I'm gonna be reading from verses one through nine. First Peter one, one through nine, and it should be actually up on the screen for you. And I'm gonna be staying on this passage for most of this morning. So let's read this together. Well, I'll read it for you. So Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ to those who reside as aliens scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia, who are chosen according to the foreknowledge of God, the Father, by the sanctifying work of the Spirit, to obey Jesus Christ and be sprinkled with his blood.

May grace and peace be yours in the fullest measure. Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to his great mercy has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to obtain an inheritance which is imperishable and undefiled and will not fade away, reserved in heaven for you, who are protected by the power of God through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.

In this, you greatly rejoice, even though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been distressed by various trials, so that the proof of your faith being more precious than gold, which is perishable, even though tested by fire, may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.

And though you have not seen him, you love him. And though you do not see him now, but believe in him, you greatly rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory, obtaining as the outcome of your faith the salvation of your souls. Well, we're just a few weeks from the year 2020, and Thanksgiving, as you guys know, has just passed, which means Christmas will soon be upon us.

For me, 2019 went by in a blink, and I'm assuming the same goes for a lot of you guys. And we have now come to December, and usually the end of the year and the holidays that come with it are accompanied by a mix of emotions. There's an excitement in the hustle and bustle, thinking of deals and gifts, but there can also be a loneliness, stress, and sadness that come with the holiday season as well.

For some, you've lost loved ones. For some, you're far from loved ones. And so the holidays bring in a weird emotion. And it's actually made worse if you're living abroad. We have some international students here who are away from home. There are many US citizens currently living away from the States, and for the holidays, there's an added layer of emotion, just being far away from your home country.

So my wife and I, we lived nine years abroad, three years in China, and six in Korea, and the holidays were always a little sad. For the 4th of July, we went to Costco, and we ate hot dogs because it made us feel a little bit more patriotic. One Thanksgiving, we went to Costco again and got ourselves a rotisserie chicken, and we washed it down with a bulgogi bake.

So needless to say, we have appreciated being back and celebrating the past two Thanksgivings here on American soil. About 10 years ago, we first got to China in December 2009. We were in our first year in Beijing, and I was actually homesick and sad. And I remember sitting at a cafe, writing up our monthly newsletter for you, for the church, and suddenly feeling very unhappy to be in China.

It started with my coffee order. I had ordered an iced Americano, 'cause I'm a fan of ice drinks, even when it's cold. And the barista just took scalding hot coffee and poured it into ice, and all the ice melted immediately, and the lady just handed me a lukewarm coffee over melted ice.

So in my broken Chinese, I told her I had ordered an iced coffee, and she gave me a condescending look and said something back to me. And that was early on in our time in China, so I didn't quite make out everything she said, but I did hear the words winter, iced, and mayo, like we don't have.

So I just assumed she was just telling me to go sit down, okay, that we don't make iced drinks in the winter. So I sighed, I had no way to fight back, took my lukewarm coffee, plopped myself down, began typing on my computer, and then I looked across the street, and there was a mall across the street, and they were doing Christmas decorations, and on the top, it actually said C-O-O-K-I-E, Christmas, cookie, Christmas.

And that made me even more sad, not Merry Christmas, not Happy Christmas, but Cookie Christmas. And for the life of me, I could not figure out what cookie Christmas was supposed to mean. And so I'm like, you guys didn't even get Christmas right. And so just flooded with an immense feeling of sadness, and to make that even worse, just six feet from me was a dude just smoking a cigarette right under the no smoking sign, because at that time in Beijing, you could pretty much smoke anywhere, and many rules were just not followed.

And I remember thinking, man, get me out of here. I don't belong here in China. If you've ever lived as an expat far away from home, you understand homesickness. And when you are living in a foreign country, homesickness is actually to be expected. And what causes a longing for home?

First, there's a discomfort that comes from being in unfamiliar surroundings and unfamiliar expectations. So your core values are different from those you may be surrounded by. Also, there are people you love whom you are physically separated from. If you had your closest family and friends with you, no matter where you are in the world, you're not homesick.

But for those who are expats, they are often far from home, far from family. Also, living in a foreign land, unfortunately means there's mistreatment, ridicule, and even opposition as an outsider. And this is especially the case for a lot of overseas migrant workers all over the world. The Christian is called again and again in the scriptures alien, stranger.

And so you and I who have put our faith in Christ are aliens and strangers in the world. So for the Christian living as an alien or sojourner on earth, there may be seasons where the homesickness is particularly strong, where Maranatha, Lord come, is a prayer that just really comes from the deepest part of our soul.

And this happens especially when there are constant reminders that you do not belong and you can feel this way. I mean, and you can feel this way even if you're living in the same area into which you were physically born. So it's interesting that as a Christian, you become homesick for a place you have physically never been to.

And why? It's because you want to be in the presence of God who loved you and whom you love in return. So homesickness is very much a part of the life of the people of God. It's all over the pages of scripture. But 1 Peter especially is one book of the Bible that speaks at length to the alien, the sojourner, the outcast, and the persecuted.

So today we're gonna be taking a look and reflecting on this. And we're gonna conclude that homesickness is not an abnormal thing. It's to be expected. But in the midst of our longing to be home, how do we live as joy-filled, homesick people during the time of our sojourn?

You guys know that Paul, we've been studying the book of Philippians as a church, and Paul writes in Philippians, "For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. "I long to depart and be with Christ, "which is very much better," he says. But he commands, Paul commands a sojourner whose citizenship is in heaven to rejoice, to rejoice, to rejoice in the midst of the sojourn.

So I'm gonna give you the outline of our sermon today. We will be first reflecting on our Christian identity, and then we will think deeply upon and look forward to our Christian inheritance, and then we will see what is included in our Christian itinerary. What is our purpose while we are here sojourning in the foreign land?

This is an aside. I could not find another I word that was close to purpose, mission, commission, so just deal with it, itinerary, it is, okay? Hopefully, the alliteration does make it help, make it a little easier to remember. The Christian identity, the Christian inheritance, and the Christian identity, what we are supposed to do while we are waiting for home.

So the Apostle Peter, he begins this epistle with a very interesting greeting. He says, "To those who reside as aliens, "scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, "Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia." The word alien or foreigner became a metaphor describing the Christian's relationship to the world. Believers were to understand that their identity was one of alien residents in foreign land.

So the Christian's values were to be different, their affections and their interests were to be different. Even though Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia may have been the regions they were born in, these Christians would never be able to comfortably call their birthplace home. Now, the Christians, they are now royalty in their true home, but here on earth, they would be treated as outsiders.

So Peter goes on to elaborate in chapter two, "But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, "a holy nation, a people for God's own possession, "so that you may proclaim the excellencies of him "who has called you out of darkness "into his marvelous light. "For you were once not a people, "but now you are the people of God.

"You had not received mercy, "but now you have received mercy. "Beloved, I urge you as aliens and strangers "to abstain from fleshly lusts "which wage war against the soul." So Christians are not only aliens, but we're ambassadors, royal representatives of the light living in the place of darkness. So naturally, as citizens of the light living in a dark place, Christians would face varying degrees of spiritual xenophobia, and Peter here includes the term strangers, or as it is translated in other passages, exiles, sojourners, to further emphasize that the saints are not of the world and only passing through.

So you and I, if we have put our faith in Christ, we are royal ambassadors living in hostile territory. We are not permanent residents, but we are simply passing through as sojourners, and that is the Christian identity. So just as much as it would be strange for you to check into a hotel, look at the curtains, look at the bedding, go out to the store, buy new curtains, buy new sheets, and change it all up, just as much as it would be strange for you to do this, it's strange for you to treat this life as your permanent place of residence.

So you and I, we are aliens, we are strangers, we are outsiders, and this is our identity. So it's only natural if you are living the Christian life to be a little uncomfortable, to be a little out of sorts, a little homesick at all times, and a lot homesick when things painfully remind you of home.

All is not lost for those who are longingly waiting for home so 'cause Apostle Peter writes, "May grace and peace be yours in the fullest measure." So while you are here, stay the course. There is a purpose to your sojourn, and we're gonna get to that in the third point.

But before we do, let's take a look at what Peter says about what is ours in heaven. So what is the Christian inheritance? The Christian identity is we are outsiders, we are aliens, we are sojourners. What is it then that we are eagerly waiting for? Verse three of chapter one.

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to his great mercy has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to obtain an inheritance which is imperishable and undefiled and will not fade away, reserved in heaven for you, who are protected by the power of God through faith for our salvation, ready to be revealed in the last time.

So first, Peter writes that God the Father, through the life, death, and resurrection of his son, caused us to be born again. So salvation is 100% a gift of God. Would you guys agree with that? Amen? Salvation is 100% a gift of God. Not a single one of us in this room had anything in and of ourselves that would have been desirable for our holy, holy, holy God.

So salvation was planned by God, initiated by God, and perfected by God, so that not one single person in this room can boast of any merit or any worth. So we are not here because there is any good in us. In fact, there is absolutely nothing good in us outside of Christ.

So Peter says, he goes on to say that God has caused us to be born again to a living hope. And you guys have memorized, a lot of you have memorized this passage, but what does this mean? What is this? 'Cause we understand the word hope, right? It's a desire for something favorable to happen.

Tomorrow, I hope that the sun comes out 'cause I have to go to a ballgame or something. So you're desiring something good to happen. That's hope. But what is a living hope? And what is the difference between a non-Christian hope and a Christian's living hope? And I wanna pause and think about this a little bit.

So in the scriptures, we learn that the unbelieving world has zero hope. Everything is dying and decaying around them. Everything in this world is wasting away. Everything will pass away. All that lies ahead, all that the unbelieving world has to look forward to is disaster and weeping and gnashing of teeth.

It is a dead hope. So the unbelieving world can only look backward in search of good since each passing day draws closer and closer to destruction and judgment. So there is constant attrition. The world and all who are in it are passing away and it can get no better than this is what the Bible says about the unbelieving world.

Pleasure does not last. Success does not last. Accomplishments are fleeting. And as Solomon says, all is vanity, a chasing after what? The wind. This is all meaningless. But the Christian, however, looks forward, right? Forgetting what is behind, reaching forward to what is ahead. I press on, Paul writes in Philippians chapter three.

So the Christian's hope is in a bright and perfect future yet to come. Second Peter 3.13 reads, but according to his promise, we are looking for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness abides or dwells. So here's the point of the living hope. For the Christian, the hope of God's thorough and perfect restoration and this glorious future is more and more reality with each passing day.

You are now a week closer to glory than you were last week. You are now a day closer to knowing God and being fully known and being fully alive, full of Zoe. The bias is passing away, but you are a day closer to a perfect Zoe life. So for the unbeliever, destruction looms closer.

For the believer, glory draws closer. And this is a hope that is alive. You and I, if you look through the scriptures, the purpose of our life is very clear. We are created by God and for God to love God and to serve God. And the greatest satisfaction for you and me and the greatest delight awaits in knowing God fully.

And that's what the Bible calls eternal life. Eternal life, aionios zoe, right? Eternal Zoe. John 17 three says, this is eternal life. That they may know you, the only true God and Jesus Christ whom you have sent. So for you and for me, eternal life does not start the moment you breathe your last breath, the moment your heart stops beating.

Eternal life for you and me, if you put your faith in Christ, has already started, if you've given your life to Christ. And the aionios zoe, you are progressing. So on this side of eternity, we only know in part, and we see but a poor reflection. Whatever we understand, even the deep truths we understand here, the things that we learn, know, or imagine God to be like, cannot but be an incomplete picture, as it says in 1 Corinthians 13.

So our living hope is that one day we're gonna see God face to face. Angels cover themselves up. We will see God face to face, and we will know him fully. And the creator of the universe, the Bible says, is gonna spend eternity, lavishing kindness upon kindness on us.

He's going to spend eternity loving on us, Ephesians chapter one and two. And he will spend eternity amazing us, awing us, to where we will not be able to do anything but exult in worship. And we will be in the presence of God, overwhelmed with joy and excitement, with a holy and grateful terror all at the same time, as we worship.

There will be no more death, mourning, crying, or pain. There will no longer be any regret, shame, or grief. Revelation 21 four, there will be no more sin, and the lamb of God will be our reward and our inheritance. So all this to say, the day is gonna come where you and I will know our soulmate, and be known by him to the fullest capacity.

And my hope is that this excites you. In April 2006, I proposed to my wife, Becky, and we were engaged to be married. The Becky I knew at that time had graduated from UC Berkeley, go Bears, came from a very good family, made really good pasta, really good kimchi jjigae, which is my favorite food.

The Becky of 2006 had more money than me. She still has more money than me because her money is her money, my money is her money, right? She loved dogs and children. She drove a Honda Accord, a much better car than my Hyundai Accent and then my Mitsubishi Gallant.

She had an older brother and a younger sister. She lived with her parents, and they had a swimming pool in their backyard. Now, I did not marry her for any one of those things. The goal in my proposing to her was not to benefit from any one of those things.

My desire and my proposal was to do life with her. I loved her, I wanted to be with her, I wanted to marry her and spend my life with her. I fell in love with the person. I wanted the person. So putting my faith in Christ and not longing to know him fully in heaven is like saying, I want all that you can give me, but I don't want you.

(audience laughing) Saying that I have put my faith in Christ, but I don't really need heaven yet is like saying, I want all that you can afford me, I want that get out of jail free card, I want all of your goods, but I don't want you. I'll put up with you if I absolutely have to, because I want what you can give me.

See, accepting Christ Jesus as Lord and Savior and becoming a member in a church, going out to evangelize, teaching Sunday school, and not looking forward to spending eternity in heaven with the Lord is kind of like wanting to be engaged forever. How many of you guys have ever been engaged?

Okay, oh, so most of you have not. Our married families is the biggest, but it's like wanting to be engaged forever. No sane person I know wants to be engaged forever. In fact, engagement is actually sometimes very tricky. You're already committed, kind of, but not yet. You're engaged, but you're not a family unit yet.

And engagement is a lot of work. Okay, so for you guys who are still single, you look forward to marriage, don't look forward to engagement, it's a lot of work. And almost 100% of engaged people I've ever met at some point want to be done with the engagement and just be married.

A couple of months into our engagement, our wedding planning, I remember joking with Becky, dude, let's just go to Vegas, get married, so we don't have to plan this thing anymore, 'cause we had about 700 people at our wedding. Let's just, let's be done with it. And I know that many engaged couples have joked in the same way.

So for us, it was 11 months. The 11 months of our engagement were long, and in hindsight, they went by quickly, but I remember feeling like, man, they were very long months. So every engaged couple looks forward to the wedding day. If I am engaged to be married to someone, and I don't look forward to being married to that person, you know something is very off about the relationship.

So the question is, your identity, it's in Christ, but the inheritance, do you want it? Do you want Christ, or are you in this relationship only for the benefits? Christ is our inheritance, and this hope of knowing Christ and being known by Christ is imperishable and undefiled and will not fade away.

He will not break off the engagement. He has purchased us for himself with his blood, and he will make good on every promise that he has made to being a perfect husband to his bride, the church. Husbands, when you guys proposed to your wife, did you guys make promises that you didn't keep?

I made a bunch. I'll cook, I'll clean, do the dishes, diapers too. I wrote that in a song. Failed miserably in most of those things, okay? But our bridegroom makes good on every promise that he has ever made and he will ever make because that's who he is. And when I reflect deeply on this, my soul cries out, hallelujah, maranatha, Lord, come, let this engagement period be done with so I could be one with you.

Revelation 19, seven, let us rejoice and be glad and give glory to him for the marriage of the Lamb has come and his bride has made herself ready. We get a little snapshot of heaven. Matthew 6, 19 to 21, it says, do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth where moth and rust destroy or thieves breaking in steel, but store up for yourselves treasures in heaven where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal.

For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. This is often misapplied by the believer. Our APAK, Philippians 4, 5, you guys have learned over the last couple of weeks, our Christian common sense will tell us that the smartest thing that we can do is to store up treasures for ourselves where?

In heaven. And what does that mean? What does it mean for you to store up your treasure in heaven? Is it like a spiritual Roth IRA where you maximize your reward, where you forego a meal to feed a homeless guy and then you get a bigger room in heaven?

Is that what that means? 'Cause I don't think that that's what the Bible is teaching. The reward in eternity is Christ himself. So Matthew 6, 19 to 21 means this for you and me. Eternal life has already started if you're a believer. Know him and make him known. You can know him now.

You can grow in your understanding of his heart now. Your home is in heaven, but while you are sojourning on earth, pursue first the knowledge of him. And don't worry about this life, about what you will eat or drink or what you will wear. 'Cause the pagans run after those things.

But what will Jesus say later in Matthew 6? But you seek first what? His kingdom and his righteousness. And do you not think your faithful bridegroom will take care of every single thing that you need? The Christian identity is as an alien, a stranger, a sojourner, an exile. The Christian inheritance is Christ himself.

Then what is the Christian itinerary? So during this engagement period of our lives, during the period of our sojourn, where we are both ambassadors of the creator of the universe as well as his bride, what are we supposed to do? How are we supposed to live? What are we to expect?

What kind of attitude and posture ought we to have? And I'm gonna read verse two and verse six through nine of 1 Peter for you. Who are chosen according to the foreknowledge of God, the father, by the sanctifying work of the spirit to obey Jesus Christ, be sprinkled with his blood, may grace and peace be yours in the fullest measure.

In this you greatly rejoice, even though now for a little while, if necessary, you've been distressed by various trials so that the proof of your faith, being more precious than gold, which is perishable, even though tested by fire, may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.

And though you have not seen him, you love him. And though you do not see him now, but believe in him, you greatly rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory, obtaining as the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls. Well, first of all, we learn part of our itinerary is to obey.

We are called to obedience as we see in verse two. He saved us to be our Lord. John 14, 15, if you love me, you will keep my commandments. And those are Jesus's words. So we are called to obey. Jesus is not just savior and bridegroom. He is also King of Kings and Lord of Lords.

So it's implied here in 1 Peter, but commanded elsewhere that you and I are to be joyful, greatly joyful. Be homesick joyfully. So these strangers scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia were commended for greatly rejoicing, twice in this little section. And this joy is just beyond words.

It's inexpressible and full of glory. And to fully appreciate this, you need to understand the context in which 1 Peter was written. The Christians in this time period, in this area, were both hated and misunderstood. And those two things often go hand in hand, hated and misunderstood. Animosity towards Christians was brewing.

The general populace, which was mostly polytheistic, did not appreciate or agree with the Christians who would worship none but Christ. So the polytheistic world, they didn't appreciate. In fact, they were greatly offended when the Christian would say that there is only one God, he is the only way, and that all other gods were powerless, worthless, and were not gods at all.

This strange Christian religion was extremely countercultural and very misunderstood. And those on the outside had a lot of false assumptions about these followers of the way. So outsiders would whisper, you know, I think these Christians are cannibals because when they get together and have their religious rituals, they eat of someone's flesh and drink of someone's blood.

So Christians were weird because in their secret gatherings, they practice these things. And because they also practiced Philadelphia, which is brotherly love, some thought, hey, perhaps they're engaging in sexual rituals of the homosexual variety because they're practicing brotherly love. So there's all of these weird assumptions made by those on the outside.

So it was easy to hate on these Christians. The word Christian actually means little Christ, right? It was actually a term of mockery and scorn. The Christians call themselves followers of the way, but the world called them little Christs. And we are called Christians and just know that the origin is one of derision.

And history tells us that this time, Christians were thrown to wild beasts encased in hot wax, burned at the stake. It is said that Nero lit his gardens with human light poles. So he would take Christians, put them on a stake of wood, set it on fire, and his garden would be lit.

So the Christians were an easy target and Nero often used them as scapegoats. And it's believed that both Peter and Paul later were martyred under Nero's persecution. So Peter makes reference to the brewing tribulation and suffering that they will be facing. 1 Peter 1, 6-7, "Even though now for a little while, "if necessary, you've been distressed by various trials.

"So that the proof of your faith "be more precious than gold, which is perishable, "even though tested by fire." 1 Peter 4, 12, "Beloved, do not be surprised "at the fiery ordeal among you, "which comes upon you for your testing, "as though something strange were happening to you." "You and I should not be surprised "by persecution, suffering, and ostracism.

"This is to be expected." We see in passages like 2 Timothy 3, 12, and even Jesus' own words here in Matthew 10, 24, 25, "A disciple is not above his master, or a teacher, "nor a slave above his master. "It is enough for the disciple that he become "like his teacher, and the slave like his master.

"If they have called the head of the house Beelzebul, "how much more will they malign "the members of the household?" So the harder you pursue Christ, the more you're gonna be a weirdo, and the more you're gonna feel like an alien, a stranger, a sojourner, an outsider, the more you draw near to Christ, because the dark hates the light.

Our problem here in Orange County is perhaps due to the fact that there is pressure to assimilate and root down, to invest our treasures here. So that it's almost, it's tricky business for the world to actually pick out who's a Christian. Modern day Christians are blending in a little bit too well.

And as we blend in well, we lose sight of our purpose, our Christian itinerary. First Peter 2, 11 to 12, we're not called to blend in. "Beloved, I urge you as aliens and strangers "to abstain from fleshly lusts "which wage war against the soul. "Keep your behavior excellent among the Gentiles, "so that in the thing which they slander you as evil doers, "they may because of your good deeds as they observe them, "glorify God in the day of visitation." So it's okay to be homesick.

In fact, Christmas should cause our hearts to be overwhelmed with homesickness. But while we wait for home, we are to do so with a purpose, and that's part of our Christian itinerary. You know, one of the things that turned our one year in China to three years, and then our three years was an indefinite, and then we were just planning to be out in Asia just the whole time, and then we went to Korea.

It was hard, every holiday season was hard, but the thing that kept us joyfully there was the calling and the purpose. We knew why we were there. So while we were far away from loved ones, family, friends, customs, and football, and Mexican food, and sushi, and all of this stuff, we knew why we were there.

Being in China was not easy, but we lived there mindful of our purpose. We would have loved to have been home, but we were commissioned to China. We were sent there with a task. The harvest was and still is plentiful. So when the purpose of a mission or a mission is clear, the sojourn is easier, despite the homesickness.

If you and I would regularly remind ourselves of our primary purpose for living this life, I think we could stay constantly joyful, despite whatever it is that is going on emotionally. So what is a Christian itinerary in short? First, to obey and be holy. Second, to rejoice, even in the midst of severe trials and sufferings.

And third, to witness well, to help the homeless to glory, so that even the unbelieving Gentiles will give glory to God through you. Our identity is in Christ. Our inheritance is Christ. And our purpose in this life is to proclaim the excellencies of Christ. And while we are here as spiritual expats and spiritual sojourners, we may be homesick, but be joyfully homesick, is the call of Peter.

In both our time in China and Korea, we did make a bunch of expat friends. So on Thanksgiving, with the exception of the one where Becky and I went to Costco, got our rotisserie chicken, for Thanksgiving, we would gather around our American friends, and we would have turkey from the army base, and then we would have like random Asian foods as well, but it was Thanksgiving for us.

For the rest of Korea, the rest of China, it was Thursday. But for us, gathering together did relieve some of the homesickness. Even though it wasn't fully home, we still found comfort in surrounding ourselves with people who were all longing for the same thing. I find a similar thought in Hebrews 10, 23 to 25.

Elder Philip preached some on this passage last week where he spoke of the importance of the assembly together. "Let us hold fast the confession of our hope "without wavering, for he who promised is faithful. "And let us consider how to stimulate one another "to loving good deeds, not forsaking "our own assembly together, as is the habit of some, "but encouraging one another, and all the more "as you see the day drawing near." So what is the exhortation?

As home for you and me gets closer, we ought to assemble together more often for the sake of encouragement and edification. You need the church. All the verbs up there in Hebrews, it's all in the plural. No man is an island, no sojourner is an island, no alien can survive in a foreign place all by himself.

Help each other in the midst of the homesickness. One of the things about the expat life is that you get used to a revolving door. Friends travel in, friends travel out. And this happened for us both in Beijing and Korea. People came and stayed, people left after their stints were done.

And we did the same, and we had a goodbye tour when we left both China and Korea. And whenever someone goes back to their home country, those of us who are left behind, obviously there's a little bit of a sadness, there's a little bit of a jealousy, but 99 out of 100 times, you're actually very happy for the person going home.

And I believe that that's how it's supposed to be spiritually for us as well. On a few Fridays ago, November 15th, Becky's grandfather passed away at age 89. I had just visited with him a few days before that, but on Friday I got a phone call saying that it didn't look like he had much time.

So I packed my stuff, rushed to the nursing home where he was staying to say my final goodbyes and to take the kids so that Becky could be there for her mom. Becky's grandfather had been a pastor and a believer who had spent much of his pastorate ministering to orphans and widows.

My father-in-law is actually one of his, those he ministered to, and then eventually he married the grandfather's daughter. So as he was just kind of struggling to breathe, I held his hand, I knelt beside his bed, and I just, I prayed, "God, thank you for this man's life. "The family is going to be grieving very soon.

"There's gonna be tears in Korea, "there are gonna be tears in Canada, "and just in different parts of the States. "There is gonna be grief. "But help every single one of us "to be so filled with jealousy for this man, "what he's gonna see. "Help us to be jealous to one day experience "that as well for us." And this isn't because I have like spiritual super sense.

The day before our pastors, we went to a conference and Alistair Begg, some of you guys hear him on the radio, he actually was preaching on prayer. So it wasn't so much about death and stuff, but he said something about prayer as a side comment that's just kind of stuck with me.

He said, "The people in our churches "spend so much more time praying "to keep the saints out of heaven "than they do praying to rescue sinners out of hell." And I thought that was so profound. And if you look at our prayer requests, it's filled with prayer requests to extend people's lives.

So to delay the great wedding. If someone's sick, oh no, please pray that God will heal them. And it is commanded in scripture. But we pray with such urgency when someone we love is sick. But when the multitudes and the hordes are destined for hell, we don't really give a thought.

So when he said that, it just left an indelible impression on my heart and my mind. This is not my home. My time is short. I don't know when I'm going to go. I don't know when you're gonna go. But when he calls me, I go. I'm 41, so I'm hoping I have a little bit more time with my kids.

But when he calls, I go. The greater obsession while I'm here, homesick, ought to be the purpose to which I've been called, my itinerary, to bring others to this living hope. Jesus promised in John 10, 16, he says, "I have other sheep who are not of this fold. "I must bring them also.

"They will hear my voice, and they will become one flock "with one shepherd." He has other sheep. He has other sheep who are yet not of the fold. And in this holiday season, home should be on our hearts, and to bring many, many, many people to this living hope that we profess to have.

As we eagerly wait for home, let's point others to the good shepherd. You're gonna hear a lot of Jesus sung. You're gonna hear a lot of Bethlehem. You're gonna hear of all kinds of stuff, and some stuff that has nothing to do with Jesus. There's trees, and Christmases, and eggnog, and stuff, but whenever there is a Jesus that is sung about, there you have an opportunity to help others to understand that they too can go home.

So in this Christmas season, be homesick, but joyfully so. And that's the call of the Christian, especially in times like this. We're gonna take some time to pray together. So the question I have for you that I want you to pray about is how eager are you for home?

How eager are you to be united to the bridegroom on the great wedding day, or are you content to just be engaged forever? Let's pray. Take some time to reflect and give thanks to the God who has called us to know him. us to know Him.