350: Luke Nicholls – Exhortation: Savoring the Things of God

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Welcome to good Chris Adelphian
talks.

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I’m Levi.
I’m Chris.

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I’m Jason.
And I’m Brian, thank you for

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joining us this week.
On this podcast, we select one

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talk a week to help us get the
Bible in our Daily News feed.

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Each week we post a talk that we
previewed from suggestions sent

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in by listeners from around the
world.

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Then we record a short intro
beforehand as a personalized

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recommendation to you on why we
are sharing the talk.

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And now let’s talk more about
this week’s talk.

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Hello, it’s Levi.
This week’s talk is an

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excitation that was given by
brother Luke Nichols at the

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Brighton Ecclesia, which is
outside of Adelaide in

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Australia.
He gave it on April 27th of this

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year and the title was Savoring
the Things of God.

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I very much enjoyed this
excitation.

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He touches on a lot of really
important concepts.

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He pulls his thoughts from the
verse in Matthew 1623, where in

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the King James it says for thou
savourest not the things that be

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of God, but those that be of
men.

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And he kind of digs deep into
that word savouring, looking at

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mindfulness and the kind of
different related concepts.

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So I would definitely think this
is a this also kind of

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specifically a word study, but I
really, really appreciate it.

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It was very easy to listen to.
I listen to it just on a walk

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as, as I know many of you, you
know, consume the podcast this

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way.
I think it fits perfectly kind

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of for that setting and kind of
exploring the idea of being

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really thoughtful and mindful of
the things that we think about

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and the things that we pursue.
He has a discussion in the in

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the invitation about kind of
dopamine and how easy it is for

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our brains to reach for things
that give us kind of short

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dopamine hits.
This is definitely something

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I’ve been thinking about in my
personal life and in my walk in

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the truth.
Just how easy it is, you know,

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to reach for your phone or to
look at sports or different

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things that kind of distract us
from the things of God instead

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of really choosing to mindfully
consider the the ways of the

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Lord, the things that be of God.
So I really found this again to

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be very powerful and a really
great excerpt.

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So I thank brother Luke for that
and the the, the, the, the

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brother that sent in this
recommendation.

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We thank you for that.
I’m going to have a fun time

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titling it because savouring is
spelled different in American

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English versus Australian
English, but we’re going to

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write it out the American way,
so I will.

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Here it is savouring the things
of God, the resolute Nichols.

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Imagine you’re sitting on a
beach in a comfortable deck

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chair.
It’s dusk and the air is balmy

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with a light breeze coming off
the ocean.

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You take a deep breath in and
your lungs filled with warm,

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fresh air.
You smell the salty seawater

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which is lapping at the sand
with gentle waves spread out in

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the sky.
In front of you is a magnificent

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sunset, a massive orange and
pink hues so well blended that

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you cannot see where one colour
ends and the next starts.

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God’s canvas of colours, a
witness to the creativity of our

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Maker.
The heavens declaring the glory

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of God, the Sky’s proclaiming
the work of his hands.

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Wispy white and pale pink clouds
are scattered in the sky with a

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perfect round orb at its centre.
The bright light of the sun

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softens as it prepares to dip
below the horizon.

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The ocean reflects the orange
and pinks with a backdrop of

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blue, which is darkening as the
light fades.

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We savour this moment, what we
can see, what we can hear, what

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we can smell and what we can
feel.

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It’s something that comes quite
naturally to us.

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Savouring.
It’s instinctive.

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It’s also unique to each person.
We can savour very different

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things.
Some people love coffee, others

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can’t stand it.
Some people are captivated

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listening to an orchestra,
others would prefer be somewhere

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else.
Our favorite foods can vary

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significantly.
Some people love lying on a

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beach on a hot summer’s day.
Others love sipping a hot drink

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by a crackling fire in their
slippers.

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We savor in a variety of ways,
too.

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We savor through sounds like
rain on a tin roof.

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We savor achieving or
accomplishing something, maybe

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that’s running a personal best
or completing a uni degree.

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We save a taste, like eating a
delicious meal.

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And we save a smells as well.
Think of that earthy smell after

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a rain that we’ve experienced
recently.

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So we really want to consider
this idea of savouring this

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morning.
And this idea comes up in our

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reading in Matthew 16, verse 23,
and particularly the second-half

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of the verse.
If you don’t have a King James,

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you might be looking at that the
end of that verse going, I’m not

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quite sure what Luke’s getting
out here, so I’ll read it for

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you from the King James Version,
Matthew 16, verse 23, the

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second-half of the verse, Jesus
says for thou savourest not the

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things that be of God, but those
that be of men.

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Other translations have
something like you are not

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mindful of the things of God or
you are not setting your mind on

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the things of God.
So the Greek word for savouring

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or mindful is froneo PHRONEO,
and it occurs 29 times in the

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New Testament, and it’s only
translated as savour here in

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Matthew 16 and also in Mark 8,
which are both renditions of

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this same story.
It’s also translated elsewhere

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in a number of ways throughout
the New Testament.

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It’s translated in Colossians 3
verse 2 as affection.

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Set your affection on things
above.

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It’s translated in some places
as care in Romans 8 verse 5.

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It’s translated as mind.
They that are after the flesh do

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mind the things of the flesh.
It’s also in some in some places

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it means being of the same mind
or like minded.

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For example Philippians 2 verse
2.

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Paul says, Fulfill ye my joy,
that ye be like minded.

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In Romans 14 verse 6, Paul uses
it when he’s talking about

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regarding one day or another.
He that regards the day regards

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it unto the Lord.
He uses it a number of times in

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that chapter.
And then finally, it’s also used

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in other places in the New
Testament as thinking or

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understanding something.
So this word franeo has a number

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of different applications and
ways it can be used.

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The Strong’s definition is quite
long, so I won’t read it out,

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but there are four key ideas
from that definition if you care

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to look it up.
So the first key idea from the

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Strong’s definition is
exercising the mind.

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It’s also got this.
This word also has the idea of

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something that entertains us.
It’s also got the idea of being

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mentally disposed in a
particular direction.

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And then finally, it’s also
about being intensely interested

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in something.
So these four key ideas, that

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they’re quite varied, as we’ve
already mentioned, we savor in

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different ways, don’t we?
So let’s just go back through

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those four ideas in a bit more
detail to consolidate them and

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explore them a little bit more.
So the first idea was exercising

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the mind.
And there’s two key elements of

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exercise.
There’s effort and there’s

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consistency.
And I think what this shows us

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is that savouring takes
spiritual, savouring takes

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concerted effort.
It’s something we build over

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time, not overnight.
The second idea was what are we

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entertained by when we have a
free moment?

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What do we choose to do?
Do we love doing our daily

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readings, or do we do them just
to tick them off?

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Or do we struggle to even do
them at all?

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The third idea was being
mentally disposed in a

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particular direction.
What course have we set

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ourselves on?
Where do we want to end up?

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Where do we expend our mental
resources, our thinking?

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And then our 4th and final idea
from that definition was

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something that we’re intensely
interested in.

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What is it that we really want
to learn more about?

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There’s lots of things we can be
keenly interested in.

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Are we keen to learn from God’s
word each day, or are there

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other things we’re more
intensely interested in?

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It’s also interesting to note
that this word, franeo, comes

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from a Greek word which combines
the ideas of feeling and

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understanding.
Franeo goes beyond what we know.

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It’s about how we feel too.
And we’ll see from the passages

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we look at today that these
feelings inevitably cause us to

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act as well.
So hopefully you’ve already got

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Matthew 16 open in front of you
and we’ll dive into that chapter

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now.
And we’ll start with our key

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verse in verse 23.
So it says, but he turned and

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said to Peter, get behind me,
Satan, you’re an offence to me,

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for you are not mindful of the
things of God, but the things of

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men.
This is a strong rebuke from

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Christ.
How would we feel if we were

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called Satan if a close friend
who we respected and looked up

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to told us we were an adversary
to them?

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It would stop us instantly in
our tracks.

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Maybe anger would well up inside
us.

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Maybe we’d be so shocked we
wouldn’t know what to think.

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Maybe we’d realize how wrong we
were in what we just said.

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We aren’t actually told how
Peter reacted, but he definitely

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would have been feeling one of
those things.

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And Christ doesn’t leave it at
Satan either.

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He goes on.
You are an offence to me.

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Would you feel comfortable
talking to one of your friends

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like this?
This is pretty severe language.

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So why is Christ so harsh in his
rebuke of Peter?

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In my centre margin there’s a
note that offence can also be

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translated stumbling block.
I think Elliott’s translation

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the ESV had hindrance as well.
Both of those words are good.

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So offence can be stumbling
block or hindrance.

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The things Peter has said to
Christ a deceptive They might

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seem to make sense on the
surface, but Christ cuts deeper

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than that.
In an instant.

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He sees where Peter’s thinking
will lead.

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So let’s go back a few verses to
remind ourselves what has

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occurred in the lead up to verse
23.

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So back to verse 15.
And there we see that Jesus asks

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his disciples who they think he
is and Peter confidently

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answers, you are the Christ, the
Son of the living God.

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He hits the nail on the head and
Christ commends him for this.

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He’s not an adversary or an
offence to Christ at all.

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In this moment in verse 17,
Peter is blessed by Christ.

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We he, he says there blessed are
you, Simon by Jonah, for flesh

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and blood has not revealed this
to you, but my Father who is in

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heaven.
So we see the blessing there.

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But Christ also establishes a
contrast in this verse between

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the things that flesh and blood
can reveal and what his Father

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in heaven can reveal.
And this is similar to the

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contrast in verse 23 between
savouring the things of men and

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savouring the things of God.
So we’ll just skip down a few

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verses through the story to
verse 21 and 22, which reads

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from that time.
Jesus began to show to his

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disciples that he must go to
Jerusalem and suffer many things

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from the elders and chief
priests and scribes and be

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killed and be raised the third
day.

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Then Peter took him aside and
began to rebuke him, saying, far

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be it from you, Lord, this shall
not happen to you.

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So Peter is telling Jesus that
he won’t have to suffer and be

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killed.
This is why Jesus calls him an

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adversary and a stumbling block.
Let’s dig a bit deeper into

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those verses we just read.
Did you notice the beginning of

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verse 21?
From that time, Jesus began to

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show this is the first time that
Jesus has taught his disciples

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about how he would have to
suffer and be killed.

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It’s something we’re quite
familiar with, isn’t it?

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But this is the first time it
would have been introduced to

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the disciples, and it’s quite a
contrast to the excitement that

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would have been in the air after
Peter’s declaration that Jesus

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is the Christ.
Can you imagine the person who

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is the most assured and
confident in your life telling

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00:15:51,520 –> 00:15:55,160
you that they’ll have to go
through immense suffering at the

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00:15:55,160 –> 00:15:59,080
hands of the revered religious
leaders and then be killed?

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00:16:00,720 –> 00:16:03,440
That’s the last thing you would
expect.

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00:16:04,520 –> 00:16:06,640
They’re the person who’s got it
most together.

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00:16:07,400 –> 00:16:09,600
They wouldn’t have to go through
something like that.

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00:16:11,400 –> 00:16:13,600
It would turn your life upside
down.

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00:16:14,040 –> 00:16:16,200
You wouldn’t know what to think
or say.

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00:16:17,920 –> 00:16:23,520
We instinctively want to live
and thrive, not suffer and die.

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00:16:24,880 –> 00:16:28,520
And on this instinct, Peter
responds and rebukes his master.

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00:16:30,680 –> 00:16:35,520
But I think the phrase began to
show also indicates that Jesus

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00:16:35,520 –> 00:16:39,400
was teaching his disciples these
things from Old Testament

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00:16:39,400 –> 00:16:42,840
scriptures.
Christ wasn’t just saying that

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00:16:42,840 –> 00:16:46,440
he would have to suffer and die.
He was showing the disciples

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00:16:46,440 –> 00:16:49,840
passages in the Old Testament
that said this.

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00:16:50,920 –> 00:16:55,920
Mark’s record supports this.
In Mark 8 verse 31, he says and

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00:16:55,920 –> 00:17:00,040
he began to teach them that the
Son of Man must suffer many

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00:17:00,040 –> 00:17:04,040
things.
Peter wasn’t just disagreeing

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00:17:04,040 –> 00:17:07,760
with what Christ was saying.
That would have been bad enough.

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00:17:08,440 –> 00:17:11,560
He was speaking against
prophecies in God’s Word.

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00:17:12,920 –> 00:17:17,079
That’s not something a disciple
of Christ should be doing.

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00:17:20,119 –> 00:17:25,040
So what made Peter do this?
How did he get to the point of

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00:17:25,040 –> 00:17:29,200
directly disagreeing with the
things God had prophesied?

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00:17:30,600 –> 00:17:35,160
Well, this brings us back to
verse 23, the verse we started

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00:17:35,160 –> 00:17:37,040
in.
Let’s read it again.

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00:17:38,600 –> 00:17:42,640
But he turned and said to Peter,
get behind me, Satan, you’re an

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00:17:42,640 –> 00:17:46,800
offence to me, for you are not
mindful of the things of God,

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00:17:47,160 –> 00:17:53,840
but the things of men.
Peter had lost his focus.

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00:17:54,600 –> 00:17:57,040
He wasn’t looking at the bigger
picture.

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00:17:58,280 –> 00:18:01,560
All he heard was that his
beloved Lord was going to suffer

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00:18:01,840 –> 00:18:05,480
and be killed, and his human
nature kicked in.

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00:18:06,760 –> 00:18:09,880
I wonder if he even heard Christ
say that he would rise again the

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00:18:09,880 –> 00:18:13,280
third day.
Surely that would have helped

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00:18:13,280 –> 00:18:15,520
him think a little more calmly
and clearly.

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00:18:17,040 –> 00:18:20,520
But it seems he was already
preoccupied with the suffering

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00:18:20,840 –> 00:18:24,840
Jesus would have to go through.
I think the new English

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00:18:24,840 –> 00:18:28,560
translation renders Peter’s
words even more clearly.

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00:18:29,240 –> 00:18:34,240
It reads God forbid, Lord, this
must not happen to you.

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00:18:36,760 –> 00:18:38,960
Peter clearly wasn’t thinking
straight.

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00:18:39,680 –> 00:18:43,840
God can’t forbid something that
He has prophesied in His word.

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00:18:45,720 –> 00:18:48,960
I think this shows how quickly
we can move from savouring the

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00:18:48,960 –> 00:18:52,040
things of God to savouring the
things of men.

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00:18:53,480 –> 00:18:57,760
A human nature will kick in and
take over if we aren’t regularly

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00:18:57,760 –> 00:19:03,040
and intentionally savouring the
things of God and our natural

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00:19:03,040 –> 00:19:08,080
response, our human instincts,
we’ll inevitably disagree with

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00:19:08,080 –> 00:19:11,200
God.
We aren’t naturally good.

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00:19:12,640 –> 00:19:16,680
There’s a battle in our minds
between our natural fleshly

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00:19:16,680 –> 00:19:19,720
thinking and the thinking of our
Father.

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00:19:20,840 –> 00:19:24,240
And Paul talks about this battle
in Romans 7 and eight.

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00:19:25,480 –> 00:19:30,480
He uses our word for NAO in
Romans 8, verse 5, which we’ll

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00:19:30,480 –> 00:19:32,840
just read together now if you’d
like to turn there.

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00:19:33,480 –> 00:19:42,120
Romans 8, verse 5.
So for now in this verse is set

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00:19:42,120 –> 00:19:47,440
their minds that phrase.
So Paul says in verse 5, for

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00:19:47,440 –> 00:19:51,320
those who live according to the
flesh set their minds on the

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00:19:51,320 –> 00:19:54,520
things of the flesh, but those
who live according to the

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00:19:54,520 –> 00:19:57,240
Spirit, the things of the
Spirit.

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00:19:58,880 –> 00:20:02,680
So in this section here in
Romans 8, Paul is contrasting

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00:20:02,680 –> 00:20:04,680
caring about the things of the
flesh.

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00:20:05,040 –> 00:20:09,120
And the things of the spirit.
But it’s more than just a

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00:20:09,120 –> 00:20:12,440
contrast.
He portrays it as a battle.

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00:20:13,440 –> 00:20:16,760
A battle between savouring the
things of the spirit and

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00:20:16,760 –> 00:20:18,600
savouring the things of the
flesh.

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00:20:19,800 –> 00:20:23,640
To see this, we have to go back
to the second-half of Chapter 7.

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00:20:24,520 –> 00:20:28,640
Many of us would be familiar
with the words of Romans 7,

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00:20:28,640 –> 00:20:33,760
verse 19 in the King James.
It reads for the good that I

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00:20:33,760 –> 00:20:40,160
would I do not, but the evil,
which I would not that I do.

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00:20:41,520 –> 00:20:43,720
There’s this battle in Paul’s
mind.

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00:20:44,200 –> 00:20:49,120
He wants to do good, but his
default path is to do evil even

286
00:20:49,120 –> 00:20:52,520
though he doesn’t want to do it.
He describes this battle in

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00:20:52,520 –> 00:21:00,440
verse 22 and 23 of Chapter 7.
For I delight in the law of God

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00:21:00,440 –> 00:21:04,800
according to the inward man, but
I see another law in my members

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00:21:05,000 –> 00:21:08,840
warring against the law of my
mind, and bringing me into

290
00:21:08,840 –> 00:21:12,600
captivity to the law of sin
which is in my members.

291
00:21:14,600 –> 00:21:19,840
So Paul wants to do the right
thing, to savour the things of

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00:21:19,840 –> 00:21:22,800
God.
But this way of thinking

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00:21:22,800 –> 00:21:28,440
conflicts with his nature, the
law in his members, the law of

294
00:21:28,440 –> 00:21:32,640
his mind.
There are two armies fighting

295
00:21:33,000 –> 00:21:37,840
and the battlefield is our mind.
It’s a lifelong battle.

296
00:21:38,240 –> 00:21:41,240
We can’t assume the victory
halfway through.

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00:21:42,360 –> 00:21:46,400
In a battle, one army may have
the upper hand, but the opponent

298
00:21:46,480 –> 00:21:51,080
can mount a resurgence.
We have to remain disciplined

299
00:21:51,320 –> 00:21:54,160
and focused to maintain the
advantage.

300
00:21:55,280 –> 00:21:58,960
Just because we savour the
things of God doesn’t mean our

301
00:21:58,960 –> 00:22:02,440
human nature won’t try and take
over at times.

302
00:22:04,160 –> 00:22:08,480
Really, it’s about our thoughts,
what we’re feeding in, and as a

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00:22:08,480 –> 00:22:11,160
result, what our brain feeds
back out.

304
00:22:12,560 –> 00:22:15,440
It reminds me of that quote from
Brother John Carter.

305
00:22:16,400 –> 00:22:21,200
The mind is insensibly affected
by the stream of thought passing

306
00:22:21,200 –> 00:22:24,440
through it.
It is desirable, therefore, to

307
00:22:24,440 –> 00:22:27,640
have that stream as pure as
possible.

308
00:22:29,360 –> 00:22:33,560
We have to involve the things of
God in our thoughts and our

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00:22:33,560 –> 00:22:38,840
lives, savor them deeply every
day to provide our brains that

310
00:22:38,840 –> 00:22:43,720
pure stream that will lead to a
life that pleases our Father.

311
00:22:46,040 –> 00:22:50,680
The other thing that Paul makes
very clear in chapter 8 is the

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00:22:50,720 –> 00:22:53,640
outcome of both ways of
thinking.

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00:22:55,040 –> 00:22:59,800
In verse 8 he states that those
who are in the flesh cannot

314
00:22:59,800 –> 00:23:07,440
please God, and in verse 6 to be
carnally or fleshly minded is

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00:23:07,440 –> 00:23:11,760
death.
In contrast, he talks about the

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00:23:11,760 –> 00:23:15,840
positive outcomes of being
spiritually minded in verse 6

317
00:23:16,160 –> 00:23:21,080
and verse 13.
Verse 6, to be spiritually

318
00:23:21,080 –> 00:23:28,120
minded is life and peace.
And verse 13, if by the Spirit

319
00:23:28,120 –> 00:23:30,760
you put it put sorry, I’ll start
again.

320
00:23:30,960 –> 00:23:34,080
If by the Spirit you put to
death the deeds of the body,

321
00:23:34,360 –> 00:23:39,760
you’ll live.
So what are we savouring in our

322
00:23:39,760 –> 00:23:43,200
lives?
What are we intentionally

323
00:23:43,200 –> 00:23:47,920
setting our minds on?
If we leave it to our default,

324
00:23:48,520 –> 00:23:51,040
we’ll seek temporary pleasure
and entertainment.

325
00:23:51,480 –> 00:23:54,840
We’ll lose sight of the bigger
picture, just like Peter did.

326
00:23:56,000 –> 00:23:58,240
Our careers will take over our
lives.

327
00:23:58,760 –> 00:24:02,720
We’ll find ourselves endlessly
scrolling, seeking constant

328
00:24:02,720 –> 00:24:07,440
entertainment.
Society is designed to satisfy

329
00:24:07,440 –> 00:24:11,120
our human nature, whatever it
is.

330
00:24:11,480 –> 00:24:20,560
Music, sport, movies, work,
exercise, learning, cars, our

331
00:24:20,560 –> 00:24:26,800
appearance, food, travelling.
Naturally our brains will savour

332
00:24:26,800 –> 00:24:29,280
these things more than the
things of God.

333
00:24:31,160 –> 00:24:35,200
This takes us back to the idea
of exercising from the strong’s

334
00:24:35,200 –> 00:24:38,960
definition.
We learn to love the things of

335
00:24:38,960 –> 00:24:43,680
God, but it takes consistent
effort over an extended period

336
00:24:44,040 –> 00:24:48,600
of time.
We need to go searching for the

337
00:24:48,600 –> 00:24:51,960
things in God’s Word that really
spark our interest.

338
00:24:53,200 –> 00:24:57,200
Maybe it’s staying across the
news and seeing history being

339
00:24:57,200 –> 00:24:59,880
poured into the mould of Bible
prophecy.

340
00:25:01,240 –> 00:25:05,320
We might be drawn to themes or
repeated words which we circle

341
00:25:05,600 –> 00:25:11,520
or color in and reflect on.
Perhaps you were consistently

342
00:25:11,520 –> 00:25:15,720
touched by Jesus gentle
interactions with so many people

343
00:25:16,280 –> 00:25:18,320
and the wisdom with which he
spoke.

344
00:25:20,400 –> 00:25:24,320
Maybe you’re fascinated by the
imagery in Revelation and

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00:25:24,320 –> 00:25:27,520
complex links to the past and
future they hold.

346
00:25:27,520 –> 00:25:31,840
The key to.
Whatever it is that causes us to

347
00:25:31,840 –> 00:25:35,800
stop and savour God’s Word is
worth pursuing.

348
00:25:36,960 –> 00:25:40,760
We need to be intentional,
setting a clear goal of where we

349
00:25:40,760 –> 00:25:46,400
want to head in our lives.
Peter had to learn this too, to

350
00:25:46,400 –> 00:25:52,640
not default to fleshly thinking.
In Matthew 16 verse 24 and 25,

351
00:25:52,640 –> 00:25:58,160
Christ says if anyone desires to
come after me, let him deny

352
00:25:58,160 –> 00:26:02,440
himself and take up his cross
and follow me.

353
00:26:03,840 –> 00:26:08,560
For whoever desires to save his
life will lose it, but whoever

354
00:26:08,560 –> 00:26:12,200
loses his life for my sake will
find it.

355
00:26:14,120 –> 00:26:16,880
Christ doesn’t promise that
following Him will be easy.

356
00:26:17,680 –> 00:26:20,920
We’ll have to deny ourselves and
take up our cross.

357
00:26:21,920 –> 00:26:25,640
But if we choose to savour the
things of God and pass up

358
00:26:25,640 –> 00:26:30,800
experiencing everything we can
in this life, we will receive

359
00:26:31,120 –> 00:26:35,800
eternal life and there will be
so much more to savour.

360
00:26:35,800 –> 00:26:42,520
Then to conclude, I want to
briefly consider 3 verses where

361
00:26:42,520 –> 00:26:46,840
our word for anaio occurs, which
will help bring our minds to why

362
00:26:46,840 –> 00:26:51,760
we’re here today.
The first two talk about the the

363
00:26:51,760 –> 00:26:54,640
things that we mined
collectively as a group.

364
00:26:55,640 –> 00:27:00,120
Listen to these words from Paul
in 2nd Corinthians 13 verse 11.

365
00:27:01,680 –> 00:27:07,400
Finally, brethren, farewell.
Become complete, be of good

366
00:27:07,400 –> 00:27:13,600
comfort, be of one mind for a
NAO, live in peace, and the God

367
00:27:13,600 –> 00:27:15,560
of love and peace will be with
you.

368
00:27:18,000 –> 00:27:21,280
These are some of the last words
Paul wrote to the Corinthian

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00:27:21,280 –> 00:27:24,640
ecclesia.
He wanted them to be of one

370
00:27:24,640 –> 00:27:28,920
mind, to come together and
savour the things of God

371
00:27:29,240 –> 00:27:32,680
together.
It’s not something we just do

372
00:27:32,680 –> 00:27:35,800
individually.
It’s something we do together

373
00:27:35,920 –> 00:27:39,720
too.
Paul expresses a similar idea in

374
00:27:39,720 –> 00:27:42,880
Philippians 2 verse 2.
If you want to turn there.

375
00:27:43,480 –> 00:27:46,880
Here in this verse, he uses
Fornaio twice.

376
00:27:47,880 –> 00:27:52,960
In fact, he uses it 11 times in
Philippians in just four

377
00:27:52,960 –> 00:27:56,040
chapters.
He’s really encouraging the

378
00:27:56,040 –> 00:28:00,320
ecclesia to be on the same page
and set their minds on the

379
00:28:00,320 –> 00:28:05,040
things of the Spirit.
So let’s read Philippians 2

380
00:28:05,040 –> 00:28:12,880
verse one and two together.
Therefore, if there is any

381
00:28:12,880 –> 00:28:17,320
consolation in Christ, if any
comfort of love, if any

382
00:28:17,320 –> 00:28:22,440
fellowship of the Spirit, if any
affection and mercy fulfil my

383
00:28:22,440 –> 00:28:28,400
joy, being like minded, having
the same love, being of 1 accord

384
00:28:28,720 –> 00:28:34,040
of one mind.
So we see there that we come

385
00:28:34,040 –> 00:28:38,840
together today to strengthen and
encourage each other to be like

386
00:28:38,840 –> 00:28:44,680
minded, to be of one mind.
And Paul goes on in verse 5 to

387
00:28:44,680 –> 00:28:48,240
explain what that one mind we’re
striving for is.

388
00:28:49,200 –> 00:28:54,920
He says, let this mind for a NAO
be in you, which was also in

389
00:28:54,920 –> 00:28:59,560
Christ Jesus.
We’re striving together to have

390
00:28:59,560 –> 00:29:05,240
the same mind that Jesus had, to
savour the things he savoured.

391
00:29:06,640 –> 00:29:10,240
We’re following the example of a
man who spent days in the temple

392
00:29:10,520 –> 00:29:15,280
talking about God’s Word, who
committed Scripture to memory,

393
00:29:16,800 –> 00:29:21,920
who spent whole nights in
prayer, and who ultimately

394
00:29:21,920 –> 00:29:24,280
offered up his life to do God’s
will.

395
00:29:25,680 –> 00:29:31,280
What an amazing mind to have.
So let’s take a moment now to

396
00:29:31,280 –> 00:29:34,960
savor the things that God and
Christ have done for us.

397
00:29:49,400 –> 00:29:51,520
Thank you for listening to the
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398
00:29:51,520 –> 00:29:54,120
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399
00:29:54,120 –> 00:29:55,640
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400
00:29:56,800 –> 00:29:58,840
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00:30:44,240 –> 00:30:44,480
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