WEBVTT 1 00:00:00.240 --> 00:00:02.200 Hey, everybody, we're the Bible guys, and if you're just 2 00:00:02.240 --> 00:00:05.280 tuning in recently, just know that we are showing a 3 00:00:05.320 --> 00:00:07.120 little bit of reruns for a few months, and then 4 00:00:07.120 --> 00:00:09.839 we'll be back bigger and better than ever on August 5 00:00:09.919 --> 00:00:13.519 thirty first, because behind the scenes we're taking a hiatus 6 00:00:13.519 --> 00:00:14.720 to do some very important things. 7 00:00:14.759 --> 00:00:18.399 Yeah, we're building building out a new studio and we've 8 00:00:18.399 --> 00:00:21.399 got some new structure. Super excited about it. So August 9 00:00:21.480 --> 00:00:24.359 thirty first, brand new content. But in the meantime, enjoy 10 00:00:24.440 --> 00:00:25.559 some of our greatest hits. 11 00:00:26.000 --> 00:00:29.359 Well today can be summarized by saying, Holy living Batman. 12 00:00:30.440 --> 00:00:32.399 Okay, that was not how I thought you were going 13 00:00:32.439 --> 00:00:34.399 to introduce this. Well, let's find out what we're going 14 00:00:34.439 --> 00:00:36.119 to talk about. He's Chris, I'm Jeff, and we're the 15 00:00:36.119 --> 00:00:36.600 Bible guys. 16 00:00:47.920 --> 00:00:50.280 Did you know that Robin said holy whatever? 17 00:00:50.399 --> 00:00:53.159 Yeah, the original Batman. 18 00:00:53.359 --> 00:00:56.159 Yeah, well today Paul's talking about Holy living Yes. 19 00:00:56.359 --> 00:00:57.880 Hey, yeah, you just caught me off guard there. That 20 00:00:57.960 --> 00:00:59.359 was not how I thought you were going to induce that. 21 00:00:59.399 --> 00:01:00.799 And I don't want to say nothing. 22 00:01:00.840 --> 00:01:02.880 By the way, Jeff never knows what I'm going to say. 23 00:01:03.000 --> 00:01:03.320 No. 24 00:01:03.679 --> 00:01:06.560 In fact, just so you're wondering in case anybody wonders 25 00:01:06.560 --> 00:01:10.879 at all, we don't really know what anybody's We don't 26 00:01:10.879 --> 00:01:14.879 rehearse these at all, So these are just prepared the 27 00:01:14.959 --> 00:01:15.640 whole thing. 28 00:01:15.599 --> 00:01:21.120 Other than other than the Bible part. But yeah, I know. 29 00:01:21.280 --> 00:01:23.599 But but a lot of these, but a lot of 30 00:01:23.640 --> 00:01:26.519 the questions, every single one of them that we ask 31 00:01:26.560 --> 00:01:29.159 each other, for the most part, we don't know the 32 00:01:29.200 --> 00:01:29.920 other person's going to. 33 00:01:30.840 --> 00:01:31.159 Okay. 34 00:01:31.319 --> 00:01:34.439 So today is another segment on Stump the pastor where 35 00:01:34.480 --> 00:01:37.040 people have sent in questions, and we're doing this all 36 00:01:37.079 --> 00:01:40.040 week and so if you have any questions that you'd 37 00:01:40.040 --> 00:01:42.719 like to send in, please send them email us at 38 00:01:42.799 --> 00:01:46.319 info at the Bible Guys dot com and we would 39 00:01:46.359 --> 00:01:47.959 love to just take any questions and maybe in a 40 00:01:48.000 --> 00:01:51.359 few weeks we'll do another segment with your question. So 41 00:01:51.560 --> 00:01:54.840 this comes from Michael V. And the question today is this, 42 00:01:55.400 --> 00:01:58.599 what is the difference between an Israelite and did you? 43 00:01:59.560 --> 00:01:59.879 Wow? 44 00:02:00.359 --> 00:02:01.040 Yeah? 45 00:02:01.120 --> 00:02:04.200 So manlife. There's so many answers to that. Can we 46 00:02:04.280 --> 00:02:05.120 just throw in Hebrew? 47 00:02:05.599 --> 00:02:05.840 Yes? 48 00:02:06.040 --> 00:02:07.319 Can we just throw that one into yes? 49 00:02:08.800 --> 00:02:12.639 Well, the word Hebrew Israelite in jew just to sort 50 00:02:12.680 --> 00:02:15.439 of give you the short answer first, are all used 51 00:02:15.479 --> 00:02:21.319 interchangeably synonymously almost with Paul and and and the word 52 00:02:21.360 --> 00:02:26.199 Hebrew started with Abraham, and it's referred to as descendants 53 00:02:26.199 --> 00:02:29.680 of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. In fact, nobody really knows why, 54 00:02:29.680 --> 00:02:33.520 but Abraham was actually called the Hebrew and but it's 55 00:02:33.560 --> 00:02:36.879 it's it's really referred to the descendants of God's promises 56 00:02:37.120 --> 00:02:39.039 and the promises of Abraham specifically. 57 00:02:39.360 --> 00:02:42.479 So the word Hebrew comes from the the root word 58 00:02:42.520 --> 00:02:45.479 that means ever. So it seems like you know that 59 00:02:45.520 --> 00:02:47.560 God is saying because remember God said your your people 60 00:02:47.560 --> 00:02:50.479 will last forever. It seems like maybe that might be 61 00:02:50.520 --> 00:02:54.280 the root of that part of it where Hebrew really 62 00:02:54.280 --> 00:03:00.719 references relationship to to Abraham specifically. But then from there 63 00:03:01.319 --> 00:03:05.520 Israelite winds up being more of a nationality. We would 64 00:03:05.520 --> 00:03:09.120 say Israeli today it's the same same word. That's a 65 00:03:09.199 --> 00:03:12.479 nationality thing, But that doesn't necessarily mean you're Jewish. 66 00:03:12.759 --> 00:03:16.680 Right now, the word the word jew was Jews were 67 00:03:16.759 --> 00:03:20.840 first used when in the second Kings, when when the 68 00:03:20.919 --> 00:03:24.840 nation was divided and you had Israel and you had Judah. 69 00:03:24.840 --> 00:03:28.240 The people in Judah referred were referred to as Jews. 70 00:03:28.039 --> 00:03:30.919 Right and Judah is where Jerusalem is Judah is where 71 00:03:30.960 --> 00:03:34.479 Bethlehem is. Well, Bethlehem is in Benjamin. But Judah and 72 00:03:34.520 --> 00:03:38.240 Benjamin were one group and Israel was the other group 73 00:03:38.319 --> 00:03:38.719 up above. 74 00:03:38.800 --> 00:03:40.360 Yeah, yeah, and so and so. 75 00:03:40.560 --> 00:03:43.000 And then later on when they became one nation again, 76 00:03:43.280 --> 00:03:46.680 then they were all referred to as Jews and uh 77 00:03:46.800 --> 00:03:49.400 and and some suggest the reason why is because there 78 00:03:49.400 --> 00:03:51.560 were more in the southern region than there were in 79 00:03:51.599 --> 00:03:52.319 the northern region. 80 00:03:52.639 --> 00:03:55.000 But either way, and not long after that time that 81 00:03:55.039 --> 00:03:56.960 they came back together, the Greeks came in and took 82 00:03:57.000 --> 00:03:59.360 them all over, and so they're all Jews now. Yeah, 83 00:03:59.360 --> 00:04:00.639 So the answer is. 84 00:04:00.599 --> 00:04:06.879 This, So Hebrews and Jews and Israelites are used synonymously 85 00:04:07.039 --> 00:04:11.080 to refer to the same group of people. However, there 86 00:04:11.120 --> 00:04:14.960 is some confusion. In fact, it's been a debate for 87 00:04:15.039 --> 00:04:17.920 thousands of years. In fact, I have very good friends 88 00:04:17.920 --> 00:04:20.839 who are Jewish, and they would even tell you that 89 00:04:21.120 --> 00:04:24.920 even people in their own families disagree on some of 90 00:04:24.959 --> 00:04:27.120 these things, because sometimes you can say, oh, I'm Jewish, 91 00:04:27.439 --> 00:04:30.480 and what you're meaning is I'm religious, Yes, I'm of 92 00:04:30.519 --> 00:04:34.000 the Jewish faith, right, I belong to Judaism. And then 93 00:04:34.000 --> 00:04:36.319 some people would say, oh, I'm Jewish, and they're referring 94 00:04:36.360 --> 00:04:40.199 to nationality, ethnicity, ethnicity, yesity, yeah, So. 95 00:04:40.600 --> 00:04:45.879 The word jew references ethnicity and or religion. 96 00:04:46.199 --> 00:04:48.399 And which is why it's so confused, right. 97 00:04:48.240 --> 00:04:51.879 For Jewish, But in the Jewish culture of the New 98 00:04:51.920 --> 00:04:55.399 Testament and of the Old Testament, you couldn't separate the two. 99 00:04:56.199 --> 00:04:58.759 It's like I was with a Sicilian lady when we 100 00:04:58.759 --> 00:05:01.199 were in Sicily, and I asked her if she was 101 00:05:01.240 --> 00:05:05.680 a Christian, and she said, I'm Sicilian, I'm Catholic, right right, 102 00:05:05.759 --> 00:05:07.720 those two in her mind are synonymous. You can't. You 103 00:05:07.720 --> 00:05:11.720 can't separate Catholicism from being Sicilian. You can't separate Secilia 104 00:05:11.720 --> 00:05:14.000 as being Sicilian from being Catholic. 105 00:05:14.079 --> 00:05:14.600 Right. 106 00:05:14.720 --> 00:05:18.399 It's kind of the same thing that in Jesus Day 107 00:05:18.439 --> 00:05:22.639 and before Jesus Day, Jewish meant this is my nationality 108 00:05:22.839 --> 00:05:26.680 and my religion. Today Jewish can mean my nationality and 109 00:05:26.759 --> 00:05:30.800 my religion, or my nationality or my religion, right right. 110 00:05:31.079 --> 00:05:35.879 Israeli is purely Israelite. It's purely nationality. So you could 111 00:05:35.920 --> 00:05:40.000 be a Muslim Israeli, you could be or you could 112 00:05:40.000 --> 00:05:44.560 be an atheist Israeli because Israeli Israelite just means nationality, 113 00:05:44.720 --> 00:05:47.639 and then Hebrew would be recognizing I'm you know, my 114 00:05:49.480 --> 00:05:54.519 ethnicity comes from Abraham. So there's some complexity in that 115 00:05:54.560 --> 00:05:57.439 each of those words has its own precise meaning, but 116 00:05:57.560 --> 00:05:59.759 we find ourselves sometimes interchanging them. 117 00:06:00.120 --> 00:06:03.120 So I was corrected by a good friend of mine, Brian, 118 00:06:03.199 --> 00:06:06.000 who I used to work with at my church in Georgia. 119 00:06:06.480 --> 00:06:09.160 He's Jewish, and I had made some kind of joke. 120 00:06:09.240 --> 00:06:09.639 We met up. 121 00:06:09.879 --> 00:06:12.439 I went down for a conference and we met at 122 00:06:12.279 --> 00:06:17.920 at a restaurant called the Varsity by the way. Yeah yeah, yeah, 123 00:06:17.959 --> 00:06:19.759 for sure, and among other things that wake you up 124 00:06:19.759 --> 00:06:20.120 at two. 125 00:06:20.000 --> 00:06:22.680 O'clock in the morning to eat it. But we were down. 126 00:06:22.600 --> 00:06:25.720 There talking and I had made a reference and he 127 00:06:26.199 --> 00:06:28.279 had told me he's like, hey, he said, you know, 128 00:06:28.360 --> 00:06:32.680 former President Trump recognized this, and he actually signed a 129 00:06:32.720 --> 00:06:36.720 decree or passed some sort of a thing where he 130 00:06:36.839 --> 00:06:40.519 was trying to take an identity crisis away from this conundrum. 131 00:06:40.759 --> 00:06:42.839 And so he actually with regard to how the State 132 00:06:42.879 --> 00:06:45.319 Department used the words yes, yes, and. 133 00:06:45.279 --> 00:06:47.439 So he tried to dissolve it by saying, every time 134 00:06:47.480 --> 00:06:53.879 you say he's Jewish, you are referring specifically just to ethnicity, nationality. 135 00:06:53.879 --> 00:06:54.240 That's it. 136 00:06:54.759 --> 00:06:57.800 So Jewish is now supposed to be. Although I'm sure 137 00:06:58.079 --> 00:06:59.439 whether or not it was effective. 138 00:06:59.079 --> 00:07:01.040 Or not, I'm not sure the US government gets to 139 00:07:01.079 --> 00:07:03.439 make those definitions. But what he was saying is it 140 00:07:03.480 --> 00:07:06.000 was for the sake of how the State Department yes 141 00:07:06.160 --> 00:07:06.800 wrote the word. 142 00:07:07.199 --> 00:07:10.639 Yeah. Yeah. And then if you were to describe your faith, 143 00:07:11.160 --> 00:07:13.639 then you would have to specifically refer to it as that. 144 00:07:13.920 --> 00:07:18.000 Yes, say like I'm the Jewish faith, as opposed to 145 00:07:18.120 --> 00:07:21.759 I'm Jewish, right right, So that's I think that more 146 00:07:21.759 --> 00:07:24.399 of the standard. Lately, at least among my Rabbi friends, 147 00:07:25.000 --> 00:07:28.680 they would say I'm Jewish and they would say I 148 00:07:28.720 --> 00:07:31.879 practiced the Jewish faith, which those two things would be 149 00:07:32.079 --> 00:07:34.279 would be, you know, somewhat separate. 150 00:07:34.319 --> 00:07:36.959 Now, yeah, so I bet you a lot of our 151 00:07:37.000 --> 00:07:38.040 listeners didn't understand that. 152 00:07:38.120 --> 00:07:40.079 Yeah, yeah, there's a lot of complexity in that. So 153 00:07:40.160 --> 00:07:44.959 just understand, Jewish usually means both nationality and or I 154 00:07:45.000 --> 00:07:50.680 mean ethnicity and or faith. Hebrew means connected to Abraham's family, 155 00:07:51.519 --> 00:07:55.720 Israelite means or Israeli is part of the nationality of Israel. 156 00:07:56.600 --> 00:07:59.120 Those be the three. So good question. Hey, as you 157 00:07:59.160 --> 00:08:01.199 read through the Bible and come across those, those kinds 158 00:08:01.199 --> 00:08:02.639 of words. It's fun to ask them and try to 159 00:08:02.639 --> 00:08:04.720 figure out what it means. And you know, we will 160 00:08:04.720 --> 00:08:06.959 take seven minutes to answer a two minute question if 161 00:08:06.959 --> 00:08:12.560 we can. Yeah, wow, yeah, okay. So what verses are 162 00:08:12.560 --> 00:08:13.480 we reading today? Chris? 163 00:08:13.879 --> 00:08:16.720 The First Thessalonians, Chapter four, verses one through twelve. 164 00:08:16.879 --> 00:08:21.000 One through twelve very good. So remember now Paul is 165 00:08:21.040 --> 00:08:24.199 in corinth yep, he's there for a year and a half, 166 00:08:24.600 --> 00:08:27.759 and he writes a couple of letters back to the 167 00:08:27.879 --> 00:08:31.160 church in Thessalonaika that he had helped start in you know, 168 00:08:31.199 --> 00:08:33.399 a couple of years before that, and he loves them 169 00:08:33.519 --> 00:08:36.399 so much. Right, this is so great, So he says, finally, 170 00:08:36.480 --> 00:08:39.360 dear brothers and sisters, we urge you in the name 171 00:08:39.399 --> 00:08:41.320 of the Lord Jesus, to live in a way that 172 00:08:41.360 --> 00:08:44.720 pleases God. As we've taught you. You live this way already, 173 00:08:44.799 --> 00:08:47.360 and we encourage you to do so even more. For 174 00:08:47.480 --> 00:08:49.360 remember what we taught you by the authority of the 175 00:08:49.399 --> 00:08:52.440 Lord Jesus. God's will is for you to be holy, 176 00:08:52.799 --> 00:08:55.360 so stay away from all sexual sin. Then each of 177 00:08:55.399 --> 00:08:57.559 you will control his own body and live in holiness 178 00:08:57.600 --> 00:08:59.840 and honor, not in lustful passion like the pagan's who 179 00:09:00.080 --> 00:09:03.799 not know God and his ways never harm or cheat 180 00:09:03.840 --> 00:09:06.600 a fellow believer in this manner by violating his wife, 181 00:09:06.840 --> 00:09:09.519 For the Lord avenges all such sins. As we have 182 00:09:09.879 --> 00:09:12.879 solemnly warned you before, God has called us to live 183 00:09:12.960 --> 00:09:16.240 holy lives, not impure lives. Therefore, anyone who refuses to 184 00:09:16.240 --> 00:09:18.879 live by these rules is not disobeying human teaching, but 185 00:09:19.000 --> 00:09:21.440 is rejecting God, who gives his Holy Spirit to you. 186 00:09:22.000 --> 00:09:23.639 But we don't need to write to you about the 187 00:09:23.639 --> 00:09:26.120 importance of loving each other, for God himself has taught 188 00:09:26.159 --> 00:09:28.879 you to love one another. Indeed, you already show your 189 00:09:28.919 --> 00:09:32.080 love for all the believers throughout Macedonia. Even so, dear 190 00:09:32.120 --> 00:09:35.039 brothers and sisters, we urge you to love them even more. 191 00:09:35.399 --> 00:09:38.320 Make it your goal to live a quiet life, minding 192 00:09:38.320 --> 00:09:40.679 your own business and working with your hands, just as 193 00:09:40.679 --> 00:09:43.600 we instructed you before. Then people who are not believers 194 00:09:43.720 --> 00:09:45.759 will respect the way you live and you will not 195 00:09:45.879 --> 00:09:46.960 need to depend on others. 196 00:09:48.320 --> 00:09:51.039 That's interesting. Does your version say believers are Christians? 197 00:09:51.519 --> 00:09:52.000 Believers? 198 00:09:52.679 --> 00:09:52.960 Yeah? 199 00:09:53.120 --> 00:09:56.120 Is it the NLT Yeah, mind's of NLT and it 200 00:09:56.159 --> 00:09:57.320 says Christians. 201 00:09:57.080 --> 00:10:00.799 Well huh and I'll tee yeah. 202 00:10:00.919 --> 00:10:04.039 Yeah. Interesting, Well, we probably have a slightly different addition. 203 00:10:04.799 --> 00:10:05.840 Mine's the third edition. 204 00:10:06.399 --> 00:10:09.000 Yeah, okay, that's really good to point out. 205 00:10:09.039 --> 00:10:12.120 Actually it is nifty believers in Christians. 206 00:10:12.120 --> 00:10:13.039 It's nifty gifty. 207 00:10:13.360 --> 00:10:14.720 Well, if you're a believer, you're a Christian. 208 00:10:14.919 --> 00:10:15.720 Oh that's for sure. 209 00:10:15.759 --> 00:10:20.279 There you go. So that's all Christians are believers. Is 210 00:10:20.320 --> 00:10:21.879 it possible to be a Christian not be a believer? 211 00:10:22.840 --> 00:10:24.799 Is it possible to be a Christian and not be 212 00:10:24.799 --> 00:10:25.960 a believer? I would say no? 213 00:10:26.919 --> 00:10:29.279 Can it goes along with the answer we just gave 214 00:10:29.320 --> 00:10:33.120 a minute ago. Well, sometimes people would use it. Sometimes 215 00:10:33.159 --> 00:10:35.919 people would use the word I'm Christian, meaning I'm not atheist, 216 00:10:35.960 --> 00:10:37.919 I'm not Muslim, and I go to church on occasion. 217 00:10:38.080 --> 00:10:39.559 Oh it's different from being. 218 00:10:39.440 --> 00:10:42.559 Well, you're talking about semantics, because I was thinking, in 219 00:10:42.600 --> 00:10:45.679 my mind the true definition of a christianist to believe 220 00:10:46.039 --> 00:10:48.759 that's right, which means they may call themselves Christians. But 221 00:10:48.840 --> 00:10:51.799 my note meant whether they call themselves or not they 222 00:10:51.879 --> 00:10:52.279 or not one. 223 00:10:52.320 --> 00:10:53.840 No, I'm agreeing with you. 224 00:10:54.039 --> 00:10:54.840 Yes, okay. 225 00:10:55.200 --> 00:10:58.360 So so Paul here is writing and it's really a 226 00:10:58.519 --> 00:11:01.080 charge to live holy, which is why I said holy 227 00:11:01.120 --> 00:11:03.559 living batman. Yes, because he is asking them to be 228 00:11:03.639 --> 00:11:06.799 holy in every way, and he stresses sexual sin, and 229 00:11:06.799 --> 00:11:09.679 then he stresses actually, he doesn't really even stress loving 230 00:11:09.720 --> 00:11:12.759 one another, although it's implied. And the best thing about 231 00:11:12.759 --> 00:11:16.120 this is that he is saying, you already live that 232 00:11:16.200 --> 00:11:19.120 way now. So, in other words, he's writing to a 233 00:11:19.159 --> 00:11:22.720 group of people who already have evidence in their lives 234 00:11:22.720 --> 00:11:26.159 that they've changed, and so he's saying, let me encourage 235 00:11:26.200 --> 00:11:28.960 you and encourage you to live that way even more. 236 00:11:29.720 --> 00:11:32.399 So it's really cool, Yeah, and I think it's great. 237 00:11:32.440 --> 00:11:35.200 He doesn't pull any punches. He's not coming off in 238 00:11:35.240 --> 00:11:37.919 a judgmental way. He's just saying, hey, there's a right 239 00:11:37.960 --> 00:11:40.279 way to live, and so I want to encourage you. 240 00:11:40.720 --> 00:11:44.639 I'm not trying to hurt you. I've already taught you this. 241 00:11:45.039 --> 00:11:47.240 You've already been kind of heading in this direction, and 242 00:11:47.240 --> 00:11:50.360 I just want to remind you there are consequences to 243 00:11:50.440 --> 00:11:54.000 living in moral, unholy lives, right, And it's not like 244 00:11:54.120 --> 00:11:57.919 consequences like God hates you. These are just the natural consequences. 245 00:11:57.960 --> 00:12:01.559 But he does say God will avenge sexual sin when 246 00:12:01.600 --> 00:12:04.120 you're going after somebody else's wife or you know, an 247 00:12:04.159 --> 00:12:07.919 adultery kind of a thing. So we shouldn't be surprised when, 248 00:12:08.080 --> 00:12:11.720 even as Christians, when we do choose to participate in 249 00:12:11.759 --> 00:12:13.840 some sense, there are significant consequences. 250 00:12:14.039 --> 00:12:14.159 Right. 251 00:12:14.399 --> 00:12:16.399 What we want is we want no consequences. We only 252 00:12:16.399 --> 00:12:19.559 want grace and mercy. Oh, I wanted to go with 253 00:12:19.600 --> 00:12:21.240 sin and do what I wanted to do, but I 254 00:12:21.279 --> 00:12:24.080 can't believe there's consequences to it. I wanted to eat 255 00:12:24.120 --> 00:12:25.919 my cake. I wanted to have my cake and eat 256 00:12:25.960 --> 00:12:28.519 it too. Right, And Paul's just reminding them God will 257 00:12:28.519 --> 00:12:32.120 avenge these sins. So I'm not judging you. I'm not 258 00:12:32.600 --> 00:12:35.879 telling you off. I'm just reminding you be very cautious 259 00:12:35.919 --> 00:12:39.279 when it comes to sexual purity because there are consequences 260 00:12:39.279 --> 00:12:39.559 to it. 261 00:12:39.799 --> 00:12:42.559 You know, this brings up sort of the bigger topic. 262 00:12:42.679 --> 00:12:43.080 In fact. 263 00:12:43.320 --> 00:12:45.759 I know we joked about the fact that some people 264 00:12:45.840 --> 00:12:48.919 call themselves Christians and then but are they really Christians? 265 00:12:49.159 --> 00:12:52.519 But almost serendipitously, those things actually are pretty appropriate. They're 266 00:12:52.559 --> 00:12:57.399 connected because there are a lot of people who would say, 267 00:12:57.840 --> 00:13:00.759 I call myself a Christian, but doesn't mean that I 268 00:13:00.840 --> 00:13:04.440 have to change my way of living at all. Right, 269 00:13:04.639 --> 00:13:06.639 so people would say, oh, I love God. It's one 270 00:13:06.639 --> 00:13:07.120 of these things. 271 00:13:07.120 --> 00:13:07.279 You know. 272 00:13:07.519 --> 00:13:09.559 It's like I'd like to thank my creator, you know, 273 00:13:10.159 --> 00:13:13.399 you know, or whatever, and it's like it's like that's 274 00:13:13.440 --> 00:13:16.159 that's their whole that you know, that that summarizes all 275 00:13:16.159 --> 00:13:17.399 their dedication right there. 276 00:13:17.320 --> 00:13:19.039 Right he's my good luck time God helped me hit 277 00:13:19.039 --> 00:13:21.480 this home run, yes, touchdown. 278 00:13:21.200 --> 00:13:21.559 Whatever it is. 279 00:13:21.600 --> 00:13:23.759 And I'm not saying everybody who does that is that way, 280 00:13:23.799 --> 00:13:27.120 but but but all have to say this. Paul is 281 00:13:27.120 --> 00:13:31.240 saying that God still wants us to live righteously. He's 282 00:13:31.279 --> 00:13:34.279 saying that it's it's not just about grace, although God 283 00:13:34.320 --> 00:13:36.679 gives it to us freely. It's not just about mercy, 284 00:13:36.679 --> 00:13:39.919 although God gives it to us endlessly. It's about striving 285 00:13:39.960 --> 00:13:42.480 to live holy And if you have Jesus Christ truly 286 00:13:42.519 --> 00:13:45.320 in your life, you're going to live that way already. 287 00:13:45.919 --> 00:13:48.759 So it's not about obeying because you have to. It's 288 00:13:48.799 --> 00:13:52.200 obeying because you want to. And so it's it's so 289 00:13:52.360 --> 00:13:54.399 it's such a difference between the Old Testament and the 290 00:13:54.440 --> 00:13:57.480 New Testament. And the Old Testament they were looking forward 291 00:13:57.519 --> 00:13:59.679 to the Cross of Christ. They're looking forward to the 292 00:13:59.679 --> 00:14:03.279 miss Ayah who would come and take away their sin problem. 293 00:14:03.639 --> 00:14:05.360 And yet what they were, what they were, you know, 294 00:14:05.480 --> 00:14:08.919 given is they were given rules and laws to obey 295 00:14:09.360 --> 00:14:12.519 looking forward, you know, to to doing these things to 296 00:14:12.639 --> 00:14:16.879 absolve their sins. Jesus Christ has performed all the action 297 00:14:17.039 --> 00:14:20.000 necessary to wipe away and absolve all of our sins. 298 00:14:20.399 --> 00:14:23.120 So we look back to the cross, and so we 299 00:14:23.200 --> 00:14:25.399 realize we don't have to obey for salvation. 300 00:14:26.200 --> 00:14:26.399 Right. 301 00:14:26.799 --> 00:14:29.000 But but Paul, because of salvation. 302 00:14:29.080 --> 00:14:30.679 We obey because of salvation. 303 00:14:30.960 --> 00:14:33.360 Right, we will because we we will because we want 304 00:14:33.360 --> 00:14:35.960 to out of gratitude, out of and. 305 00:14:36.000 --> 00:14:37.840 Then if we can understand that God's laws are not 306 00:14:38.120 --> 00:14:42.639 in Paul says in other passage, God's laws are not burdensome. 307 00:14:43.360 --> 00:14:45.240 So if they are burdensome, if you're trying to earn 308 00:14:45.279 --> 00:14:47.279 a way to heaven, it's not possible, right, But they're 309 00:14:47.320 --> 00:14:50.000 not burdensome as far as they make your life better. 310 00:14:50.399 --> 00:14:54.639 So you don't have to worry about struggling in sexual 311 00:14:54.679 --> 00:14:57.159 intimacy with your partner if you know that you've been 312 00:14:57.240 --> 00:15:00.279 pure and holy with each other only right. You don't 313 00:15:00.320 --> 00:15:03.679 have to worry about bringing STDs into the family if 314 00:15:03.720 --> 00:15:08.480 you've been holy. Right, So there's all these benefits to 315 00:15:08.679 --> 00:15:11.039 just doing things God's way. And you know, I love 316 00:15:11.039 --> 00:15:12.679 to tell the story about when I used to work 317 00:15:12.720 --> 00:15:15.159 with gangs in Chicago, and I told you the story before. 318 00:15:15.200 --> 00:15:18.320 I think where dudes walking this massive Rottwiler down the street. 319 00:15:18.559 --> 00:15:20.679 But the menus dog I've ever known was these people. 320 00:15:21.559 --> 00:15:24.600 They were Puerto Rican people. They had a Chihuahua and 321 00:15:24.639 --> 00:15:26.840 this little chiny chihaha pound for pounds medus dog I've 322 00:15:26.879 --> 00:15:29.399 ever known, and come flying off the porch and just 323 00:15:29.679 --> 00:15:32.720 started smashing itself against the fence trying to get to 324 00:15:32.799 --> 00:15:35.919 that giant rottweiler and that whitewader, I'm honestly one of 325 00:15:35.919 --> 00:15:37.279 the largest ones I've ever seen. He is probably one 326 00:15:37.320 --> 00:15:39.879 hundred and fifteen pounds, and he never even made eye 327 00:15:39.879 --> 00:15:42.559 contact with that little dog. That little dog is losing 328 00:15:42.600 --> 00:15:45.200 his mind, just pounding himself against this fence. He just, 329 00:15:45.279 --> 00:15:47.360 you know, he just wanted to tear into that rattweiler. 330 00:15:47.759 --> 00:15:50.519 That rottweiler was so big he could have just inhaled 331 00:15:50.559 --> 00:15:54.240 him and not even you know, missed a step. So 332 00:15:54.399 --> 00:15:58.279 where was that little chihuahua safest. That chihuahua thought he 333 00:15:59.159 --> 00:16:02.159 was more than capable of handing himself with that ratweiler, 334 00:16:03.559 --> 00:16:07.559 But this loving master had the fence in the right 335 00:16:07.600 --> 00:16:11.200 places that little chiuhaha was completely free and safe inside 336 00:16:11.200 --> 00:16:13.399 that fence. Outside that fence, he would have been a 337 00:16:13.440 --> 00:16:16.080 scooby snack for that great big jam rat wider. Right, 338 00:16:16.159 --> 00:16:18.080 it's kind of the same thing for us. We think 339 00:16:18.120 --> 00:16:20.440 we know better, and we throw ourselves against the fence 340 00:16:20.480 --> 00:16:22.039 all the time. We want to get out. We're digging 341 00:16:22.080 --> 00:16:24.720 underneath the fence, trying to get out away from all 342 00:16:24.759 --> 00:16:27.960 the safety and protection that our loving Master has for us. 343 00:16:28.320 --> 00:16:30.840 And the Bible says Peter says, the devil walks around 344 00:16:30.840 --> 00:16:33.039 like a roaring lion, looking for whom he made a vour. 345 00:16:33.440 --> 00:16:37.559 And if we just understand God's the guidelines for holiness 346 00:16:37.879 --> 00:16:42.360 are not oppressive. They give us a better life, a 347 00:16:42.440 --> 00:16:46.039 cleaner life, a safer life, a gentler life, a more 348 00:16:46.039 --> 00:16:48.480 peaceful life. So I don't think it's a mistake that 349 00:16:48.519 --> 00:16:52.600 he ties sexual purity and holiness to so live a 350 00:16:52.600 --> 00:16:56.600 peaceful life, live an industrious life, do something that matters 351 00:16:56.600 --> 00:16:58.399 with your life, but choose to live at peace. He 352 00:16:58.440 --> 00:17:01.320 ties both of those together almost one breath to the 353 00:17:01.360 --> 00:17:04.359 next breath. And it's because what he's saying is this. 354 00:17:04.240 --> 00:17:04.839 Is a good life. 355 00:17:04.920 --> 00:17:05.880 It's not a bad life. 356 00:17:06.119 --> 00:17:10.119 Yeah, you know, it's isn't it funny how today when 357 00:17:10.160 --> 00:17:13.640 you talk with people in society, the one thing that 358 00:17:13.799 --> 00:17:17.799 people do not want to hear is the old fashioned idea. 359 00:17:17.880 --> 00:17:20.559 And I say that in quotes, the old fashioned idea 360 00:17:20.599 --> 00:17:24.440 that God actually designed sex for marriage. And it's like, 361 00:17:24.640 --> 00:17:27.200 I mean, it is just I thought it was. I 362 00:17:27.279 --> 00:17:30.480 thought it was not a popular idea thirty years ago, 363 00:17:30.960 --> 00:17:32.640 you know, in the eighties, I thought, wow, this is 364 00:17:32.640 --> 00:17:36.000 not a popular idea. But holy Christmas, this thing has come. 365 00:17:36.160 --> 00:17:40.079 Holy Christmas, bat man, it has come to the point 366 00:17:40.119 --> 00:17:42.799 to where people just don't don't want you to talk 367 00:17:42.839 --> 00:17:46.039 about it. It's like, it's like, please just change the subject, 368 00:17:46.079 --> 00:17:49.720 talk about anything else. Because as a couple dating, we're 369 00:17:49.799 --> 00:17:52.440 definitely going to have sex before we're gonna get married. 370 00:17:52.680 --> 00:17:53.960 It seems to be the mentality. 371 00:17:54.039 --> 00:17:56.039 Right. All talked more about sexual parity than he did 372 00:17:56.079 --> 00:17:56.640 about heaven. 373 00:17:57.119 --> 00:17:58.599 Yeah, he did, oh for sure. He talked. 374 00:17:58.640 --> 00:18:01.400 He talked more about sexual parity and answer prayers. He 375 00:18:01.480 --> 00:18:03.960 talked more. We can just going down the line all 376 00:18:04.000 --> 00:18:06.200 the things and all the reasons why people go to church, 377 00:18:06.279 --> 00:18:08.480 or all the reasons why people like to talk about 378 00:18:08.519 --> 00:18:11.039 how important faith is to me. He talked more about 379 00:18:11.079 --> 00:18:14.279 sexual purity than any of those topics. And so if 380 00:18:14.279 --> 00:18:17.400 it's important to God to make sure that that's preserved 381 00:18:17.440 --> 00:18:19.160 in scripture, it should be important to us too. We 382 00:18:19.200 --> 00:18:22.200 should just understand that there's a couple of things that 383 00:18:22.480 --> 00:18:26.799 really define where our heart is headed. Our money Jesus says, 384 00:18:26.799 --> 00:18:28.680 where your treasure is that's to your heart is also 385 00:18:29.079 --> 00:18:32.680 and then our sexual purity. Those two issues really define 386 00:18:32.920 --> 00:18:36.119 are we running towards God or from God? And so 387 00:18:36.160 --> 00:18:38.759 this is a it's kind of a it's almost a 388 00:18:38.799 --> 00:18:42.319 spiritual litmus test. Paul's not saying I'm measuring you this way. 389 00:18:42.559 --> 00:18:45.359 Just understand, if you're heading towards God, you're going to 390 00:18:45.400 --> 00:18:48.319 flee these these these other issues you're gonna gonna And 391 00:18:48.359 --> 00:18:53.240 it's not through just pure will power and personal character 392 00:18:53.279 --> 00:18:56.200 that he's talking here. It's because of what Christ has 393 00:18:56.240 --> 00:18:59.759 already done for us. Then we are free now to 394 00:18:59.839 --> 00:19:01.200 live the life You made for us to live. 395 00:19:01.960 --> 00:19:05.000 That's great. Yeah, yeah, I think that overall. 396 00:19:05.319 --> 00:19:08.799 When Paul, you know, writes back, you know it is 397 00:19:09.640 --> 00:19:13.400 it feels like to me it is in loving context, 398 00:19:13.440 --> 00:19:16.680 it's within context of relationship. You can tell that he 399 00:19:17.000 --> 00:19:19.079 has some history with these people because he says you 400 00:19:19.079 --> 00:19:22.759 are already living this way anyway. That's another angle for 401 00:19:22.880 --> 00:19:25.599