:16,960 –> 00:26:19,760
I I really find it interesting
he uses the word exercised.

462
00:26:20,160 –> 00:26:22,840
We understand that concept.
I’d like to lose a bit of

463
00:26:22,840 –> 00:26:23,280
weight.
See.

464
00:26:23,280 –> 00:26:26,200
So how am I going to do that?
Well, I’m going to think about

465
00:26:26,200 –> 00:26:27,480
it.
I’m going to sit there and I’m

466
00:26:27,480 –> 00:26:28,960
going to think about losing
weight.

467
00:26:28,960 –> 00:26:32,400
Is it going to work?
No, it’s not going to work.

468
00:26:32,960 –> 00:26:36,200
We know how exercise works.
No pain, no gain.

469
00:26:36,400 –> 00:26:38,520
Don’t do the exercise, no weight
loss.

470
00:26:38,640 –> 00:26:42,040
Simple.
And Paul says, well, it’s going

471
00:26:42,040 –> 00:26:43,960
to yield fruit if you’re
exercised by it.

472
00:26:45,000 –> 00:26:48,920
You know, the, the actual
suffering is not passive.

473
00:26:49,200 –> 00:26:52,160
It’s active.
You’ve got to do something.

474
00:26:52,920 –> 00:26:55,520
So if you’re sitting here
saying, oh, why am I upset?

475
00:26:55,960 –> 00:26:59,440
Why am I feeling low in my life?
Maybe it’s because you’ve lost

476
00:26:59,440 –> 00:27:02,800
yourself in me.
Why don’t you lose yourself in

477
00:27:02,800 –> 00:27:06,120
US?
Why don’t you take on say yes to

478
00:27:06,120 –> 00:27:08,360
doing Sunday school teaching for
the new Sunday school year.

479
00:27:08,960 –> 00:27:11,440
Say yes to doing a lecture
sometime down the track.

480
00:27:11,680 –> 00:27:14,440
Put yourself out to go and help
someone else.

481
00:27:15,200 –> 00:27:17,200
You know, it’s there’s, there’s
plenty of people there at

482
00:27:17,200 –> 00:27:18,880
leisure who are working hard to
do this.

483
00:27:19,160 –> 00:27:22,800
And this is what we need and it
it’s a cure in the age of

484
00:27:22,800 –> 00:27:26,360
selfishness for this focus that
the world’s trying to teach us,

485
00:27:26,560 –> 00:27:28,920
a focus on self.
What’s it going to bring you?

486
00:27:28,920 –> 00:27:31,720
Well, it’s going to bring you
this idea of comfort.

487
00:27:31,720 –> 00:27:34,760
Now, I’m no Greek expert.
No, most of you probably aren’t.

488
00:27:35,360 –> 00:27:37,600
Excuse me.
I don’t know you as well as I

489
00:27:37,600 –> 00:27:40,680
know my pleasure you may be.
But I I do know that as

490
00:27:40,680 –> 00:27:42,680
Christadelphins, often we’re
quite good at picking up on

491
00:27:42,680 –> 00:27:45,720
stand out words.
And this is one, it’s Paraclete

492
00:27:45,720 –> 00:27:49,160
off.
And it’s a word that literally

493
00:27:49,160 –> 00:27:52,200
means it’s a legal term.
It’s for a legal assistant.

494
00:27:52,200 –> 00:27:55,640
It’s for someone who you call to
be your intercessor.

495
00:27:56,000 –> 00:27:58,920
You, you summon them to stand
alongside you.

496
00:28:00,200 –> 00:28:02,920
Paul said about this in the end
of his life when he went on

497
00:28:02,920 –> 00:28:05,480
trial and he said there’s none
that stood by me.

498
00:28:06,080 –> 00:28:08,720
He, he could, he wanted to have
someone to stand alongside and

499
00:28:08,720 –> 00:28:13,600
be his legal assistant.
It’s it’s the same phrase that

500
00:28:13,600 –> 00:28:17,840
gets used in Acts chapter 16 and
verse 9, which is really nice.

501
00:28:17,840 –> 00:28:22,200
One where he has a vision
appeared to pull by by night and

502
00:28:22,200 –> 00:28:26,760
there stood a man of Macedonia
and called out for comfort.

503
00:28:26,760 –> 00:28:30,040
It’s the same word paracletos
him saying come over to

504
00:28:30,040 –> 00:28:33,320
Macedonia and help us.
Come come over here and help us.

505
00:28:33,520 –> 00:28:36,360
We need the truth.
We want you to come over and

506
00:28:36,360 –> 00:28:39,200
actually help us so that that
come over to Macedonia and help

507
00:28:39,200 –> 00:28:45,040
us is this same idea of comfort.
It’s in our word exhortation.

508
00:28:45,320 –> 00:28:48,320
You know, exhortation doesn’t
just mean to stand here.

509
00:28:48,320 –> 00:28:50,440
And I, I tell you a whole lot of
useful facts.

510
00:28:50,880 –> 00:28:54,080
It means to draw someone
alongside and and that’s how an

511
00:28:54,080 –> 00:28:57,240
exhort should be is that we we
feel drawn alongside maybe the

512
00:28:57,240 –> 00:29:00,120
speakers that he’s open and
honest enough to tell you how he

513
00:29:00,120 –> 00:29:03,400
feels and perhaps the fact that
he struggles in life and you

514
00:29:03,400 –> 00:29:07,400
feel alongside that because and
then you feel alongside Christ.

515
00:29:07,480 –> 00:29:10,160
That’s the more important thing
that you can see things from

516
00:29:10,160 –> 00:29:14,440
Christ’s perspective that you
feel like you stand alongside

517
00:29:14,840 –> 00:29:17,720
someone else who who that that
is the comfort.

518
00:29:18,320 –> 00:29:21,520
You know Jesus talks about it
and he says blessed are they

519
00:29:21,520 –> 00:29:23,800
that mourn for they shall be
comforted.

520
00:29:25,120 –> 00:29:29,760
So he’s he’s got the same idea.
Why would you mourn?

521
00:29:29,880 –> 00:29:32,240
What’s the mourning?
Why would you why would you need

522
00:29:32,240 –> 00:29:35,920
comforting?
Well, that particular phrase is,

523
00:29:35,960 –> 00:29:39,520
is Christ is referring to the
quote in Isaiah, you know, the

524
00:29:39,520 –> 00:29:43,840
one where he says that he says
he’s preached good tidings to

525
00:29:43,840 –> 00:29:47,120
those that are bound to that
he’ll bind up the broken

526
00:29:47,120 –> 00:29:49,240
hearted.
He’ll proclaim liberty to the

527
00:29:49,240 –> 00:29:53,560
captives and comfort all that
mourn In Isaiah chapter 61, You

528
00:29:53,560 –> 00:29:56,480
know it, It’s talking about the
problem of sin.

529
00:29:57,440 –> 00:30:02,040
The problem that we have when we
come here is that we feel a

530
00:30:02,040 –> 00:30:03,400
problem.
We, we don’t feel good about

531
00:30:03,400 –> 00:30:09,520
ourselves and we come Sunday by
Sunday remembering that we have

532
00:30:09,760 –> 00:30:13,680
gone our selfish ways and we
actually don’t feel good about

533
00:30:13,680 –> 00:30:15,320
that.
We would actually like to have

534
00:30:15,320 –> 00:30:17,800
been someone like Christ.
And when we come here, the

535
00:30:17,800 –> 00:30:21,360
example of Christ levels us all.
We’re all looking at this table

536
00:30:21,360 –> 00:30:23,800
before us thinking I, I just
don’t match up.

537
00:30:23,800 –> 00:30:27,120
I’m, I’m not good enough.
I’ve, I’ve had my failings, I’ve

538
00:30:27,120 –> 00:30:29,520
had my selfishness moments
throughout this week.

539
00:30:30,360 –> 00:30:33,640
Maybe I’ve spoken bitter words.
I’ve I let my temper get the

540
00:30:33,640 –> 00:30:36,920
better of me feeling that I need
to defend myself.

541
00:30:36,920 –> 00:30:39,320
Maybe I haven’t.
I’ve wasted time that I could

542
00:30:39,320 –> 00:30:42,320
have spent helping someone else
or I didn’t reach out when the

543
00:30:42,320 –> 00:30:44,880
opportunity presented itself And
look at Christ.

544
00:30:44,880 –> 00:30:49,520
He never missed an opportunity.
And we do feel bad about that.

545
00:30:49,880 –> 00:30:52,160
We do come here with a sense of
of sadness.

546
00:30:52,160 –> 00:30:55,040
There’s a good, good thing in
feeling a little bit of sorrow

547
00:30:55,040 –> 00:30:59,120
when we come here this morning.
Paul, did you know if Paul?

548
00:30:59,920 –> 00:31:03,240
One of the things about Paul is
I think he had an incredible

549
00:31:03,240 –> 00:31:06,920
insight into the actual nature
of mankind himself.

550
00:31:07,320 –> 00:31:10,120
He looked into himself and he
said a wretched man that I am

551
00:31:10,320 –> 00:31:12,880
who will deliver me from the
body of this death.

552
00:31:13,640 –> 00:31:16,800
I think Christ, you know what
that expression body of this

553
00:31:16,800 –> 00:31:18,760
death actually refers to?
Sorry.

554
00:31:18,880 –> 00:31:22,200
This is a horrible piece of
horrible history that they used

555
00:31:22,200 –> 00:31:25,400
to get a dead prisoner and a
live prisoner and chain the two

556
00:31:25,400 –> 00:31:28,880
together until the disease from
the dead one would kill the live

557
00:31:28,880 –> 00:31:30,680
1.
And that was a torture method,

558
00:31:30,680 –> 00:31:33,520
the horrible torture method
Romans used to use.

559
00:31:33,960 –> 00:31:37,880
And but just a moment, that’s
how Paul saw himself.

560
00:31:39,000 –> 00:31:41,120
That is the expression that he
used.

561
00:31:41,240 –> 00:31:43,600
Who shall deliver me from this
body of death?

562
00:31:44,160 –> 00:31:46,880
He sees that as himself.
Wow.

563
00:31:47,160 –> 00:31:52,080
That is, that’s his insight into
the great apostle Paul, his

564
00:31:52,080 –> 00:31:56,200
insight into himself as he saw
himself like that and he looked

565
00:31:56,200 –> 00:31:59,080
to Christ to deliver him from
himself.

566
00:31:59,320 –> 00:32:00,480
We, we know where the problem
is.

567
00:32:00,480 –> 00:32:05,120
If we’re truly honest problems
in here, it’s me, ’cause I, I

568
00:32:05,120 –> 00:32:09,360
want to be selfish and, and I
know that that separates me from

569
00:32:09,360 –> 00:32:11,680
God.
I feel distance from God when I

570
00:32:11,680 –> 00:32:14,240
come here.
I feel this is hard, these,

571
00:32:14,240 –> 00:32:17,360
these emblems because I come
here feeling that I’ve got my

572
00:32:17,360 –> 00:32:20,320
faults and I feel distance from
God.

573
00:32:20,400 –> 00:32:25,360
Well, the comfort is that you
feel drawn close to God, James

574
00:32:25,360 –> 00:32:29,960
says cleanse your hands, purify
your hearts, draw near to God

575
00:32:29,960 –> 00:32:33,280
and he’ll draw near to you.
You know, so this is what we

576
00:32:33,280 –> 00:32:36,400
come for Sunday by Sunday is the
comfort.

577
00:32:37,080 –> 00:32:41,680
Now the comfort goes like this.
The comfort is that God wants to

578
00:32:41,680 –> 00:32:44,680
draw near to us.
If you’re honest enough to see

579
00:32:44,680 –> 00:32:47,800
your faults, if you’re, you
really want to commit to the

580
00:32:47,800 –> 00:32:51,840
life of Christ of going forward
in in a self sacrificing way, if

581
00:32:51,840 –> 00:32:54,960
you really want that, then God
wants to draw near to you.

582
00:32:55,560 –> 00:32:58,520
You know, and, and we’re, we’re
given in Romans, that little

583
00:32:58,520 –> 00:33:01,640
court thing, Paracletos is a
courtroom term, right?

584
00:33:02,480 –> 00:33:06,400
So in Romans you’re given a
courtroom scene and it’s

585
00:33:06,400 –> 00:33:09,240
described like this.
What shall we say then?

586
00:33:09,560 –> 00:33:12,120
If God be for us, who can be
against us?

587
00:33:12,640 –> 00:33:16,040
So you’re going to get to the
judgement seat and normally

588
00:33:16,040 –> 00:33:19,120
Australian courtrooms or as far
as I understand, have got the

589
00:33:19,120 –> 00:33:22,760
judge up the front and the
accusing party and the defending

590
00:33:22,760 –> 00:33:25,560
party on the right and left.
So you’re standing over on the

591
00:33:25,560 –> 00:33:27,880
defending side hoping that
someone’s going to stand with

592
00:33:27,880 –> 00:33:30,400
you, Paracletus.
And you look around and you

593
00:33:30,400 –> 00:33:32,280
think, well, who’s on the
accusing side?

594
00:33:33,480 –> 00:33:39,880
God’s not there, he’s over here.
He stands on my side and, and

595
00:33:39,880 –> 00:33:43,040
what’s he done?
He that spared his own son.

596
00:33:43,040 –> 00:33:45,480
So you look at this defender,
this Paracletus that you’ve got

597
00:33:45,480 –> 00:33:49,040
standing alongside you.
How far is he willing to go?

598
00:33:50,520 –> 00:33:52,560
You.
You come here Sunday by Sunday

599
00:33:52,600 –> 00:33:55,800
and you feel in insignificant
about yourself.

600
00:33:55,800 –> 00:33:58,200
You feel down about yourself and
your own failings, right?

601
00:33:58,520 –> 00:34:01,360
How far is this paracletos
willing to go?

602
00:34:01,840 –> 00:34:06,720
It says he spared not his own
son, but delivered him up for us

603
00:34:06,960 –> 00:34:09,719
all.
How shall he not more freely

604
00:34:09,719 –> 00:34:13,000
give us all things?
You question whether God wants

605
00:34:13,000 –> 00:34:15,239
you in the Kingdom.
There’s your answer.

606
00:34:15,800 –> 00:34:18,199
God’s willing to give his Son to
get you into the Kingdom.

607
00:34:18,960 –> 00:34:23,320
You, his Son, his beloved Son,
let that sink in.

608
00:34:25,239 –> 00:34:27,679
Who shall lay anything to the
charge of God’s elect?

609
00:34:28,320 –> 00:34:31,080
God that justifies.
That’s the paraclegos that

610
00:34:31,080 –> 00:34:33,719
stands by you.
Where’s the condemning?

611
00:34:33,800 –> 00:34:38,159
On the other side?
Is Christ that died for the sake

612
00:34:38,159 –> 00:34:40,600
of you gonna stand over there on
the condemning side?

613
00:34:41,040 –> 00:34:46,360
Yeah, rather that is risen again
and that he now stands almost

614
00:34:46,360 –> 00:34:49,600
paracletos, but not quite the
right word on the right hand of

615
00:34:49,600 –> 00:34:52,239
God to make intercession for
you.

616
00:34:53,679 –> 00:34:55,520
Where’s the attacking side in
all of this?

617
00:34:55,520 –> 00:34:59,040
It’s not there.
Who is going to separate us from

618
00:34:59,040 –> 00:35:02,120
the love of Christ?
Shall tribulation, shall

619
00:35:02,120 –> 00:35:06,200
distress, persecution, famine,
nakedness, peril, the sword.

620
00:35:07,720 –> 00:35:10,920
Porsches told us that those
things can bring you closer to

621
00:35:10,920 –> 00:35:15,880
Christ and God closer to you.
It is written for thy sake.

622
00:35:15,880 –> 00:35:18,440
We’re killed all the day long.
We’re counted as sheep to the

623
00:35:18,440 –> 00:35:21,160
slaughter.
Nay, in all these things we’re

624
00:35:21,160 –> 00:35:24,120
more than conquerors through Him
who loved us.

625
00:35:25,160 –> 00:35:27,320
That’s how you can be a success
story.

626
00:35:28,000 –> 00:35:29,840
True success is redefined for
us.

627
00:35:29,840 –> 00:35:32,960
True success is admitting your
faults and you’re willing to

628
00:35:32,960 –> 00:35:37,640
stand on the accused side, but
when you do, God stands

629
00:35:37,640 –> 00:35:40,160
alongside you.
Christ has given his life to

630
00:35:40,160 –> 00:35:44,480
save you if you will accept it,
and that is you being a true

631
00:35:44,480 –> 00:35:47,640
conqueror.
And you go forward in your week

632
00:35:48,040 –> 00:35:53,360
willing to accept the weakness
of your nature and yet to give

633
00:35:53,560 –> 00:35:57,560
to others.
And you feel in that position

634
00:35:58,520 –> 00:36:02,920
that God stands alongside you,
that your Father stands

635
00:36:03,000 –> 00:36:05,040
alongside you, your true Father
in heaven.

636
00:36:06,240 –> 00:36:09,080
I just want to read a little
snippet from Seasons of Comfort

637
00:36:09,680 –> 00:36:13,240
for our consolations also bound
by Christ.

638
00:36:14,000 –> 00:36:17,480
The knowledge that Christ is
with the Father as our friend

639
00:36:17,960 –> 00:36:22,040
and living forever while all is
change and death around us.

640
00:36:22,720 –> 00:36:26,360
And then he comes again at the
appointed time to deliver us

641
00:36:26,680 –> 00:36:29,720
from the weakness of this
corruptible and to give us a

642
00:36:29,720 –> 00:36:34,000
place in the glorious society.
The perfected sons of God is a

643
00:36:34,000 –> 00:36:37,560
continual comfort in this valley
of the shadow of death.

644
00:36:38,360 –> 00:36:44,320
On this indeed we must rely as a
supreme comfort for all others

645
00:36:44,400 –> 00:36:47,880
may fail.
And other comforts that Paul

646
00:36:47,880 –> 00:36:52,040
experienced, he describes in
Romans chapter one as being

647
00:36:52,360 –> 00:36:56,560
comforted together with the
mutual faith of himself and his

648
00:36:56,560 –> 00:36:59,600
brethren.
You don’t come here alone,

649
00:36:59,600 –> 00:37:02,400
brothers and sisters.
If you come here feeling

650
00:37:02,400 –> 00:37:05,120
apologetic, a feeling that
you’ve got something to be sorry

651
00:37:05,120 –> 00:37:07,440
for, when you come to these
emblems, you’re not alone.

652
00:37:08,400 –> 00:37:11,240
It’s about us.
When you come here seeking to

653
00:37:11,240 –> 00:37:16,200
have God alongside you and feel
like he stands alongside you in

654
00:37:16,200 –> 00:37:18,360
your need of that, you’re not
alone.

655
00:37:19,000 –> 00:37:22,240
You stand alongside all of us.
We stand together.

656
00:37:22,240 –> 00:37:25,800
And when you go out willing to
sacrifice perhaps what you want

657
00:37:25,800 –> 00:37:31,120
in life in order to give to
others, we work together as us

658
00:37:31,680 –> 00:37:35,480
and me becomes lost.
That’s not a bad thing.

659
00:37:36,280 –> 00:37:38,480
The world tells you, go out,
find yourself.

660
00:37:39,840 –> 00:37:45,600
It’s rubbish, it’s a lie.
Go out and find Christ in you.

661
00:37:45,600 –> 00:37:50,880
The hope of glory finding me is
the world’s lie.

662
00:37:51,200 –> 00:37:55,360
Doesn’t make you happy.
Do you know what makes you happy

663
00:37:55,400 –> 00:37:58,520
Is to be beyond the focus on
self.

664
00:37:59,560 –> 00:38:01,840
You’ll be one of those people
who don’t need to worry about

665
00:38:01,840 –> 00:38:05,880
self.
You know, faith looks upward to

666
00:38:05,880 –> 00:38:07,320
God.
I know this is a a phrase you’ve

667
00:38:07,320 –> 00:38:11,720
probably heard before.
Whereas selfishness looks down

668
00:38:12,280 –> 00:38:15,120
towards the things on earth,
they all pass away.

669
00:38:16,080 –> 00:38:18,520
And the way Russia’s going,
probably the sooner rather than

670
00:38:18,520 –> 00:38:22,040
later, all these things that you
strive for, they’ll all pass

671
00:38:22,040 –> 00:38:25,600
away.
But faith looks upward to where

672
00:38:25,600 –> 00:38:29,320
God is and the plans that he’s
got for you and your brother and

673
00:38:29,320 –> 00:38:33,240
sisters and the children in your
ecclesia and your future in the

674
00:38:33,240 –> 00:38:34,640
Kingdom.
And the wonderful thing is that

675
00:38:34,840 –> 00:38:37,760
mortals are going to learn
because you learnt them now, and

676
00:38:38,400 –> 00:38:39,760
you’re going to share those
things with them.

677
00:38:41,000 –> 00:38:45,320
Hope looks forward to the future
that God’s made, not at the

678
00:38:45,320 –> 00:38:47,480
selfish achievements that you’ve
achieved.

679
00:38:48,520 –> 00:38:50,400
It’s funny, isn’t it?
You can achieve all sorts of

680
00:38:50,400 –> 00:38:53,080
great things in this life, and
it takes a while before you

681
00:38:53,080 –> 00:38:56,560
realise no one else cares.
Who was the football legend who

682
00:38:57,120 –> 00:39:02,520
kicked a great goal 16 years ago
in some particular Oval?

683
00:39:02,880 –> 00:39:05,800
Nobody knows.
Who’s the person who achieved

684
00:39:05,800 –> 00:39:07,840
that university degree 16 years
ago?

685
00:39:08,520 –> 00:39:11,840
You might know if it’s you, but
nobody else seems to care.

686
00:39:13,640 –> 00:39:18,240
All these things are forgotten
because that’s looking backwards

687
00:39:18,920 –> 00:39:21,200
and the world is set in reverse
gear.

688
00:39:21,200 –> 00:39:24,720
They’re looking backwards.
They don’t have faith that looks

689
00:39:24,720 –> 00:39:28,560
upward, they have selfishness
that looks downward on the

690
00:39:28,560 –> 00:39:31,720
things that earth promises will
give them to make them happy.

691
00:39:32,840 –> 00:39:35,040
They don’t look forward in hope
to God’s future.

692
00:39:35,560 –> 00:39:38,000
They look selfishly back at
their own achievements.

693
00:39:39,000 –> 00:39:42,440
And most importantly, look
outward in love.

694
00:39:43,960 –> 00:39:48,040
You’ll find happiness there.
You can do things which the

695
00:39:48,040 –> 00:39:51,360
world might not see as great.
Teach Sunday school, go make a

696
00:39:51,360 –> 00:39:55,120
meal for someone, turn up on
someone’s doorstep and give them

697
00:39:55,120 –> 00:39:57,560
a coffee.
Time to talk to them and break

698
00:39:57,560 –> 00:40:01,720
up their lonely day.
Don’t do something for somebody

699
00:40:01,720 –> 00:40:04,320
else.
Parents who constantly give for

700
00:40:04,320 –> 00:40:08,040
the sake of their kids maybe
spend hours in a job that isn’t

701
00:40:08,040 –> 00:40:11,640
that fun because it pays the
bills and helps the family out

702
00:40:11,720 –> 00:40:14,680
and allows them to get on with
the important things of life.

703
00:40:15,480 –> 00:40:21,000
Love looks outwards to others.
Selfishness looks inwardly for

704
00:40:21,000 –> 00:40:23,600
answers within, and there’s no
light in there.

705
00:40:24,000 –> 00:40:26,520
Paul’s told us you speak
according to yourself.

706
00:40:26,520 –> 00:40:30,920
There’s no light in you.
So as we come this morning to

707
00:40:31,400 –> 00:40:37,400
seek Christ and to seek the
comfort of Scriptures, let’s not

708
00:40:37,400 –> 00:40:41,360
be afraid of suffering.
Let’s not be afraid of giving.

709
00:40:42,640 –> 00:40:45,880
Let’s come with repentance for
the things that perhaps we’ve

710
00:40:45,880 –> 00:40:49,920
done wrong and yet call Christ
alongside.

711
00:40:49,960 –> 00:40:52,160
Renew your covenant with Christ
this morning.

712
00:40:52,680 –> 00:40:56,640
Call them alongside as your
paracletos and God alongside

713
00:40:57,560 –> 00:41:00,440
that you can actually have the
thing that makes you feel happy

714
00:41:00,440 –> 00:41:04,200
in life, which is to feel close
to God and feel close to Christ

715
00:41:04,200 –> 00:41:07,280
in your life.
Not only because they forgive

716
00:41:07,280 –> 00:41:11,800
you over and over again if need
be, but also that you’re doing

717
00:41:11,800 –> 00:41:14,600
their work.
You’re discovering what made

718
00:41:14,600 –> 00:41:17,320
them happy.
Don’t just sit back and say I

719
00:41:17,320 –> 00:41:20,880
don’t have joy in my life.
Christ said when he gave us this

720
00:41:20,880 –> 00:41:24,800
feast, my joy I give with you,
but you don’t have that joy in

721
00:41:24,800 –> 00:41:27,000
your life.
Try it.

722
00:41:27,720 –> 00:41:30,240
Try what he gave you and see if
it helps.

723
00:41:31,320 –> 00:41:46,800
Thank you.
Thank you for listening to the

724
00:41:46,800 –> 00:41:48,360
Good Christadelphian Talks
podcast.

725
00:41:49,200 –> 00:41:51,640
We hope this talk helped you in
your walk and brightened your

726
00:41:51,640 –> 00:41:54,000
day.
If you would like to hear more,

727
00:41:54,000 –> 00:41:55,760
please subscribe for new
episodes.

728
00:41:56,120 –> 00:41:59,360
We are on all major podcast
platforms and also on YouTube.

729
00:42:00,520 –> 00:42:02,960
If you enjoyed this particular
talk, please share it with

730
00:42:02,960 –> 00:42:04,880
someone else who you think might
enjoy it too.

731
00:42:05,840 –> 00:42:08,520
For show notes on the talk you
just listened to, visit

732
00:42:08,520 –> 00:42:12,400
[email protected]
or check out the Show Notes

733
00:42:12,400 –> 00:42:16,160
section of your podcast player.
Please share your thoughts on

734
00:42:16,160 –> 00:42:19,160
the talk from this week on our
Facebook or Instagram pages

735
00:42:19,160 –> 00:42:22,120
where we are at good
Christadelphian talks or leave a

736
00:42:22,120 –> 00:42:24,880
comment on our YouTube channel
where these talks are posted as

737
00:42:24,880 –> 00:42:26,600
well.
If you enjoy listening to the

738
00:42:26,600 –> 00:42:29,240
talks that we post and here one
that you think we should share,

739
00:42:29,480 –> 00:42:32,720
please tell us about it.
You can send a suggestion using

740
00:42:32,720 –> 00:42:35,840
the Contact Us tab on our
website or message us on any of

741
00:42:35,840 –> 00:42:38,560
our social media accounts.
Thank you for listening.

742
00:42:38,800 –> 00:42:40,720
God bless and talk to you next
week.