(soft piano music) - Good morning, church family. Happy Lord's Day. We will now begin our service. (soft piano music) Let's sing, "Greed is the Lord." ♪ Greed is the Lord ♪ ♪ Most worthy of praise ♪ ♪ In the city of our God, the holy place ♪ ♪ The joy of the whole earth ♪ ♪ Greed is the Lord when we have the victory ♪ ♪ He ends us against the enemy ♪ ♪ We bow down on our knees ♪ ♪ Lord, we want to lift your name on high ♪ ♪ Lord, we want to thank you ♪ ♪ For the works you've done in our lives ♪ ♪ Lord, we trust in your unfailing love ♪ ♪ For you alone are God eternal ♪ ♪ True on earth and heaven above ♪ ♪ Greed is the Lord ♪ ♪ Greed is the Lord and most worthy of praise ♪ ♪ In the city of our God, the holy place ♪ ♪ The joy of the whole earth ♪ ♪ Greed is the Lord when we have the victory ♪ ♪ He ends us against the enemy ♪ ♪ We bow down on our knees ♪ ♪ We bow down on our knees ♪ ♪ Lord, we want to lift your name on high ♪ ♪ And Lord, we want to thank you ♪ ♪ For the works you've done in our lives ♪ ♪ Lord, we trust in your unfailing love ♪ ♪ For you alone are God eternal ♪ ♪ True on earth and heaven above ♪ ♪ And Lord, we want to lift your name on high ♪ ♪ And Lord, we want to thank you ♪ ♪ For the works you've done in our lives ♪ ♪ And Lord, we trust in your unfailing love ♪ ♪ For you alone are God eternal ♪ ♪ True on earth and heaven above ♪ ♪ For you alone are God eternal ♪ ♪ True on earth and heaven above ♪ - All right, welcome to Brink Community Church.

Let me get to a few announcements. First of all, as you can see, we have communion service today, so please continue to prepare your heart for that. All church praise and prayer is happening this week on Friday. The foundation Bible study is still happening on Wednesday, but on Friday, we have praise and prayer at 7.30, so please come a little bit early so that we can get started right at 7.30.

Along with that, I made some announcements about our parking situation. Our lot G is gonna be closed down for the time being, both on the weekend on Sunday, so some of you guys may have parked there, but also on the weekday. We're gonna be shuttling to lot J, so our sister Susan was able to, again, get permission to park there.

So lot J, again, is where all the big parking is. There's over 300 and some parking spaces there, so make sure you park to the left side of the parking lot, and that's where our shuttles are gonna be. And so lot G, unless we get further notice, is gonna be shut down.

So lot H, which is the lot right next to G, there will be a shuttle that is going there. It's gonna take a little bit longer than normal, but the majority of the shuttles, if you want a quick pickup, make sure you go to lot J, starting today, actually.

And then Kimco is shut down until further notice, okay? July 12th at 9 a.m. on Saturday, there is a cleaning and maintenance day, so please sign up if you're able to come and help us out with that. And then lastly, Brion Women's Softball Fellowship is happening today at Veterans Sports Park in Tustin at 2.30, so if you're playing, or if you're just going to support them and to watch them, please be there before 2.30, and they're gonna get started today, okay?

All right, let me pray for us and give you an opportunity to give. And again, if you are visiting us and you have a physical offering, our offering box is in the back on the way out, you'll see it on the wall, okay? Let's pray. Father, we thank you for all the gifts that you've given us, both the things that we are aware of, and many things, Lord God, that you are orchestrating that we may not be aware of.

I pray that you would remind us again and again and again of what it is that we have in you so that our worship may simply be a reasonable response. We pray that your name may be honored and glorified. We pray that our communion table would sanctify us, sustain us, and strengthen us.

And even in this giving, I pray, Father God, that you would multiply it 30, 60, 100-fold for the sake of your kingdom and for the gospel ministry. In Jesus' name we pray, amen. (gentle piano music) (gentle piano music) (gentle piano music) (gentle piano music) (gentle piano music) (gentle piano music) (gentle piano music) (gentle piano music) (gentle piano music) - Let us all rise and spend a few moments to greet the neighbors around us before we continue.

(people chattering) the neighbors around us before we continue. (people chattering) (gentle guitar music) (gentle guitar music) ♪ And can it be ♪ ♪ And can it be ♪ ♪ That I should gain ♪ ♪ An interest in the Savior's blood ♪ ♪ Dying for me ♪ ♪ Who caused this pain ♪ ♪ For me who hid ♪ ♪ To death pursue ♪ ♪ Amazing love ♪ ♪ How can it be ♪ ♪ That now my God ♪ ♪ Should die for me ♪ ♪ Amazing love ♪ ♪ How can it be ♪ ♪ That now my God ♪ ♪ Should die for me ♪ ♪ Should die for me ♪ ♪ He left his father's throne ♪ ♪ He left his father's throne ♪ ♪ And there's no above ♪ ♪ So free, so infinite ♪ ♪ His grace ♪ ♪ Emptied itself ♪ ♪ Of all the love ♪ ♪ And left for Adam's ♪ ♪ Helpless grace ♪ ♪ His mercy all ♪ ♪ Immense and free ♪ ♪ Oh my God ♪ ♪ It fell down me ♪ ♪ Amazing love ♪ ♪ How can it be ♪ ♪ That now my God ♪ ♪ Should die for me ♪ - Lomba in prison.

♪ Lomba in prison ♪ ♪ Spirit live ♪ ♪ Last found in sin ♪ ♪ And nature's night ♪ ♪ Thine I diffuse ♪ ♪ A quenching rain ♪ ♪ I woke the dungeon flame ♪ ♪ With light ♪ ♪ My chains fell off ♪ ♪ My heart was free ♪ ♪ I rose with the Lord ♪ ♪ And followed Thee ♪ ♪ Amazing love ♪ ♪ How can it be ♪ ♪ That now my God ♪ ♪ Should die for me ♪ ♪ All condemnation ♪ ♪ Now I drown ♪ ♪ Jesus and all ♪ ♪ In Him is mine ♪ ♪ Amen ♪ ♪ Unliving head ♪ ♪ My living head ♪ ♪ Oh do I ♪ ♪ Yes this divine ♪ ♪ Hold I approach ♪ ♪ The eternal throne ♪ ♪ The crown of Christ my own ♪ ♪ Amazing love ♪ ♪ How can it be ♪ ♪ That now my God ♪ ♪ Should die for me ♪ ♪ Amazing love ♪ ♪ How can it be ♪ ♪ That now my God ♪ ♪ Should die for me ♪ (gentle piano music) ♪ Oh God before the mountains were brought forth ♪ ♪ For days of spring and summer filled the earth ♪ ♪ From everlasting ♪ ♪ You are God ♪ ♪ We dwell beneath the stars in ancient skies ♪ ♪ A thousand years are nothing in your sight ♪ ♪ From everlasting ♪ ♪ You are God ♪ ♪ And all our days are held within your hands ♪ ♪ Your perfect love and favor have no end ♪ ♪ We rest within the wisdom of your plan ♪ ♪ Everlasting God ♪ ♪ Oh God when joy and tragedy collide ♪ ♪ When loss reminds us life is but a sigh ♪ ♪ From everlasting ♪ ♪ You are God ♪ ♪ And all our days are held within your hands ♪ ♪ Your perfect love and favor have no end ♪ ♪ We rest within the wisdom of your plan ♪ ♪ Everlasting God ♪ ♪ Oh God of light our ways are known to you ♪ ♪ But by your grace you're making all things new ♪ ♪ So satisfy us in our numbered days ♪ ♪ Establish every effort while we wait ♪ ♪ From everlasting ♪ ♪ You are God ♪ ♪ And all our days are held within your hands ♪ ♪ Your perfect love and favor have no end ♪ ♪ We rest within the wisdom of your plan ♪ ♪ Everlasting ♪ ♪ And all our days are held within your hands ♪ ♪ Your perfect love and favor have no end ♪ ♪ We rest within the wisdom of your plan ♪ ♪ Everlasting God ♪ - Amen, you may be seated.

- If you can turn your Bible with me to Luke chapter 11, I'll be reading from verse 33. Okay, Luke chapter 11, verse 33 to 36. (pages rustling) No one after, oh, sorry. No one after lighting a lamp puts it away in a cellar nor under a basket but on the lampstand so that those who enter may see the light.

The eye is a lamp of your body. When your eye is clear, your whole body also is full of light but when it is bad, your body also is full of darkness. Then watch out that the light in you is not darkness. If therefore your whole body is full of light with no dark part in it, it will wholly be illumined as when the light illumines you with its rays.

Let's pray. Father, we pray for understanding. We pray, Father God, that we may know your will and your heart, Father God, in this text. I pray that you would help us not to turn from it to the left or to the right, that we would not add to it or to subtract from it, that it would be your very voice, your very breath, Lord God, that we hear.

In Jesus' name we pray, amen. Some of you guys who may have attended the Foundations of Marriage Seminar this week, the topic of it was biblical communication. And in the biblical communication, we spent bulk of our time talking about being a good listener. And in listening, we need to be able to know who it is that we are talking to.

So whether I give a sermon or whether you're giving a talk or whether you're a school teacher, you have to know your audience before you're able to speak clearly. You're not gonna speak the same way to a child versus an older person or somebody who is hurting versus somebody who is rejoicing.

And so if you don't know your audience, the very words that are being said, you're not gonna fully understand. And that is true when we understand the Bible. We need to know who is speaking and who he's speaking to. The text that we're looking at is a text that the content of it is very familiar to us, that you are the light of the world, that you don't light a lamp and then you put it under a cellar or you put it under a table, you put it on top of it so that it can illumine the darkness.

We have songs about it. You probably memorized this text when you were young. But the context of this, who he's talking to, is gonna help us to be able to understand fully what it is that he's trying to say. The content of what he says about being the light and putting it on a table, not underneath the table, is said in all four Gospels.

First place we see it is in Matthew 5:14, is at the Sermon of the Mount. And he's describing what people of God look like in the kingdom of God. And so chapter five, six, and seven, in the context of that, he gives many descriptions of what the kingdom of God is like, and he says you are the light of the world.

You are the salt of the earth. Also in Mark 4:21, he is talking, but in this context, he is talking at the Sea of Galilee. And he is describing to the crowd who have gathered together, they're not necessarily hostile, they just wanna hear from him and learn from him.

And he tells them, again, that you are the light of the world, you don't hide the light under the table. That same text in Mark 4:21 is repeated in Luke 8:16. The context is the same, the previous passage is the same, and so what he is saying, he's addressing the same crowd at the Sea of Galilee.

So again, Mark 4:21 and Luke 8:16 are parallel passages. Matthew 5:14 is different because he's preaching this at the Sermon of the Mount, even though the content, majority of the content may be the same. Luke chapter 11, the text that we're looking at is different from Matthew 5:14 and Luke 8:16.

Clearly, it's not the same as Luke 8:16 because he already mentioned it in Luke. And he's mentioning it again in Luke 11. Now, why is this important? Because the crowd that he is addressing is the same crowd who was accusing him, some of them accusing him of being demonic.

A large crowd was gathering to him, saying he's doing all of his miracles, casting out demons with the power of other demons, and Jesus is addressing that. And then the second crowd of people who were skeptical of him was asking him, "Prove yourself, give us more sign." So if you remember in the previous passage in verse 29, it says, "As the crowds were increasing, he began to say, "This generation is a wicked generation.

"It seeks for a sign, but no more sign will be given." So he's addressing the same crowd. He's not, all of a sudden, turning his head and addressing a different crowd, or he's addressing the same crowd and all of a sudden, you know, I got something I gotta address and get this off my chest and I'm gonna come back to this in the next verse.

No, he's addressing the same crowd, okay? So again, understand the context in which he is saying this. He's addressing a crowd that is coming to him, hostile, skeptical, questioning him because they don't like what he is saying. He is calling them out of their sins. They like what he is doing, but they don't like what he is saying, so they're coming to him, and the hostility toward Jesus is increasing.

So in the previous passage, he says, "A wicked generation, I will give no other sign." I've given plenty of signs. And you have not come to repentance, and no more sign will be given to you aside from the sign of Jonah. And we talked about that last week. There's two things that we talked about.

One, the sign of Jonah is a clear evidence of who Jesus is because they wanted to reject him. They said that the resurrection is gonna clearly prove that everything that he said about himself was true. But second, he said this sign of Jonah is an indictment against you, that the people of Nineveh are gonna stand, the queen of Sheba is gonna stand in the judgment day, and they will be able to testify about how they came to repentance even despite this reluctant prophet, and you didn't repent, and because you did not repent, the sign of Jonah is that you are deserving of this punishment, of this judgment.

And then he gets into this after he says this. So the point that I'm trying to get at is that what he is saying here is connected to the sign of Jonah. This is a part of what he is saying to these people of what the sign is. So let me give you a picture, okay, so that we can better understand, so that we don't project our meanings.

Oh, we are the light, and we're supposed to live this way. None of that is rejected in this, but there is a contextually more fitting understanding of what Jesus is saying. You see, the nation of Israel was called to be the light. Jesus made that very clear. So when he says Luke 11 three, "No one after lighting a lamp puts it away in a cellar "nor under a basket, but on the lampstand, "so that those who enter may see the light." He's addressing Israel.

He said, "You crowds are coming to me, "and the whole reason why you have been established "was so that you can be the light to the world. "Instead, you have hidden your light "so that the world cannot see." In Genesis 12 two to three, when God calls Abraham the father of Israel, he makes it very clear what his covenant is.

He says, "I will make you a great nation. "I will bless you, and make your name great." And this is where the Israelites stopped. They looked at the first verse, and it said, "And make your name great, "that God is going to choose me "and to make me a great nation, "and so you shall be a blessing, "and I will bless those who bless you, "and the one who curses you, I will curse, "and in you, all the families of the earth will be blessed." The book of Jonah was in all the earth will be blessed.

So from the very get-go, the calling of Israel was for the purpose of the world. He said, "I will choose you, and I will bless you, "and I will multiply you, so that through you, "the world will be blessed." In fact, in Deuteronomy 7, seven through eight, as they are about to enter the promised land, he's warning the nation of Israel, because he knows what's in their heart.

They think that they are multiplying, having success, they were delivered from Pharaoh, and they're entering to this promised land, because there was something about them, and God warns them, 'cause he knew. He knew the arrogance, he knew the pride that's gonna creep in, because God is with them. He says, "The Lord did not set his love on you, "nor choose you, because you are more in number "than any other people, for you are the fewest "of all the peoples.

"But because the Lord loved you and kept his oath, "which he swore to your forefathers." He said, "The only reason why you are having "any kind of success is because I chose you. "I chose to love you. "I made a promise to your forefathers, "that I would do this, so I am gonna be faithful to them, "I'm going to be faithful to my own covenant." But when you enter this promised land, when you enter this promised land, don't get it twisted.

It's not because of you. It's not because of your number. He's preemptively saying this, because he knew. He knew what was in their heart, and that's exactly what happened to the nation of Israel. They saw that God's choosing of them was somehow elevated from all of the other nations, and they completely forgot about the world.

And that was the problem with Jonah. See, in Psalm 67, one through four, it says, "God be gracious to us, and bless us, "and cause his face to shine upon us, "that your way may be known," where? On the earth. Not just to Israel. "Your salvation among," where? All the nations, not just Israel.

"Let the peoples praise you, O God, "let all the peoples praise you. "Let the nations be glad and sing for joy, "for you will judge the peoples with uprightness, "and guide the nations on earth." It was never just about Israel. Israel just was an avenue in which he was going to glorify himself to the nations.

But the problem with the nation of Israel was they thought it was them. They were blessed, and God gave them the law, and God protected them, and God answered their prayer. God caused them to conquer their enemies, and they completely forgot. It wasn't simply about them. So when Christ comes on the scene, one of the biggest obstacles of Jesus preaching about the kingdom was that the Jews could not accept the Gentiles into the kingdom.

If you read and study the New Testament epistles, I would say at least 50% of the New Testament, again, this is just from my memory, is dealing with the Judaizers, because they could not understand how God was with them for so many years, and all of a sudden, God's blessing is gonna go out to the nations.

So the Judaizers were the ones who were in the middle saying, "You know what? "We see clearly that Jesus was risen from the dead, "and we can't deny him." But they refused to let go of their kingdom. So what they began to do is they began to synchronize Judaism with Christianity.

They said, "We'll let you into the kingdom, "but you have to be a Jew first. "You have to practice what we practice. "You have to have the festivals. "You have to be circumcised. "You have to keep the Sabbath." And so much of the New Testament is trying to convince the Jews that the kingdom has been opened, that this was God's intent from the beginning.

Now, you're sitting here listening to this. Some of you guys are a little bit more theologically astute and say, "Oh, that's interesting." Or some of you guys are sitting in here. It's like, "Yeah, that's for pastors and theologians." Like, what's the relevance of this? The relevance of this is if you don't understand this, you're gonna miss the whole point of why you and I are here, just like the nation of Israel.

See, Jonah did not simply represent a wayward person. A lot of people interpret Jonah and say, "Well, Jonah didn't obey God, "so if you don't obey God, "something bad's gonna happen to you, "so you better go." The end. That is not the point of Jonah. Jonah represented not only a wayward prophet, but the nation of Israel.

They forgot their calling. They forgot their place in the world, that the whole reason why they existed was that through them, God would be glorified, and all the other nations would come and glorify him. You see, if you and I forget why God established us, everything becomes about us.

Everything becomes about us. How does this church help me with my family? How does this church help me with my marriage? How does this church help me with my children? And again, there's nothing wrong with any of that, but the whole reason why Jesus said, "I will build my church, and gates of Hades "will not prevail against it," is so that we may shine light in darkness.

So if we forget, if we're not living according to his will, when we say, "Your will be done on earth "as it is in heaven," this is his will. Whole book of the Bible is God pursuing sinners so that we can be the light. But if all we're concerned about is my family, my marriage, my retirement, my business, my well-being, then we are Jonahs.

We have forgotten why we're here. And that's exactly what was happening to Jonah. And that's why in Luke chapter 15, when Jesus is talking to sinners and tax collectors, the Pharisees come to Jesus and say, "Why are you hanging around the sinners?" Now, Jesus doesn't directly answer them. "Well, the reason why I'm hanging around sinners "is because of this, this, and this, and this." He doesn't say that.

He gives three parables in response. Parable of the lost sheep, parable of the lost coin, parable of the lost son, prodigal son. And each one of those stories is about God pursuing the lost and celebrating because they are found. The lost sheep comes, they celebrate. The lost coin is found, they celebrate.

Prodigal son comes back, receives him all the way back into his own household, and then they celebrate. And in doing so, he was turning the table on them. You're asking me why I am with the sinners. And he's turning around saying, "Why aren't you with the sinners?" You do not understand the heart of God.

You don't understand why we're here. You don't realize why you and I are here. You don't realize why you're studying the Bible. You don't realize why we need to pray. Why we need to be godly. Why we need to be holy. Because you have forgotten your calling. See, this was a rebuke to these people who are questioning him.

And just as Israel forgot their calling, Jonah forgot his calling. He says, "If we forget this, "we will completely miss the whole point." In Luke chapter 11, 34 to 36, he says, "The eye is the lamp of your body. "When your eye is clear, "your whole body also is full of light.

"But when it is bad, "your body also is full of darkness. "Then watch out that the light in you is not darkness. "If therefore your whole body is full of light "with no dark part in it, "it will be wholly illumined." That's when the lamp illumines you with its rays.

Now obviously, he's talking about the eyes. That because the eyes have been corrupt, there's no light be able to come in. And because no light is able to come in, you're not able to see any other light. Now, what is that in reference to? Now, remember, he's talking to a group of people who do not recognize Jesus.

Jesus performed all the miracles. He cast out demons, and he said, "Oh, that can't be the Messiah." After all the miracles that they performed, they still could not see the Messiah standing right in front of them with all the power, all his might. And they said, "Oh, you must be demonic." He's rebuking them.

The reason why you don't see me is because your eyes are dark. And you're blaming me, but the reason why is because you have coveting in your eyes. Remember when Apostle Paul, when he met Christ, he becomes blind for three days? Remember what happens after three days? Jesus sends a prophet, prays over him, and then after three days, he said, "The scales fall off his eyes," and then he sees.

That's what a Christian experiences when he comes to Christ. The scales in our eyes fall off, and all of a sudden, just like it says in 2 Corinthians 4:4, we begin to see the glory of the gospel of Jesus Christ. And what is this glory? What is this light that all of a sudden we see?

Jesus says, in John 1.4.5, "In him was life, "and the life was the light of men." Jesus is the light. "The light shines in darkness, "and the darkness did not comprehend it." John 1.9-11, "There was the true light "of which coming into the world. "In light is every man.

"He was in the world, and the world was made through him, "and the world did not know him. "He came to his own, and those who are his own "did not receive him." He was basically telling them, "The reason why you don't see me "is 'cause you got scales on." The light of the world, the creator of the universe, has proven and given every possible sign that he can give, and you don't see him.

It's not because the light isn't bright enough. It's not because God hasn't given enough evidence. It's because you are wearing sunglasses. Darkened sunglasses. It's because of your own sins. Jesus says, "He is the light of the world." In Psalm 36.9, it says, "For with you "is the fountain of life.

"In your light, we see light." Until the scales fall off, and we see the glory of the gospel of Jesus Christ, we see the beauty of Christ, we don't see anything else. You could be at the church, and I know plenty of people who love the church, but they don't love Christ.

They love purpose, but they don't love Christ. They love the community, but they don't love Christ. And because they have not seen the beauty of Christ, everything else seems beautiful. And the church feels like a hindrance. You know, I wanna drive the car that I want. I wanna live in the house that I want.

I wanna eat whatever I want. I wanna travel, I wanna do all this stuff. Every time I come to church, they just make me feel guilty. And so they see the word of God and the preaching of God as a hindrance to their happiness. So what he's saying here is, if your eyes become open and the light of Christ comes in, all of a sudden, you see the beauty of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

And that's what glory is. Glory is the shining of God's beauty to the world. That's what glory is. You don't have glory if you're in a closet. There's nothing to shine, right? The very idea of a light or glory is for the purpose for other people to see. That's what glory means.

And so he says, if your eyes have been open and you saw the beauty of Jesus Christ, all of a sudden, you covered him more than anything else in this world. And until Christ becomes more beautiful than anything else that is tempting you, you will not overcome your temptation.

You will not overcome your temptation. So many Christians live hungry, hanging out at a buffet, and wondering why they keep getting tempted. You know what the best way not to be tempted in a buffet? You go into the buffet when you are full. When you are full. And you just can't eat anymore.

You walk through a buffet and all of a sudden, you're not tempted anymore. It's because we're still hungry. Because we're not attracted to Christ. How you and I, rich people, think about all the things that the people in this world can possibly imagine that they could be tempted by.

You and I actually have access to that. You saw some clothing, I want that, so you get it. You see somebody else travel to this beautiful place, you know, I'm gonna save enough money, I'm gonna get it. See a car you want, you get it, you know. House, I mean, you're not multi-millionaires, but we save up enough and move things around, and invest enough, and get a job, and work hard, and we can get it.

You and I have access to everything that we are watching, that we are tempted by. How will you overcome this temptation? If it is simply by discipline? If you have enough accountability? If you memorize enough scripture? If you have good leaders? How will you overcome this temptation? If you are still hungry?

If you're looking at the world, and it seems beautiful to you, and then every time you come to church, and we keep telling you it's not beautiful, but you feel it's beautiful, you're looking at what's beautiful. The only way to overcome darkness is if the light, outshines the darkness.

And that's what Paul meant when he says, in light of the surpassing knowledge of knowing Jesus Christ everything became rubbish. It didn't just become rubbish because out of pure will, he memorized some scripture, he had good accountability, he read some books, and he exposited the Bible, and somehow the hunger went away.

No. Until we are filled with the light of Christ, that hunger will remain. The coveting remains. And then all we do is feel guilty, because you are not overcoming the darkness. The only way to overcome darkness is to be filled with Christ. And that's what he is saying. He said the reason why you don't recognize me, despite all the evidence I've given to you, is because your coveting remains.

You desire. You don't desire me. You desire what I can give you. You still covet the world, you just want me to give it to you. So you come to church and serve, you give, you have accountability, you have membership, you have all this stuff, but at the end of the day, your main goal hasn't changed.

Your desire hasn't changed. Christ and Christ alone can deliver us. So the most important question that we ask, that every Christian should ask, is what Jesus asked the disciples. Who do you say that I am? Not what the teachers say, not what the theologians say, not what the reformed communities say, not what the Baptists say, not what my pastor says.

Who do you say that I am? And let me ask you another way. Because he said the greatest command is to love the Lord your God with all your heart, mind, soul, and strength. And it's the same question. Do you love Jesus? Not, I should love Jesus, I could love Jesus, I want to love Jesus.

The question is, do you love Jesus? Is Jesus your goal? If you had Jesus and you lost everything, would you still be okay? If you had Jesus and you lost all your friends, would you be okay? If you had Jesus and you lost your children, would you be okay?

If you had Jesus and you never married, would you be okay? If you had Jesus and your business goes bankrupt, would you be okay? That's the most important question that any Christian should be asking. Because at the core of it, if Christ is not enough, we will always be coveting everything else.

And the reason why they could not see Jesus is because Jesus is not what they wanted. They wanted the bread, they wanted a king, they wanted to be part of a superpower, they wanted to eat. So this was an indictment against these people. And the sign of Jonah was a warning to them, that you and I have been called here for the purpose of being the light.

Everything else, again, I apologize, because I know some of you guys are suffering, I know some of you guys are in pain, and I don't mean to trivialize your pain. Because pain is pain, no matter what. But, all this is temporary. All this is temporary. That no matter what it is that you're going through, if we have Christ, it is enough.

It is enough. If I don't get to live in a big house, I still have heaven. If I die early, I still have heaven. If my business goes bankrupt, I still have Jesus. If I lose all my friends, I still have Jesus. Is Jesus enough? Until the light of Christ shines, we remain in darkness, and we will continue to covet, and we will remain blind.

We're in the presence of the greatest gift that you can possibly imagine. If you ask me, if I never read the Bible, if I never heard the gospel, and somebody told me that the God who created me loved me so much, despite the fact, despite all my rebellion and blasphemous speaking, that instead of judging me, he sent his only begotten son to take my sin upon himself, and he suffered for my sins, I would say, get out of here.

If somebody came in and said, hey, I got $200, I'm just gonna give you, like, why? That's hard to believe. Why would you do that? Oh, we got a car, if you come down and say, oh, this must be a scam. Son of God died for me? We live every single day celebrating this, singing this, memorizing this, teaching this other people.

And then it's not enough. After we sang it, after we told people, after we memorized people, and then we live every day, it's not enough. If we're not careful, we can be just as blind. We can miss the whole point of why you and I are here. And that's my third sign.

The first sign of Jonah is identity of Jesus. Second sign of Jonah was an indictment against Israel. Third sign of Jonah is a demonstration of God's mercy. As much as we may be convicted and say, wow, I feel guilty again, he did it again, you know, we're gonna leave church again, feeling guilty, but I want you to understand what he is saying here.

All of this is a demonstration of the kindness of God. Jonah chapter 4, one through two, after Nineveh repents, Jonah is angry, 'cause he hated Nineveh. He wanted them to be judged, but they repent. A revival breaks out, and this is what he says. It greatly displeased Jonah, and he became angry.

He prayed to the Lord and said, please, Lord, was not this what I said while I was still in my own country? Therefore, in order to forestall this, I fled to Tarshish. He said, he didn't, the reason why he didn't wanna go to Nineveh was not because he was lazy or he had some other businesses and he just doesn't like preaching the gospel.

He didn't want God to be gracious. He said, that's why he didn't go. For I knew that you are a gracious and compassionate God, slow to anger and abundant in lovingkindness, and one who relents concerning calamity. He says, I knew it. How did he know? How did Jonah know this?

That God was gonna forgive them? A lot of people read the Old Testament superficially and say, oh, didn't he bring the flood and kill the nations? Didn't he bring judgment against them and against this? And it's like, God is so harsh, but that's not what Jonah says. He said, from what I know, I knew you would be gracious.

I knew you were slow to become angry. I think for two reasons. One, he's a living proof of it. The fact that he is living and he is breathing and the fact that he's able to complain was God's grace. Remember, he rebelled against God and he ran the other direction.

And because of that, the storm came. He should have died in the water. Instead of dying in the water, he got swallowed up by the whale. He should have died in the whale. But he doesn't die in the water. He doesn't die in the whale because God had a purpose for him.

So the fact that he got spit out, stinking like a fish and walking around complaining is evidence of God's mercy. So he has personal knowledge of this grace. He knows he deserved to die. He said no to God. God told him to go right and he went left. So if he died, he said, yeah, because I'm disobeying God.

So he has personal knowledge of it. But second, during the time of Jonah, Israel, Israel was in rebellion against God. It wasn't just Nineveh. During his reign, during Jonah's ministry, Jeroboam II was the king. And during that period, they were committing idolatry, all kinds of moral failures. And all the while, they were worshiping God and going to the temple.

You know who the contemporaries are? It was Hosea and Amos. Hosea and Amos preached at the same time that Jonah was prophesying. If you know the book of Hosea, God tells Hosea to go marry this prostitute named Gomer. And then he says, love her. And then she goes out and commits adultery and she keeps giving herself to other men.

And then God, instead of rejecting her, says go love her and then he brings her back. And then she goes and commits adultery and then he brings her back. And then he goes and does this repeatedly. And then God uses that as an illustration to tell Israel, this is what my relationship with Israel is like.

I keep forgiving, I keep forgiving, and you keep committing adultery, you keep adultery. And it's warning them, if you keep doing this, that his mercy and his grace is gonna run out. Book of Amos. The Amos is another prophet, his contemporary. He says, I hate, I reject your festivals.

Nor do I delight in your solemn assembly. Even though you offer up to me burnt offerings and your grain offerings, I will not accept them. And I will not even look at the peace offering of your fatlings. Take away from me the noise of your songs. I will not even listen to the sound of your harps.

That's one of the harshest, brutal criticisms to the nation of Israel. Now you may look at that and say, well how does that demonstrate the mercy and grace of God? Because he says what he says. He sends Hosea, he sends Amos, he sends Jonah, pleading with sinners to repent because he's eager to forgive.

If God was not gracious, there would be no Amos. There would be no Hezekiah, there would be no Hosea. There would be no Jonah. So wait a second, Jonah didn't give a message of grace. He said, despite all your sin, God is so gracious and loving and just come to him.

He's so gracious and loving. That's not the message he gave. He said, repent. In a short while, if you do not repent, the judgment of God is gonna come. And that was God's mercy, that was his grace, that was his patience toward them. Our generation thinks if we preach repentance, that somehow that's being judgmental, it's being legalistic and it's being harsh.

And scripture says it is the kindness of God that leads us to repentance. Before we skip to forgiveness, forgiveness is an end result of repentance. You know what's interesting is the whole book of Jonah ends with verse 11, chapter four. Look at what he says. Should I not have compassion on Nineveh, the great city in which there are more than 120,000 persons who do not know the difference between their right and left hand as well as many animals?

That's how it ends. There's no response, there's no this is why. He just says, what's it to you that I have compassion? If I wanna forgive them, what's it to you? The end. That's the main point of Jonah. It's not don't mess with God or you're gonna be swallowed up by a whale.

That's not the point. If God calls you, you better go, right? Which is true, but that's not the point. The point that he was trying to make is this was God's plan all along. God is pursuing sinners. Even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many.

We pray the Lord's Prayer. Our Father, which art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. How much of our frustration in our life is because we are trying to get God to bend to our will? If you pray, thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven, this is his will.

We're waiting for him, but he's waiting for us to be the light that you and I have been called to be. The reason why the church has been established, he says, I will build my church. Gates of Hades will not prevail against it so that we may enter into the darkness and shine the light and stop hiding it under the table.

And it is his kindness, it is his mercy. In 2 Peter 3, 9, in the first century church, they were beginning to ask and question, why isn't Jesus coming back? Because the persecution is increasing. Nero is beginning to behead their leaders. People are being burned at the stake, being crucified, and they're trying to squash Christianity.

And so people are asking, why does he not care? How come God doesn't care? Why is he not coming back and rescuing us from this horror? We're not just talking about being weird. People are literally being torn apart in Colosseans when 2 Peter is being written. They've seen their leaders being burned at the stake and being crucified upside down when 2 Peter was being written.

And so people are asking, why does he not care? He's supposed to be a gracious, merciful, loving, patient God, why did he not come? In response to that, he says, the Lord is not slow about his promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish, but for all to come to repentance.

Not only is he patient, but the whole reason why he hasn't come is so that he may be patient, so that he may be gracious. He was patient so you and I can come into the kingdom. He is patient so that you and I could take the light to the world.

We live our life and study the Bible, raise good children, have a nice church where people love each other, and we're second generation, hand over this nice building and VBS, and we're doing all of this stuff. Great, this is such a blessing from God. But if you forget that the heartbeat of our God is to pursue sinners, all of this is just for you.

You wanna have a nice church for you, you wanna have nice, obedient children for you, you wanna have good Bible study for you, you wanna study the Bible and good theology for you. If the word of God is to equip us, equip us for what? To train us, to train us for what?

If we need to have a godly community, for what? So that we can be around nice people who don't say harsh things? So that we can be around gracious people because the people out there are so bad? So if we come to church that would be, I'd rather be with nice people who I can trust?

That's why we're here? No. Everything that God has called us to do is so that we can be a brighter light. Why do we need to be holy? Why do we need to be holy? So that we can be the light of Christ in the darkness. It's for them.

To glorify God so that they can see the glory of our gospel. It is God's kindness that leads us to repentance. It is his kindness that you and I are here. It is God's kindness that convicts us and calls us to repentance. It is the kindness of God that will not allow you to be lukewarm.

That you just stay week after week just lukewarm, just worried about your life and never shining the light to the world and you come to church feeling guilty. That guilt is the kindness of God that hopefully will lead you to repentance. So that when you pray thy will be done on earth as it is heaven, that you can have a clear conscience and pray that and mean it with all your heart.

It's not just some religious thing that you're saying. I pray that this morning as we come to the communion table, in our weakness, that God would restore his purpose and his will and his light in our church. So let me ask the praise team to come up. And as we have the leaders to come and I ask you to open up the table.

Okay, if I can ask the pastors to come and open up the communion table. One by one, when you are ready, we ask you to come. So after we sing the communion song, I pray that whenever you are ready, one by one, that you would come. And again, I ask that if you are not baptized, that you would remain in your seat.

And this is for those who have confessed their sins and have met the Lord and to come before the Lord in honest confession. Lord, I covet the world. I don't know when's the last time I've remembered the beauty of Christ outside of words. And we ask ourselves, do you love Jesus?

Are you pursuing Christ? When's the last time you really felt like you worship God in spirit and in truth? To take some time to reflect and to pray and to confess. Lord, I believe, help my unbelief that as we come to the communion table, that we would come ready.

Not because you're righteous, but because we need his righteousness. Not because your spirit is strong, but because we need his spirit. So let me read the text for us and then after our praise team leads us in the song, when you are ready, please come one by one. And then if you need to have gluten-free things, it'll be on my right to your left.

And the rest of you, if you come down this middle, please do not clog up the middle. Make sure there's two lines when you come up. For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus in the night in which he was betrayed took bread.

When he had given things, he broke it and said, "This is my body, which is for you. "Do this in remembrance of me." In the same way, he took the cup also after supper, saying, "This cup is a new covenant in my blood. "Do this as often as you drink it in remembrance of me.

"For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, "you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes." Father, we come before you in this sacred time. We pray that you would ready us, that you would sanctify us, renew us and strengthen us, that our church, Lord God, would be the church that you desire and that you build, that Christ and his light would be at the center, that it may shed light on all other things.

May Christ be magnified through this time. In Jesus' name we pray, amen. (gentle piano music) ♪ This is my body given for you ♪ ♪ This is the cup that holds the blood ♪ ♪ But the new covenant, this is forgiveness ♪ ♪ Simple and true ♪ ♪ This is the way that I have made for you ♪ ♪ Before you eat, before you drink ♪ ♪ Take a long look inside and tell me what you see ♪ ♪ He said, do this in remembrance of me ♪ ♪ Do this in remembrance of me ♪ ♪ This is the bread of life broken for you ♪ ♪ This is the cup that holds the blood ♪ ♪ That holds the blood of the new covenant ♪ ♪ This is the love of Christ poured out on you ♪ ♪ This is the son of God who died for you ♪ ♪ Before you eat, before you drink ♪ ♪ Take a long look inside and tell me what you see ♪ ♪ Then do this in remembrance of me ♪ ♪ Do this in remembrance of me ♪ ♪ Before you eat, before you drink ♪ ♪ Take a long look inside and tell me what you see ♪ ♪ He said, do this in remembrance of me ♪ ♪ Do this in remembrance of me ♪ ♪ Remembrance of me ♪ - Whenever you are ready, we ask you to come.

(gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) - Community table will be closed in a minute, so if you have not come, we invite you to come now.

(gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) Let's pray. Father, we thank you for the sacrifice that you have made. I pray, Father, that the truth of the gospel would never become old to us, but that it would be the source of our strength, our worship, our evangelism, our fellowship.

May it all bring glory to your name. Help us, Lord God, to see what you see. Help us to feel what you feel, that we may simply be an extension of who you are to the world. In Jesus' name we pray, amen. Let's all stand up for the closing praise.

(gentle music) ♪ Well, the world can remember ♪ ♪ No one to have a mission ♪ ♪ So knowing he can't stop their son ♪ ♪ Thrown into a sea without water or shore ♪ ♪ Our saviors, they are many ♪ ♪ His mercy is more ♪ Praise the Lord.

♪ Praise the Lord ♪ ♪ His mercy is more ♪ ♪ Stronger than darkness, pure and immore ♪ ♪ Our sins, they are many ♪ ♪ His mercy is more ♪ ♪ What patience ♪ ♪ What patience will wait as we constantly learn ♪ ♪ Our Father so tender is calling us home ♪ ♪ He welcomes the weakest, the proudest, the poor ♪ ♪ Our sins, they are many ♪ ♪ His mercy is more ♪ ♪ Praise the Lord ♪ ♪ His mercy is more ♪ ♪ Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh ♪ ♪ Stronger than darkness, pure and immore ♪ ♪ Our sins, they are many ♪ ♪ His mercy is more ♪ ♪ What riches ♪ ♪ What riches of kindness He lavished on us ♪ ♪ His blood was the payment ♪ ♪ His life was the cost ♪ ♪ We still need the debt we could never afford ♪ ♪ Our sins, they are many ♪ ♪ His mercy is more ♪ ♪ Praise the Lord ♪ ♪ Praise the Lord ♪ ♪ His mercy is more ♪ ♪ Stronger than darkness, pure and immore ♪ ♪ Our sins, they are many ♪ ♪ His mercy is more ♪ ♪ Praise the Lord ♪ ♪ His mercy is more ♪ ♪ Stronger than darkness, pure and immore ♪ ♪ Our sins, they are many ♪ ♪ His mercy is more ♪ ♪ Our sins, they are many ♪ ♪ His mercy is more ♪ (upbeat music) - Let's pray.

Now the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit and eternal love of God the Father, strengthen us, revive us, and wherever we go, that we may be the aroma of Christ. Amen. ♪ Sent his son ♪ ♪ They called him Jesus ♪ ♪ He came to earth ♪ ♪ He left the world ♪ ♪ He came to earth ♪ ♪ To live a part ♪ ♪ An empty grave is there too ♪ ♪ I say, darling ♪ ♪ Because he lives ♪ ♪ I can face tomorrow ♪ ♪ Because he lives ♪ ♪ All fear is gone ♪ ♪ Because of you ♪ ♪ He holds the future ♪ ♪ And life is worth the living ♪ ♪ Just because he lives ♪ (upbeat music) (gentle music)