Timothy Keller Sermons Podcast by Gospel in Life - Anatomy of Sin (Part 2)

Episode Date: October 1, 2025

Jeremiah is speaking at a time when his society was literally falling apart—politically, psychologically, socially and culturally. Everybody was asking, “What’s wrong?” And the answer of God through Jeremiah, was, “It’s not the economy. It’s sin.” The Bible shows us that sin is a dislocation of the soul. The soul should be centered on God, and all of our problems come from our unwillingness to center on him because we don’t want to lose control. So what happens? What are the effects of centering on something else? Jeremiah gives a metaphor of us falling in love with other gods, meaning these other things we center our lives on. And he shows that there are two major consequences: 1) our lover gods will always enslave us, and 2) our lover gods will always leave us empty. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on January 29, 1995. Series: The Seven Deadly Sins. Scripture: Jeremiah 2:19-32. Today's podcast is brought to you by Gospel in Life, the site for all sermons, books, study guides and resources from Timothy Keller and Redeemer Presbyterian Church. If you've enjoyed listening to this podcast and would like to support the ongoing efforts of this ministry, you can do so by visiting https://gospelinlife.com/give and making a one-time or recurring donation.

Welcome to Gospel in Life. Some people say the fundamental problem of the world is poverty. Others say it's bad systems, poor education, or biology. But what if none of these can fully explain the brokenness we see, both in the headlines and in our own hearts? In today's teaching, Tim Keller looks at how the Bible's teaching on sin gives us a deeply honest and yet incredibly hopeful view of the world. I'd like to read to you our text on which the teaching is based this morning.

It's Jeremiah chapter 2. We began looking at this chapter last week. This is the first of Jeremiah's sermons to the people of Judah. It's on the subject of sin, and we looked at the first part of the chapter, and the sermon last week, and we looked at the rest this week. Jeremiah 2 Versus 19 to 32 Your wickedness will punish you

Your backsliding will rebuke you Consider then and realize how evil and bitter it is for you When you forsake the Lord your God and have no awe of me declares the Lord, the Lord Almighty Long ago you broke off your yoke and tore off your bonds You said, I will not serve you indeed on every high hill and under every spreading tree you lay down as a prostitute i had planted you like a choice vine of sound and reliable stock how then did you turn against me into a corrupt wild vine

although you wash yourself with soda and use an abundance of soap the stain of your guilt is still before me declares the lord the sovereign lord how can you say i am not defiled i have not run after the bales See how you behaved in the valley, consider what you have done. You are a swift she camel running here and there, a wild donkey accustomed to the desert, sniffing the wind in her craving, in her heat who can restrain her. Any males that pursue her need not tire themselves. At mating time, they will find her. Do not run until your feet are bare and your throat is dry,

but you said, it's no use, I love foreign gods, and I must go after them. As a thief is disgraced when he's caught, so the house of Israel is, disgrace. They, their kings and their officials, their priests, and their prophets, they say to Wood, you are my father, and to stone, you gave me birth. They have turned their backs to me and not their faces, yet when they are in trouble, they say, come and save us. Where then are the gods you made for yourselves? Let them come if they can save you when you are in trouble. For you have as many gods as you have towns, O Judah. Why do you bring charges against me? You have all rebelled against me, declares the Lord. In vain I punished your people. They did not respond to correction. Your sword

has devoured your prophets like a ravening lion. You of this generation, consider the word of the Lord. Have I been a desert to Israel or a land of great darkness? Why do my people say, we are free to Rome? We will come to you no more. Does a maiden forget her jewelry? A bride, her wedding ornaments, yet my people have forgotten me. Days without number. This is God's word. Now, we started looking at this last week. This is a very modern situation into which Jeremiah is speaking because his country, his society was literally falling apart. It was falling apart politically and it was falling apart psychologically and socially and culturally. And everybody was asking, what's wrong? And the answer of

of the sermon, the answer of God through Jeremiah was, it's not the economy's stupid, it's sin. And he began, we looked at this last week, first talking about the character of sin. And the character of sin that we saw last week is beautifully summed up in a little statement by Dorothy Sayers, in which she defines sin as a deep interior dislocation of the soul. A deep interior dislocation of the soul.

It's a wonderful little phrase. When a hip or a bone of any sort is dislocated, what is that? What's the problem? It's off center. It's not centered at the spot it should be. And as a result, there's tremendous, it wreaks tremendous havoc. The muscles, the tissue, there's all this cutting and grinding, you see, and there's tremendous damage being done.

And it's in pain. Your hip doesn't work. You can't walk. You can't move. you can't move your arm. Sin is a dislocation of the soul. The soul should be centered on God. If there is a God, we saw last week, if there is a God,

then he'd be the great creator, and everything in our life should revolve around him, should center on him. But we said sin is the demand of the heart that everything, including God, revolve around me, my happiness, my goals, my agenda, what makes me comfortable. That's sin, a dislocation of the soul. And all of our problems come from our unwillingness to center on him because we do not want to lose control. And whatever

we center on controls us. So we say, we have no awe of him. We don't center on him. Now, that was last week, the character's sin. Today, we're going to look at the consequences. What actually happens? What are the effects? What are the things that actually happen when we do that? And the effects, of course, are terribly drastic. You see, right here in the beginning of this marvelous passage, it says, God says, your wickedness will punish you. Your backsliding will rebuke you.

You see that? Look, he says, I won't have to do it. Your wickedness will punish you. Your backsliding will rebuke you. When you tell a child, don't play with a toy that way, or it'll break. You know, the child loves the toy. He's saying, dear, don't do that. You're breaking the rules, and you'll break the toy.

What if the child continues to sin against what you said? What if the child continues to do differently than what he was told, and the toy breaks? And he's in tears. What does the parent do? You don't have anything else you have to do. He brought the punishment. His wickedness punished him. His backsliding and rebuked him, you see.

It already happened. not much else you have to do because you see he is saying in verse 19 sin brings its own consequences if you disobey the word of god the bible says that will be enough you'll break your heart you'll break your life you'll break your relationships you'll break your soul terrible consequences now what are those consequences how do we break things how does everything fall apart things fall apart says the novel that's right because of sin now what are the consequences and there are actually two in this particular passage there's two that are mentioned and they're mentioned under a wonderful image a wonderful new metaphor and that metaphor is this god in a penetrating way

says that sin leads us to fall in love with other gods in other words we have lover god We have gods, we have idols with whom we fall in love with. We have lover gods, and those lover gods will always do two things. They will always have two effects on us. They will enslave us and they will leave us empty. They will enslave us and they will leave us empty. Now let's take a look at that. They will enslave us and leave us empty.

Your lover gods, on the one hand they bring about a bondage and on the other hand they bring about radical disappointment. Complete emptiness. First of all, verse 23, 24, and 25. How can you say, I am not defiled? I have not run after the bales. See, the bales are idols. See how you behaved in the valley.

Consider what you've done. You're a swift-shee camel running here and there, a wild donkey accustomed to the desert, sniffing the wind in her craving, inner heat who can restrain her. Any males that pursue her need not tire themselves. At mating times, they will find her. Do not run until your feet are bare and your throat is dry.

But you said, it's no use. I love foreign gods. I must go after them. What do we learn here? There's an image that God uses to these desert dwellers who understood animals very well. They lived with the animals. Their livelihood depended on their animals. Their lives depended on the animals. And here's one thing they knew that when an animal got into the mating season, there was no stopping that animal. The picture is of an animal in the grip of craving, in the grip of a foundation. instinct. No stopping that animal. What are we learning here? The first thing we learn is sort of a general thing under this subject of slavery. First of all, sin has a power to enslave

that we hide from ourselves. You notice? God says, in the beginning, you say, I am not defiled. There's nothing wrong with me, but in the end of that two verses, do you see what he says? It's no use. I must go after them. And the first thing we're being taught here is that sin brings a slavery. Sin has a power over you that you will, in the beginning, in the beginning, you'll say, it's not true. I'm not defiled. This isn't a problem.

This isn't a problem. But in the end, you'll say it's no use. If you deny the power of sin in your life, eventually you'll be brought to despair. See, take a look. It says, how can I say, I am not defiled? there was a time magazine article back in august i think it was the august 15th edition and it was on adultery and fidelity and here was the point of the magazine article the point of the article was to say you know what marriage doesn't fit us we're not built to be faithful to one person all of our

lives it's not natural now what's behind that behind the scholarship you know what i hear I hear a guy wanting to break a promise to his wife he made many years ago to be faithful and saying, you know, I'm not defiled. It's just not natural. It's just the way I am. Marriage doesn't fit me. I am not defiled. I'm not in the power of sin, as I'm now breaking my promise.

I'm not in the grip of a lust. Oh, no. It's just as I'm just being true to who I am. God says, if you deny the power of sin early on in your life, rationalizing it, saying, I am not defiled, in the end you'll be brought to despair. Can't you see this? Can't you see the power of sin in your life? Listen, you who are married, you should certainly know. Before you get married, you're continually told by people about your faults. You're told that you're picky or you're sensitive or you're obsessive or you're kind of a coward here or you're

anxious or you're kind of selfish or you have a trouble with, you know, with your temper or you tend to hold grudges. And over the years, you've seen these things and people have pointed them out to you, but you've always said, I am not defiled. That's not such a big problem. I could change if I really had to, and then you get married. If there's anybody in this room who ought to know about the power of sin, it should be the people who are married who have been married. Why don't you know? You should know why. These things create problems for you and you see how strong they are, you say, okay, honey, I'll change. And you're right back into it. How many times, you don't have to be married to see this. You make your resolutions. You say, I'll never do that again.

And you do it. I won't lose my temper the way I used to. I won't stay in this habit. I won't give into fears. You think you're sincere. You are sincere. And you can't stop. Don't you see the power is sin in your life? Paul says, the Apostle Paul. He says, good that I would, I do not. And that which I would not, I do. Are you more compassionate than Paul? Are you more have more integrity than Paul? You have more of a sense of self-sacrifice than Paul? Are you a better person than Paul? But he admits it. Can't you see it? If you start out denying it, I'm not defiled, you'll end up saying it's no use. Eventually you'll see that there is a power in you that is beyond you.

You can spend a lot of time rationalizing it, and you can take courses in both psychology and sociology to do everything to redefine sin in such a way that we're able to say, we're not defiled, but in the end we'll say, it's no use. But here's what's so interesting about these three verses. It doesn't just tell us that sin is an enslaving power, but it tells us why.

And the reason it tells us, this is fascinating. God tells us that the reason that we are under the power of sin is because, listen, sin is a fatal attraction. Sin is a fatal attraction. But you say, it's no use. I love foreign gods. I must go after them. Now, what is a fatal attraction?

You know, the movie, of course, gave us the term, but we've always known about it. A fatal attraction is when a man or a woman gets so obsessed with someone that you'll do anything. You'll lie. You'll steal. You'll kill. Anything. And we all say, ah, of course, that's obsessive. That there's something wrong there.

That person has taken something and made it so important that it's more important than anything else, any principle, anything. Ah, we're not like that. And God says that's not true. God says every human being has a fatal attraction to something every human being has lover gods every human being has a bottom line every human being has something that you live for

that you say I must have that and whatever you say I must have that about that's your lover that's your God that's the thing that you rely on that's the thing that has total control over you. Total control.

Now you see, when he talks about the bales and the foreign gods, he said, oh, this is Israel. These are primitive. Well, you see, in Romans chapter one, this is the fundamental to the biblical analysis of the human condition. Romans chapter one, God says, all of us, because we will not center on God, because we would not glorify God,

we worship created things rather than the creature, and we worship and serve them. Now, what is Paul saying? He's not talking just about ancients, you know, polytheist, animists. He's talking about all of us. And he's saying this. Didn't we say that the character of sin was we refused to center on God? We refuse to put God in the center. So what do we do?

We have to put something in the center. You have to have something there. But whatever you have, because your center, was shaped for God because, as people continually say, there's a God-shaped whole in you. Whatever you put in there, whatever you make your bottom line, whatever you make your meaning in life, whatever you make the thing that you must have, whatever it is, because you put it in God's place, it becomes a God. You can't just like your bottom line. You can't just like the central value of your life. You are fatally attracted to it. You will do anything to get it. Anything.

love are gods you see foreign gods I must go after them this is a very very profound analysis I hope you see it in every way now somebody says now wait a minute what are you talking about anything anything you live for power or approval or control or needing to be needed or independence you see or achievement or work or romance or a personal relationship or relationships in general or one relationship in particular, or the way you look. But everybody's got something that they say, this is the one in whom's arms I put myself. This is the one in whom I rest.

This is the one who I say, if I have you, then I'll be happy. But I must have you. That's what we're talking about. Now, somebody says, well, listen, I can sort of, of C, this would be true of some people. I know of obsessed of people. I have heard of fatal attractions. And I also know of religious people, but not me. I'm skeptical. I'm totally skeptical. I believe in no absolute values of any sort. I'm a complete relativist. I'm totally independent.

I believe that I have to create my own reality. You see? Therefore, I serve nothing. But that's not true. Your skepticism, look at it. Your skepticism is the one thing you won't question. I can prove it to you. If you really were skeptical of your skepticism, you wouldn't be so skeptical. I can prove it to you. And look more carefully. Look more carefully. It's the thing you rely on.

It's how you face life. It's a thing by which you judge everything else. It's a thing that you're facing life with. It's a thing that makes you feel good about yourself. It's a thing, look carefully. It's that you have bet your eternal destiny on it. You can't prove there's no God. And yet you have bet your entire.

our destiny. Oh, my friends, we all have lover gods. We've all got bottom lines. We've all got ultimate concerns. We've all got the things that we say, it's no use. I must have this. And that's the way you can tell what they are. I've got to move on here because, you see, the first point is you're enslaved. We're enslaved, you know, the power of sin, but why? Why? Why are we enslaved? because anything that you put in the place where God should be becomes a God, anything except the true God about which you say, I must have it, becomes a fatal attraction. George McDonald, the old Scottish writers, put it this way,

anything that you cannot part with it need is your ruler. Think of that one. Everywhere we look, we see brokenness, wars, cruelty, and heartache. We feel it in the world around us and in our own lives. How did it get this way? And what can be done about it? In his brand new book that's releasing this month, What is Wrong with the World? Tim Keller offers a clear and compassionate answer. Drawing from a series of teachings given at Redeemer, Dr. Keller shows how the reality of sin explains the pain we see all around us and how only the gospel offers lasting freedom and healing. Whether you're overwhelmed,

by the state of our world, struggling with your own mistakes or choices, or looking for hope and joy, what is wrong with the world will help you see how the gospel speaks to both the heartache of our world and the pain within each of us. This newly released book, What is Wrong with the World, is our thanks for your gift this month to help Gospel in Life share the good news of Jesus. Request your copy today at gospelandlife.com slash give. That's gospelonlife.com slash give. Now here's Dr. Keller with the rest of today's teaching. test yourself for a minute for example is there anything that if you would lose it you would say we actually talked about this under a different guise two weeks ago did we know anything that you

look at you say if i don't have this or if i lose this or if i fail to get it i die i have nothing to live for i must have it anything but the true god that you say that about is more important than god anything what would you ditch god for some of you in the past have haven't you? What would you say, if God does this to me, if God lets this happen, then I want nothing to do with God, whatever that would be, would be more important than God, and it would be your God, right? What drives you? What is it about what you say, if I do not have this, I cannot receive life joyfully? The word must. If you use it about anything but God, you're under the power of that thing.

Right. Look at your depression. Look at your disappointments. Look at your anger. Look at your worry. And instead of saying, how can I change my circumstances, you have to say, look, the reason I'm so worried, the reason I'm petrified, the reason I'm so discouraged, is because there's something about which I am saying, I must have it. That's why having these emotions. It's at the bottom of everything.

The bondage of sin. Your idle gods, your lover gods will always leave you enslaved. But secondly, they will always leave you empty. Look at this passage. Secondly, they will always leave you empty. Down here, verse 27, they say to wood, you are my father, and to stone you gave me birth. They have turned their backs to me and not their faces. Yet when they are in trouble, they say, come and save us.

Where then are the gods you have made for yourselves? Let them come if they can and save you when you're in trouble, for you have as many gods as you have town. oh Judah. Now what do we learn here? Your lover gods will always leave you empty. Where are the gods when you're in trouble? And let me, you know, actually if you, and don't look, just listen to this. Just a couple of chapters later, Jeremiah is preaching again. In chapter 4 verse 30, he says the same thing, but he says it in such a poignant way. He says to the, he says to the, He says to his people, he says, what are you doing, oh, wasted, of devastated ones?

Why dress yourself in scarlet and put on jewels of gold? Why shade your eyes with paint? You adorn yourself in vain. Your lovers despise you. They seek your life. And what's the teaching here? The teaching is if there's anything in your life about which you say, besides God, about which you say, I must have this to receive life joyfully.

It controls you. That's the first point. But the second point is, you will never satisfy that lover. Never. Here's what God is saying. Ah, you devastated once. Why do you shade your eyes with paint? Why do you deck yourselves with jewels?

Your lovers will never be satisfied. They despise your life. They despise you and they seek your life. You will never satisfy them. I saw a book review about Irving Berlin's life. Irving Berlin wrote an awful lot of good songs. His daughter said the trouble was, no matter how much he achieved, as soon as he achieved something, he immediately would fall into a kind of discouragement.

He says, I'll never be able to do that again. I'll never be able to write a song like that one. The achievement, God, will never be satisfied. It doesn't matter. You say, if only I get to this level of achievement, then my lover God will say, you're acceptable. You've made it. It will never say that.

never they despise you how about the thinness god you know some people have an extreme example of it it's called eating disorders but you know what you'll never you'll never ever ever satisfy the thinness god you ever read interviews with supermodels how they hate the fact that there's you know a half an inch bump on the backside of their of their you know their shoulder blade and they just say there's something wrong with me, you'll never satisfy any of these things, the work God. When you pick up a child, newborn, and you're the parent, don't you dare look into its eyes and say, I will live for this. This is it. Now, I've got meaning in life. One of the most awful things about all those stories about babies having babies, you know, all the little girls

to say, I want to have this baby. Why? Then I'll have somebody to love. Then I'll have something to live for. I have nothing in my life. My dear friends. Your children, at some time, even when, things go pretty well in childering. At some point, your children will despise you. You can't live for that. Now, here's the power of an idol. They say to wood. They say to stone.

Now, the idol makers do not create wood and stone. They take wood and stone and create an idol out of it. See, here's the subtlety. Here's the power of an idol. They're good things. There's nothing wrong with wood. There's nothing wrong with stone. it's what you do with it. There's nothing wrong with children. There's nothing wrong with

trying to take care of your appearance. There's nothing wrong with work. There's nothing wrong with achievement. See, they're good things. That's why they're so powerful. God made them good things. They're good in themselves. They have a power of goodness in them. That's really where a lot of their power comes from. But when you put them where only God should go, when you set them where only God should go, it's what you've made out of them that exhorts an enormous power over you, but they will never be satisfied. Never. What do you want from these? You deck yourself for them.

You say, if only. Why do you work so hard? Why are some of you so driven in so many different ways? You want these idle gods to say something that they never will say. You want them to say, well done, good and faithful servant. Enter into the joy of your master. here's my arms open for you come in you are completely acceptable to me never never they say you could do better they always do and listen if you want to really see jeremiah says god says if you

want to really see how absolutely bankrupt and how absolutely empty your gods will leave you don't test your religion don't test your religion when the sun is shining when you're in trouble call on your your gods. How can they help you then? You see, an awful lot of you still are out there saying, you know, I don't know what you're talking about. I have no problems like this. I don't feel, I don't see any fatal attraction in my life, you see. Wait till the trouble comes. Call on your gods then. I'm going to give you three examples. False gods will never help you. These lover gods will never help you in three situations. Three. Okay. Really bad sickness. bereavement and death and failure. They'll never do it. Look, for example, what if you're really sick? What if you get really sick for a long term or permanently? You're on your back. There's no God except the true God that can help you there. Are you living for material possessions? Are you living for achievement? Are you living for physical beauty? Are you living for relationships? What are you living for? If you become permanently on your back, every one of those gods will have to desert you. They can't help you a thing there. Only the real God could. Well, you say that may not happen to me. You're going to get old.

calling your gods then none of them will come through but the true God none of them will be able to bring you through let's take a look at death what do you mean by death you say well I mean this what if you have a great marriage what if your spouse is the meaning of your life what is what if your spouse is what gives you

your joy somebody is going to have to die first it's something Kathy and I every so often look at and we say you know what unless some strange, strange, strange, incredible coincidence, one or the other is going to be left behind. And if we make, if either of us make the other one our God, how can our God help us when it's in the casket?

Call on your gods then. The gods that you have made for yourself, good things that you've turned into, gods. They will never help you then. Then you'll see. Then you'll see. You may not know that these are your lover gods until the sickness comes, until the death.

Let me give you one more. Failure. Failure. My dear friends, people are continually saying to me, you know, I guess I know God forgives me, but I failed here. I failed as a parent. I failed as a spouse. I failed as an employee.

I haven't made the grade. I did something wrong. I can't forgive myself. It sounds so humble, but you know what you mean? I have a God, you mean, higher than the God. Because the fact that the Bible says God forgives me, he doesn't really see i put something over god and now that thing won't forgive me you know why idols never forgive never if the thing you're living for is your um is you're work if the thing

you're living for is money the thing you're living for is relationships or the thing you're living for is morality i have people coming saying i'm very religious but i blew it and now i can't forgive myself i've gone to jesus and i know he forgives me but i can't forgive myself then morality is your idol God. It's Christianity as your God, not Christ. Religion will never forgive you. No God will ever forgive you, except the true God. They won't.

They despise you. They seek your life. Call on your gods, the gods that you have made for yourself, in time of trouble, and you will see, if you can't forgive yourself, it's because you've got a God higher than God, and no God, but God will ever forgive. you don't you see these things can't help you i mean if moral achievement is is the thing that you're living for how can it help you when it's gone if relationships are the thing you're living for how can

they help you when they're gone don't you see that they can never help you in death they can never help you in failure they can never help you in sickness and suffering they you know why because they don't exist they're an extension of yourself an extension of your will of power you see they have no life in them they're just stocked they're just stuck they're just a stone. It'll never help you when your heart is broken. And if you cannot find any comfort when your heart is broken, it's because there's something more God than God in your life. Now lastly, all right, these things leave you enslaved and they leave you empty. Well, how can we be healed? wonderfully look at the very end verse 31 hear the word of the lord have i been a desert to israel oh look at this look at

this have i been a desert to israel or a land of great darkness why do my people say we are free to rome we will come to you no more does a maiden forget her jewelry does a bride forget her wedding ornaments yet my people have forgotten me. Days without a number. Now look here. Look. What is God saying? He says, listen. Have you ever seen a bride coming down the aisle saying, oh my gosh, I forgot to put on makeup? Have you ever seen a bride come down the aisle? I said, oh my gosh, you know, I forgot to wear my ear rings. They don't do that. Well, maybe, maybe that one. But, you know, they don't forget things like that. They don't forget this. Why? A bride does an awful lot of work to be as absolutely beautiful as she possibly can be on that and by the way there's all i mean i've never seen a bride who failed never never there's all sorts of ways to hide the parts of you that's not that attractive all sorts of ways to highlight the parts of you that are and you come down looking like a vision and everybody in the whole auditorium wants to marry you why do you work so hard for that to happen because what you want you're thinking

about them, but basically you're thinking about him, and you're coming down, dear lover, and you want him to say, I open to you. You're so beautiful, I accept you completely. All the barriers are down. You have complete access. Well done. Enter into my joy. God says, you know how to make yourself acceptable physically, but you don't understand how to do it spiritually. You know why you're working so hard? Do you know why you're going after these? You know why you're trying so hard to be pretty? You know why you're trying so hard to be successful? Do you know why you're trying so hard for these things for power and for approval? You're trying to cover your nakedness. You're trying to cover over the sense of inadequacy we all have, right? You're trying very hard to get

someone to say, I accept you. Don't you understand? I can be your ornament. I can be your righteousness. I can be your acceptability. I can do it. Now, I don't know what Jeremiah thought God was talking about. He had a general understanding of it, but we have a specific understanding of it. In chapter five of Ephesians we read, Husbands love your wives, as Christ loved the church, and gave himself up for her to make her holy,

cleansing her so as to present her to himself radiant without stain or wrinkle or any blemish, holy and blameless. How does Jesus Christ make you what you've been trying to make yourself all of your life by going after these lover gods? How does he do it? You know how he does it? He gave himself. Every other God despises you and seeks your life.

But this God gave... He doesn't seek your life. He gave his life. This is a God who on the cross was stripped so you could be clothed. He was naked in the dark so that you could be clothed in the light. You see? He was disfigured so you could be beautiful. He was cast out so someone to the Father could say, well done.

Good and faithful servant. When we believe in him, all of his great work on the cross becomes art. his righteousness becomes ours. That's what the Bible says. That's how God can say here. I don't know how they understood it, but we understand it now. Does a bride forget her ornaments? Does a bride forget her beauty yet you have forgotten me? I can be your beauty. Here you are out running around, desperately trying to look great, to get your lover gods, to get others around you to say, well done good and faithful servant. You're trying to clothe yourself with righteousness. You can never do it. I and I alone can do it.

see what's going on? Do you see what he's saying? A bride forgets, would a bride forget her wedding dress, but you've forgotten me. The most astonishing thing, when you ever look at anything and say, I must have you. If I don't have that, I die. And some of you are doing that right now. That's the reason why you're so discouraged. When you say that, you have completely forgotten or you've never heard of what Jesus did on the cross for you. He was stripped naked so that you could be clothed. He's your jewelry. He's that which makes you beautiful. That's why God says, am I a desert to you? You don't see what I've done for you. You don't see what I can be to you. So here's what I say. What you've got to do. Look, I'm not, listen, I'm not trying to prove that

Christianity is true. I'm just trying to show you there's not even another religion that claims to have a God like this. Every other God in every other religion, every other God in every other philosophy, every other God says, do this and you will live, fail and you will die. We have the only God who says,

fail and I will die for you. There is no other religion. Other religions say, our God is too great to have died. Our religion says, our God is so great that he died. Every other God seeks your life. This God gives his life for you.

I'm not trying to prove that Christianity is true. There's ways of giving the evidence. I'm just trying to say, this is the only religion that even claims to have a God like that. As the great poem goes, Other gods were strong, but thou wast weak. They rode, but thou did stumble to the throne. And to our wounds, only God's wounds can speak.

And no God has wounds, but thou alone. The only God that even claims to have wounds, the only God that even claims to give himself for you. Here's what you need to do. you're distressed. Instead of just saying, why am I so distressed? Why does God let this happen to me? Realize the reason you're so distressed is because there's things about which you're saying, I must have them. Then turn away and say, wait a minute, I don't have to have them. The only thing I have to have is Jesus Christ, who is my ornament. I don't have to use these things to clothe my sense

of inadequacy. He's my beauty and he's my righteousness. In other words, say to him what the last, you know the stanza? Oh, you remember the chorus of that hymn? In other words, say, I will arise and go to Jesus. He will embrace me in his arms. In the arms of my dear Savior, ah, there are 10,000 charms. Don't forget him. Let's pray. Father, as we offer ourselves to you now, we're beginning to see that things that we looked at in our lives as inexplicable pain and and difficult misery and unexplainable distress. We're starting to see how it all fits together. It's because the other things that we've gone after besides you,

the things that we've centered our life on instead of you, they despise us, they seek our life. We're trying to get them to say, well done, they never will be satisfied. We will arise, we'll go to Jesus. He will embrace us, and there will find true rest. we thank you that in him we are radiant spotless without stain or wrinkle father those of us who are here who know this but we're not living it we pray that you give us the power to live it and face the week with it those of us here who don't understand

this yet i pray that you would get after them and they would never give up until they understand it and rejoice in it as the central fact of their life and we ask this in Jesus name amen Thanks for listening to Tim Keller on the Gospel and Life podcast. If you'd like to see more people encouraged by the gospel-centered teaching and resources of this ministry, we invite you to consider becoming a Gospel and Life monthly partner. Your partnership allows us to reach people all over the world with the life-giving power of Christ's love. To learn more, just visit gospelandlife.com slash partner.

That website again is gospelandlife.com slash partner. Today's sermon was recorded in 1995. The sermons and talks you hear on the Gospel and Life podcast were recorded between 1989 and 2017 while Dr. Keller was senior pastor at Redeemer Presbyterian Church.