WHO REALLY RULES? | Learning to Live Free // Exodus 5–10 (Christian Martinsen)

his his presence and gifts have

transformed our our church and our team.

Very thankful thankful for you. We're in

Exodus. This is uh I feel stirred this

morning to to just tell you a bit of of

where we're going and what the

advantages are of being in the room.

There's something so tangible about

being able to watch online and catch up

when you're not here. But those in the

room, there's there's an there's an

ongoing Sabbath opportunity to share a

moment to bring yourself back in the

midst of your week to your anchor. The

Sabbath is here for us to be able to

say, in the midst of everything that we

put our lives, our efforts, our work

towards, I'm coming now into a place

where I stop everything else, all the

chaos, and I allow the Lord to reset me.

mind, body, soul, and spirit. We're

gonna look at a passage this morning.

We've been in the book of Exodus. We're

going after the subject of freedom. But

in the midst of that, I want us to we're

hopefully going to close with communion,

repentance, prayer. It's beginning of

Yamapour. If you are into that, great.

If you're not, great.

We're we're going we're going to go

after repentance unto the gospel. that

from the very beginning of scripture

from Genesis, Exodus all the way

through, there's a storyline that brings

us into a place where we can practice

this. One of the things that hit me, I

have three points as I almost always do.

We can go after the three points and

then miss the gospel in the process. We

can turn the practicing the Christian

life into the Christian life. And the

whole point of the Christian life is

that you and I can't do it.

The whole point is is that you can't

possibly do what it's inviting you in to

do. My my heart is not is not capable of

it. I have to have the gospel.

I have to have the person of Jesus

transform my heart.

It's all we're going to do today.

So, let's start with a lighter topic. Uh

who is really choosing? I I struggle

with illustrations because uh you I

almost wanted to go back to one of those

cheesy kind of like, oh, America's full

of choice and you know, we have 47 types

of ketchup, but Trader Joe's only gives

us two because no one wants the choice

anymore and blah blah blah. I'm so sick

of those illustrations. And so here

here's here's what I I was I've been

kind of observing. Have you noticed that

like um we're we're being filled with

the like nostalgia of the '9s everywhere

we look and everywhere we go, right? I I

was I I was uh taken back by someone

like put a lot of effort into just uh re

kind of illustrating what it was like on

a Friday night to like get the exciting

word from your parents that you're going

to order some Pizza Hut and go to

Blockbuster.

And if if dad was feeling extra

generous, it was like not just one

movie, but a game also.

Maybe even a box of candy if you were a

good boy or girl. like unbelievable

generosity of

and u maybe it wasn't a movie maybe it

was just like the idea you you know that

like on Friday night family matters was

on and that was going to fill your soul

I know I'm speaking to a very specific

part of the population right now very

specific uh but but again you guys have

access to look these things up and and

apparently you know you younger folk are

wearing all of the same clothes and and

all the same styles and all the same

trends so you should look back and know

what that

But um we love to look back and go, "Oh,

life was so much simpler." And uh and

and now, you know, everybody just gets

exactly what they want. And I've got

five kids. Theoretically, everybody um

can be watching a different device in a

different room and watching exactly what

they want to watch. And to be honest,

it's easier that way. There's less

screaming. Uh there's less fighting and

there's less bickering and there's a

illusion of peace when we just kind of

try to give everyone exactly what they

want. And we have infinitely more choice

that we know. And for a long time,

basically our definition of freedom was

always more choices equals more freedom.

And we all know that doesn't work.

But we're starting to realize it that

it's not that simple.

And that should be encouraging. But it's

also sobering because now we've moved

beyond having unlimited choices to

something that I think is is even more

strange. Yeah. Watch those chairs. They

are a menace. Uh the the the uh here's

the thing that's even more strange.

something is increasingly choosing the

choices that we're going to that we're

seeing. Right? We talk a lot about

algorithms. There was this interesting

article uh called the coming of age at

the dawn of the social internet. And I

apologize for my slides today. I tried a

new thing. Don't like it. They're all

offsides. I didn't have time to change

them. So, just be patient with me. I do

have a lot of slides. I don't know if

they're going to you can anyone who can

see them, but I'll be better next week.

I promise. So, this New Yorker uh

article basically had this piece about

growing up to the evolution of the

social internet. And and the writer

describes this transition that every

single one of us experienced in some

way, shape, or form. But originally, our

feeds, what we're seeing was largely

dependent on what? Who you follow? Who

do you choose to follow? And what's

happening more and more I I've I've even

heard the the research is showing that

like your follower those of you that

have worked so hard on your f show of

hands. Who has the most followers in the

room? No, I'm not going to do that in

LA. That would be we already know. Um

no. Um but these there there's a there

was an obsession over followers, but now

it's basically like the currency of

followers is almost going by the

wayside. It's not going to matter

anymore. And uh we all know why, right?

It's because our our algorithms are

shifting to what can hold our attention.

And I I don't know if Tik Tok started

it. They now all have it. YouTube, Tik

Tok, Instagram. Uh the Boomer What's the

Boomer one? Oh, Facebook. Yeah, that's

what my kids call it. The Boomer one.

Facebook. Yeah.

The for you page. The for you page.

Yeah. It's a wonderful, wonderful title.

It's just for you. It's just for you.

Think about the for you. It's so

personal. If you don't know what the for

you page is, I'm going to talk to five

of you now. The um the for you page is

if you go on any of these uh social

networks, there's this page that's

basically like you didn't choose it, it

chose you. And I I don't know what the

little icon is that you go to that, but

it's it's basically like instead of all

your followers, it's just the things

that they think that you'll like. And

they know what you'll like because they

know what you searched for. They know

what you lingered on. They know what you

played three times or 10 times or

hundred times and laughed and cackled

at. I think they can hear your cackling

laugh versus your like subtle laugh.

What holds your attention? Yeah. So, you

know, so, so on any given day for me,

it's it's sermon clips because I'm so

spiritual. And then five minutes later,

it's it's just a it's a sea of red for

my Liverpool highlights. And then and

then it might be like um a very unique

kind of uh timeless backsplash that I'm

like researching for for the kitchen or

right now it's currently like if you

have a deal in Los Angeles on building

an ADU at a very low price uh that's on

my for you page. And so someone is is

showing me the cheapest way um uh to

build an ADU and that's great. and they

know that if a if they can just show me

one more ADU ad, they've got Christian

for five more seconds.

The fascinating part is that what held

my attention like today or yesterday is

what is always going to be shaping my

desires tomorrow.

And I didn't choose it,

but I'm choosing it because no one's

forcing me to click. No one's forcing me

to watch. No one's forcing me to keep

scrolling. And again, of course, we have

more choices than ever. But it it of

course doesn't mean that I'm more free.

Or does it mean that I'm more free? Of

course not. In fact, we feel more

constricted. And we think that freedom

is simply nobody gets to tell me what to

do. And the reality is is there's a

deeper question. And that's not even

that's not even really the question. The

question is always, what's shaping what

I want in the first place? What's

shaping what I want in the first place?

And that's a harder one because I don't

think we're as present with that.

There's something always telling me what

I need in order to be okay. That's the

issue. What to find? What's really the

voice? You need to be asking yourself

the question, what what is the voice

that's telling me what I need in order

to be okay? I I'm calling this like the

five voices that promise freedom.

And and and here they are. Money,

success, approval, romance, and control.

Money will always say if you get enough

you'll be safe.

Success will say you accomplish enough

and you'll matter. Approval will say get

them to like you and you'll know that

you're okay. Romance says find someone

who wants you and you'll know you're

worthy of love.

And control will say figure everything

out and nothing can hurt you. And then

there's the cousin of control called

autonomy.

That means if I I can I can govern

myself. I have the ability to like be in

charge and make my own choices as long

as nobody gets to tell me what to do.

And it's all an illusion

because the issue is really it's the

question isn't really will I be shaped

by something. We go back to this a lot.

It's not if I'll be shaped by something.

It's what's doing the shaping. What gets

to tell me whether I'm okay?

That's it. What really gets to tell me

whether I'm okay today?

And can that thing actually make me

free? So, here's how we're going to

connect this to the Exodus series we've

been on. If you haven't been in Exodus,

the good news is is you have heard all

these stories, usually in a very poor

way. If you've been studying the Bible

your whole life, there are still things

today that you're going to see in

Exodus, like I did this week, that blew

my mind that I can't believe I've never

seen that.

The pro part of the problem is I have a

lens of which I see things through my

lens of freedom that I think the Lord's

going to expose today. Help us reshape

that so that we can turn. That's what

repentance means to turn

and let him begin the process of

freedom. Aresh Exodus is really about

this. [clears throat]

Israel is enslaved and everything seems

very obvious and black and white. Uh,

Israel is in chains and they're working

really hard and Pharaoh is horrible and

he owns them and God is supposed to get

them out of Egypt, but the Exodus keeps

complicating it and eventually we're

going to discover you can get Israel out

of Egypt and still have Egypt inside of

Israel. What does that mean? Well, that

that mentality of being a slave doesn't

just leave you

because your slave master is gone. It

becomes completely ingrained in them.

So, the idea is here is you can leave

Pharaoh and still think like a slave.

You can you can be physically free and

you can still be ruled by fear. You can

have money and be ruled by money and you

can be successful and be ruled by

success. So choices of any generation in

history are still we have no idea what

is actually shaping our choices.

And every week here we're going to be

looking at freedom from another angle.

And so today we're going to come to this

real confrontation between Pharaoh and

Moses and the plagues. The plagues

you know, they were never called the

plagues in scripture. They're called

something else. We'll we'll get to that.

So, Pharaoh asked this question, and it

sounds really arrogant and ancient, but

I think it might be one of the most uh

important modern questions we ask. And

he his question to Moses is, "Who is the

Lord that I should obey him?" Who is the

Lord that I should obey him? And the

point is is we're still living in the

midst of that question.

Your answer to that is a big deal. And

we think we have the right answer and

you can you can intellectually have it,

but are you living it? In other words,

why should God get to tell me what to

do? Why should anybody else get the

final word over my life?

And that's where the story gets really,

really uncomfortable for us.

And he's showing us something about the

human heart. How does God free me from

what rules me? That's really all we're

getting at. So, there's going to be

three things that are happening in this

story. How we answer, how does God free

me from what rules me? First, let God

speak for himself.

What does that mean? Where am I putting

words in God's mouth? Secondly, let God

confront what rules you. What am I

asking to give me? What only God can

give me? And then third, respond to what

God reveals. Where am I negotiating

instead of just surrendering?

So, how does God free me from what rules

me? First, let God speak for himself.

Exodus 3:18 says says this,

Exodus 3:18

"The Lord God of the Hebrews has met

with us. Let us take a three-day journey

into the wilderness to offer sacrifices

to the Lord our God." That is the quote

of what God tells Moses to say. That's a

We're not actually going to be in Exodus

3 today. We've already gone there. I

want you to see that because this is

going to be significant when Moses

actually goes to Pharaoh.

So [clears throat]

God gives Moses a very specific

sequence. This is what you're supposed

to do. Exodus 3:18, you're supposed to

Exodus 3:18

request a three-day journey to worship,

which is interesting. He's not telling

Moses to go say, "Hey," it almost sounds

like he's having them like, "Hey, I want

you to go out and have a festival like

Coachella in the wilderness." But to me,

and he's not necessarily telling him to

go tell Pharaoh that you're going to

permanently leave.

And then in 3:19 there's a refusal. I

know the king of Egypt will not let you

go. We see then in Exodus 4 uh this

warning and judgment and and God says

that he's eventually going you're

eventually going to have this dynamic.

God says he goes, "Israel is my

firstborn son. You refuse to let him go.

So I will kill your firstborn son."

This is what God says the heart and

heart of Pharaoh will bring about. And

that's really important. God isn't

pretending that judgment's not coming.

God tells Moses exactly where all this

is going. And yet, he's telling Moses in

such a way that Moses should have he has

this really significant special

information. And we're going to see

something in the heart of Moses as he

delivers it that exposes something of

his imperfections. But notice the order.

There's a request and then there's a

refusal and then there's a warning.

That's significant.

God knows Pharaoh's going to say no. He

knows that and he tells Moses exactly

where it's going. But now look at five.

Chapter 5 verse one. He says, "This is

what the Lord, the God of Israel says.

This is what Moses goes. This is the

first thing Moses says to Pharaoh. This

is what the Lord, the God of Israel

says, let my people go."

So he changes the tone.

The God of the Hebrews becomes the God

of Israel. the three-day journey

disappears and the request becomes let

my people go.

The Lord even put a please in there for

him to go to Pharaoh like ask nicely

Moses and Moses does not ask nicely.

Then the Pharaoh responds look at 5:2

who is the Lord that I should obey him

and let Israel go?

That question is going to drive

everything that happens. Then something

fascinating happens. Verse three, the

God of the Hebrews has met with us.

Now, let us take a three-day journey

into the wilderness to offer sacrifices

to the Lord our God. All of a sudden,

Moses reverts back

much closer to God's original language

of what he told him to say.

So, so now Moses is is is like almost

like he's he's he's back on script. He's

he's saying, "Oh, it's the God of the

Hebrews now. three-day journey,

wilderness sacrifice, all that good

stuff. And then Moses adds something. He

goes, "Or he may strike us with plagues

or with the sword."

Remember, God had told him exactly what

to say. He had told him that judgment

was coming after Pharaoh was doing all

this. So, Moses starts leading with

judgment. God did not tell him to lead

with judgment.

Moses puts the judgment on him, on them,

and the Israelites.

But that's not how God told him to to

describe it. God told him to give a

request. Pharaoh refuses and then a

warning. And then Moses brings judgment

language forward. So sometimes, here's

what you need to know. Sometimes what we

say about God,

you and I, isn't completely wrong. It's

true, but out of order.

How often is that true of Christians

everywhere?

And we see them. We're constantly

bombarded with that. My for you page is

filled with Christians where it's like

that was beautiful. And then other

Christians I was like, "That was

beautiful, but why did you have to say

it like that?" Like, and then there's a

cringe.

And you know what? I'm I've been more

and more humbled by how God uses the

people that say things imperfectly or

out of their own flesh.

That's one of the most humbling parts of

the gospel is that God will use your

messed up delivery.

And he uses Moses

But you need to see this. God's

revelation to Moses is still combining

respect, honor,

but that judgment is real.

Moses gets ahead of God. But notice

something else. God's eventual warning

is judgment upon Pharaoh's firstborn

after after Pharaoh refuses to release

God's firstborn. And Moses said, "Our

God might strike us." That's very

different.

very different.

So the point is is that Moses has

encountered God, but his character and

his represent his his entire

representation of God, it's still in

process.

That should be like a big exhale to you

and I because if Moses can screw that up

and get like an entire book of the

Bible,

you and I might need to chill out over

our perfection of delivering the ways of

God. maybe just take the step of faith,

trust him in the process. So, here's a

little application for this first point.

It feels it feels familiar because

sometimes our problem isn't that God

hasn't spoken to us. It's it's that

God's word passes through all these

aspects of of my fears and my wounds and

my upbringing and my anger and my

politics

and my assumptions

and all these little filters that are

part of my personality and my way of

life and my history and then something

happens on the way out. We don't only

need better information.

I need to be part of the transformation

process. Moses needed transformation. I

need transformation. And that's the

disciples. He sends the disciples out.

Jesus does before they've made the

transformation process. They want to

call fire down from heaven. And he says

he doesn't put them in timeout.

He doesn't put them into a seven-year

rehab program.

He corrects them and he re-releases

them.

That's uncomfortable for me

because when when I mess up or when Some

of you mess up.

I don't feel comfortable going back out,

sending you back out, sending myself

back out when I mess up like this.

Here's where grace comes in. This is

just a t touch of it before we get into

the meat of it. God uses Moses, and

that's super important, obviously, but

he doesn't wait until his character's

perfect. He had 40 years, and his

character still wasn't perfect.

And he doesn't wait till the disciples

understand everything. And thank God

that that's our promise for you and I.

He uses us while we're still being

formed. And God doesn't use I mean, this

whole thing isn't about just just having

to obsess about accurately representing

God. It's simply this. Can we just let

God speak for himself?

We are so often concerned about how God

is going to be represented or how we do

things. And some of us need just our

mind. Let God speak. Let God speak for

himself. Let him speak to you. Let him

speak to the world. Let God speak for

himself. If you really want to know what

God is like, eventually you're going to

have to look at the person of Jesus.

And that's the invitation today is to

look at him again. And Pharaoh just

asked the question that opens the next

four chapters in the book. Who is the

Lord? And God is about to answer

himself. So point two is this. Let God

confront what rules us. And this is

about asking, what am I asking to give

me what only God can give me? What am I

asking to give me what only God can give

me? Pharaoh is asking who is the Lord

what that I should obey him. And this

whole Exodus 7-10 these these first nine

plagues are all about God's answer.

So we know these things as the 10

plagues. There's nine of them and then

there's like the ultimate one. But

there's an there's an important

observation you need to understand here.

Scripture calls it repeatedly not

plagues.

Plagues is is like feels you already the

author of the plague is not a good guy,

right?

They're signs and wonders. That's what

Moses calls them. The point isn't merely

that terrible things happened to Egypt.

It's a sign points beyond itself. So,

what's happening here? These events are

not plagues. They are signs and wonders

that are pointing to something and

they're answering the question, who

actually rules? These are not random.

Like God isn't just like, "Oh, we love

as Christians, we just sometimes we're

just like so painting a picture of like

God is so amazing in so many ways and

and we don't dig past the harder

questions. We look at creation and go,

isn't he so unique and and creative?"

>> [clears throat]

>> I love right now one of the few shows

that my kids will like watch together

are nature shows and and like my oldest

who thinks he's incredibly cool because

he is in moments but he is a super and

he thinks that like there's a difference

between being smart and being nerdy and

he seems that like nerdy is bad but

smart is good but he's a nerd as it as

it relates to like animals in the wild

and he loves nature shows and I love

that he's a nerd about him and and he

will come in at random times usually at

midnight and tell me all about some

random um animal that can like give you

a drop of its venom and kill you in a

moment or something like that. And but

our our family, our kids will sometimes

sit down and watch some of these things

and and we as Christians be, "Oh, isn't

creation just so amazing?" And so like

we we look at these 10 plagues that are

not supposed to be called plagues and we

can easily just do this thing where

we're like God is so creative. He's like

he goes from flies to frogs to darkness,

the blood in the water. I mean he's just

so creative. Just a creative God.

That's not what's happening here.

There's a structure. And I want you to

see the structure. The structure is all

about water, earth, and sky.

Blood, frogs, gnats, all about the

water. Earth, flies, livestock, boils,

sky, the hail, the locust, and darkness.

I hope this is the only message you'll

ever see where you can summarize four

chapters in Exodus and the plagues so

efficiently in Jesus mighty name. Here's

what's happening. They occur in three

groups. Water, earth, and sky. The

plagues, nine, the first nine plagues,

water, earth, and sky. They have

literary patterns within these groups.

And that progression is broadly what

confronts Egypt's understanding of the

entire cosmos.

Water, earth, and sky. That means

everything. So the Egyptian worldview,

you have to understand these are not

random. This is God speaking through

signs and wonders to the Egyptian

worldview. Because God is not saying

Pharaoh and Egypt bad, Israel my people

good. He's saying all people are invited

to be my people. Egypt, do you want to

know the one true God? Pharaoh, do you

want to know the one true God?

In the Egyptian worldview, ancient

Egypt's gods were connected to these

realms. Water, earth, and sky. Sounds

like a group of superheroes. Maybe

that's in another epic tale that Tolkien

should have written. Ancient Egypt's

gods were connected to these realms. You

do not need the entire Egyptian family

tree here, but here's here's uh here's a

couple examples. The Nile, the big river

that's still there. Egypt is only alive

because of the Nile. And they had these

deities like uh I don't know how to

describe them. HP and Kum were

associated with the Nile and they were

lifegiving powers. Then Yahweh touches

the Nile and what happens? The message

is this. The Nile is not your ultimate

resource. That's what he's trying to

say. The Nile turns to blood. The

message the Nile is not your ultimate

resource. Then there's the frogs just as

an example. Uh and and one of the gods,

Hakette, was associated with fertility

and childbirth and depicted with frog

imagery. You can literally uh look up

ancient uh this frog imagery and you see

the frog and the head of a god and all

that stuff. So suddenly Egypt cannot

control the frogs. They think they can

through the god of the frogs, but now

the frogs are here. They can't control

the frogs. And then there's darkness.

And the sun of course was the central to

all of of their religion. The deities

such as Rah. We all know Rah, the sun

god is associated with it. And then all

of a sudden there's darkness.

Absolute darkness.

It's almost as if Yahweh has turned off

the sun.

They're having an encounter. This is not

a plague. This is a sign and wonder.

And the message is Yahweh is sovereign

over all of it.

Water, earth, sky. Who is the Lord?

The one your God answers to. That's the

message. They're being invited back. Who

is Yahweh?

The one your God of water, earth, and

sky answers to.

And so this brings us to now we don't we

don't leave the idols in Egypt. We don't

worship these things today. And and it

it's really easy for us just to go, "Oh,

that's just so such interesting biblical

historical facts." And uh it'd be nice

to just go away going, "I got smarter

today." And not let this hit me and just

let it hit, you know, those

people in the Bible a long time ago. And

and here's where I think this is really

important for us. What are you asking

that thing to give you? In the same way

that they were looking at the gods to

provide something that they realized

that they couldn't give them and the

same

doesn't change in any moment in human

history. What are you asking that thing

to give you? Because the thing itself

may not be so bad. And I want to give a

couple of like here's the big picture

examples of those five those five

things. Money isn't the god. Money is

not our god.

It's it's the idea that money can tell

me that I'm safe.

Success isn't my god either.

Success isn't if success is your issue.

It's not because success is your god.

It's because success is a voice that

tells you that you matter.

And in romance that that's also not a

god. But it it's what it tells you that

you're worth loving.

Ultimately if if the voice of approval

approval itself is not something we sit

there and worship. It's it's the idea

that something can tell me that I'm

enough.

And then control is the promise

that nothing can nothing can come at me

that I can't handle.

And so these are all false promises.

And even if you've got these things and

we you know your children are a

wonderful thing to serve and to love,

but when they become the place of your

worship and your identity,

like if your kids don't turn out okay,

then you're not okay.

I haven't lived that one yet.

I don't know how I respond in that

situation.

But an idol is often a good thing that

we've asked to do God's job.

They're almost always good things that

we've asked to be doing the work of God

himself. And eventually the thing that

you look to for freedom is the thing

that becomes your master.

And that's the story of Exodus.

But thank God he doesn't leave us there.

He doesn't He doesn't just want to

confront our bad behavior. He wants to

confront our false masters, our false

saviors,

because he wants us free. He's for you.

He's not plaguing you. He's giving you a

sign so that you can wonder and you can

encounter.

And we miss it. We've changed. We've

changed the signs and wonders, the

plagues.

And when you do that, you don't

encounter the author. You encounter a

false version of the author.

He wants you free. Because if money's

become my savior,

generosity is going to threaten me. If

if approval is what I think saves me,

then I'm always going to be disappointed

by other people. I'm going to be

terrified by disappointing other people,

too. And if if control is ultimately my

savior, then I'm I'm never going to be

able to deal with uncertainty.

It's going to be unbearable as well.

It's going to control me. And God is

touching the very thing that I've been

depending on today. And so I want you to

feel the tinge of discomfort because

he's going to comfort every single one

of us today because all it takes is

re-engaging the beauty of Jesus. Before

we get there, I just want us to

continue. Let's confront what rules us.

He can't He can't do the work if we

don't give him access to our hearts.

Confront what rules you. And I've been

the last few weeks kind of as as an

example. I've I've mentioned it lightly,

but we've been uh trying to figure out

where we're going to live in this town,

which I think is a subject. It doesn't

matter if you're on your first studio

apartment here in LA or if you're on

your 58th roommate, uh or or you're on

your 17th house that you've bought and

sold and flipped. I don't care who you

are. This town is

I don't even know. I I actually haven't

decided what I feel about it. I feel

like it does actually it gives us a

potential to do more good than harm

because you cannot control the

realities.

I mean, I I've looked at I've looked at

people that I thought had it all

together and had like the most amazing

place and they're still going like, "But

it feels like a ripoff. I'm still I'm

still praying about leaving." Like, you

guys know these people. Have you Some of

you are in the room. It's like, and

you're you might be embarrassed, but

don't be embarrassed. It's because you

go, even if you were able to afford it,

you're just like, "But should I have?

Should I have spent it on that?" Like,

it's insane.

Where's where's the is the the issue of

the heart? Where's the control factor?

And I've realized in this whole process

as we've been navigating housing and and

it's and it's been like an up and down

process and we've been doing this, you

know, all all because of help of family,

but also with family and all these

different dynamics. And I've been going

from kind of like God help me make a

wise decision like a good Christian

prayer and and then and then I and then

my prayers I wouldn't say it again, you

know, sometimes I have to start

journaling like the real thoughts. I've

told you like my my confessions in my

journal and then and then they turn into

things like I need this. This one has to

work because there's you're never going

to provide anything like this ever again

because this is my miracle. You provided

a miracle but if you don't work this

miracle, you're never going to work a

miracle again. You ever think of that

that like you saw you saw that house? It

doesn't matter if it's a rental you're

buying. You saw that one. It's like if

we don't get that one, we're going to

live in poverty. Like like I think God

provided that one for us. It's a

miracle. But if I don't get it, I'm

never going to get another miracle

again.

We don't say that out loud. That's just

how we pray when we're vulnerable.

And and the thing has been nice because

it's gone on for like weeks and weeks

and weeks and weeks. And so it's just

kind of like at this point I go like,

man, I'm I'm actually just ready to go

camping in Yoseite and call it a day.

And uh the house is never a house

anymore. It's promising me something.

You know, if this works, my family will

be okay. That's really the stuff you

have to confront. If this works out and

then then I'm my family stability, you

know, then I can finally relax. Uh you

know, you're never going to relax.

That's my favorite thing about this

town. It will never let you relax.

The only thing that'll let you relax is

the Sabbath. That's why you're here.

And so I'm I am am I asking a house,

what is your house? But what are you are

you asking a house to give you something

that only God can give you? That's what

I keep going back to. And that is

setting me free because I feels like

we're at a place where I'm just like,

God, just

be God so that I can be not God.

And sometimes you don't know what you're

trusting in until you're faced with the

possibility of uh of losing it. Right? I

think I need to say that again.

Sometimes we're we're we don't know what

we're trusting in until you're faced

with the possibility of losing that

thing that you don't realize you're

trusting in.

And that that always that always makes

me really annoyed because then I start

realizing I thought I was over that

thing.

And then when I'm faced with losing it,

for some of you that's it's speaking a

little bit too close to home. Teetering

on that relationship, you try that

breakup and then you're like, "Ah, I

don't like this."

And then you can start to think clearly.

For others, it's it's like you're just

in denial.

And these physical things, it's it's

maybe it's not a house or or kids or

maybe career relation. It doesn't

matter. What are the important things?

And what happens inside me when I

imagine not getting it?

That's the issue. When disappointment

becomes, I cannot be okay until this

thing happens. That's the thing. That's

the thing that you're supposed to deal

with this morning in your heart.

And he's he's putting his finger on it

this morning because he confronts our

false saviors every time because they

cannot carry the weight that we've put

on them. It's his kindness.

Why? He puts his finger on these things.

But there's something else that God's

doing here in Egypt. We, like I said, we

tend to read the story that Israel is

God's people. The good guys and Egypt

are the bad guys, his enemies. And

that's not what's happening here.

God is God God doesn't just defeat Egypt

so Israel can escape. That's that's what

we think is happening. And over and over

again, God says he's doing these things

so that Egypt will know that he is

Yahweh.

He says it over it's not even hidden in

the text. He says it over and over and

over again. He's revealing himself to

Egypt. And notice how he does it. He

speaks into a world that they understand

through the Nile, through the animals,

through the gauze, through the land,

through the sun. And and God meets the

Egyptians inside their own understanding

of reality. And you know what? God is

showing himself through the whole thing

is that he is after you. He speaks your

language. And you've trusted in things

to give you life. And he's telling us

this morning, let me show you

where true life really comes from.

That's what he's inviting you into. And

in this story, something remarkable

happens in chapter 9 verse 20. It says

this, "Those officials of Pharaoh who

feared the word of the Lord hurried to

bring their slaves and their livestock

inside. But those who ignored the word

of the Lord left their slaves and

livestock in the field." Which is really

fascinating. You don't want to miss this

because some Egyptians, what why do I

even point that out? Some of the

Egyptians are listening.

They're not the bad guys. Some of

Pharaoh's own officials hear the word of

Yahweh and they respond to it. That's

what you're going to see throughout that

whole section. And I encourage you this

week, go back and read those chapters in

your time with the Lord. You know, 5

through 10, something like that. Some of

Pharaoh's own officials hear it, which

means these signs aren't punishment.

We often think the signs of God are

punishment and their invitations. Their

revelations, their warnings, and their

invitations and his judgments and his

compassion are not opposites.

We don't have just judgy God and this

compassionate God. And we get to choose

which one. Sometimes the confrontation

is what

is what is what the love requires.

And God doesn't just want us to expose

Egypt's gods. He wants the people

that those gods have. And he wants you

and I. And whatever measure that some

kind of false god has over you and I's

heart, he wants that, too.

So, how do we reveal the beauty of Jesus

to people who have trusted other things

to save them? That's our that's our

mission at Frontier. How do we reveal

the beauty of Jesus who've trusted in

other things to save them?

That's our that's our entire purpose of

being. We're not against people. We

renew his beauty on the frontiers.

We want freedom for people. And now the

story gives us two completely different

responses to the same revelation. We

have the Egyptians that hear the word

and respond and Pharaoh sees the same

signs and he hears the same warnings and

he resists and his heart's hardened. And

then you have the final third movement

and that's this. Well, you respond to

what God reveals, which is simply asking

the question, where am I negotiating

instead of surrendering? Where am I

negotiating instead of surrendering?

[clears throat] And here's how we want

to land it. So you got Egyptians hear

the word of the Lord and they respond.

Pharaoh's resisting and he starts

Pharaoh starts negotiating. He's no

longer just saying no. He's like, "Okay,

you can worship, but just do it here."

And and then you go, "Oh, don't go very

far." Or some of you can go and and then

everybody can go, but leave your

livestock.

Negotiate. And and this is how we

negotiate. We go, "Yes, God.

Yes, God. You can have all of me. Oh,

yes, God."

I went to worship night seven times this

week, and I laid on my face and said,

"Yes, God, you can have it all

except the one thing that he can't have.

You can have it all,

but you can't have that relationship

that I know isn't from you. You can have

it all, God, but I'm not going to give

you one dollar cuz I'm poor. I can't

even afford Chipotle.

You can have it all, God.

Not my career, though.

Our posture

doesn't tell anything about the posture

of our hearts.

And I that's an extreme example.

This room is filled with unbelievable

amazing laid down lovers of Jesus.

He wants even deeper measures of

freedom. And he wants deeper measures of

my heart and yours.

I've been teaching my boys to both of

them are kind of at the age one's kind

of like may should have his license

almost and the other one's like about to

start driver's ed and so we have this

really awkward [clears throat]

back and forth about taking them you

know to a parking lot. We try to go to

the Rose Bowl but there's the Rose Bowl

acts like it's dead in like an archaic

monument but there's more happening at

the Rose Bowl like than I can ever

imagine.

10 days a week there's like some massive

event at the Rose Bowl and and so that

used to like I have gone there a couple

times to try to drive. I now have a

secret spot that I if you want to know a

secret spot that you can drive around

with your kids and uh and not get like

looked at or called out by police, I

have a spot you can talk to me after

service. But we go there and

I actually don't know if I'm ever going

to be able to go out on the road with

him because I have so much control

anxiety when when a young teenage boy

that's really excited about revving an

engine is sitting next to me in a car

that I pay for. And um so it's been it's

been a bit of a process, but I'm trying

to teach them and I've I've uh you know

ultimately the issue is I've given them

control of a car and and obviously it

looks like I've surrender control except

that I'm sitting right there and like

I'm literally every word slow down,

break

whatever it is.

Watch that car. You're too That's a

curb, bro. It's a curb.

I prom I'm so encouraging and loving the

whole time. Uh most of the time I sit

there and go like I just think I'm going

to have my dad do this. He did a good

job with me. Like I'm way better than

everybody driving. I'm just going to

have him do it. That's why he's here,

right? It's like I need to um

So, you know, the idea of like this

imaginary brake pedal thing that I think

that I'm pushing through the floor, I

find myself constantly like I'm trying

to break, but there's nothing there for

me to break. and and this control thing

comes to the surface. And I think that's

sometimes how we surrender to God

is that God, I give this to you as long

as you do like approximately all that I

thought you know I was planning on you

doing. And God, you can have my future,

but it needs to look like this. And you

can have my kids as is as as long as

they turn out how I think they should

turn out. And uh obviously you can have

my money.

Just don't ask me what to do with it.

and uh

whatever it is, you can have my life,

but I I'm keeping my foot on this

imaginary break. And Pharaoh keeps

trying to surrender without

surrendering. And we're supposed to see

Pharaoh as us,

not Moses, us. Where am I negotiating

instead of surrendering? That's the

question. And the problem is is we need

to let God speak for himself.

We need to let God confront what rules

us. And we need to respond to what what

God is revealing.

And the problem is that my heart doesn't

simply surrender because someone tells

me to. Like God can tell me to. I can

technically say yes. And then my foot's

still on the brake.

Or my foot's not even on the brake, but

I'm trying to press the brake.

And

we need to answer the question of what

can actually change my heart. And that's

where the gospel comes in.

And team can start to come up because

I'm gonna have to land this like now.

And I I want I want you to experience a

greater love. There's a there's an old

phrase from this Scottish preacher named

Thomas Chomemer. Has anyone heard of

him? Anyone still into the old Scottish

guys? Okay. Nobody. Praise God. Welcome

to LA. Okay. Here's here's here's the

phrase from an old Scottish guy that no

one's heard of. the expulsive power of a

new affection.

That's his phrase. And here's the idea

that he works out. Sometimes sometimes

you don't become free

from a lesser kind of love

by trying harder to stop loving it.

That's not how you get free. By taking

this lesser love and trying to stop

loving it. He goes, "You become free

only when your heart encounters

something better.

Some of us keep trying to stop loving

certain things because we know there is

something better or we want something

better

or we need something better.

God is trying to show you the something

better to love.

And that's the thing about falling in

love.

Many of you have fallen in love with

another human. But every single one of

us, whether you fall in love with a

human or not, the ultimate love that

your soul craves is only going to be by

falling in love with God himself.

You know, no one needs to give you a

spiritual discipline when you're in

love.

No one had to convince me to call that

woman at 4:00 a.m. when she lived in New

Zealand when I was in love.

No one had to twist my arm to empty my

bank account to go and see her.

>> When I say bank account, I mean I use

student loan money to go

stay and travel New Zealand for weeks on

end. And when we pay those student loans

off every month, I remind her of that.

When you're in love, no one has to

remind you to think about them or to

engage with them several times a day.

We we do the spiritual disciplines and

practices,

the prayers morning, noon, and night

to remind us of what loves us.

Because when you fall in love, you don't

need a reminder. Nobody has to remind

you. Make sure to to check whether they

texted. Desire does that for us. And

Christianity is not simply stop loving

money and approval and stop controlling

everything and start doing this and

start doing that and stop chasing

success.

We need something more beautiful

and Jesus will always be that better

Lord.

As I want to invite us to close today,

my prayer team can start to come up. We

have these two little B. We need some

bigger baskets. I hope there's enough

for everyone. So, I'd love what someone

on the prayer team can grab the basket

and just hold it out so people can see

where where it's ma being made on offer.

You can come up. You can take communion.

You can get on your face. You can go

back to your seat. You can linger in

worship. You can go when you're ready.

But I want you to get this. Jesus is a

better Lord. He's the encounter of

beauty that every single one of us need.

And the answer to Pharaoh's question,

who is the Lord that I should obey him?

God answers it with power. Blood frogs,

darkness, water, earth, and sky.

But it's not a plague that he's

offering. It's Jesus himself. The sign

that he ultimately offers us is Jesus.

He's the word made flesh.

And and Pharaoh refusing to surrender

eventually costs

something else, his firstborn.

But the gospel is that Jesus's obedience

is what costs himself his life. And that

the Lord is ultimately showing us that

he's not just this evil taskmaster after

us and after Pharaoh. It's he's trying

to show us how far he's willing to go

for us.

A king who gave himself for his people.

And we start with Pharaoh. We encounter

a Jesus, a different kind of king. The

gospel will always change what we love.

Always. And this morning the the

invitation is would you put on the altar

the thing that has control of your heart

so that he can transform it.

The verdict is this. Ultimately what

matters has everything that everything

that really matters in this regard has

already been spoken over you. The work

has already been completed. And if God

has given himself for me,

what can any of these other desires

ultimately do for me? What can money do

for me? what can relationship, what can

all these other gods of success,

provision, what can they do for me that

I can't possess more deeply in him?

That's the issue. That's the question.

And some of us need to keep wrestling

with it because we can't yet surrender

it. But at least you know what the

battle is.

And so this morning, I want to invite

you to stand with me.

And I want us to lean into this together

as we close and as we go.

I want you to remember this. The gospel

doesn't just change our behavior.

I I want you to know not once will

Frontier ever go after simply being

satisfied with behavior change. It's

always about

the transformation of the heart

gives us an image and a vision of true

beauty in the person of Jesus that

changes our desires, changes our loves

and compels us into a different way of

life. That is what we're turning from

and towards today. Freedom begins when

God gets the final word. That's the

issue.

God, we give you the final word.

where our hearts are dry, where our

hearts are heavy, we commit this week to

lean into just listening, to go back to

what you've actually said. Jesus, what

are you actually saying to us today? We

listen to you. We listen to you. And now

we name what you're asking us to name.

Whatever we are looking to to save us,

we name it. We notice the fear, the

anxiety, the anger, whatever is before

us. What am I asking to give me? what

only you can give me, God. And finally,

we come to your altar today in

surrender.

I want to stop negotiating with you.

I want to encounter you and I want you

to shift my identity. All the yes, God,

but this first, I give it to you

for me

and I take one step forward. Some of

you, you just you just need to make one

simple act to just say, "I am leaning

against this thing that is trying to

grip my soul."

One phone call,

one forgiveness act,

one check,

one drive,

one invitation to let somebody in.

What is it?

We don't step into practicing these

things, Jesus, for you to love us. Your

grace covers it. As we come to your

table this morning, thank you that

you're reminding us. You gave yourself

first. This is what kind of king you

are. Against all the other world, all

the other world's kings, all the kings

of all the world that have ever been.

We're in the same scenario now than

there's ever been. We come to this

table.

We take your body and your blood.

We remember.

And now you send us back on our way into

a world desperate to encounter your

beauty.

We pray this in your