Allen: Well, welcome back to the SCC Saver podcast. So we are savoring God through every bite of scripture. My name is Alan Smith, Pastel Apprentice at Sanibel Community Church. I'm joined with my friend Jeremy Rinne, Senior Pastor at Sanibel Community Church. Still Alan's friend. Still. I know. Do think there's an end date? When my apprenticeship is up, is that when my friendship contract is over. You're like friend for hire. Jeremy has so few friends he hires. Hey, I'm going to need a new friend in a couple of years. You can start putting applications. People are like, you don't pay enough. You don't even know my wages. That's right. Speaking of friends, though. Yes. You're pretty close to your dog, right? Yeah, we're pretty tight. You're pretty tight. Yeah, we like in tune with each other. OK. Do you ever like speak to your dog? Talk to your dog. Like it's a human. No. That's your dog voice. No. don't have a dog voice. Not only does every dog owner, and you know who you are out there, so you need to be honest with yourself. Not only do you have a way you talk to your dog, you have a voice where you imitate your dog talking back to you. And you have, literally, you know this, you stage conversations between you and your dog. What's the wildest conversation your dog has ever told you? Oh, it was bad. I mean we didn't speak for days afterwards. I'll see videos on Instagram and stuff. It's just like, you know, like you're doing something but then you walk past your dog just like laying on the couch. You drop everything you're doing. You're like, oh, little dog. You just get in the jump, immediately jump into the dog voice and just get like aggressive cuteness. It's kind of like in Castaway when he's talking to his volleyball name Wilson. I think it's the same thing except dogs react a little bit. So yeah, that's great. So funny. Well, ⁓ everyone knows they talked to their dog. If you have a dog you talk to your dog in a dog voice ⁓ However ⁓ in the Bible that's not completely foreign to the scriptures so we're not way off topic here because Animals do talk in the Bible. Let's go. Did you know that say more? Okay in our story in numbers, which we're commenting today on month three Day 7 to 13 before we jump in okay numbers 15 through that's a cliffhanger You're like animals talk in the Bible, but let me tell you what we're reading. I'm like what yeah, I go build up tension Yeah, you're numbers 15 to 32 we see not dogs, but donkey the donkey donkeys talk It's like Shrek. It's like Shrek. Yeah exactly right so donkeys talk and it's kind of interesting because There's it like a showdown between donkey, and then we're introduced to a couple characters Balaam And so, we'll hop in here just to kind of remind you where we are in Numbers. They're in the plains of Moab, and these are going to talk about their ⁓ encampment as they're moving towards the Promised Land. So, they're now getting towards the Promised Land, and we get this ⁓ story of blessing and cursing with Israel. Which is interesting because ⁓ in this section, there are so many stories of Israel's rebellion. So this is after they've said, we're not going into the promised land. And God's like, fine, you're going to wander in the wilderness for 40 years. it's, think about like Moses being told he has to continue to lead this group of people for 40 years. It's not like after they refused to go in the promised land, they shaped up. Like they're still the same rebellious, ⁓ you know, arrogant, ⁓ self-reliant people who resist God's leadership through Moses. So, you know, there's the rebellion of Korah, there's ⁓ the water at the rock in chapter 20 where they complain about that, there's the thing where they complain that the snakes get sent among them. Yeah, this is worth commenting on because that pops up in the New does pop in the New Testament, and it's one of those things that, we'll hear this twice today, it's called a type, meaning a historical ⁓ figure or an event that points towards Christ. And what we have here, is the bronze serpent which is again they're complaining and then so the Lord sends them serpents and some people get bitten and they die. To me the worst thing in the world is snakes. I agree. Like if I find a snake in my house the obvious solution is burn the house down. Naturally. Naturally. Yeah that's right. Yeah I saw a snake on the trail the other day riding my bike I was like bro no. No. Some kid at youth was telling me he catches snakes and I was like mmm there's a story about this. Yeah like you need to find out. Genesis. This is the wrong place for you. Snakes are bad. Numbers 21, 8, and the Lord said to Moses, make a fiery serpent and set it on a pole and everyone who is bitten when he sees it shall live. So Moses made a bronze serpent and set it on a pole and if a serpent bit anyone, he would look at the bronze serpent and live. So there's this antidote of looking at this bronze serpent and it's just like what in the world? It's kind of a... That's it. Like you don't have to do anything except look at it. Yeah, just look at it. And Jesus would actually end up quoting this passage to point to himself in John 3 14 he says that he actually compares himself to the snake and he says this in John 3 14. So I'm flipping there. And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness so must the Son of Man be lifted up that whoever believes in him may have eternal life. Yeah what a beautiful picture of faith. you know, that faith is simply looking. mean, you look to Jesus, just like they look to the serpent. And we're saved by faith alone in Christ alone. It's not faith plus works, it's not faith plus sacraments, it's not faith plus be a good person, try your best. It's faith alone in Christ, just as the only way they could live is just looking at a serpent. So we look to Christ in the faith. So anyway, going back to Numbers, all these rebellions, ⁓ 40 years Moses has got a Continue to lead these people and and yet in the midst of it with like you mentioned the story of Balaam God is still intending to bless This rebellious stiff-necked people. It's amazing. Yeah, exactly So yeah in in this God intended to bless them, but so Balaam essentially here's what happened Balaam summons ⁓ Balaam who looks like a king Yeah, Balaam is a king and then Balaam is this kind of like Divanir where he can pronounce blessings and curses and Balak asked Balam to curse the Israelites because they were too mighty for him. So he wanted to defeat them to defeat them and drive them from the land. And he says that for I know the whom you bless is blessed and he who you curse is cursed. And essentially we get this showdown of here's the donkey story where Balam's donkey and the angel and the angel of the Lord basically appears to Balam on the road and he makes this donkey speak to Balaam and he says ⁓ in verse 28 of 22, what have I done to you that you would strike me these three times? Because his donkey wasn't listening so he was striking him and the donkey said to Balaam, am I not your donkey which you have ridden all your life to this day? Is it my habit to treat you this way? And he said no. And then the Lord opened the eyes of Balaam and he basically drew him out and said, I have Come to oppose you because your way is perverse before me the donkey saw me and turned aside for me these three times And then he says I'm gonna give ⁓ He recognized that he sinned. Mm-hmm. And then he says I'm gonna go with them, but speak only what I tell you Yeah, so so this whole episode is just driving home The fact that that Balaam is only allowed to say what God tells him to say that's the matter how much he's like being paid ⁓ And that what God is telling him to say is blessing. So there's these oracles where Balaam blesses Israel, chapter 23, he does it twice. And then the ⁓ third oracle and fourth oracle in chapter 24. And ⁓ interesting there, we get a prophecy about the coming Messiah. In the fourth oracle, verse 17, chapter 24, says, a star will come from Jacob. a scepter will rise from Israel. He will smash the forehead of Moab and strike down the Shethites. And then in verse 19, one who comes from Jacob will rule. He will destroy the city's survivors. So, this promise of a coming star, a coming ruler, so that not only is God going to bless them, but God is going to bring out a king, which again, I just think is the grace of God. Yeah. Like, of all the people who don't deserve to have blessing pronounced over them and the promise of a great king, given all their rebellion in numbers. Yeah, it shows his sovereign control over the world's affairs to bring about blessing for his people and to bring about the provision of the Messiah, Jesus Christ. Even though these people are completely rebelling against him, his promise to Abraham to bring a blessing to all the nations of the earth through the descent of Abraham will not be thwarted, even by the very people who came from Abraham. Right. There is, to kind of conclude that a little bit, is in 26 we start to get the census of the new generation because the old generation is going to die out and they're not going to make it into the promised land. interesting, think we see Balaam, although he refused to pronounce a curse against Israel, it seems that they were deceived because what Balaam did is he recommended that the Moabite women seduce the Israelite men. and convince them to practice idolatry with them. So they practiced, they worshiped Baal of Peor, and they began worshiping him and their covenant treachery led to the nation's experience of a plague. So there it is again, it's like God sovereignly causes Balaam to bless Israel and yet it ends with Balaam being like, hey, let's send women over there to seduce them and get them to worship idols and they fall for it. So it's like bookended by rebellion. Book ended by rebellion, but ultimately led to God's faithfulness to continue to bless despite cursings. Yeah, it's great. The Psalms. Yeah. The Psalms. I felt like a lot of these Psalms, ⁓ they're about God. Good Psalms for times of trouble. Yeah. Especially when you feel like you're being attacked or... ⁓ There's a war going on. Yeah, there's a war going on, targeted threats. threats in your life, like these are good Psalms to take up when you're like, I don't know what to pray. I thought for me Psalm 55 was really interesting because it's specifically David crying out for deliverance when he's being attacked by a close friend. It's somebody, you know, verse 20, my friend acts violently against those at peace with him. He violates his covenant. His buttery words are smooth, but his But war is in his heart. His words are softer than oil, but they are drawn swords." And the grief and the agony of having someone close to you betray you or suddenly turn against you, you know, that's a painful wound. And here's a psalm that gives us words for expressing our feelings of betrayal, but also confidence in the Lord, that the Lord can see us through that. Yeah. That's good. The agony and pain of a friend betraying you. Yeah. Yeah. It's the story of Israel. Yeah, that's right. Moses. The people were rebelling against him. Yeah. Yet God remained faithful to him. Because Jesus will never betray us. It just kind of reminds us to look to Jesus. And I think of Jesus being betrayed. Jesus being betrayed. By Judas and, you know, betrayed with a kiss. Yeah. You know, it's just like he... Jesus knows pain and agony and ⁓ rebellion against him. Well, and there's David again, the type. David is a type experiencing the suffering that foreshadows the coming son of David. Yeah. One of the things I think I've been thinking about a lot, this is kind of just generally, I'm not gonna like 58, 59, these Psalms, it's just how the Lord God judges the earth. You know, you've been preaching through Habakkuk and essentially the nations are raging, people are wanting to inflict evil on God's chosen people. But 59, 8, here's what it says, but you, O Lord, laugh at them. You hold all the nations in derisions. ⁓ my strength. will watch for you for you. God, or my fortress, my God and his steadfast love will meet me. God will let me look and triumph on my enemies. If you're discouraged, if you feel that evil is winning, know that you will be raised with Christ. If you are in Christ and you will look and triumph on enemies and you will overcome the world with Jesus at his return. And think I've just been really resting in that promise because I think My eyes have not been looking to Christ a lot recently and they've just looking to the things going on and I feel like each and every Sunday and every time I've come to the Psalms and reading I'm reminded to look back to Jesus and be like hey, there's a winner and it's declarative and nothing will thwart them. So that's brought me some great comfort in this season of seems like everything is happening. Yeah, Psalms are such good medicine for the soul. Yeah. Well, let's look at who we've been talking about pointing to. which is Jesus, type of ⁓ David, a type of Adam, which we'll see in Romans. I know we kind hinted at that a little bit earlier. But Matthew, why don't you kind of introduce us what's going on in Matthew right now? Pretty big section of Matthew coming towards the end of the book here. And we get some of the kind of the end of his ministry and really profound ⁓ narrative here. Yeah, we're just about to what's often called the ⁓ passion. Jesus is suffering the last hours of his life. But if you go back to like chapters 22, 21, Jesus has been in this verbal, you know, cage match with the leaders, and they've been trying to trip him up, and we talked about that last podcast. Well, now in chapter 23, he pronounces seven woes on the Pharisees. So it's almost like he takes a prophetic posture, and he's pronouncing judgment on the leadership. Jerusalem and and of Israel and then in chapter 24 and really for their hypocrisy Yeah, it's that they act like they're so spiritual and righteous but inside they are conniving and murderous and Self-righteous and heartless. Yeah, the the words that he used the metaphor the word pictures you're like whitewashed tombs Yeah, meaning you look really good on the outside. Yes, but you're dead. Yeah, you're your skeleton. Inside is just rotting bones. Yeah, that's right. Pretty scary actually. Yeah. And it's a warning ⁓ to, to everyone who is religious, everyone who's a Christian to make sure that you are like, you know, the old Testament, these people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. we, you know, we never, I just think I read this and I think, wow, God sees through baloney. sees through hypocrisy. And is my heart, like you said, is my heart really trusting in Him? Am I really, you know, being driven by love for God and love for my neighbor? Or is it just that I've become good at saying religious words, doing religious activities? Yeah, that's good. I read an article the other day that talked about the spiritual discipline of introspection. And I think this is it right here. These woes should force us to think, man, Because I think our natural tendency is to look outwardly to others and say, oh man, they're hypocrites. Oh, they're not acting Christ like, oh, they're not loving neighbor. But I mean, if we, Jesus is constantly like, hey, check your own heart. First, that's Matthew seven, right? And the servant of the mount that's here in these woes. It's like, man, I need to look inwardly at my heart. Where am I grieving the Father? Where am I failing to obey His word? And that just produces a level of humility. that this is what this passage is supposed to do. This should bring us to our needs, which it has for me. It's like, man, where in my life am I being a hypocrite? So yeah, just the, you know, kind of a quick little, I would say encouragement, exhortation to you guys listening is to look inwardly at the heart, because that's what God sees and that's what he's concerned about. And you cannot hide that from the Lord. You might be able to hide. Christianity and biblical religion is fundamentally located in the heart. in the affections and in the intent of the heart toward the Lord, which then evidences itself in actions. So yeah, when our hearts are far from the Lord, but we're acting religiously. And here are these scathing attacks, but it's not just that they're hypocrites, it's that the whole religious system is coming to its end, because Christ is about to... die and rise again. And He will be the basis of the new covenant. So all these old covenant things are coming to an end, including the temple. Chapter 24 is a prophecy that sort of overlaps two things. It overlaps the destruction of the temple, which will happen about 40-ish years later. 70 AD. 70 AD. And then also the coming of Jesus, so that the temple is a kind of prefigurement the destruction of Jerusalem and the destruction of temple is kind of prefigurement of the final judgment that's coming. So what you're saying is this is, hey, telling of a near close event and a future far off event. Yeah, that's right. And sometimes it's hard to tell which is which because... But that's the nature of prophecy. It's often sort of temporally elastic, in other words... It can talk about close things, can talk about far away things, and press them together and stretch them. yeah, so there's, you know, they're like, hey, when is this going to happen? When is the temple going to fall? Because chapter 24 begins with the people ooing and awing over the temple. And Jesus says in verse 2, do you see all these things? Truly, tell you, not one stone will be left here on another that will not be thrown down. So, He's pronouncing judgment on the whole temple system, because we're not going to need the temple system. because He's going to offer the once for all sacrifice. so all of it is coming to an end. The priesthood, the religious leaders and their interpretation is coming to an end. Jesus is the true interpreter of the law. The temple is coming to an end. The sacrifices are coming to an end because we have Christ. Yeah, that's exactly right. In that same discourse there, verse 14 of 24, and this gospel of the kingdom, because I think that's actually the story of Matthew, is the kingdom. That is the main message is the Lord Jesus is establishing his kingdom. It is not a kingdom that's established in a temple like the religious leaders thought, but it's a temple that is going to be heavenly. is ⁓ otherly that is in men's hearts through the Holy Spirit and it's going to be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations and then the end will come. So it's Jesus whole point back to our blessings in Genesis. from Abraham to bring a people to himself from all nations. And this is what's starting to see being unraveled and unfolded because they thought it was centered around Israel and it was just going to be a restoration of the nation. Yet Jesus is saying this is going to be for all nations. So I think that I was reading that just like, wait, that's that's it. The gospel is of the kingdom. It's not of this world. It's of a heavenly. enthronement and it's going to be throughout all nations and we're starting to see this and that's the destruction of the temple is what that's foretelling. That's right. And so chapter 24, you know, one way to think about chapter 24 is it's giving us both things that happened before Jesus comes and then also a powerful description of when he comes. Yeah. At the end and some of the things that happen are, you know, trials in the world, nations rising as nation, famines, earthquakes. suffering of God's people, persecution, but also false Christ, prophets. That's all going to happen. The fall of the temple will be a sign, but also ⁓ the progress of the gospel to all nations. So it's not all just bad signs. It's like at the same time, the gospel is moving forward. So it's a kind of a both and. Yeah. Terrible times of tribulation that are going on now and will continue until Christ returns, but also great progress for the gospel. Right. And here's the climactic Ending and scene verse 30 to 31 then will appear in heaven the sign of the son of man then all the tribes of the earth will mourn and they will see the man son of man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory and he will send out his angels with a loud trump call and they will get they will gather his elect from the four winds from one end of heaven to the other aka jesus winds yes and he's coming in glory coming in glory there's the the end of it all yeah And which means, you know, the main takeaway of any kind of apocalyptic or end times teaching, the main takeaway is always be ready. Persevere. Be ready. And that's why Jesus tells these parables right after you get, essentially in end of 24th, it no one knows the day or the hour. a little bit pedantic here. Get off YouTube with people making charts to try to map on to you. the day and the hour because the Lord Jesus has said himself no one knows the day and the hour. Why? Because he says to be ready. He says to make haste in proclaiming the kingdom of being fruitful because the Son of Man is coming an hour that you don't expect and watch therefore for you do not know the day and the hour. So he's repeating this and you get the parable of the talents and then parable of the ten virgins, the lessons of the fig tree. Right? And so this essentially, these parables can be summarized in saying, hey, be ready because you don't know when Christ is coming. That's right. That's right. So be ready, friends. ready. Romans, again, my apologies that we're going through Romans so quickly. I just feel wrong. It's criminal. It's criminal. It really is. ⁓ Have you preached the Romans before? No, that's on my docket. No way. So yeah, I'm doing Ecclesiastes after this and then Romans is in the near future. Let's go. I'm so excited. How long do you think it would take you? you gonna, like John Pepper, would he do like eight years? I know it wasn't every single... be eight years. Yeah, I mean, but I understand why someone would want to preach eight years because it's like every sentence is such a theological, you know... bombshell that's so powerful that you just want to unpack it in detail. Yeah, but jump in. We read 512 through 839. That's what we're commenting on. Yeah, that's right. And this is a powerful picture of Jesus as the second and last Adam. And just as death came through the sin of Adam, and so there's a great teaching on original sin there in this passage, that because we are in Adam, in Adam's sin, therefore we inherit both Adam's, the death of sin and guilt. So we die even before the law of Moses came, people were dying because we were guilty in Adam. That's right. It's understood that Adam was the covenant head of humanity. Meaning we were all born unto Adam. then we get Paul's explanation is that there's a second covenant head. ⁓ In 14 of 5 says, Adam who was a type of the one who was to come. Well, who is this one who was to come? Jesus. Adam was supposed to be his original type and that Jesus was a better, a new Adam, a better Adam because he is the one who did not fail but succeeded. Adam disobeys bringing death. Jesus obeys bringing life. Verse 17, since by the one man's trespass, Adam, death reigned through that one man, how much more will we receive the overflow of grace and the gift of righteousness? reign in the life of that one man, Jesus Christ. The one man, Jesus Christ. And then chapter six, ⁓ it's an important chapter ⁓ because, you one of the objections you'll sometimes hear, actually, I was just in a class yesterday and someone raised this question. You know, we're talking about how you're not saved by works, you're not saved by religion, you're saved by faithful, and you just look to the bronze serpent. You don't do anything else, just look and be saved, right? But then the question is, well, then why should Christians have to obey or live a holy life because, hey, I just, I'm saved by faith. It's not my works. You know, Jesus already saved me, so I can just do whatever. I know Jesus forgave me. Yeah, that's right. Yeah. But Paul strongly rebukes that thought. Chapter six is Paul's, like, he just takes that and slams that. It's like, no way. And the reason is because what's happened to us in salvation is that we have died to sin. That just as Jesus was dead and buried. Our old life is dead and we've been raised to a new life. So the idea that I would continue to walk in sin, which is what I have been saved from, is just nonsensical. Why would I do that? That's what I've been saved from by Jesus' death. Sin, sin, living to sin is slavery. And God has freed you from slavery. to live to righteousness because that's freedom. I think sometimes people think of the relationship with obedience as slavery as of like, ⁓ this is hard. This is slavery. I can't do what I want to do. But actually it's the inverse. Living to sin is slavery. Obeying God is what is freedom. That's what's going to bring you joy and happiness. Yeah, it's hard sometimes, right? It's hard to obey. It's hard to forgive the people whom we want to wage war on. But that's what freedom is. It's you're saved from death to life. And that's what Paul is getting at, you know, this is called like the doctrine of union with Christ, meaning we were united with Him in a death like His, but we're also united with Him in a resurrection like His, and that's what baptism portrays, is that we died with Christ, and we've been raised to new life with Christ, so we have this new life, right? Yeah, verse four is a great verse on union with Christ, chapter six, verse four. Therefore we were buried with Him by baptism into death. in order that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, so we too may walk in newness of life." And so, we're walking a new life. So, this idea that, you know, oh, Jesus forgave me, and so I can just do whatever and it's all okay. No, no, no, you've been raised to a new life. And so, the conclusion, verse 12, therefore, do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its desires. I love this, do not offer any parts... of it to sin as weapons for unrighteousness. But as those who are alive from the dead offer yourselves to God in all the parts of yourselves to God as weapons for righteousness. Weapons for righteousness. That's sick. The Righteous Militant Group. That would be like a great like Christian metal band. It would be. Weapons for Righteousness. That's my next like youth group like dodgeball team name or something. That'd be great. Weapons for Righteousness. Yeah, welcome to Weapons for Righteousness. I think that has legs. Yeah Well to conclude chapter 6 there before we comment on the rest of it It's like, you know, Romans 6 23 we know it well for the wages of sin is death But the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord and he's kind of slam dunking 1 through 5 It's like hey, everyone is dead in Christ No one I'm sorry. Everyone is dead to sin, but everyone who is in Christ is made alive by the free gift of God Yeah, so walk in the newness of Chapter seven, uh, question for you. Yep. I know we're in chapter seven and you're gonna read it, but there's a lot of debate on, this is Paul basically saying, I do the things that I don't want to do and I don't do the things that I want to do. From verse 14 to 25. Yeah. Yeah. 14 and 25. There's some debate on this, if this is a pre conversion or post conversion experience with Paul. Cause he's like, I'm not doing what I want to do. Yeah. Paul's describing an experience of wrestling against sin. And one of the things scholars debate is, is he talking about what it's like before you're a Christian, or is he talking about this is the common Christian experience, or is he just kind of making a general statement about the battle against sin in general? So yeah, so that's something that when you wrestle with Romans, you have to come to terms with, and people take different views on that. What's your view? presently more leaning toward, he's describing here what life is like before you're a Christian. of the language of slavery, because of, you know, a wretched man who will rescue me from this body of death. And then in chapter eight is when the switch comes and he starts talking about the new life in the Spirit. I could be wrong on that. I think it's a challenge. I mean, obviously, very bright scholars disagree on that. So there's good arguments on either side. One of the things Christians can disagree about and still read chapter eight, the best chapter in the Bible. Yeah, it's like, you know what I think of? I think of like Romans is like a Cinnabon, which is I love a Cinnabon. Do you? Yeah, I don't eat them anymore because I'm trying to be, you know, good with my food. But ⁓ but but then, you know, the whole reason you eat a Cinnabon is so that you can get to the bite in the middle. Yeah, that's exactly right. Romans eight is the bite in the middle. It's actually the middle of this book too. Did you know that? Yeah, that's right. There's 16 chapters. so it's Do you think do you think when they were putting the chapter numbers on here? They thought about a Cinnabon and they're like we got to make eight the middle because this is the best bite. I think it's possible. It's possible Well, why is it so good? Tell me why it's so good. I mean, I just said it's the best chapter in Bible. You'd agree. Why? It's it's so good because it describes Well, first of all, it describes the life of the spirit that we now live this new life not by obeying the law of Moses, but we live this new life. You know, why don't we just keep going on sinning? Because we're in a new life by the Holy Spirit, and the Spirit has put new desires in us, the Spirit has put the life of Christ in us. You know, that's how union with Christ happens. Why am I united with Christ? It's because His Spirit now indwells me. And so, it's the life of the Spirit by which we are able to kill sin. I love, for instance, verse 12, "'So then, brothers and sisters, we are not obligated to the flesh,' in other words, our inherent sinful desires, "'to live according to the flesh.'" Verse 13, "'Because if you live according to the flesh, you're going to die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.' So that through the power of the Holy Spirit, I can now resist sin and I can kill sin.'" Exactly right. And here's what... Weapons of righteousness. Weapons of righteousness. 15. for you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear. But you have received the spirit of adoption as sons by whom we cry Abba Father. You're adopted. That theology of adoption, meaning you're given the family name. When you are sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, God has put His name on you. It's just like if you were to adopt a child, you're going to give that child your last name because they're yours. God, when He looks down at you, believer, hear this, When he looks down at you, he says, mine. That is mine. That is my son. That is my daughter. And I love them and I give them new life in Christ, in me. Yeah, it's so intimate. And of course, I mean, the whole chapter, I'm going backwards now. see, this is the problem with chapter eight. You're just like, ⁓ look at that. at that. at that. Chapter eight, verse one. Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. Like, there's no... There's no judgment. I'll never be condemned before God. I will I am righteous and I'm declared not guilty forever and ever ever and ever because I'm united with Christ in his death for me, I mean it's Unbelievable. Yeah, singing will try to try to condemn you. Yep And tell you lies, but that's when you look to Romans 8 one says no I am NOT condemned because there's no condemnation because I'm in Christ Jesus So really you have, if you think about, maybe you've heard of the categories, theological categories, justification, which is being declared righteous. Right. ⁓ Judge slams his gavel, declares you innocent. Innocent. On behalf of Christ. Sanctification, becoming holy, actually learning to live out that. thing and become a more godly person in practice. Look more like Jesus. glorification, is someday when the process will be completed. And it's all here. The first part of Romans 8 is just about our justification through Christ. Then there's a bunch about the Holy Spirit, the Abba Father, putting the death sin. But then you have, as you go on, this hope of glory. Verse 18, I consider that the present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that is going to be revealed. in us. We're waiting for our adoption as sons. The whole creation is waiting for our I think this is one of the most wild verses in the Bible. It says, not only the creation, but we ourselves who have the first words of the Spirit grown inwardly. Because we have this inward groaning because we recognize who's at C.S. Lewis that talks about, this isn't our home. Like, the evidence of, like, hey, we're made for a heavenly future for a different world. is because we recognize something is wrong here. I'm butchering whatever he talks about there. you get the point. Is that like we know that we're made for something more because we recognize there's something wrong and the creation also does. But we're going to be redeemed. The redemption of our bodies will again this final glorification of our bodies. But in the meantime it says the spirit helps us in our weaknesses. And here's what actually it's hard to pick a favorite verse in the Bible. But if I had to it would probably be this one 828. And we know that all things work together for good for those who love him and are called according to his purpose. Another great verse in Romans 8. Yeah. And when I was in Massachusetts, I did a whole sermon series just on Romans 8. Did you really? ⁓ so guess I have preached part of Romans. I just went, you know what I did? I just reached into that Cinnabon, I just grabbed the gooey center. I'm like, forget this other stuff. But it was, but it's like, and it was a multi-month sermon series because it... There's so much here to talk about. Yeah. we'll kind of end here to wrap up Romans 8, the latter half of it. When I first became, a little story, when I first became a Christian, I was a new Christian. I was being discipled by a guy who was more mature in the faith and he discipled me and he sits me down. He looks across for me and he goes, Alan, do you know what can separate you from the love of God and me? I'm like, myself, duh, disqualify myself. And he goes, no, check this out. And he opens up his Bible to Romans 8 verses 31 to 39, and I won't read the whole thing, but it says basically, nothing will be able to separate you from the love of God in Christ Jesus, not tribulation, not distress, not persecution, not famine, not nakedness, not danger, not sword, but in all these things where more than conquers through Him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life nor angels nor ruler nor things present nor things to come nor powers nor height nor death nor anything else in all creation will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. And that is one of the most profound moments in my walk with Christ is this nothing will be able to separate me from the love of God. Yeah, ⁓ that covenant faithful love that was pronounced through Balaam Even back then, where it's like God was gonna, God was still gonna show his love has now reached its reality in Christ so that those who are in Christ are, nothing can separate us from his love. It's his love from beginning to end that holds us. Listeners, know that you are loved by your Father. Jesus loves you. You will be raised with Christ in glory when he comes. Watch. Stay unfirm knowing that he's coming at an hour that you do not expect, but know it is true that he will come back for you. And no matter what your present sufferings are, Romans 8, they're not worth comparing with the glory that's going to be revealed in us. Amen. That's amazing. Amen. Well, we pray that you're encouraged. ⁓ Keep reading with us. We will keep commenting on the Word of God, which is for you. ⁓ Any other comments? Nope. Keep reading. Hang in there. And we'll talk to you next time. This has been another episode of the SCC Savor Podcast where we're savoring God through every bite of scripture. Till next time, friends.