Participants: Ty Gibson
Series Code: AOT
Program Code: AOT000005
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00:13 Welcome to "Anchors of Truth"
00:15 live from the 3ABN Worship Center, 00:17 the "Extravagant Love" series with Ty Gibson. 00:22 There used to be a song that we sang, 00:25 I don't know if they took it out of the new 00:27 hymnal or not called The Love of God, 00:29 do you remember that song 00:30 the love of God, how rich and pure. 00:32 How measureless and strong. 00:35 It shall forevermore endure. 00:38 The saints' and angels' song. 00:41 We sing that and it was one of my, 00:42 my favorite songs. We have been 00:44 ruminating on that love of God these past 00:47 several sessions, talking about the extravagant 00:50 love of God and we've, we've taken this word 00:53 that I said previously sort of overworked, 00:56 overused and given it new depth and new meaning. 01:00 Particularly when we talk about the eternal, 01:04 extravagant, all encompassing 01:07 love of God for you and for me. 01:10 We've had a good time and sadly we've come 01:12 down to our last sitting in this 01:14 particular series of meetings. 01:17 As our preacher, our pastor, our friend 01:19 Ty Gibson has been expounding on God's 01:22 word to us the love of God. 01:24 My name is C. A. Murray and it is my 01:26 privilege and pleasure to welcome you sadly 01:29 to this last meeting. Ty began with eternity 01:33 past, this afternoon we look at eternity future 01:38 under the context the extravagant love of God 01:42 and we are so very, very pleased to have 01:45 him with us. He is a busy, busy man but 01:48 most people who work for the Lord are busy, 01:49 busy men and women. But he has stopped by 01:53 to give us the word of God yet again this afternoon. 01:57 We're gonna change things up just a little bit 01:58 and rather than have a singing musical 02:01 ministry, we're going to have a Pianist musical 02:05 ministry by one of the very best, our own 02:07 Jill Morikone who is sitting 02:09 at the Piano even as I speak. 02:11 Before we call upon her, we're going to call 02:13 upon the Lord and ask His presence as we 02:17 have our meeting this afternoon, shall we pray? 02:20 Gracious Father, we do thank you, 02:22 we praise you for being such a wonderful 02:25 gracious and yes loving God. 02:29 You have demonstrated your love in that while 02:33 we were yet sinners, Christ died for us 02:39 and your word says, greater love hath no man 02:42 than that He lay down His life for His friend. 02:46 But you've done better than that, 02:48 because Jesus lay down His life for His enemies 02:53 and for those who had turned their backs on Him. 02:55 Lord, we respond to that love in infirmity 02:59 this day and ask You to fill our hearts with 03:02 Your Spirit, bless Your men servant yet again 03:05 as You have done during the previous four 03:09 sittings together, give him words that are meat 03:12 in due season for our thirsty and weary souls. 03:16 And give us open and receptive hearts, 03:19 ears and minds as we seek to 03:23 know Your will for our lives. 03:25 And then to walk in that will and way. 03:30 We love You, we praise You 03:32 and we thank You, in Jesus name, amen. 03:36 Our speaker again Ty Gibson, 03:38 but before he comes to us Mrs. Jill Morikone. 07:46 Amen. Thank you Jill, I was peeking around 07:51 the corner from backstage and I don't 07:53 know if you noticed it from your angle but 07:56 Jill was really feeling the beauty of that music 08:00 coming through her to us and our goal here 08:05 of course has been to think and to feel for the 08:10 heart of God. We've been reaching 08:12 up and out of ourselves, as the Apostle Paul says 08:17 all of us as human beings I don't if you 08:19 remember this but in Acts chapter 17 he says 08:22 that God leads us to feel after him with our hearts. 08:28 That's what we're endeavoring to do and 08:30 we've now come to the 5th and final session 08:34 together that we have entitled 08:36 "Extravagant Love" and lets see if we have a 08:39 down yet, what kind of love is this? 08:41 Extravagant love and we've now come to the 08:45 conclusion of our series together. 08:48 We began in session number 1 08:51 by contemplating eternity what? 08:54 Past and now we have traversed the entire 08:57 course of this beautiful gospel of Christ and are 09:02 about to turn our gaze toward eternity future. 09:08 We noticed in our first session that Psalm 09:11 chapter 90 and verse 2 kind of neatly and for 09:14 the sake of our finite human understanding 09:17 divides reality into those two basic parts. 09:23 There David says from everlasting 09:26 to everlasting you are God, 09:30 this God of infinite other centered love 09:33 has always existed and we learned that he has 09:37 existed in that eternity past. 09:42 Engaged in self giving love, 09:44 Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. 09:47 I mean if you were to, in the most succinct and 09:50 clear way possible communicate to a friend 09:53 or to a relative. Hey what, 09:55 what's God all about? They might ask what do 09:58 you believe I wonder what you would say to them. 10:01 I would suggest that that you would begin by 10:04 saying well I'll tell you what I believe about 10:06 God, I'll tell you what God is really all about? 10:09 God is love, always has been and always will 10:15 be, before any human beings existed, 10:19 before the angels existed, the eternal self 10:22 existent uncreated God has always existed and 10:28 a beautiful tryst of other centered love. 10:32 And that story that we've been 10:34 contemplating then continues as a running 10:39 narrative to unfold before us that God's 10:43 love eventually took on a 10:47 personified form in our world. 10:52 Jesus came into our world as a human being 10:57 to amplify, to magnify, to communicate in 11:00 practical flesh and bone, relational terms 11:05 that we could understand. 11:07 He came into our world as the consummate 11:11 Revelation of the character of God. 11:14 And as He came into our world that beautiful 11:18 disclosure of the divine heart reached its apex, 11:21 its zenith point at the cross of Calvary. 11:25 We entitled that message off the charts 11:28 and we discovered that God's love is more 11:33 enormous and beautiful then we could ever fully 11:37 comprehend or imagine. That literally at the 11:40 cross Jesus revealed that the creator of the 11:44 universe loves all others above 11:48 and before His own life. And then we moved on 11:53 from there this morning to discover some other 11:57 practical implications of God's extravagant love, 12:01 by practical implications I mean we began to 12:06 pose the question. Okay, alright, 12:07 God loves us like this, God's love is 12:10 extravagant it's beautiful, we see it 12:12 displayed and demonstrated in Christ 12:14 but how do I tap into it, 12:17 how do I access this love so. 12:20 That it's not just the theory but it becomes a 12:22 living, pulsating, reality in my life 12:26 and in all my relationships. 12:29 And we discovered that the Bible teaches that 12:32 God's love finds access to our hearts, 12:37 to our lives through the medium of 12:39 comprehension, you remember. 12:41 Those of you who are there for that message, 12:44 we looked at Ephesians chapter 3 and we saw 12:46 that Apostle Paul informs us through 12:49 prayer that the Holy Spirit wants to take up 12:53 residence inside of us. That Jesus wants to 12:57 come into our hearts and to live in us by faith. 13:02 And then Paul turns a corner and he 13:04 says the way you bring Jesus into your heart 13:07 and life is by becoming routed and grounded in 13:12 his love you remember. And becoming rooted 13:15 and grounded in his love as a agricultural 13:19 metaphor is then explained to us in more 13:22 practical concrete language. 13:25 Paul says, get rooted and grounded in his 13:27 love and then he says I pray that you would 13:30 comprehend the love of Christ 13:33 which passes knowledge. To comprehended it 13:36 means to grasp it with the mind and with the 13:39 emotions, it means to come to the place where 13:43 we understand its various dimensions and facets. 13:48 God's love is like a multi-faceted diamond 13:53 that we hold to the light and with every turning 13:56 the color prism of His character is refracted 13:59 and reflected into our understanding. 14:02 We saw seven dimensions of God's 14:05 multidimensional love and I wanna challenge 14:08 you that I was just scratching the surface. 14:12 I wanna ask you to make it your lifelong 14:14 pursuit to explore and to peel back the layers 14:20 of God's love throughout scripture 14:22 from Genesis to Revelation and 14:24 I guarantee you that as you do you will find 14:28 your self falling more and more deeply in love 14:33 with God with every new glance, 14:35 with every new insight to His beautiful character. 14:40 So, that's where we've come from and now 14:42 in our final session we're going to talk 14:45 about eternity future, we're going to pose a 14:48 rather simple question. What does eternity look 14:54 like, what does it hold for us? 14:57 What will life be like in eternity future once this 15:02 great controversy is over, this dark midnight 15:05 of pain and suffering and agony has passed? 15:09 And we find ourselves safely on the eternal 15:12 shores of that kingdom the prophecy says 15:18 shall never end, what, what will 15:20 it be like in eternity future. 15:22 And I would like to suggest to you 15:25 that eternity future looks exactly like 15:28 eternity past just with a lot more participants. 15:36 And if eternity past looks like and other 15:39 centered self giving friendship Father, 15:42 Son, and Holy Spirit living only and ever 15:45 for one and other. Then eternity future 15:48 looks just like that, except for now you and 15:51 I have been inducted into that fellowship. 15:54 Now we are participants in this eternal free fall 16:00 of ever deepening love relationship with God 16:04 and I might add with one another. 16:08 Now, this eternity future that we're 16:10 discussing begins at the second coming of Jesus 16:14 Christ in a sense, I say in a sense 16:18 because and we don't have time to explore this. 16:21 Eternity future actually begins in another sense 16:24 right now, Jesus said I come that you may 16:29 have life and that you might have it present 16:32 tense more abundantly, there is a sense in which 16:35 eternal life is a quality of life that we have now 16:40 before the second coming of Jesus Christ. 16:44 We partake of it in quality, 16:47 in our relationship with God on a daily basis 16:49 we're continually tasting what it's like 16:54 to live in eternity future with Him. 16:57 So, there is a sense in which eternal life 17:00 and eternity future is experienced here and 17:04 now on a daily basis in our relationship with God. 17:09 But this whole relationship with Christ 17:12 that begins here and now reaches its 17:14 consummation at the Second Advent. 17:18 Turn with me in your Bible to chapter 14 17:21 of the gospel of John this is a familiar 17:23 passage to anybody who has spent time in 17:27 scripture, it is one of the most familiar passages 17:32 of scripture but I'd like you to look at it with 17:34 me as if you've never looked at it before. 17:38 I want you to open your mind and heart to notice 17:41 something in this second coming passage 17:44 so that we can see and understand the second 17:47 coming of Jesus Christ perhaps in a way we've 17:50 never thought of it before. 17:52 And yet in precisely the way it is depicted in the 17:56 text, look here at chapter 14 of the gospel of John. 18:01 Jesus is speaking to His disciples and He says: 18:03 Let not your hearts be troubled, you believe in 18:06 God believe also in me. Why are they troubled 18:10 by the way in the context here, 18:11 what has he been telling them is going to happen? 18:14 He's been saying you know I'm going to 18:16 depart from this world. It's almost over, 18:21 our relationship this last three and half years it's 18:24 coming to an end, I'm leaving. 18:27 They don't comprehend what He means, 18:29 they denied the idea that He will have to 18:33 suffer and die over and over again, they don't 18:35 get it but they are troubled because there 18:37 is one thing they're all understanding. 18:40 He saying goodbye and they feel it, 18:43 let not your heart be troubled you believe in 18:45 God believe also in me, but watch what He says 18:47 here: In my Father's house are many, 18:50 what is your version say, mansions, 18:54 that's right, oh! Wait a minute somebody else 18:56 has a different version I heard it, rooms. 19:00 Now, we like to, to home in on the mansion 19:04 language, but I'd like to suggest you that the 19:08 second coming of Jesus and eternity future 19:12 is not to register in our minds and in our 19:16 theology as a materialistic hope, 19:20 do you hear what I'm saying? 19:21 We're not called upon in scripture to think of 19:27 heaven and eternal life and the Second 19:30 Advent in materialistic terms. 19:33 Now, most versions say: In my Father's 19:35 house are many mansions, 19:38 but somebody's version, they just quoted from 19:40 the New International version which in some 19:43 ways is a version that is weak on other verses but 19:46 on this verse it is most accurate to the Greek. 19:50 Here it literally says, Jesus literally says: 19:53 In my Father's house are many rooms, 19:56 the idea here that Jesus is communicating is not 20:00 a materialistic hope but a relational hope. 20:04 He says in so many words I'm leaving, 20:07 I'm departing and I know you're bummed about that. 20:10 But I want you to know that I'm going to the 20:13 Father's house and I'm going to prepare rooms 20:17 for you there. In other words you're 20:20 going to ultimately live with me in my 20:25 Father's house, it's a relational 20:29 aspiration that Jesus is communicating here. 20:34 Now, there's no doubt about it everything in 20:36 this heaven and eternal life including the rooms 20:39 we live in are going to be truly 20:43 luxurious and mansion like. 20:45 These were be mansion level rooms no doubt, 20:49 but that's not the point. It's not about the 20:54 material stuff, it's not about the streets of 20:56 gold, it's not about the gates and wow they're 20:58 made out of pearl are they? 21:00 I like pearl, no the streets of gold my 21:06 friends are paving material in the kingdom of God. 21:11 It has no significance in a moral value system, 21:17 even now if you stop and think about it you 21:20 know don't you? That in a truly cognoscente 21:24 moral value system, money has no significance. 21:31 Now, my wife Sue and I just to give you 21:34 a glands into what I'm trying to get out. 21:38 My Sue and I, when we got married we were 21:40 very idealistic and very enthusiastic about this 21:44 thing called the marriage institution 21:47 and it's potential for this remarkable 21:50 ability to procreate. We thought that is 21:53 amazing, we could actually bring into 21:55 existence human beings who have never existed 21:58 before as many as we want. 22:03 I said we were idealistic Sue 22:04 and I were also very biblical. 22:07 We were just discovering the 22:09 scriptures as teenagers and when we got 22:12 married we said let's have twelve children. 22:17 That's a biblical number, we will populate the 22:20 kingdom, no we were not Mormons 22:23 but we were very determined to have 22:26 lots of children and then an 8 pound and ten 22:30 ounce Amber came out of Sue's little body. 22:35 And Sue said would you be cool with six, 22:41 it sound it like a very small number to me 22:43 at that point, I thought oh man I don't know 22:45 I like the twelve sounds better I mean look at 22:48 this beautiful child. We can, we can have 22:50 one after another why would you stop, 22:52 but I like Sue, I like her a lot. 22:55 And I heard the screams of 22:57 childbirth and I said okay six. 23:00 And then Jason came into the world as wide 23:04 as he was tall and Sue said please, 23:10 please how about just four, 23:13 let's just have four children I said okay four. 23:16 And then little baby Leah came into the 23:19 world and it was not an easy feet, she came out 23:24 out upside down backwards or sideways 23:26 or something. And it seemed as though she 23:30 was holding on to Sue's spleen or her spine or 23:34 something and wouldn't let go. 23:36 There was excruciating pain involve and as 23:39 soon as Leah was born Sue said that's it. 23:44 I'm done, with her fingernails digging into 23:47 my arm as if to say done right, I said yes 23:52 baby done, just three that's it, 23:55 no problem it's over. And then we watched 23:58 these three children grow up and as they 24:01 grow up and days turned into weeks and 24:04 weeks turn into months and 24:05 the months turn into years. 24:08 I can tell you in all honesty that when 24:11 I closed my eyes and I think that to the best 24:17 memories of my life. Never does any 24:22 materialistic or professional type of a 24:25 consideration pop into my mind, when I think 24:28 of the best and happiest moments of life. 24:31 I see my daughter Amber 13 years of age 24:36 alone with her daddy in the city of Riga in 24:40 Latvia on a mission trip, bonding and she 24:44 is nervous and she's missing her mom. 24:47 And she's beautiful and we're connecting on a 24:50 whole new level, I see my son Jason 24:55 and myself on a mount bike ride through a 24:57 mountain pass and an unexpected storm comes. 25:01 And we take refuge, laughing our heads off 25:05 and dripping wet under a tree and I see my little 25:10 precious Leah on my shoulders as we hike to 25:14 a waterfall and she's banging me on the top 25:16 of the head saying giddy up daddy, giddy up. 25:22 Those are the snapshots that come to my mind 25:27 when I think of what really makes life 25:31 significant and worth living. 25:34 What I'm trying to say to you is that life 25:38 as God intended to be is primarily a relational 25:46 reality, not a materialistic reality. 25:51 Now, please don't misunderstand me, 25:52 I look forward to heaven and all the, 25:55 the glories of heaven, but what I'm telling you 25:59 is that eternity future is made up of something 26:04 so beautiful that once you begin to grasp it, 26:10 it takes your breath away. And it leads you to love 26:16 the Lord like you never have before 26:19 and everything of a material significance 26:22 just recedes. Even in this life 26:26 nothing really has any comparison to what it's 26:31 like to truly know that you are eternally loved 26:35 by God in a significant and powerful way. 26:40 Nothing even is a close second to that 26:44 deepening realization, Jesus tells us our 26:49 destiny that we'll commence at His 26:51 second coming. He says: Let not your heart be 26:53 troubled: you believe in God, believe also in me. 26:58 In my Father's house are many rooms: 27:00 if it were not so, I would have told you. 27:03 I go to prepare a place for you. 27:06 And here's His whole point, I go to prepare 27:09 a place for you, notice this 27:14 that where I am there you maybe also. 27:21 Do you hear what He is saying? 27:22 He's saying I want you with me, 27:27 is there anybody who's like that for you? 27:30 Is there anybody that you just like being with, 27:33 it doesn't, you're not nervous there is no 27:35 affectation, there is no atmosphere, there is no 27:40 self consciousness. You can be silent 27:43 if you wanna be silent, you can fall asleep in 27:45 the car and slobber and they're driving and you 27:47 don't feel bad. You just like being with them, 27:53 is there anybody like that for you, 27:55 I know there has to be a friend or mom or dad 27:58 and auntie and uncle and Nana and papa, a spouse. 28:03 Somebody that you just feel totally comfortable 28:07 with and you enjoy their company. 28:10 Jesus essentially says that's the quality of 28:15 connection I want with you, I want you to be 28:19 with me just with me for all eternity future. 28:25 In the modern vernacular, I just really want to 28:29 hang out with you forever, I like you, 28:33 yes He loves us and we've been exploring 28:36 the fact that He loves us with an extravagant, 28:39 everlasting love. But listen, like is 28:45 dimension of love and what I'm telling you is 28:49 not only does He love you in a sense that out 28:52 of you know out of a sheer unconditional 28:55 principle of love he tolerates us, 28:58 no He doesn't just tolerate us, 29:01 He actually likes us. Now, He doesn't like 29:06 the things that we do sometimes, 29:09 but you know from your own human 29:10 experiences that it's possible to love 29:14 someone and to like certain dimensions of 29:17 what you see to be their potential and not to like 29:21 the things that you seen them do 29:23 that will below their potential. 29:26 Well, Jesus sees in you the full blown potential 29:31 that you have if you allow your heart and 29:34 mind and life to be cultivated by His love. 29:37 He sees that it is entirely possible 29:40 for His very own image to be completely 29:43 reconstructed in you and in me, 29:48 He sees that potential. And He sees flashes of 29:51 it in moments of true, adoring worship, 29:56 He sees flashes of it when you engage in acts of 30:00 service for others with no self consideration. 30:05 He looks at you when you experience a 30:09 genuine sense of affirmation and you 30:12 reach out in acceptance to another person who 30:15 is in need. He says that's the 30:17 person I know you can be 24/7 every second of 30:21 the day into eternity future. 30:24 And I wanna be with you and I'm in the 30:27 process of beautifying your character 30:31 according to Ephesians chapter 5, making His 30:34 bride beautiful, removing every spot 30:37 and wrinkle and any spot of defilement. 30:41 He is beautifying our characters for the 30:44 consummation for the wedding 30:46 at the Second Advent. And that's the person 30:50 Jesus says I want to be with for all eternity. 30:53 He goes on and He says: That where I am, 30:55 there you may be also. And where I go you know. 31:00 And the way you know and Thomas said to 31:02 him, Lord, verse 5, "Lord, we don't know 31:05 where you're going, so how can 31:06 we possibly know the way? 31:08 They're still not getting it and Jesus said to 31:10 them, verse 6: I am the way, the path, the road, 31:17 I am your spiritual journey, I am the way, 31:22 the truth and the life and then He states 31:24 explicitly our eternal destiny. 31:27 No man comes to the Father except by me, 31:33 He doesn't say boy you're gonna really love 31:36 eternity future because I have some really neat 31:38 architecture in mind for your mansion. 31:43 I've got great stuff for you there, He says no 31:47 your destiny is the Father, He longs for 31:51 you, He's been reaching out to you, 31:53 He's sent me to save you. 31:55 And I'm the path upon which you will make 31:58 your journey back to the heart of the Father. 32:03 The second coming is the consummation 32:06 of all our hopes. It is the point in which 32:11 we launch off into eternity future for an 32:15 eternal fellowship with the God the Father, 32:18 God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. 32:20 Loop over to chapter 17 of John and you'll know 32:24 similar language that Jesus employs here 32:28 verse 24, verse 24. Now, go back to verse 32:33 23 because I can't miss the last line of verse 23. 32:36 Jesus is praying these kinds of sentiments: 32:40 I am them and you Father in me, that they 32:43 maybe made perfect in one, and that the world 32:48 may know that you have sent me, 32:50 now get this, and that you have loved them as 32:56 you loved me, what? Jesus says, Father you 33:02 love them, put your name there, Father you 33:06 loved Ty with the same quality and passion of 33:15 love with which you love me Your only begotten Son. 33:19 Father, you love them as you have loved me, 33:21 look at verse 24: Now watch this: 33:24 Father, I desire is that a Stelic word? 33:30 No, that's a word of passion, 33:34 that's a word of enthusiasm. 33:36 He says: Father, I desire that they also, 33:40 whom you have given me, may be, 33:43 here it is again, with me where I am. 33:49 He wants us to be what again? 33:52 With Him. Just so, so incredible, 33:57 that they may behold my glory which you 34:02 have given me for you get this loved me before 34:07 the foundation of the world. 34:10 Jesus says Father, I want them to be 34:12 brought into fellowship of love with which you 34:15 and I have been engaged before the 34:17 world was even created. You and I have been 34:20 engaged Father along with the Holy Spirit and 34:22 this, this love relationship, 34:24 this friendship, this fellowship and I want 34:27 them to be introduced into that inner circle. 34:31 I want them to be participants for all 34:34 eternity future in this loved that You and 34:37 I have been sharing for all eternity past. 34:40 Verse 25: O righteous Father, the world has 34:43 not known you: but I have known you, 34:45 and these have known that you have sent me. 34:48 Verse 26 is the climax: And I have declared to 34:51 them your name, and will declare it so that 34:55 the love with which you have loved me may be 34:59 in them, and I in them. Astounding huh? 35:07 Jesus here describes salvation and it's 35:13 ultimate end goal, as escorting you and me, 35:19 ushering us back into an eternal love relationship 35:26 with Him and with His Father that resembles 35:31 the love that they shared before 35:33 the world was even created. 35:38 Is that desirable? Does it arouse in you 35:44 a sense of longing? Does it break within 35:50 you the shackles of mere religious 35:57 observations and going through the motions and 36:01 legalistic considerations and serving God 36:04 because you have to after all, because He's 36:06 God and you're not and it's His universe. 36:08 So you had better do what He says if you 36:09 know what is best for you. 36:12 There is a heaven to gain and a hell to shun, 36:17 I better get my act together. 36:20 Do you feel that just kind of, just rolling off 36:24 of your back and a lightness, and a 36:27 freedom that comes from knowing 36:29 God in this kind of light? 36:36 It wakes up something inside of me 36:40 that I would so love to see 36:43 awakened in every one of us. 36:47 Well, Peter in one of my favorite eternity 36:50 future texts opens to our mind with even greater 36:55 clarity what it is that Jesus has in store for us. 37:01 Now, watch this in 1st Peter chapter 1, 37:04 1st Peter chapter 1, we're going to, we're going 37:08 to look specifically at verses 7 and 8. 37:11 I'm gonna read first from the 37:13 New King James Version but I want you to pay 37:15 close attention to this text and 37:17 notice where it leads us. In verse 7 of 1st Peter 1, 37:22 Peter talks about the Revelation of Jesus 37:26 Christ this is his term for the second coming. 37:31 Jesus is going to return and when He returns 37:37 Peter says it will be an experience to encounter 37:43 Him and then Peter explains that it is 37:48 something that bears contemplating in terms 37:53 of eternity future, watch this. 37:55 He speaks of the Revelation of Jesus 37:57 Christ verse 8: Whom having not what? 38:03 Having not seen you love, though now you 38:08 do not what? You don't see Him, 38:11 yet you believe and you rejoice with joy 38:17 inexpressible and full of glory. 38:22 Now, here's what Peter is saying, he's saying to 38:26 us and to the believers in his time, 38:28 he's saying you haven't seen Jesus with your 38:32 eyes and yet you love him. 38:36 Alright, you haven't seen Him but you love 38:40 Him and then he says, this love that you have 38:43 for the Savior it fills you with an 38:47 inexpressible joy that foretells the glory 38:55 the future kingdom. The Phillips translation 38:59 renders the text, verse 8: Though you have 39:03 never seen Him, yet you love Him and at the 39:08 present time you trust him 39:12 without being able to see Him. 39:16 And even now he brings you a joy that 39:23 words can not express and which has in it 39:30 a hint of the glory of heaven. 39:35 Do you see what Peter saying here, 39:37 he saying listen at the Revelation of Jesus 39:40 Christ at his second coming. 39:42 You're going to see him personally, 39:45 face to face that's coming, but Peter says 39:48 wait a minute, wait a minute, back up, 39:50 you haven't even seen him yet you love him. 39:54 And not seeing him and yet loving him, 39:59 you are filled with an inexpressible joy, 40:01 there is a joy that is derived from this love. 40:05 And that joy, that happiness, 40:07 that satisfaction that is derived from his love 40:13 is a hint of what heaven is all about. 40:20 Because heaven and eternal life my friends 40:23 it is not merely net material gains. 40:31 Heaven and eternal life is foreshadowed, 40:34 it's whispered. In the love we 40:40 sometimes sense for the Savior and then long to 40:46 experience it more sustained. 40:49 Do you know what I'm saying, you have these 40:50 times where you're going through your 40:52 Christian experience and, and you're just on 40:56 the mountain top. But what Isaiah says 40:58 riding on the high places of the earth, 41:01 just spiritually alive and you're just so, 41:05 so engaged with the Lord. And then other times 41:10 the practical duties of daily life and the 41:13 memory of your own failures and, 41:15 and your own relational breakdowns and feeling 41:18 so bad and you're at a low place. 41:24 But, what's happening is at those high places 41:27 where you really sense the love of Christ; 41:31 you are experience, you're tasting. 41:36 What in eternity future will be infinitely 41:38 sustained with no low points? 41:43 Because everything that brings us down would 41:48 have been removed. Now, I want to with 41:52 that little launching pad, I wanna share with you 41:55 four windows into eternity future, four what? 42:01 Windows into eternity future, it's like we're 42:03 standing in the house, in the biblical house, 42:07 in the theological house. And we're contemplating 42:12 and we're probing and we're looking out 42:15 certain windows that the scriptures open before us. 42:21 And those windows give us a view into the 42:25 contents of eternity future. 42:28 Window number 1 we're going to call 42:32 an infinitely sustained relational bliss, 42:37 does you get that? Some of you can't write 42:40 fast enough so I'm gonna say it again 42:43 window number 1 is an infinitely sustained 42:48 relational bliss, unbroken relational integrity. 42:56 A relationship with God and with one and other 42:58 that will be forever and forever and forever 43:02 uninterrupted, unbroken, infinitely sustained. 43:08 And it'll be more than infinitely sustained, 43:10 it will be infinitely escalating, it will grow 43:15 and deepen and broaden. Look in your Bible at 43:18 chapter 16 of Psalms, Psalm 16, this is a verse 43:22 that, that ought to stand out to us as we 43:26 contemplate heaven and eternity future and the 43:29 earth made new. Here David opens 43:34 this window to us and he says verse 11 of 43:39 Psalms 16: You Lord, "You will show me the 43:43 path of life; In Your presence, in your what? 43:48 In your presence is what kind of joy? 43:52 Fullness of joy and at Your right hand are 43:57 pleasures forevermore. That sounds like it's 44:00 infinitely sustained, it's eternal, it's nonstop. 44:06 Pleasures in his presence forever and 44:09 what kinds of pleasures are being described here? 44:13 Well, the pleasures that we find in God's 44:16 presence are the pleasures of affirmation 44:22 and acceptance and a lack of reserve 44:28 innocence and a deep settled conviction that 44:35 this one who made me infinitely loves me. 44:42 There is going to be other kinds of 44:43 pleasures no doubt, we talk about 44:45 traveling to different planets, 44:46 I'm looking forward to that I have dream 44:48 sometimes about flying, more like floating 44:51 actually, it's like I'm really big and 44:53 I'm just kind of wobbling over 44:55 the earth in my flying dreams. 44:58 But I'm looking forward to flying 45:00 and sowing to planets so far, exploring the universe 45:02 although I'm getting tired of traveling 45:04 I must be honest. I'm looking forward to it, 45:08 I'm looking forward to Jesus said that 45:10 we will have the pleasure of sitting under the tree 45:12 of life and having fellowship with Abraham, 45:15 Isaac and Jacob, Jesus said that we will eat 45:20 with them and we'll fellowship with them. 45:24 I'm looking forward to that pleasure, 45:25 but the pleasure here is the pleasure of his presence. 45:28 The pleasure of being with him, 45:31 the pleasure of knowing this God, 45:35 in chapter 27 and verse 4 of Psalms, 45:39 just flip over just a couple of pages. 45:41 Notice that this pleasure involves another aspect 45:47 verse 4 David says: One thing I have desired 45:53 of the Lord and that will I seek: 45:56 That I may dwell in the house 45:58 of the Lord forever why? All the days of my life, 46:08 To behold the beauty of the Lord, 46:12 And to inquire in His temple isn't that something? 46:16 David says I can't wait to spend eternity 46:19 in the house of God, because there is gonna 46:23 be lots of neat stuff there right, no. 46:28 I wanna dwell in the house of the Lord forever. 46:31 All the days of my eternal existence, 46:35 to behold the beauty of the Lord, 46:39 And to inquire in His temple. 46:41 Again all of this is communicated in 46:43 relational terms, don't you love it 46:48 when you get to know somebody better than you 46:51 ever have known them before and they're more 46:53 beautiful than you've ever imagined? 46:56 Maybe you have children or a best friend or a spouse 46:59 and all of the sudden out of nowhere you're like wow, 47:03 you're incredible I knew you were incredible, 47:06 but you are more incredible then I ever imagined. 47:09 You see some aspect of their personality, 47:12 some part of their heart, they open their mouth 47:15 and they speak and they disclose things 47:18 that you never knew about them before. 47:20 I go through this all the time with my wife Sue, 47:22 we'd be together approximately forever 47:24 and it seems like it's just been a week. 47:27 Because over and over again it's new, 47:31 over and over again we'll just be laughing our heads 47:35 off about something and I'll just look at her. 47:39 And I'll just feel so blessed that she loves me 47:44 and that she knows me and that she still loves me 47:49 even though she knows me. 47:51 She is born as the best human being 47:54 I have ever known and she was my first 47:56 introduction to the heart of God. 48:00 She already knew Him, she believed 48:02 in the existence of God and somehow I had 48:04 the idea that he's good and I was like what, 48:07 how could you possibly believe that we probably 48:09 got here by aliens or something? 48:11 That's how far removed I was from reality 48:14 and she just kind of whispered 48:16 to me over and over again. 48:18 You're gonna get it someday, 48:21 God does exist and God is good. 48:24 And I have been, I have been just unveiling 48:27 this lady's heart all these years now 48:30 and that reminds me that if finite human beings 48:37 can get to know one and other like that, 48:40 can you imagine what is gonna be like to fellowship 48:43 with the infinite God of heaven forever and ever. 48:48 Just one disclosure of beauty after another, 48:51 David says I want to dwell in the house of the Lord, 48:53 all the days of my life; To behold His beauty. 48:56 So, eternity future looks like that, 48:59 it's an infinitely sustained relational bliss, 49:04 just getting to know him better and better. 49:07 Secondly, eternity future is a complete 49:13 absence of hurt, one of the high places of scripture 49:20 is Isaiah chapter 11 and verse 9 where God's 49:25 ultimate aspiration is brought to our attention, 49:28 He says, He says: They shall not hurt nor destroy 49:34 in all my holy mountain says the Lord, 49:36 for the earth shall be filled 49:38 with the knowledge of the Lord. 49:41 God's ultimate hope and desire is a world 49:45 and a universe free from all hurt 49:48 which is to say God looks forward to an eternity 49:51 future free from all relational violation. 49:56 If you stop and think about it every pain 49:58 that we as human beings experience is traceable 50:02 to some relational breakdown, 50:05 some relational violation, somebody crossed the line 50:11 to violate somebody in a residual effect, 50:14 reached out from there to cause pain 50:17 to many, many others. 50:19 Eternity future is a future with no hurt, 50:23 with no pain, with no wounds. 50:26 The Bible says that God will erase all the memory, 50:31 the emotional memory, we won't have amnesia, 50:33 we won't forget who we were. 50:35 If we did we would have forgot the plan of salvation 50:37 and the whole thing would have been pointless. 50:40 We will not have amnesia but we will have 50:43 no more emotional memory of the pain 50:47 and the wounds and the hurt 50:48 that this world has inflicted upon us. 50:50 Number 3, eternity future, eternity future 50:56 will be composed of a child like innocence, 51:01 do you remember when the little children 51:04 were brought to Jesus and the disciples, 51:06 the adults said you know this is God and human flesh 51:12 and he's got some important things on his agenda, 51:14 he's setting up his kingdom and all and 51:17 you know you're just women and children, 51:19 please scat, get out of here. 51:20 This is the Messiah after all, 51:22 He doesn't have time for little kids, 51:24 what did Jesus say? Suffer the little children 51:28 to come unto me and do not forbid them, 51:30 do you know the rest? 51:31 For of such is the kingdom of God. 51:36 Now, my premise is that if the kingdom 51:44 will only be inhabited by child-like individuals 51:52 then the monarch of that kingdom 51:56 is himself ultimately child like. 52:00 I'd like to suggest to you that in the words 52:03 of a fascinating quotation by George McDonald: 52:07 that he was, that as God was, 52:10 is and ever shall be divinely child-like. 52:14 Childhood belongs to the divine nature, 52:20 or this interesting line from another author. 52:23 Perhaps we have sinned and have grown old 52:28 and our Father is younger than we are. 52:32 There is a sense in which God is child like, 52:35 God is not immature but he is innocent, 52:39 the Bible says he is of purer eyes 52:41 then to behold iniquity. 52:43 He shrinks back from seeing sin, 52:48 he's not immature but he's innocent, 52:50 he's not naive about evil 52:52 but evil is foreign to his nature. 52:55 He's not silly minded, but he did designed 53:01 the penguin and his waddle. 53:03 God is divinely child-like on a mega mature level. 53:10 Are you with me? God is just pure, unbridled, 53:18 authentic, innocent love and in that sense 53:24 God is the most child-like person 53:26 in the whole universe. 53:27 And I can't wait to hang out with him, 53:29 I can't wait to spend time and eternity with a God 53:33 who can throw his head back in laughter 53:38 at the beauties of creation 53:40 and the platypus's weird but beautiful appearance. 53:46 God made all this stuff, 53:48 there is something deeply and intricately 53:52 beautiful about God's child like heart. 53:54 And finally, number 4, eternity future 54:00 is intimate fellowship with God, 54:05 which is brought to us in many places 54:07 but I'll just give you just three or four scriptures. 54:11 First of all chapter 2 and verse 17 of Revelation 54:14 tells us that upon entering the kingdom 54:18 we will be given each one of us a white stone 54:23 with a new name, that nobody knows except 54:28 for the one who receives it and the one who gives it. 54:31 What's this new name? 54:33 It is a point of intimacy between God 54:37 and our individuals souls because 54:39 He alone knows us the history we've had, 54:42 what it is that He's led us through, 54:44 the victories that by His grace we've gained. 54:47 He knows us like nobody else, 54:49 He alone can pick the perfect name to depict 54:53 our new character in Christ. 54:58 And that new name will be a point of intimacy 55:01 for all eternity between us and our God 55:07 and then it says that we will each of us partake of 55:10 hidden manna, hidden manna, manna is a biblical 55:14 symbol for spiritual insight and truth. 55:19 In order words, there is hidden manna, 55:21 there is hidden insight to the character of God 55:23 that nobody else can access but you. 55:26 Nobody can ever know God 55:28 in the way I can know Him, because each individual 55:33 ponders him and relates to him 55:35 with a totally exclusive relationship 55:40 that nobody else can access 55:42 as unique as your fingerprint. 55:44 You will know God in ways that nobody 55:47 else can and finally, Revelation chapter 22 55:50 says in verse 4: That eternity future 55:54 will involve the intimacy of face to face 55:59 communion with God, it says they shall see 56:02 his face and his name, 56:05 his character will be in their foreheads, 56:07 in their frontal lobe region. 56:10 In order words my friends, eternity future 56:13 ultimately is about being completely restored 56:18 to face to face, eye to eye, 56:21 voice to voice, first person, and fellowship 56:27 with the most beautiful person in all the universe. 56:31 And if that's what eternity future 56:34 is made of, you can count me in and I hope 56:39 that you plan by God's grace to be there as well. 56:43 Thank you for spending this time with me 56:45 in this five part series on the 56:48 Extravagant Love of God, let's pray. 56:50 Father in heaven, we open our hearts to you anew, 56:54 we have received insights from your word 56:58 regarding the kind of person that you are 57:00 and the love that you cherish for us 57:03 in your heart. May we love you 57:06 and return, in Jesus name, amen. |
Revised 2014-12-17