The Church of Eleven22 - Wk 5: Pastor Ben Stuart

Episode Date: November 21, 2021

Okay. Y'all are friendly down here. They don't do this in D.C. But, hey, it is great to be with you. Such an honor to be with you. Before we jump into our text this morning, I want to say, I had the privilege of meeting your pastor a couple years ago. We met on a panel, so answering questions from the crowd.

And I didn't know who he was, but as the panel went on, I was like, that dude at the end, everything he's saying is hilarious. And then he just drops in something profound on the back. end of it. I was like, I'm about what that guy's doing. So afterwards, he was like, will you come preach at my church? And I said, yes, I didn't know where it was. I didn't know who you people were. I had no idea what God was doing down here, but was such a thrill to meet him and then even to come here and to see what God's doing in your midst. It doesn't surprise me at all under leadership like that to see a growing, thriving, beautiful church. So love your pastor,

love you, glad to be here together. Yeah, I think Cloud and Room feels good. So if you got a copy of your scriptures, we're in James chapter 1. James chapter 1. I want to read to you a couple verses starting in verse 14 then we'll pray and then jump in. So James chapter 1 starting in verse 14. And if you don't have a copy

of your scriptures, just listen because I'm going to read it out loud. But James 1. 14 says this. But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire.

then desire when it is conceived gives birth to sin and sin when it's fully grown brings forth death do not be deceived my beloved brothers every good gift and every perfect gift is from above coming down from the father of lights with whom there's no variation or shadow due to change of his own will he brought us forth by the word of truth that we should be a kind of first fruits of his creatures. Let me pray for us. Well, Father, I pray over the next few minutes that you would quicken our minds that we can understand what your word is saying. But Lord, I pray we wouldn't just understand it. I pray we would feel it. We would feel what matters to you. Because God, I wanted to change how we live, who we are in the world. And so, Lord, I'm asking for life change that I can't

create. No person can. But Lord, if this moment could be used by you to change us forever, that would be phenomenal. So that's what we're asking for. That's why we're talking to you. And I just want to invite you, church, wherever you are, whatever campus, whatever is going on, if you just take a minute and you pray and ask him, say, Lord, please teach me something today. And then if you would, please pray for me that the Lord would use me and I'd be helpful to you. Well, Father, we love you, and we trust you. Use this time. And we pray that in Jesus' name. And we pray that in Jesus' name. Amen. Well, through a unique set of circumstances,

I've been able to spend quality time with Navy SEALs, which is fascinating. Because when they're at home training in the States, they do what I think a lot of dudes in this place would love to do on a daily basis. So while you're at school, learning the finer points of geometry, they're out in the field,

learning the finer points of how to fire a grenade launcher. While you're in the office, returning phone calls, they're out in the jungle, learning how to stalk a guy. I remember I was with a buddy in the car after he had gotten back from drive fast school, and he was showing me how to take a vehicle up to 90 miles an hour and then make a 90-degree turn by using the handbrake. I was like, great, yeah, I'll use that next time I'm late for church or whatnot.

But I remember I got to attend one of these training sessions at one point. It was a simulation where a team was taking down a building that was filled with enemy combatants who were holding hostages. And it was a simulation, so they were using simulation rounds. paintballs, but they're fired out of real guns, so they go fast and hard and hurt. Now, it was my understanding that I would be watching this whole thing play out from the safety of an observation deck. However, as I got there, I was standing with their commanding officer, and as we watched the team

approached the building, he motioned with me to start walking towards the front of the building. And then as we got right up to the team, he stopped me, and he goes, yeah, I wouldn't get any closer than this if I were you. When they blow that door, that handle can come off like a bullet. I'd stop right here. I was like, yeah, great, fine. Like I hadn't planned on being this close. But sure enough, they blew that door open, and they went charging in,

and then he hit me in the chest and went, let's go. And he ran in, and so did I, in T-shirts and blue jeans. And I remember as soon as I passed through that door, I was struck immediately, metaphorically speaking, by two things. Number one was the chaos of the situation. I mean, it was flashbangs, loud sounds, shots fired. it was bedlam. But the second thing I was struck by

was the beauty of their strategy. That as they moved through the chaos, they were aggressive but graceful. They were purposeful but patient. Two of them would come to an open hallway and then with barely a nod, they would swing out to eliminate all threats while never being an open target themselves.

And within seconds, they had neutralized all enemy, rescued all hostages, and taken an environment of chaos, and brought in peace. And I remember as I watched that, it struck me, this is the Christian life. Or it's meant to be.

I don't know what you think when you hear that, but I imagine for many of us, you don't have to attempt to journey very long into a world of spirituality before you realize, hey, spirituality plays out in the context of adversity. This is hard. And for some of you, you've felt that as you've maybe tried to read the scriptures

as soon as you open it, all manner of rival thoughts, competing affections come raging to the surface. or some of you came here because you're like, man, I need a life change, but the good you want to do, you don't do, and the bad you want to stop, you keep doing that. And for some of us, you maybe started coming here. Maybe you came to Christ and you're just like, you know what?

I just thought it'd be easier. I just thought when I put my faith in Jesus, these addictions would cease, these desires would go away. I just thought I would be happier. And I don't know, fly around, sprinkle Jesus dust and all my lost friends. I just thought it'd be easier than this. And for some of you, you're discouraged by the situation. And then you show up in places like this,

and we'll have testimonies. As someone come up and say, you know what? I was addicted to every drug under the sun, and I put my faith in Jesus and never felt tempted again, not once. The entire desire was pulled up by the roots, and you're listening to that and going, he didn't even mildly prune my lusts. They're as robust as ever.

And yet others of you, you go, Ben, I know that. I'm not discouraged by the situation. I understand it's going to be hard. Like, I've read the Bible, and I've seen all the language in it about war and battle and struggle, but I need a strategy. I want to look more like the seals

and less like you. I want to be equipped to be successful. I don't want to be running around with flip-flops going, it's smoky in here. I need a strategy, and the one I presently have is not working. So I don't know about you. I grew up going to a can.

that was pretty wild. Like the first couple days of camp, everyone was drinking 40s, smoking, climbing buildings. It was chaos. But on the last night of camp, man, everybody got saved. Like after a week of very little sleep and mountain nutritious food, we were all in an emotionally volatile state. And the music would get us all churned up. And then the speaker would get us fired up. And then we'd hit this emotional crescendo, lock pinkies, and sing friends or friends forever. And then right at that moment, it was open mic night. And one after one, we'd get on stage

and start talking about all the great things we were going to do for God. Stand there. I just want you all to know. I'm never going to sit again. I don't think he is. He's had such a good week here at camp. I think it's over for him.

I just want you all to know. I'm going to tell him on the planet about Christ. He is prophesying right now. It's the next Billy Graham. I just want you all to know. I'm going to stop beating up the freshmen, stop the violence chest. Thank you.

On and on it would go. And yet there wasn't a one of us that two weeks later hadn't broken every promise. And we sat in our bedroom surrounded by the same addictions going, what's wrong with me? Maybe this works for somebody else. Maybe this applies to other people, but maybe not me. And you're discouraged by the situation. You're going, Ben, I need a strategy. Help me understand this.

And so what I want to do in our time here is not give you a pump up speech to try harder. I almost want to in an unemotional way, say, hey, let me give you a survey of the battlefield. Because here's the reality. The spiritual life feels like a war because it is. Spirituality plays out in the context of adversity. We're in a war. And yet it's a war in which our king has won the decisive victory. First John, it says this about Jesus.

The son of God appeared to destroy the works of the devil. That's why we celebrate Christmas is because God wanted to destroy something. The reason for the season is destruction. That even when you look in Genesis, at the very beginning of our story, when our first parents bought the lie that to really enjoy life

they had to distance from the author of life, the Bible says the world broke and we broke. Darkness entered in. And yet in the midst of that shame with the scent and the stain of their sin, still on them. God provides a solution, and it's not to try harder. He says, I'm going to send the boy a seed of a woman, and he's going to crush the head of that serpent. God's solution is a savior, and his first introduction is one of warfare. He's coming to crush the one who deceived you.

That's where he's coming. That's the context. And so when Jesus arrived, it was a landed invasion. Why did demons run and flee at his presence? Because the stronger one is here. And yet as he made war against the enemy, he said, I am here not just as an invasion, it's a rescue operation. He said in his first sermon, I'm here to proclaim release for the captives. That sin has made you a slave, but I'm here to set you free. And as he marched into Jerusalem, he accomplished that purpose not by perpetrating violence, but by taking violence upon himself. In Hebrews 2 says, therefore, since the children share in flesh and blood,

he likewise partook of the same, that through death he might render powerless, him who had the power of death, that is the devil, and might free those who through fear of death were subject to slavery all their lives. The great sin, that's the sting in death. And so what did Jesus do? He stepped in front of us and took the hit for us.

The enemy's greatest weapon against you is the valid criticism that you have unforgiven sin, And Jesus took that punishment, took that shame. He who knew no sin became sin on that cross so you and I could be made right with God. And if you put your faith in him, the Bible says that he has transferred us out of the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of the beloved son. That's our story. That it's a rescue operation. And yet it's also an ongoing mission.

That the world's still a broken place. And so C.S. Lewis says, enemy occupied. territory. That is what the world is. He said, but our story is one about the true king who's come, you might say, come in disguise, and yet he is calling us all to take part in his great campaign of sabotage.

It's like David. When David fought Goliath, what was happening with the nation of Israel? They were terrified. They shouted the war cry, but as soon as Goliath came out, they coward in fear. And then the humble David stepped out and defeated that giant. And do you remember what Israel did? When they watched their hero fight for them and his victory counted for them,

it said they shouted the war cry and they charged and they drove the Philistines out of their land. And it's the same for you and I. When we watch the son of David, Jesus Christ, fight our biggest enemy death and win, it empowers us to drive the Philistines of fear, lust, and pride out of our own heart. So some people say, man, now that I've come to Christ, why do I still struggle? Friend, read the scriptures. The Bible has not freed Jesus. you from the struggle, it's freed you to struggle. It hasn't freed you from the fight. It's freed you to fight. Our king has won the decisive victory, and now we get to join him in the battle. There's a great movie, Master and Commander, about Russell Crow, taking out the lead ship

in Napoleon's army. And as his ship comes alongside, they fire their weapons to destroy its main mist. He boards that ship. They begin to fight their way down to the hold where several Englishmen are held captive. And then you see in the moment of triumph, he breaks open the chains, opens the prison door. Hazzah! And all these Englishmen come running out, and as they run into their freedom, they're each handed a sword. Because yes, you've been set free, but there's still a fight raging. But before you were just a victim, now you have the power to be a victor. And that's our story. That's us. So let me give us a survey of the battlefield, and then we'll look at our strategy. If I could survey the battlefield for those who put their faith in Christ,

spirituality is now one movement with two parts. It's one movement with two parts. It's a movement away and a movement towards. It's a movement away from ways of thinking and ways of living that isolate us from the intimacy with God Christ purchased. And it's a movement towards ways of thinking and ways of living that promote the intimacy with God we were made for. And Old school theologians have a word for this process. They called it sanctification. To sanctify something means to make it holy. And the word holy means set apart,

which you hear the way and towards, even in that definition. Like in the Old Testament, there were bowls and utensils in the temple, and they were holy under worship, meaning you didn't use them for common things. You only use them in the worship of God. They were holy.

My wife is holy unto me. Right? Only I may touch her. other man shall, right? Some of you have a coffee mug that's wholly unto you. Only your lips may touch it, no pagan dirty lips can, right? And you hear that, away and towards. And Paul said it this way, Timothy, flee youthful lust and pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace, along with those who call out to God out of a pure heart. There's a fleeing and there's a pursuing. There's a no, and there's a yes, which some people focus.

us on Christianity's a bunch of nose. And you're right, there are a bunch, but they free us up to the better yes. Theologians had words for each of these two parts. They called this part mortification. There were certain things that were a part of my life. I now mortify. I kill.

They don't belong in my life anymore. I won't revel in what my king bled out to destroy. And yet there's other things I want to vivify. They call this vivification. I want to do what I came to help cultivate it and see it grow. If you were to use gardening imagery, this would be the uprooting of weeds.

You don't belong here anymore. And this would be the planting of grass and flowers. I want to cultivate this. If it was dating imagery, this would be me taking my wife on dates and preferably a place without TV so I can listen with my face and hear her tell stories and tell her mine

and enjoy our time together. This would be not doing things that isolate me from her, like yelling at her or dating other women, that I say no here for a better yes. Now, before we move on, let me make this point. What I'm not saying is, so guys, this is the devil side of the stage, and that's the God side of the stage. So let's get over on that God side, folks.

That's not what I'm saying. Because if I said it that way, it carries the idea that God's standing over here waiting for you to get your act together. That's not the Bible. If you put your faith in Jesus, he said, I'm never going to leave you. I'm never going to forsake you. He's with you to the end. and yet I know my wife will never leave me,

but I can feel miles away from her because I haven't done the work to cultivate intimacy. Do you see it? So the battlefield for the Christian is the run towards an unrestrained intimacy. And yet as we looked at it, this doesn't occur in a vacuum. We have an enemy, and he hates our king, so he hates us. So I remember my first day of middle school.

I was very excited because I was going to ride the bus along with my older brother, who by every measure was endlessly cool. And so as we got on the bus, I was very excited. He walked straight towards the back where all the cool kids sat. As a relative of his, I was cool by proxy and made my way to the back as well. But as I did it, this kid jumped up right in front of me and put his face in my face. This is before I knew that's what people do when they want to fight. I just thought he had like proximity issues.

And he put his face in my face. He was like, are you cool Stewart's brother? I said, yeah. He said, I hate your brother. He was like, okay? And when I didn't know at the moment, but discovered later, was this kid was a bully. Met some emotional need by picking on littler people.

But the problem is, he had also decided to play football. And my brother played football. And there was a day at practice where my brother was running the ball and this kid Marvin attempted to tackle him. And my brother hit him so hard that he flew through the air and made like squealing sounds like a piglet.

Which when you're trying to be hard, kind of cramped your style, right? So fast forward back to the bus, and he says, I hate your brother. And then he says, so I hate you. And then he put his finger on my face and said, you look good with a cigarette burn here. And then from behind him, we heard my brother's voice. Marvin!

He kind of straightened up. But as he sat back down, he said, it's going to be a long year. little brother. Now, why did he hate me? I didn't do anything to him. I'll tell you why. Because I looked like the one who shamed him. And when you come to Christ, you don't become a less of a target for temptation. You could maybe arguably become more so, because you have aligned yourself with the one who made a public spectacle of him. And if he hates him, he hates you. So before we look at our strategy, we've got to look at his.

let's look at his goal, what he knows, and what he does. His goal is to get you to sin, for you to take a willful step away from intimacy with your creator. What does he know? What he knows is you. He's watched the film on you. He knows your wiring and tendencies. He knows your wiring that you have a mind, cognitive faculties. He knows you have affections, desires, an inclination and disinclination towards things. And he knows you have a will, a decision-making mechanism. He knows your mind, affections, will. A head, a heart, and hands.

And he knows how they work. Thoughts are the fuel for the furnace of your affections. And your affections are the fire, the engine with which your actions are motivated. So what does he do? If he wants you to take a willful step away from your king, why on earth would you do that? Why participate in that suicidal madness?

Well, he's got to make it look attractive. He can't put on a frontal assault against the king, but he can twist the knife by making you take a willful step away from him. How does he do it? Well, he solicits thoughts to the mind to stir your affections. And when you enact the will, you sin. You take a step from the author of life. But this moment he creates, the Bible calls temptation.

And so you say, well, Ben, where are you getting all this? Well, I'm getting it from James. We read it. each one is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. And desire when it's conceived gives birth to sin. Do you see it? Lured is the mind's attention. Enticed is the heart's affections. Let me create an environment.

I mean, they even call it a lure. What do you do when you're fishing? You want to get that fish's attention. So you get a lure. Maybe one that looks like a frog and you want to swim it by and maybe at an angle so it looks wounded and delicious. What are you doing? You're trying to get the fish's attention.

You're trying to break him off mid-sentence. It's like, anyway, so I'm saying, whoa, hello there. Hey, little buddy. But you don't just want his attention. You want to stir his affections. Like, I want to be with you, right? And then when he enacts the will, you got him. And he never even saw the hook,

and he never knew there was a sentient being setting this whole thing up. And yet, there's some other fish that may go, A frog? Really? Gross. Like, that turns you on? Okay, ooh. And if you're into that, I don't even know how you can call yourself a real fish. And that's fine. The enemy will just pull out a different lure for you. Maybe something that looks shiny and you're like, ooh, shiny. And off you go. Each one is tempted. It's coming for all of us. Some of the best self-knowledge you can have is how does he come at me? Do you see it? Because the enemy knows this about you and me.

What you think about, you will care about. And what you care about, you will chase. So the million-dollar question is, what do you entertain in your mind? Because it's what you think about that will determine what you love and who you become. So ladies, some of you may be getting ready in the morning, and the thought crosses your mind, you're single.

Is that thought solicited to your mind and it consults your thoughts? You go, that is correct. I'm neither married nor currently dating anyone. and then an Adele song comes on. And you go, but I don't want to be alone. I want to be with someone. And then you drive to work, and there's couples walking hand in hand, and the animals are going two by two,

and you're like, everyone has someone but me. And as those thoughts are solicited and affection stirred, you're propositioned. And you date a loser. Someone who's beneath you morally, you know he doesn't care about the interests of your, great king, but you've been deceived into thinking this is the best you can do, and a whole cascading world of tragedies follows after it. Do you see it? Or guys, you'll be getting ready

for bed and the thought will be solicited to your mind? You should look at naked people online. And as it consult your affection, you go, naked people? Okay. That's about it for you. Paul told Timothy, watch your life and your doctrine closely. Persevere in this because you'll save both yourself and your ears. He said, watch your doctrine. Timothy. Know what you believe. leave. And then he says, watch your life. Be a student of yourself. If he's coming for all of us, some of the best self-knowledge you can have is how does he get me? What are the lies I believe? And where are they lead me? So if we know this is how the enemy works, how do we work in response? Let me give you a couple things before we get out of here. The first one is advice we get from Jesus.

Jesus said to his disciples in Matthew 26, watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation. He says, if this always leads there, Jesus draws the battle line here. Fight the temptation. Eliminate the moment. It's fascinating. I had a buddy tell me years ago about a friend of his that came to him confiding that he had been getting in fights with his wife. And as he fought with his wife, they were escalating into shouting matches and just getting violent. It was a terrible situation as marriage was coming apart.

and my buddy was sternly counseling him about how to honor women and respect them but just say, hey man, y'all probably need to get into counseling fast, you need the church to come around you, we need to support you in this environment but he says, hey, what kickstarts all this? What's the moment that leads to that moment? And his friend was like, man,

it's usually Thursday we go to this bar and we're out there drinking with some buddies and guys inevitably start hitting on her and she doesn't rebuff their advances the way I think she should. I get offended and then she makes fun of me for being mad, and then I get more offended, and then it begins to escalate and escalate,

and then it just goes off the rails. And my buddy said, he told him, hey, man, like, there's some deeper issues, probably that go way back, y'all need to deal with. But at the beginning, if this always leads there, why don't you eliminate this? Don't go to that bar anymore.

He said his friend had never thought about that. Like, man, it's tequila Thursday. Who cares? It's not worth sinning. over. If this leads to that, get it out of here. I talk to young guys, and it's not just young guys, it's not just guys, but I talk to guys all the time that struggle with pornography and say, where does it get you? And they say, man, it's my phone on my bedside, late at night, I keep succumbing to it. And I say, man, the Romans says make no provision for the flesh.

That's ample provision. You're at your weakest, most vulnerable state and you're putting the World Wide Web next to your head. That's not smart. That's like an alcoholic pouring a glass of sky. every night and going, okay, no, I'm not going to drink you. Bad strategy. If that leads to this, get the phone out of your room. Get all the screens out of your bedroom. And I'll say that to guys, and it's like they've never thought of that. They're like, but it's my alarm clock. Was I buying alarm clock? They don't cost that much. But if this leads there, eliminate this. After I catastrophically hurt my back, I had to lose a bunch of weight. The doctor told me, You've got to lose 40 pounds, but you can't run anymore.

You can't lift weights. I'm like, well, how does one do that? And apparently diet is key. So I told my wife, hey, you've got to get all these delicious snacks out of this house. Because if I die, it's kind of on you. I don't have the willpower to say no. I just need them out of the house. And if they're all out, you've got to buy the kids' snacks I don't like.

I excel. I excel at health. But you eliminate the moment. Do you see it? James gives us two more strategies. number one he says you paddle downstream he says look downstream the problem with temptation is is it's tempting when the devil doesn't come to you and say you know what we should do today opioid addiction let's give it a shot like he doesn't start there he pushes with disappointment

pushes with resentment and then pulls with allurement and seduction he entices and then he shames that's what he does and so he starts with something that looks good it looks like a release from the troubles. He starts with something that looks good. And what James will say is, hey, watch the progression. He says, each one is tempted when he's lured and enticed by his own lust. And lust, when it's conceives, gives birth to sin. And sin when it's fully grown, gives birth to death. See, it's interesting. He actually doesn't use fishing imagery. In Greek, like in Spanish, nouns can be masculine or feminine, and desires a feminine word. So he grabs this imagery. He says, hey, it's not a sin for thoughts to be solicited to your mind or your affection stirred. But when you

make the choice to unite your will with that desire, she gets pregnant. She has a baby called sin, a little rebellion against the author of life. And maybe you hear that and you, I don't care. But sin's a feminine word too. And it says, and when she's fully grown, she brings forth death. And James takes one of the most powerful moments in a human life, the birth of a child. And he says, when you follow this path, you give birth to death. the opposite of life. It's a shocking image. And it's shocking to break the spell.

That one of the ways to break the allurement of temptation is to look downstream and say, if I get in this boat, where will it lead me? Is that a place I want to be? And you've peered downstream to the destruction. I have a pastor friend that in his prayer closet are covered with newspaper clippings of pastors who have fallen out of ministry

because of moral failure. and it's not because of a morbid curiosity. He has them there because he knows that when life gets difficult, the enemy will bring to him all different allurements, special oases of chase that money, engage with that woman in a way that just flirts with the line of appropriate.

He sees all these temptations coming his way. He says, but I look at these pictures and I see where it leads. I watch the guy at the press conference, having been exposed for what he did. I see the look in a little bit of, wife's eyes, I see the devastation at his church. And sin looks far less sexy in the bright light of day. It does. Part of it for me, when I, they told me you got to lose 40 pounds. It's like,

oh man, and then I remembered, you know, that I love chocolate cake. This is a problem. But I was at a moment with my injury where they said, you may not walk again. And he looked at my pregnant wife and said, you won't be able to hold that baby. And so for me, whenever I saw a cake in my house, I'm like, well, somebody did this, did me wrong here, because I'm going to eat it. But then I would look downstream and ask the question, if I eat this and eat like this, where am I headed? I want to hold my kids. So what do I love more? That cake are these kids?

And by peering at the destruction downstream, say, I don't want to go there, so I don't go here. Alcoholics call it thinking through the drink. It's going to whisper sweet promises, but at the end it's going to cost more than I'm willing to pay. So you look downstream to see the destruction to break the spell. But then you look upstream to see the deception. So James moves on. It says, so don't be deceived, my beloved brothers. But then what's interesting is when he says, don't be deceived.

He doesn't point downstream. He doesn't say, don't be deceived, adultery is really bad. Or don't be deceived, stealing money's wrong. He doesn't point downstream. He points up. He says, don't be deceived. Every good and every perfect gift comes down from your father. He says the deception that launches temptation

is the lie that God's not going to take care of you. If I trust God, I'll be pulled back from sexual fulfillment. I won't get the financial fulfillment I want. I won't feel the safety I desire. So I have to rebel against the author of life to really enjoy life. That's the deception that started in the garden. Notice what the serpent did. He didn't start with fruit.

He didn't say, you know what I was thinking about today, Eve? Fruit. You know what I was thinking about? How good it is. Look, I cut some up. Let's jump in on this. He doesn't start there. He starts with things.

theology. Let's talk about God, Eve. This observation, it seems to me that he's holding out on you. It seems to me your religious commitments, Eve, have put some shackles on you to keep you from experiencing something that, I'll be honest, looks pretty life-enhancing. But your religious commitments are costing you. Because maybe your God's not looking out for the best interest for you. Maybe there's this whole world of experience he's keeping you from because he doesn't care about you. and he has to make God look ugly before sin looks attractive and so we fight the battle here

don't be deceived every good and perfect gift comes from your father the lie that launches a million sins is that God is not a good dad who loves you you fight the battle there and you can stop a whole torrent of destruction

in your life so I remember for me if I can be honest I hated the song how he loves us can I say that here? Is this a safe place to say that? I didn't like the song. And I started to ask myself, why? Why do I dislike the song, how he loves us?

Is it the Doppler effect way we sing it? How you love the... I was like, no, it's not that. Like, is it the lyrics? Like, I'm not a tree. No, there's nothing wrong with the lyrics. And so I asked myself, then why do you dislike the song? and when I was honest, it was because I don't believe it.

And they keep making you say it over and over again. Oh, how he loves me. Oh, how he loves me. Oh, how he loves me. And yeah, I knew that. Theologically, I'd get it right on a quiz. But when you come from a broken family sometimes, it gets real hard to believe it in here.

And when you start singing about how he loves me, oh, how he loves me, it starts to sound like a sick joke. And then I remember I had kids. And my firstborn was born. And, you know, when she would wake up at like the 2, 3 a.m. shift, that was my shift to hold her. And I remember holding her one morning and feeling this weird pain in my chest.

It was like, oh my gosh, when my chest is caving in. I was like, what is happening? And then I realized, oh, it's love for you. And then I instantly felt the limits of language. Like to say I love you is so shallow, but there's no poem that can encapsulate it.

To say I would die for you was too small. Like, of course I would. But that feeling was so powerful. I remember thinking, I wish there was some way to explain this to you. I wish there was some way for your little head to understand what's happening in this little heart about how much your father loves you, how he cares for you, even though you've done nothing. You don't pitch him around the house. You never complimented a sermon, your noise and need.

And yet, I love you so much. And even if I can explain it, you wouldn't even understand it. You don't speak English. You're a baby. And I just remember feeling all that. and then the conviction of God came into my heart, Ben, do you think you're a better dad than me? You think your capacity to love your child outstrips my capacity to love you as a child?

And I had to repent of an unbiblically low view of the love of God. And let me tell you something, this is where the enemy gets so many of you that if you hate me, let's say you make that a goal in the new year. Destroy Ben Stewart. That's one of my New Year's resolutions. Let me tell you how to do it. you lean over and cup the face of one of my little girls. And you tell her, you know, your dad is so disappointed in you.

He's just sicky, man. You just disappoint him and disappoint him and disappoint him. And it's just, it's exhausting, to be honest. It'd be a relief if you went away. Go find love somewhere else. Go try to eke out a modicrum of happiness somewhere else. Just get out of here because he doesn't want to see you. You speak like that to my kid, I'll be infuriated at you.

Don't miss this church. This is what the enemy does, that he tries to attack your sonship. He tries to let you not see the love of the father. And the lie that launches a million sins is to believe he's not a good dad. Dad, make war on that lie. Make war on it. It's not humble. it's ugly and it's destructive.

And so we make war on the deception because the reality is James says of his own will. He brought us forth by the Word of Truth. Satan's not the only one having babies. It says God out of his own will, out of his own desire, out of his own pleasure brought you forth. He wanted you. He brought you forth.

The first fruits of his creatures, he's done something in you. Lock on to that and the things of this earth will grow strangely dim in the light of his glory and grace. So that's the last encouragement. How to fight sin? What's our strategy?

The best defense is a good offense. It's to run in the paths of God because he set my heart free. How did Romeo get rid of Rosalind? How did Romeo get rid of Rosalind? Anyone remember Rosalind? No? Read it. Shakespeare. Early on, Romeo and Juliet, he is pining away about Rosal.

I miss Rosal and I went Rosal. And he's going on and on so much. starts to annoy Benvolio. And so Benvolio is like, dude, I'm taking you to a party tonight. There's going to be like a hundred girls there hotter than Rosalind. It's a rough translation. It's like the message version, but read it. It's there.

And Romeo says, the all-seeing son has ne'er met her match since first the world begun. Whoa. There's no one hotter than Rosalind. But then he goes to the party. And he sees Juliet. And that night, he sneaks into her yard and says, but soft, what light through your under window breaks? Is the east, and Juliet is the sun? Arise fair sun and kill the envious moon, which is already sick and pale with grief that thou her maid art far more fair than she.

Rosalind, who? And let me tell you something, the Bible's given us strategies to fight our temptation, but the best one, Best way to fight the temptation for adultery is a thriving marriage. Best way to fight the discouragement of isolation is to get in a solid biblical community. And the best way to fight a whole universe of deception and destruction from the devil is to delight in the everlasting love of your heavenly father who loves you. It's replacement. That's the key.

Augustine, one of the greatest Christian thinkers, arguably the greatest after the Apostle Paul, was a sex addict. and when he was presented with choosing Christ, he knew the gospel was real, but he was scared of the comforts he would lose if he went to the king. But he understood this is true and I want him more. So he put his faith in Jesus,

and then he wrote in his confessions, how sweet all at once it was for me to be rid of those fruitless joys I had once so feared to lose. He says, you drove them from me. you who are the true sovereign joy. You drove them from me, and you took their place.

You who are sweeter than all pleasure. It's not about trying harder. It's about resting in the arms of a loving father. It's not about trying to be the hero of your own story. It's putting your faith in the hero who died for you. And then it's walking with him, away from the lies, and towards the love of your father.

How did Jesus defeat the voice of the enemy out in the wilderness? Satan attacked his sonship if you are the son, if you are the son, if you are the son. But read the scripture moments before the heavenly father said, this is my beloved son in whom I'm well pleased. Jesus hadn't done a single miracle yet. Every blind person was still blind, lame people still couldn't walk. Water still water, hadn't turned into wine. But the father says, but that's my boy.

and I delight in him. And it was the pleasure of the Father that let Jesus handle the pressure of the desert. And it's the same with you. Come to rest in the arms of Christ. Come to step into the inexhaustible love of God. You need it, and the world needs to see it. So, Father, thank you

that you're honest with us that this is a fight. But the first step is for us to put our faith in the king who fought for us because the greatest fighters know what it is to be fought for. So Lord, if there's anyone listening to me that's never put their faith in Jesus, I pray they'd see that. He didn't come to give them a list of rules to try harder. He came to rescue them

to set them free. And so if there's anyone here who's never put their faith in Jesus, I pray today would be the day they say yes to you. If you're rescuing, rescue me. If you're saving, save me. If you're adopting, adopt me, I went in. And Father, I pray they would tell

some people at this church so they can get wired into the family. And then, Father, for those of us who know you, give us insight into our own lives, maybe even right now, help us see, hey, this is where the enemy gets you. And it's time to make some hard choices. To cut out, to uproot, to make war, to eliminate. Because you know where it leads, and there's no life there. God, help us see the changes we need to make. and give us the courage to share it with a trusted friend.

And then, Father, I pray over the months ahead, you would help us see the superior treasure of the inexhaustible love of the Father and the grace of Jesus Christ. Help us worship truly, a God who will set us free. Help us enjoy you in this space and in the morning and in the watches of the night. May it be you that we seek for our comfort in our life.

Oh, God, give us a vision now of what it would look like to enjoy the great. greatest of all pleasures, the love of our sovereign king. We love you, Lord. We trust you. We pray all this in Jesus' name.