What Relevance Does Faith Have to My Life?

Good morning, church. The scripture reading this morning comes from Luke chapter 12, beginning at verse 13.

Luke 12 · chapter mention

Please follow along on the screen or in your bulletin.

Someone in the crowd said to him, teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.

But he said to him, man, who made me a judge or arbitrator over you?

And he said to them, take care and be on your guard against all covetousness, for one's life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.

And he told them a parable saying, the land of a rich man produced plentifully.

And he thought to himself, what shall I do?

For I have nowhere to store my crops.

And he said, I will do this.

I will tear down my barns and build larger ones.

And there I will store all my grain and my goods.

And I will say to my soul, soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years.

Relax, eat, drink, be merry.

But God said to him, fool, this night your soul is required of you.

And the things you have prepared, whose will they be?

So is the one who lays up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God.

And he said to his disciples, therefore, I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat, nor about your body, what you will put on.

For life is more than food and the body more than clothing.

Consider the ravens, they neither sow nor reap.

They have neither storehouses nor barn, and yet God feeds them.

Of how much more value are you than the birds?

And which of you, by being anxious, can add a single hour to his span of life?

If then you are not able to do a smaller thing as that, why are you anxious about the rest?

Consider the lilies, how they grow.

They neither toil nor spin.

Yet, I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.

But if God so clothes the grass, which is alive in the field today, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, how much more will he clothe you?

Oh, you of little faith.

Fear not, little flock.

For it is your father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom.

Sell your possessions and give to the needy.

Provide yourselves with money bags that do not grow old, with a treasure in the heavens that does not fail,

where no thief approaches and no moth destroys.

For where your treasure is, there your heart be also.

Amen.

Thank you, Angeline.

Just bring this up.

Great welcome again, everybody.

Excuse me.

My name is Chris, if you don't know me.

And it's not quite as tall as Kevin.

And it's just really exciting.

We're coming to the end of our series, looking at why Christianity this morning.

And we're going to look at how relevant faith is to life.

But before we do that, I just want to pray for us that we wouldn't just kind of go through the motions in hearing someone talk for a little while,

but actually God would speak to us and our hearts would be open to him.

So just bow your heads with me now and let's pray.

Father, I thank you that you're not a God who is absent.

You're not a God who is silent.

You're not a God who is distant.

But you're a God who comes close to us right today, wants to speak to us today,

and wants to give us life and hope and a joy in you today.

And I pray, Lord, as I speak and as your word comes, Lord, I pray that it wouldn't just be words.

I pray that your spirit would come in your power and open our hearts.

You'd challenge us.

You'd encourage us.

You'd change us.

And that we would see you.

And we would never be the same again.

In Jesus' name.

Amen.

Okay.

Okay.

Okay.

If you can't hear me, just kind of throw something in my general direction.

So I was in Wong Tai Sin Temple.

And I was being shown around by this 17-year-old kid.

And he showed me around all the different gods and everything that was going on in the temple.

And at the end of the tour, me and my friend, my friend asked this guy,

Oh, okay, that's really interesting, everything you shared with us.

Tell me, do you have any faith or any belief?

And he said to us something that I think many people in Hong Kong said.

He said, I don't have time to think about that kind of thing.

I'm just too busy.

He's 17 years old.

But you see, for many people, life is divided between kind of a sacred and secular world.

A practical world where, you know, the real stuff of life happens.

You know, you need jobs and relationships and the things you really care about.

And then there's kind of spiritual stuff, which is maybe, is interesting if you have the time.

But it's not really practically connected to the real stuff of life.

And so what we realize with this is actually many people say,

I'll put off thinking about faith and things until maybe I've got a bit more free time

and I've got a little bit of interest.

But the problem with that is life isn't divided into neat compartments.

You see, your work, your relationships, in fact, everything you do

is driven and shaped through a lens of a story you believe,

of something of where you find your value,

of where you find your sense of freedom,

of the story of where you find satisfaction and rest in life.

Everything you do is shaped through a lens.

And that story, that lens you believe,

can either enslave you or it can free you.

It can either give you something meaningful and purposeful to live for

or it can crush you or lead you to crushing other people.

And so what I want to talk about today is just three things

that I think Christianity and the gospel gives us as believers

and why it's relevant in life.

So we're going to talk about how it gives value for people who are status-seeking.

We're going to talk about how it gives freedom for those of us who are enslaved.

And we're going to talk about how it brings rest for the restless.

Okay?

So let's go with the first one.

Value that the Christianity gives us, the gospel gives us.

You know, historically, people have found their identity in a couple of different ways.

One way is by looking outward into what other people around you think about you.

So in traditional Chinese society,

your identity and your values found in fulfilling your duties towards your family

and towards the greater nation even.

And in the context of that kind of story of where your identity is found

and in the context of this story that we heard read,

there's a traditional structure for even inheritance

where the older brother is somebody.

He's the one, because he's the older brother, he gets the inheritance.

And in traditional culture, what happens is you keep your position by controlling other people.

And so you see in this story, the sense of the person, the brother who is crying out,

he says, hey, like, intervene, Jesus, in this issue that I have with my brother.

And why is he even talking to Jesus?

Because he feels the way that social expectations are restricting him.

To have value, you do what your family or what your peers value.

Be a lawyer, be a doctor, be a banker, even if you're a gifted ballet dancer.

That doesn't matter, because it's what everyone else thinks valuable is what you should do.

And that can be suffocating.

And so this younger brother, and commentators will tell us it is a younger brother,

he will reject that idea, and he shouts out to Jesus,

because he sees the whole unfairness of the traditional system.

And he wants the freedom to make his own choices, pursue his own dreams,

because that's where he will find his value.

You see, if he has got money, and he's got the freedom to do what he wants with it,

then he can be somebody.

But what he found is his value is not found in looking outwards to others,

it's found in looking inward into what his own desires are.

And the problem is that his brother is standing in the way.

And so he looks to Jesus.

He says,

Jesus, come tell my brother to divide the inheritance.

He looks to an outside authority to try and validate him.

Because you see, if you actually look inward to try and be somebody to your own desires,

you'll always end up needing someone else or something else to validate you.

You know, we try in our culture, we're probably more,

we've got a mix of both of those sense of identities in Hong Kong, right?

Some of us lean more to one, some of us lean more to the other.

But for people who follow their own dreams and desires,

what you find is,

you've got to find your identity in something outside of yourself.

So you look to things like your brands,

what you wear,

where you shop,

the car you drive,

or even to your work,

to give you a sense of value.

You know, I spoke to one guy

who got his dream job

in a top company.

And he had a couple of friends with him at the same time

who managed to get the same job.

And about a month after he got this job,

he came complaining to me,

saying his friends

had got all the interesting,

career-relevant work

in their team,

and he was stuck in a dead-end project,

just crunching numbers.

And he was beginning to despair

and actually resent his friends

and try and think of ways out.

He's like,

hey, should I go to another job?

Because he thought he wasn't being valued.

Because he thought others didn't appreciate him.

Because he thought that something was stopping him

from being somebody.

He'd been there a month.

You know, the atheist philosopher,

Alan de Botton,

he says this,

he says,

a work-based identity,

which is a real story in our culture,

is by its nature extremely unstable.

We're a sacking,

a profit downgrade,

or a retirement away

from losing an established sense of self,

of who we think we are.

And because of competition

in a market economy,

our status depends on victories over others.

We end up wanting others to sink

because every time they do,

our own prestige will be enhanced.

That doesn't describe anywhere in Hong Kong,

does it?

You see,

in traditional society,

your value comes outwardly.

In individual society,

it comes from your own desires and inwardly.

But you've always got to be validated by others.

But Jesus comes along and he says,

don't look outward,

don't look inward.

Don't even look religiously to me.

He says,

what you need to do is you need to look upward

to find your own ultimate identity.

What he says is this.

He says,

do you know who your father is?

He says,

God feeds.

He says,

consider the ravens.

God feeds even these little birds.

How much more value are you than them,

than these birds?

And he goes on to say,

listen,

all this other stuff you're worried about,

your father knows what you need.

You see,

what he's saying is,

in the stories of our culture,

you don't have to try and be somebody,

or make yourself someone,

or maintain your position,

through some kind of performance,

or some way of crushing other people.

He says,

I give you an identity.

For those who trust me,

you go from being orphans,

you've got to fight it out to try and be the top dog,

to actually becoming adopted sons and daughters,

of the king of the whole universe.

You have a rich,

heavenly father.

And he loves us.

Isn't that amazing?

He loves us.

And he sent Jesus,

not just for some kind of theoretical idea,

which is detached from your life.

He sent Jesus,

to release you,

and to lift you,

out of the rat race,

of having to try and prove yourself to be someone,

from seeking value from everybody else,

in your performance,

so you find worth and value in his love for you.

You know,

if one of Lee Ka-Shing's sons,

or granddaughters,

came to do an apprenticeship in a company,

but none of the colleagues,

none of the bosses,

knew who she was.

Now,

she may get shouted at.

She may make mistakes.

She's got to work hard,

and do her best in the job.

But at the end of the day,

whether she's been shouted at,

or whether she's been praised,

she can walk out,

and in and out of that office,

with confidence,

because she knows,

she's the granddaughter of Lee Ka-Shing.

Right?

She's secure,

if her identity is not in that.

But Christianity says,

the God of the whole universe,

through Jesus,

has given you status,

apart from your performance,

how much more secure should we be?

So that means,

the domestic helper,

who is devalued in our society,

is honored in Jesus,

and is free to do her job well,

without being crushed by inferiority.

That means,

the CEO,

who is honored by society,

doesn't need to crush people,

or maintain his own kind of superiority,

to maintain his position,

because he has a heavenly father,

who gives him value,

apart from his social status.

You see,

faith in Christ,

sets you free,

from running on the treadmill,

of seeking to be somebody,

because Christ has already made us somebody.

That's the first thing.

It gives us value,

for the status seeking.

Second thing,

that the gospel gives us,

it gives us freedom,

for the enslaved.

You know,

some people,

live for the weekends.

Okay?

It's Monday morning,

and they're already thinking about Friday night.

That's none of you in here,

I'm sure.

We live for our comfort,

right?

Other of us,

you know,

Monday morning,

we're thinking,

what can I accomplish this week?

You know,

the A types,

you're kind of driven,

you thrive off development,

achievement,

accomplishment,

improvement,

we're very different kinds of people.

But whether you're living for comfort,

or whether you're living for success,

or anything else like this,

Bob Dylan,

that great theologian,

said this,

the singer,

he said,

you've got to serve somebody.

We're all serving something.

And the question is,

what master in your life,

brings life,

and love,

and freedom,

and which master will enslave you,

or leave you trapped,

in regret,

fear,

or insecurity,

if you don't get what you want.

Jesus comes to this man,

and he says to him,

he actually completely avoids the question,

the request the man has said,

and he says,

take care,

and be on your guard,

against all covetousness,

that means greed,

for one's life,

doesn't consist,

in the abundance,

of one's possessions.

What he's saying is,

he's saying,

don't live,

for the wrong treasure,

in your life.

Because when you look back,

on your life,

you'll find you've actually,

wasted your life,

and you're living in regret.

And what he does,

he then tells this story,

of a rich farmer,

a successful farmer.

And he says,

this farmer,

his success wasn't enough,

he was like,

oh,

I've got all of this,

now let me build bigger barns,

so I can store more,

I mean,

and so he's investing,

bigger warehouses,

he's seeking financial security,

so he works hard now,

so he can retire early,

he can relax,

eat,

drink,

and be merry.

He wants to play golf,

he wants to go to good restaurants,

and have holidays,

in the Maldives.

That's his treasure in life.

He's chasing the Hong Kong dream.

Right?

Doesn't everyone want that?

That's the kind of system,

that he,

that's the story,

that he's playing out.

But Jesus says,

there's a couple of things,

that are wrong in this.

The first thing is,

your treasure can be taken away from you.

He says,

fool.

That's pretty strong.

He says,

you fool.

And Jesus says to everyone,

following the Hong Kong dream,

you fool.

Invest in a ship,

that's got holes in it,

and you will see your investment sinking,

before your very eyes.

He says,

tonight,

the whole of what you've lived for,

will be gone.

And who's going to pick up everything that you have?

You see,

what he's saying is,

make your kids' education your treasure,

and see how insecure and fearful you are,

when it comes to trying to find schools for them.

Make financial security your treasure,

and see how insecure and fearful you become,

when the stock market crashes.

You see,

anything that can be taken away from you,

is not a treasure that is stable enough to hold you.

And the next thing he said,

that comes out of this is,

if something can be taken away from you,

but this man cannot see it.

Because you see,

if you live for another treasure,

which is not Jesus,

it will blind you,

and enslave you,

to reality.

I know someone,

again,

whose treasure was his career.

He was doing really well in his career,

but he had a boss,

who he could never say no to,

who was just unreasonable,

who was exploitative,

and who really was just,

just really enslaving him in his job.

But he would never say no,

because he was afraid,

of being fired,

or afraid of losing his promotion opportunity.

And he'd be out for a birthday meal with his wife,

and his boss would call,

and demand something to be done right there,

which actually didn't need to be done at all,

for the next few days.

And despite his wife's protestations,

he would just get up and do it.

Until the day,

when his wife sat him down,

gave him an ultimatum,

and said,

you can either draw healthy boundaries,

around your boss,

or I'm leaving you.

And suddenly,

he saw how his self-centered desires,

had blinded him,

to the destructive choices that he'd made.

It had enslaved him,

and actually the very things that he loved,

he was actually destroying.

That's all of us.

With any treasure that you put before Christ.

Because any treasure that can be taken away,

will leave you insecure,

it will leave you a slave,

and it will blind you.

But Jesus says this,

where do you get freedom?

He says,

make God your treasure.

He says,

seek first God's kingdom.

Worship God before anything else.

And then he says,

fear not,

little flock,

it's your father's good pleasure

to give you the kingdom.

Sell your possessions,

give to the needy,

provide yourselves with money bags

that don't grow old,

with a treasure in the heavens

that doesn't fail,

where no thief approaches,

and no moth destroys,

for where your treasure is there,

is your heart.

You see,

what is he saying?

He's saying,

actually,

when you place your treasure in Christ,

and worshipping him above everything else,

it can't be taken away from you.

You see,

when God is your treasure,

the economy can be collapsing,

your kids may be failing in all their exams,

the people you're trying to help,

and you live for helping people,

may be refusing to listen to you,

but there is still,

your life is not collapsed,

because you still have

an unshakable anchor.

There is someone

who nothing can take away,

the place of joy that you can have,

peace,

security,

because he says,

there's no thief

that can take away God from you.

You see,

that's why research actually shows

people who have faith

have far higher levels

of emotional,

mental,

and physical well-being

than those without.

I didn't know that.

They're more storm-resistant.

It also says,

he says,

give to the needy,

sell your possessions.

Do you know what research also shows?

That people of faith

who really have God as their center

are far more generous

with their time,

money,

and talents,

especially when it's hard times,

because they've got a security

that means they don't have to hold on.

So if you are a believer,

or if you're not,

how are you doing with generosity

in the times we live in right now?

Because that will actually

give you a window

on where your treasure is.

But it's not that Jesus says

it just can't be taken away from you.

When God is your treasure,

it also sets you free.

Because you have a master,

a king of his kingdom,

who is not there to enslave you,

but he's there to free you

from the slavery

from your own desires.

For that man,

it was his greed

that drove him

and blinded him.

But what God says is,

I want to bring you

into freedom.

And freedom only works

if you live according

to your design.

Do you know that?

If you're a fish,

and you think,

hey,

I'd just love to spend

a little bit of time

on the land.

Now,

you might want to do that,

but let me tell you,

you're going to die.

You see,

fish were made

to flourish in water.

We were made

to flourish

in relationship

and worshiping God

as the center.

And so when God calls us

to do things,

there are commands

in scripture,

right?

And often what we think,

even if we've been Christians

for a long time,

deep in our hearts,

we often think

God's commands

are restrictive to us.

They're trying to hold us

back from freedom.

But actually,

his commands are there

to free you from yourself.

Just think about forgiveness.

You know,

all the research,

again,

shows that forgiveness

is actually

both good for you

and it's good for relationships

and it's good for society.

I mean,

it's a win,

okay?

I talked to one lady.

She'd been badly treated

by a colleague.

And she was bitter

and angry

and miserable.

Every time she went to work,

it was just like hell.

for her.

And we talked about

the forgiveness

that God calls us to.

And she said,

I don't want to forgive.

Anyone ever felt like that?

Right?

I don't want to forgive.

And I said,

don't you realize

that the longer

you hold on to bitterness

and anger,

the greater the control is

that that other person

has over you.

You realize you're a slave?

Your own desires

for what you think you want

actually leave you to slavery.

slavery.

But Jesus says

he died both to forgive you

but also to call you

to forgive others.

Not just because

he's trying to make life

difficult for you.

He wants to lead you

into a freedom of life.

And that goes for

every command he ever gives.

Even the ones

that you are resisting

right now in your life.

He wants your freedom.

freedom.

So when you follow Christ

as the center of your life,

nothing,

it cannot be,

your treasure cannot be

taken away from you.

And it sets you free.

He gives you value

for status-seeking people.

And thirdly,

and finally,

it gives you rest

for the restless.

You know,

Jesus,

at least three or four times

in this passage,

he says to his disciples,

don't be anxious

about your life.

He says,

which of you by being anxious

can add anything more

onto your life?

He says,

why are you anxious

about your life?

Like he goes,

why are you worried

about everything?

What is he assuming?

That people are anxious

and restless

and worried.

Right?

And this was

2,000 years ago

before Twitter,

email,

Facebook,

any other social media.

You see,

what they were anxious about

was that they

and their families

were always two harvests

away from death

by starvation.

That's fairly,

like,

reasonable,

right?

I mean,

what we get anxious about

is we get anxious

about our kids

don't get into

the right schools,

we feel like we're

falling behind

everybody else at work,

we don't have

that amazing relationship

we wanted,

we feel that people

will reject us.

Now,

put that in perspective

of starvation,

and it's not quite

in the same category.

Right?

But if I was to say

to you,

as Jesus kind of says,

he says,

hey,

stop worrying,

it's stupid.

I mean,

he kind of says,

hey,

it's not going to add

anything to your life.

Like,

he goes for a logical

argument,

he doesn't leave it there,

but he starts with

a logical argument.

But if I say to you,

stop worrying,

does that help you

to stop worrying?

No,

if I say,

worrying is stupid,

you go,

I know,

but I can't help it.

You see,

why do we keep

staying awake at night

worrying?

Why are we still

on this treadmill

in life?

It's because

deep inside,

we're desperately

insecure.

All of us.

And if you don't

think you are,

you're probably

more insecure

than you realize.

You see,

we're insecure,

we want to be loved,

we want to feel safe,

we want to belong,

we want to flourish,

and those we love too.

And so we want

to control our world

so that we can be

like at the center,

we can get those things.

But hasn't COVID

showed us

we're not in control

of our world?

If you thought

you were in 2019,

you have been

very severely

disillusioned.

The world

is not,

is uncertain place.

People are not

always safe.

And the reason

we hurry,

the reason we strive

to prove ourselves,

the reason we feel

like we've never

done enough

to really earn,

to really be able

to rest well,

is because deep down

we know that we're

not totally acceptable.

If you're honest.

Because if others

really knew

what was inside of you,

even if your loved ones

knew everything

that you actually

really thought,

that would be

a scary prospect.

And so what we want

to do,

we want to do

anything we can

to cover up,

to prove and to show

that we're worthy

of love,

we're worthy of respect,

we're worthy of being

noticed.

That's why we're so

busy all the time.

And you know,

what some people

do with that is

then they try

and find their worth

in religion.

Religion tells you,

you've messed up,

you've sinned,

but now just do

some really good

spiritual things.

And that will kind of,

that will get you

in the right place.

You know,

read your Bible,

go to church,

give some money,

give money in the offering,

give even more,

because then you might

get a bit more

kind of a sense

of peace in your heart.

Be a good person,

help the granny

across the road.

Even if she doesn't

want to cross,

just help her anyway.

Anyway.

But then the next time

that you screw up

and shame and guilt

come upon you,

what have you got to do?

You've just got to keep

on that treadmill.

It's never ending.

But we've quoted this before,

but I think this is really pertinent.

The fourth century theologian,

Augustine,

said,

because you have made us

for yourself,

our hearts are restless

till they find their rest

in you.

You see what he's saying?

He's saying there's only one place

where you can be fully known

and fully loved.

And that's through Jesus Christ.

You see what Jesus says

in this passage?

He says,

it's your father's

good pleasure

to give you the kingdom.

Now what's he talking about?

The kingdom

is the place

where we are living

in right,

satisfying relationship

under his rule.

It's where we belong.

It's where we are loved.

It's where we flourish in him

and he gets all the glory.

He's at the center.

What he's saying is this.

The man whose greed

led him to strive

ceaselessly

to find life

in his bank balance

and then for the future,

he says,

God has already got

an abundance of life for us.

He's not stingy.

He wants,

no,

not just he wants,

he actually gets pleasure

from giving

the kingdom to us.

Do you see that?

It brings a smile

to his face.

He's not going,

oh,

well,

I guess I better be generous

to them.

That's my job as God.

No,

it gives him

this overwhelming pleasure

for us to find

satisfaction in him.

You see,

Jesus is saying

to those who are

trying to control

our worry,

our world through worry,

through restless striving.

He says,

come to me,

all you who are weary

and heavy laden,

and I will give you rest.

Anyone feel restless?

You see,

how does he give us rest?

Well,

the God of the whole universe,

the one who sustains us,

the one who's got

the past,

the present,

and the future

all in his hands

right now,

the one who's actually

in control

of your circumstances,

whatever you're going

through right now,

the one who has

all of that,

he has the world

on his shoulders,

so you don't have

to take the weight

of the world

on your shoulders.

But more than that,

more than even just

trusting him

with your circumstances,

he says to insecure

people like you

and me,

unacceptable people,

that he's made

in exchange,

that he says,

I take your life

and I give you mine.

Because on the cross,

he's taking all the heap

of our restless worries

and our guilt

and our shame,

and he says,

I took that on myself.

He was weighed down

with the burden

of your sin,

your guilt,

your striving,

that you could rest

in him.

And that rest

doesn't mean

you're just sitting

on the sofa,

it means heart rest.

It means you can go

to work and be busy,

but actually you don't

have to prove yourself.

It means he is

the sacrifice for you,

so you do not need

to make yourself worthy.

It means the God

who rules the world

came down in Jesus

and it was his pleasure

to crush Jesus.

That's what Isaiah 53 says.

Jesus is the one person

who knows the depths

that your heart

can sink to.

Do you know why he knows?

Because he's experienced

it on the cross.

He's experienced

the weight of your anger,

the weight of your frustration,

the weight of everything

that you go through.

He has felt that

and taken it,

and yet with the full knowledge

of how bad

you and I can be,

yet he doesn't reject us,

he doesn't turn away from us,

he doesn't do all the things

that we fear

from everybody else around us.

Instead, he runs towards us

and his death

brings forgiveness to us,

cleanses us,

and he says,

it's my good pleasure

to give you the kingdom.

I want that for you.

I've done that

so you can come

and be set free

from worshipping

everything else,

being slaves to everything else

so that you can find

freedom in me.

And that's the place of rest.

And he calls us

to follow him

on that way of freedom

and flourishing.

The place where you're

fully known

and fully loved.

You know,

I often meet

either some older people

going up the steps

in the MTR

and they're carrying

these really heavy loads.

And I often stop and say,

hey, do you want a hand?

Can I give you a hand?

And many of them say no.

And what I see them doing

is they're kind of like

puffing and panting,

they're exhausted,

they're kind of swearing

under their breath,

they're complaining

about everything,

and they're getting up here

and I'm like,

are you sure you don't want a hand?

And they're going,

no.

And I look at them

and go,

you know,

it was really simple,

I could have just

given you a hand up.

Why don't they?

Well,

it's because of our pride.

It's because we want to feel

like we've done it.

It's because we want to go,

there we go,

I managed it by myself.

I might have destroyed

everyone else in the process,

but I managed it.

You see,

what keeps us restless

when rest is available for us

in our everyday lives

is our pride.

It's because

we often prefer a religion

or a non-religion

of performance

to a place of rest.

But the good news

of Christianity

is for anyone

who's willing

to lay down your pride,

for anyone

who's willing to say,

I don't have to be

in control of my life.

I don't have to prove myself.

Jesus has done everything

to say,

there's a gift for you

today

of rest.

It's not grudging

kind of acceptance.

There's a gift.

And if you are not

a Christian today,

my challenge is,

will you take

the offer

and receive

the gift

of his rest to you?

Or do you want to

just carry on your life

on that treadmill?

Because Christ

has done everything

for us.

If you are a Christian,

you know,

there's someone I know

who their relationship

with their dad

was really strained.

Growing up,

he'd been really critical,

controlling.

Nothing they did

was ever good enough.

They could never

say no to him.

They were constantly

compared with other people,

with their siblings

or others,

and they never felt

they were good enough.

And no matter

how successful

they were,

and they tried

really hard

to be successful

and to please,

they always felt

like a failure.

And they lived

with this resentment

inside of them.

And they often tried

to avoid their dad

because he always

made them feel

like a failure.

Until the penny

dropped for them,

that Jesus

didn't just die

to send you to heaven.

Jesus died

to take their shame,

to take their guilt,

to even take

that sense of failure.

God was pleased

through what Christ

has done,

not through their performance,

but totally independent

of their dad's approval.

They had a status.

They had a place

of freedom.

They had a place

where they were worthy.

They were no longer

slaves to his expectations.

And that set them free.

I think many of us

still live

in places

where maybe

from our past,

maybe from things

that people have said

to us,

we're in bondage.

And the gospel

kind of stays up

here in our heads,

but it's not sunk down

into our hearts

in these areas.

And what it did

for this person,

it set them free

to draw healthy boundaries

and to actually say no

to their dad

when they had to.

It set them free

to apologize

to their dad

for resentment.

It set them free

to pity him

and to seek

how to love him

rather than

how to avoid him.

And every time

when there used

to be constant stress

before he rang

and they're going,

what does he want now?

Then they had

this peaceful rest

because they knew

my heavenly father,

my heavenly father,

his opinion

counts most.

You see,

make God your treasure

and he gives you value.

You find a place

of freedom.

You find a place

of rest.

Look anywhere else,

anywhere else,

and you will find

yourself enslaved,

constantly chasing,

neglecting the people

who really matter.

Christ came to set us free.

That's not just a one-off

thing in the past.

That's for us today,

every day.