January 28, 2025 • 21 mins
Imagine a world where baking sourdough becomes a profound metaphor for spiritual introspection. That's exactly what we explore as we reminisce about our sourdough-filled adventures, from crafting loaves of bread to unexpected creations like chocolate cake. These culinary experiments become a lens through which we examine deeper truths, inspired by Jesus’ caution against the "yeast of the Pharisees" in Luke 12:1. We discuss how this yeast-like influence parallels the subtle shifts in our attitudes and actions, urging a reflection on the importance of authenticity and integrity amidst life's bustling distractions.
In a heartfelt exploration of vulnerability, we challenge the facade of composure that so many of us hide behind. The power of radical honesty is laid bare as we share personal tales of chaos and struggle, finding solace in God’s unwavering presence. This episode encourages living for divine approval rather than societal acceptance, emphasizing the comfort found in trusting God over the opinions of others. As we confront everyday fears and the potential misunderstanding of our faith, we draw strength from acknowledging God’s love and care, learning to live with boldness and courage. Join us as we unravel the profound reassurance that comes from aligning our worth and accountability with a higher power.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:03):
and speaking of food, can we talk about sourdough for
a minute?
Is anybody here makingsourdough bread?
Anybody have a little sourdoughstarter on their counter?
Nobody, oh my gosh.
You guys come on.
I thought for sure half of youwould be doing some sourdough,
but it was, like you know, thething to do.
(00:24):
It's a lot of work, though Idid.
I got really into sourdoughlike 15 years ago and I made
like all everything out ofsourdough.
I was making bread and pancakes, and I didn't stop there.
I made tortillas for tacos, Imade cinnamon rolls, crackers,
(00:46):
chocolate cake, everything.
Nothing was safe from mysourdough Nothing.
And my daughter recently thesame one who now lives in
Lithuania told me just recentlythat I ruined her and she really
wants to like, try sourdough,like all of her friends, but she
just can't do it because Ioverdid it when she was a kid.
(01:08):
But I think she should just doit anyway.
But sourdough starter is kind ofweird if you've ever even
looked at what it is.
You just kind of take someflour and some water, mix it
together and every day you throwsome of it away and add a
little more.
You feed it a little more flour, a little more water, and you
keep doing that and then justlet it sit there and all of a
(01:30):
sudden, like as if magic happens, these yeasts from the air,
those wild yeasts, come and theyaccumulate in the slurry and
suddenly you can make bread andall kinds of wonderful things
with that glob, with thatstarter.
I think they should call itsourdough glob, but that yeast
(01:52):
is just apparently floatingaround us all the time and we're
completely unaware of it.
But it permeates that starterand it happens slowly, right, it
takes a while.
Sometimes it can take 10 daysor sometimes longer.
If it's really cold in yourhouse and if it takes longer
than 10 days, I suggest turningup your heat a little bit, but
(02:13):
you're probably freezing wearinggloves in the house.
But it just, it takes over,right, it permeates in there and
everything you make with thatsourdough starter has that very
distinct sourdough flavor.
You can, that's good for makingall kinds of things, but I
(02:33):
guess I would just suggesttaking my word for it that
chocolate cake should not bemessed with like that.
If you want to eat chocolatecake, just eat chocolate cake,
you know, just do it.
Chocolate cake is not healthierif you make it with sourdough.
Not really Not enough to makeit worth it.
So by now, if you've beenlearning about Jesus for a year
(02:57):
or two, or 20 or 30, you knowthat I'm where I'm probably
going with this, right?
You know that Jesus talkedabout the yeast of the Pharisees
, something about that, right?
So let's take a look at Luke,chapter 12 and see what we can
learn from him.
Luke, chapter 12, in verse 1,it says Meanwhile, when a crowd
(03:20):
of many thousands had gatheredso that they were trampling on
one another, jesus began tospeak first to his disciples,
saying be on guard against theyeast of the Pharisees, which is
hypocrisy.
So now this is like the peak ofJesus's teaching career here on
earth, right?
Sometimes we'll just picturelike the 12 guys and they kind
(03:44):
of put together a small crowd,maybe about this size, maybe
double, who knows, to listen towhatever it is Jesus is talking
about that day.
But in this instance we see itsays many thousands, so many
that they're just trampling oneach other, and I kind of
picture this like the frontsection of a general admissions
concert.
(04:04):
If you've ever been right,everybody's like pushing and
shoving and maybe there's alittle elbow now and then You're
willing to step on people justto get a better view.
It's not exactly the safestplace to be, but all these
people are doing this right,they're pushing, they're shoving
, they're stepping on oneanother, trying to hear Jesus
ironically talk about loving Godand loving people.
(04:26):
So this concert-like experienceis happening and you know, if
you've been on the flip side ofthat, if you've been on the
stage and watched all thesepeople clamoring, trying to get
closer to you, right, they'retrying to get the view of you.
It can kind of puff you up alittle bit, right, trying to get
(04:47):
the view of you.
It can kind of puff you up alittle bit, right, even if you
haven't been in that position,you can imagine this is a little
bit of an ego boost, right?
So Jesus is in this concert-likeexperience with the disciples
and he turns to them and he says, hey, be on guard against the
yeast of the Pharisees.
This can permeate our community, this hypocrisy, just like
(05:11):
trying our hand at sourdough,just because it's something
everybody's doing.
The disciples that are rightnear Jesus, they have this
temptation facing them as well,with all those crowds.
The temptation to maintain thatpopularity, to grow that
popularity and for hypocrisy tobe more like the Pharisees was
(05:33):
huge and it was lingering allaround them in the air, like the
wild yeasts around us, andperhaps they don't even notice
that it's starting to permeateand change their attitudes and
their actions.
So Jesus has to tell them.
And then, verse 2 through 5, itsays there is nothing concealed
(05:56):
that will not be disclosed orhidden, that will not be made
known.
What you have said in the darkwill be heard in the daylight
and what you have whispered inthe ear in the inner rooms will
be proclaimed from the roofs.
I tell you, my friends, do notbe afraid of those who kill the
body and after that can do nomore.
But I will show you whom youshall fear.
(06:16):
Fear him who, after your bodyhas been killed, has the
authority to throw you into hell.
Yes, I tell you, fear him.
So this is a great littlesection Stephen gave me.
Thanks, stephen.
(06:41):
But Jesus is reminding them thatpleasing the crowds is the
wrong focus.
Right, and as we're readingthis today, he's reminding us
also that pleasing crowds,pleasing those around us, is the
wrong focus.
And we were created forconnection, we were created for
community, we need to connect.
But that makes it natural forus to want to try to control
(07:02):
that, right.
It makes it natural to want toplease those that are around us.
Sometimes we feel like if ourcommunity is bigger, if we have
more social media followers, ifwe have more influence, there's
more people at our table, or ifwe're sitting at a table of
somebody more important than us,that suddenly we are more
successful, that we are moreloved, that we are better people
(07:26):
and that we hold moresuccessful, that we are more
loved, that we are better peopleand that we hold more value.
And we can find ourselvescurating this image of ourselves
that isn't even who we are.
We can find ourselves actingone way with our family, and
another with our friends, andeven another when we're around
people with power and influence.
That's hypocrisy.
(07:48):
We want to draw the crowdsaround us, we want approval, we
want people to like us, we wantto be valued, we want to be
accepted, and this hypocrisy canbe intentional.
It can be something wespecifically think about.
It can be the angle that I take, that picture of my newly baked
(08:10):
bread with my KitchenAid in thebackground and the dirty dishes
pile way off to the side sonobody gets to see it.
Everyone knows it's there, butwe're going to pretend it's not
and I might sprinkle a littledust of flour in just the right
spots.
Right, that is curating, andI'm almost being hypocritical
(08:30):
because I'm not being honesthere.
I created that.
I created that scene, andhypocrisy can also be
unintentional.
Right, we don't necessarilyoutright lie.
When a person asks us how didyou get through that difficult
season?
Well, we might say somethingsuper churchy, right, has
anybody heard something superchurchy from somebody when they
(08:53):
wanted an actual answer?
Maybe we say something like Godgives me the grace to get
through each day.
And then we smile and that'strue, right, god does.
He absolutely gives us thegrace to get through each day.
But I mean, is this somethingthat's just like gifted to you?
Does God just say, hey, here'syour portion, here's your
(09:13):
portion of grace, go on withyour day.
It'll be lovely If that's truefor you.
I really want to talk later,while we're at lunch with the
kids, because that sounds a loteasier than any experience I've
ever had.
But I wonder what would happenif we were a lot more honest.
(09:35):
When somebody asks us how didyou get through what was really
difficult?
What if we were really honest?
What if we said honest thingslike I cried in the shower.
Or I drove around townscreaming at God, I want to.
I yelled at him and told himthis was unfair, I don't want to
do this anymore.
God, what if I told people thatI sobbed with my bestie on the
(09:59):
phone well, she prayed for mebecause I didn't want to pray
anymore the phone, while sheprayed for me because I didn't
want to pray anymore.
What if we were honest and saidI ate my way through that
entire sourdough chocolate cake,even though it kind of sucked,
while repeating Bible versesthat I desperately wanted to
believe in my heart?
Maybe you're healthier than meand you can say something like I
(10:22):
trained for a marathon andcried out to God the whole time.
Good for you.
Maybe you can say I journaleduntil I wrote a book on accident
.
I took up CrossFit andpowerlifting.
We'll talk to God about myfrustrations.
I'm happy for you if that worksfor you.
But what if we're honest likethat?
And what if we didn't stopthere?
(10:43):
What if, when that personasking, we told them that God
showed up in those moments, thathe showed up to let me know
that he was with me, that I wasnot alone, I am not forgotten,
that he has me in the very palmof his hand.
What if we shared about thosetimes that while I was driving
(11:05):
and yelling at God and droppingF-bombs because I do, and then I
stopped for coffee and theperson in front of me paid for
my drink and I knew that God sawme?
Or while I was eating that cakelike a crazy person, that
someone I knew that I had notshared my struggle with sent me
a text with a perfect song orthe perfect podcast that I
(11:30):
needed.
In that moment.
I know that's a hug from God.
We're not always brutally honestlike that, because it can make
us sound really weird right,that sounds weird.
It can make us sound like we'rean unstable mess.
It can make us sound reallyweird right, that sounds weird.
It can make us sound like we'rean unstable mess.
It can make us feel like peoplemight not trust us, like they
(11:51):
might not like us anymore.
They might lose respect for us.
It feels safer to behypocritical, to set up what
people will see, to maintain ourimage and our reputation with
the others around us.
It's safer and it's less risky.
The disciples were no different.
(12:12):
They wanted people to like themtoo.
They wanted people to respectthem and they wanted to be loved
and valued.
And here is Jesus justreminding them that pleasing the
crowd is the wrong focus.
I mean sure the crowd can turnon them, and I mean we know that
they eventually do.
Jesus and most of his discipleswere brutally murdered later on
(12:34):
.
But even being murdered isn'tthe scariest thing that can
happen here.
Do you really grasp thatconcept, can you?
You understand it?
Do you believe it?
Like being murdered isn't theworst thing that can happen here
?
Being separated from God,that's what's really at stake
(12:56):
here.
I've had the unpleasantopportunity to be on the
receiving end of a prettyviolent crime, and it left me
with PTSD, with fear that at onetime just consumed me.
I was constantly afraid, and infear I suddenly became aware
(13:16):
that I could be murdered at anygiven time.
Safety was an illusion that Ino longer had the luxury of, and
I expected the possibility ofdeath in every shadow.
Over time, I found comfort inboth the verses that we're going
(13:40):
over here today and in Psalm 23, 4.
Though I walk through thevalley of the shadow of death, I
will fear no evil, and Ieventually came to an
understanding of this truth.
I came to understand that Ibelong to God that eternity,
heaven is my home.
So even if somebody tries totake me, they can't.
(14:00):
They can't have all of mebecause he keeps my soul.
You can destroy this outershell of me, but my soul he
keeps.
There is power and there iscomfort in that truth.
I cannot be destroyed, my soulhe keeps.
Maybe it's just the old punk inme that really feels pumped up
(14:23):
about that kind of thing, butyou cannot destroy me.
I cannot be destroyed.
My soul he keeps.
And this is truth for all of us.
If we're Jesus followers.
This is the truth for all of usthat live to please God.
This is the truth about livingfor what really matters.
(14:44):
If we choose to fear the peoplearound us, we are fearing the
wrong ones.
If we live to please the crowds, we are living for the wrong
thing.
If you want to live for whatreally matters, live to please
God, for what really matters,live to please God.
(15:08):
We may face rejection.
We may face some scarysituations.
We may be asked to give morethan we feel we can.
We can be asked to give moreemotionally, physically,
financially than we feel is safe.
We may face people discreditingus, making fun of us or even
worse.
But when we do, we can knowthat God is with us.
(15:32):
He helps us to endure.
Releasing the fear of peopleand embracing the fear of God
can bring an incredible comfort.
But that also sounds a littleinsane, doesn't it?
That's not what people do.
But Jesus goes on in verse sixthrough nine.
(15:53):
He says are not five sparrowssold for two pennies?
Yet not one of them isforgotten by God.
Indeed, the very hairs on yourhead are all numbered.
Don't be afraid, you are worthmore than many sparrows.
I tell you, whoever publiclyacknowledges me before others,
the Son of man will alsoacknowledge before the angels of
God.
(16:13):
But whoever disowns me beforeothers will be disowned before
the angels of God.
So, reading this today, wemight lose a little bit in the
translation the significance ofthe sparrow.
But sparrows were then sold,two for a penny, or five for two
(16:33):
pennies, or the equivalent of apenny, a little copper coin
depends on which translationyou're looking at.
But anyway it means that thatfifth sparrow was free because
one sparrow had zero value,worthless, they're so small and
insignificant.
They don't even make the listof compatible sacrifices,
(16:57):
replacement sacrifices forpeople who are poor like a
pigeon.
It's worthless in the eyes ofpeople, yet not one of them is
forgotten by God.
And Jesus says you, you are morevaluable than many, many
sparrows.
God knows the number of hairson your head, and that speaks of
(17:20):
the intimate minute detailsthat he cares about.
That God cares to know aboutyou.
And now I adore my husband, Ilove him and I like him and I
care about what his needs are.
But I have no idea how manyhairs are on his head.
All I really know is it's lessthan when we were in high school
(17:42):
, but I can't imagine that Iwould ever care enough to count
the hairs on his head.
But here is God.
God loves us so much that hecares about even that.
He sees great value in you.
He cares about your needs.
He cares about your fears,cares about your needs.
(18:07):
He cares about your fears.
He tells us we don't have to beafraid.
So he knows we will be.
We don't have to be.
We don't have to be afraid ofsharing our faith.
You don't have to be afraid ofwhat the crowd is going to say
or do.
We don't have to be afraid ofliving for what really matters,
because we are valuable to him.
If you acknowledge him, he willacknowledge you If you reject
(18:32):
him and deny him.
That's something you shouldprobably be afraid of, because
he will reject and deny you.
That's what it says.
I didn't make it up.
As Jesus followers, we all havemoments of truth, those times
where we have to put our soulwhere our mouth is, and as Jesus
(18:53):
followers, we will often facepeople who don't understand us,
who reject the biblicalprinciples that we attempt to
live by, and maybe we findourselves facing those who are
hostile to our beliefs.
Sometimes, the opportunity toshare Jesus brings the
(19:13):
opportunity for rejection andliving for what really matters.
It begs some serious questions.
Will you fear God or will youfear those around you?
Does your value and worth comefrom God or your neighbors?
What will you do when sharingyour faith might lead to
(19:38):
rejection from a friend?
What if it's a family member?
Or that crazy keyboard warriorthat always comments on every
post?
What if?
Are you willing to refrain fromhypocrisy and risk being the
weird one?
And what does it even look liketo not run away from the world
(20:03):
but to rush to it?
What does it look like toengage with people who believe
differently than you do and tobe bold enough to just lovingly
share your faith experiences?
Are you willing to live for whatreally matters?
It's a really big deal.
(20:24):
Are you willing to live forwhat really matters?
We are accountable to God andGod alone for how we respond in
situations and pressures thatcome as a result of our walk
with him, but thankfully we cantrust that he cares for us and
(20:46):
that he values us, that he has apurpose and a plan for us.
To fear him means to respecthis presence, to trust in his
care and to not worry about howothers react to us.
To fear him means to live forwhat really matters.
(21:08):
That's the comfort that we canfind.
and speaking of food, can we talk about sourdough for
a minute?
Is anybody here makingsourdough bread?
Anybody have a little sourdoughstarter on their counter?
Nobody, oh my gosh.
You guys come on.
I thought for sure half of youwould be doing some sourdough,
but it was, like you know, thething to do.
(00:24):
It's a lot of work, though Idid.
I got really into sourdoughlike 15 years ago and I made
like all everything out ofsourdough.
I was making bread and pancakes, and I didn't stop there.
I made tortillas for tacos, Imade cinnamon rolls, crackers,
(00:46):
chocolate cake, everything.
Nothing was safe from mysourdough Nothing.
And my daughter recently thesame one who now lives in
Lithuania told me just recentlythat I ruined her and she really
wants to like, try sourdough,like all of her friends, but she
just can't do it because Ioverdid it when she was a kid.
(01:08):
But I think she should just doit anyway.
But sourdough starter is kind ofweird if you've ever even
looked at what it is.
You just kind of take someflour and some water, mix it
together and every day you throwsome of it away and add a
little more.
You feed it a little more flour, a little more water, and you
keep doing that and then justlet it sit there and all of a
(01:30):
sudden, like as if magic happens, these yeasts from the air,
those wild yeasts, come and theyaccumulate in the slurry and
suddenly you can make bread andall kinds of wonderful things
with that glob, with thatstarter.
I think they should call itsourdough glob, but that yeast
(01:52):
is just apparently floatingaround us all the time and we're
completely unaware of it.
But it permeates that starterand it happens slowly, right, it
takes a while.
Sometimes it can take 10 daysor sometimes longer.
If it's really cold in yourhouse and if it takes longer
than 10 days, I suggest turningup your heat a little bit, but
(02:13):
you're probably freezing wearinggloves in the house.
But it just, it takes over,right, it permeates in there and
everything you make with thatsourdough starter has that very
distinct sourdough flavor.
You can, that's good for makingall kinds of things, but I
(02:33):
guess I would just suggesttaking my word for it that
chocolate cake should not bemessed with like that.
If you want to eat chocolatecake, just eat chocolate cake,
you know, just do it.
Chocolate cake is not healthierif you make it with sourdough.
Not really Not enough to makeit worth it.
So by now, if you've beenlearning about Jesus for a year
(02:57):
or two, or 20 or 30, you knowthat I'm where I'm probably
going with this, right?
You know that Jesus talkedabout the yeast of the Pharisees
, something about that, right?
So let's take a look at Luke,chapter 12 and see what we can
learn from him.
Luke, chapter 12, in verse 1,it says Meanwhile, when a crowd
(03:20):
of many thousands had gatheredso that they were trampling on
one another, jesus began tospeak first to his disciples,
saying be on guard against theyeast of the Pharisees, which is
hypocrisy.
So now this is like the peak ofJesus's teaching career here on
earth, right?
Sometimes we'll just picturelike the 12 guys and they kind
(03:44):
of put together a small crowd,maybe about this size, maybe
double, who knows, to listen towhatever it is Jesus is talking
about that day.
But in this instance we see itsays many thousands, so many
that they're just trampling oneach other, and I kind of
picture this like the frontsection of a general admissions
concert.
(04:04):
If you've ever been right,everybody's like pushing and
shoving and maybe there's alittle elbow now and then You're
willing to step on people justto get a better view.
It's not exactly the safestplace to be, but all these
people are doing this right,they're pushing, they're shoving
, they're stepping on oneanother, trying to hear Jesus
ironically talk about loving Godand loving people.
(04:26):
So this concert-like experienceis happening and you know, if
you've been on the flip side ofthat, if you've been on the
stage and watched all thesepeople clamoring, trying to get
closer to you, right, they'retrying to get the view of you.
It can kind of puff you up alittle bit, right, trying to get
(04:47):
the view of you.
It can kind of puff you up alittle bit, right, even if you
haven't been in that position,you can imagine this is a little
bit of an ego boost, right?
So Jesus is in this concert-likeexperience with the disciples
and he turns to them and he says, hey, be on guard against the
yeast of the Pharisees.
This can permeate our community, this hypocrisy, just like
(05:11):
trying our hand at sourdough,just because it's something
everybody's doing.
The disciples that are rightnear Jesus, they have this
temptation facing them as well,with all those crowds.
The temptation to maintain thatpopularity, to grow that
popularity and for hypocrisy tobe more like the Pharisees was
(05:33):
huge and it was lingering allaround them in the air, like the
wild yeasts around us, andperhaps they don't even notice
that it's starting to permeateand change their attitudes and
their actions.
So Jesus has to tell them.
And then, verse 2 through 5, itsays there is nothing concealed
(05:56):
that will not be disclosed orhidden, that will not be made
known.
What you have said in the darkwill be heard in the daylight
and what you have whispered inthe ear in the inner rooms will
be proclaimed from the roofs.
I tell you, my friends, do notbe afraid of those who kill the
body and after that can do nomore.
But I will show you whom youshall fear.
(06:16):
Fear him who, after your bodyhas been killed, has the
authority to throw you into hell.
Yes, I tell you, fear him.
So this is a great littlesection Stephen gave me.
Thanks, stephen.
(06:41):
But Jesus is reminding them thatpleasing the crowds is the
wrong focus.
Right, and as we're readingthis today, he's reminding us
also that pleasing crowds,pleasing those around us, is the
wrong focus.
And we were created forconnection, we were created for
community, we need to connect.
But that makes it natural forus to want to try to control
(07:02):
that, right.
It makes it natural to want toplease those that are around us.
Sometimes we feel like if ourcommunity is bigger, if we have
more social media followers, ifwe have more influence, there's
more people at our table, or ifwe're sitting at a table of
somebody more important than us,that suddenly we are more
successful, that we are moreloved, that we are better people
(07:26):
and that we hold moresuccessful, that we are more
loved, that we are better peopleand that we hold more value.
And we can find ourselvescurating this image of ourselves
that isn't even who we are.
We can find ourselves actingone way with our family, and
another with our friends, andeven another when we're around
people with power and influence.
That's hypocrisy.
(07:48):
We want to draw the crowdsaround us, we want approval, we
want people to like us, we wantto be valued, we want to be
accepted, and this hypocrisy canbe intentional.
It can be something wespecifically think about.
It can be the angle that I take, that picture of my newly baked
(08:10):
bread with my KitchenAid in thebackground and the dirty dishes
pile way off to the side sonobody gets to see it.
Everyone knows it's there, butwe're going to pretend it's not
and I might sprinkle a littledust of flour in just the right
spots.
Right, that is curating, andI'm almost being hypocritical
(08:30):
because I'm not being honesthere.
I created that.
I created that scene, andhypocrisy can also be
unintentional.
Right, we don't necessarilyoutright lie.
When a person asks us how didyou get through that difficult
season?
Well, we might say somethingsuper churchy, right, has
anybody heard something superchurchy from somebody when they
(08:53):
wanted an actual answer?
Maybe we say something like Godgives me the grace to get
through each day.
And then we smile and that'strue, right, god does.
He absolutely gives us thegrace to get through each day.
But I mean, is this somethingthat's just like gifted to you?
Does God just say, hey, here'syour portion, here's your
(09:13):
portion of grace, go on withyour day.
It'll be lovely If that's truefor you.
I really want to talk later,while we're at lunch with the
kids, because that sounds a loteasier than any experience I've
ever had.
But I wonder what would happenif we were a lot more honest.
(09:35):
When somebody asks us how didyou get through what was really
difficult?
What if we were really honest?
What if we said honest thingslike I cried in the shower.
Or I drove around townscreaming at God, I want to.
I yelled at him and told himthis was unfair, I don't want to
do this anymore.
God, what if I told people thatI sobbed with my bestie on the
(09:59):
phone well, she prayed for mebecause I didn't want to pray
anymore the phone, while sheprayed for me because I didn't
want to pray anymore.
What if we were honest and saidI ate my way through that
entire sourdough chocolate cake,even though it kind of sucked,
while repeating Bible versesthat I desperately wanted to
believe in my heart?
Maybe you're healthier than meand you can say something like I
(10:22):
trained for a marathon andcried out to God the whole time.
Good for you.
Maybe you can say I journaleduntil I wrote a book on accident
.
I took up CrossFit andpowerlifting.
We'll talk to God about myfrustrations.
I'm happy for you if that worksfor you.
But what if we're honest likethat?
And what if we didn't stopthere?
(10:43):
What if, when that personasking, we told them that God
showed up in those moments, thathe showed up to let me know
that he was with me, that I wasnot alone, I am not forgotten,
that he has me in the very palmof his hand.
What if we shared about thosetimes that while I was driving
(11:05):
and yelling at God and droppingF-bombs because I do, and then I
stopped for coffee and theperson in front of me paid for
my drink and I knew that God sawme?
Or while I was eating that cakelike a crazy person, that
someone I knew that I had notshared my struggle with sent me
a text with a perfect song orthe perfect podcast that I
(11:30):
needed.
In that moment.
I know that's a hug from God.
We're not always brutally honestlike that, because it can make
us sound really weird right,that sounds weird.
It can make us sound like we'rean unstable mess.
It can make us sound reallyweird right, that sounds weird.
It can make us sound like we'rean unstable mess.
It can make us feel like peoplemight not trust us, like they
(11:51):
might not like us anymore.
They might lose respect for us.
It feels safer to behypocritical, to set up what
people will see, to maintain ourimage and our reputation with
the others around us.
It's safer and it's less risky.
The disciples were no different.
(12:12):
They wanted people to like themtoo.
They wanted people to respectthem and they wanted to be loved
and valued.
And here is Jesus justreminding them that pleasing the
crowd is the wrong focus.
I mean sure the crowd can turnon them, and I mean we know that
they eventually do.
Jesus and most of his discipleswere brutally murdered later on
(12:34):
.
But even being murdered isn'tthe scariest thing that can
happen here.
Do you really grasp thatconcept, can you?
You understand it?
Do you believe it?
Like being murdered isn't theworst thing that can happen here
?
Being separated from God,that's what's really at stake
(12:56):
here.
I've had the unpleasantopportunity to be on the
receiving end of a prettyviolent crime, and it left me
with PTSD, with fear that at onetime just consumed me.
I was constantly afraid, and infear I suddenly became aware
(13:16):
that I could be murdered at anygiven time.
Safety was an illusion that Ino longer had the luxury of, and
I expected the possibility ofdeath in every shadow.
Over time, I found comfort inboth the verses that we're going
(13:40):
over here today and in Psalm 23, 4.
Though I walk through thevalley of the shadow of death, I
will fear no evil, and Ieventually came to an
understanding of this truth.
I came to understand that Ibelong to God that eternity,
heaven is my home.
So even if somebody tries totake me, they can't.
(14:00):
They can't have all of mebecause he keeps my soul.
You can destroy this outershell of me, but my soul he
keeps.
There is power and there iscomfort in that truth.
I cannot be destroyed, my soulhe keeps.
Maybe it's just the old punk inme that really feels pumped up
(14:23):
about that kind of thing, butyou cannot destroy me.
I cannot be destroyed.
My soul he keeps.
And this is truth for all of us.
If we're Jesus followers.
This is the truth for all of usthat live to please God.
This is the truth about livingfor what really matters.
(14:44):
If we choose to fear the peoplearound us, we are fearing the
wrong ones.
If we live to please the crowds, we are living for the wrong
thing.
If you want to live for whatreally matters, live to please
God, for what really matters,live to please God.
(15:08):
We may face rejection.
We may face some scarysituations.
We may be asked to give morethan we feel we can.
We can be asked to give moreemotionally, physically,
financially than we feel is safe.
We may face people discreditingus, making fun of us or even
worse.
But when we do, we can knowthat God is with us.
(15:32):
He helps us to endure.
Releasing the fear of peopleand embracing the fear of God
can bring an incredible comfort.
But that also sounds a littleinsane, doesn't it?
That's not what people do.
But Jesus goes on in verse sixthrough nine.
(15:53):
He says are not five sparrowssold for two pennies?
Yet not one of them isforgotten by God.
Indeed, the very hairs on yourhead are all numbered.
Don't be afraid, you are worthmore than many sparrows.
I tell you, whoever publiclyacknowledges me before others,
the Son of man will alsoacknowledge before the angels of
God.
(16:13):
But whoever disowns me beforeothers will be disowned before
the angels of God.
So, reading this today, wemight lose a little bit in the
translation the significance ofthe sparrow.
But sparrows were then sold,two for a penny, or five for two
(16:33):
pennies, or the equivalent of apenny, a little copper coin
depends on which translationyou're looking at.
But anyway it means that thatfifth sparrow was free because
one sparrow had zero value,worthless, they're so small and
insignificant.
They don't even make the listof compatible sacrifices,
(16:57):
replacement sacrifices forpeople who are poor like a
pigeon.
It's worthless in the eyes ofpeople, yet not one of them is
forgotten by God.
And Jesus says you, you are morevaluable than many, many
sparrows.
God knows the number of hairson your head, and that speaks of
(17:20):
the intimate minute detailsthat he cares about.
That God cares to know aboutyou.
And now I adore my husband, Ilove him and I like him and I
care about what his needs are.
But I have no idea how manyhairs are on his head.
All I really know is it's lessthan when we were in high school
(17:42):
, but I can't imagine that Iwould ever care enough to count
the hairs on his head.
But here is God.
God loves us so much that hecares about even that.
He sees great value in you.
He cares about your needs.
He cares about your fears,cares about your needs.
(18:07):
He cares about your fears.
He tells us we don't have to beafraid.
So he knows we will be.
We don't have to be.
We don't have to be afraid ofsharing our faith.
You don't have to be afraid ofwhat the crowd is going to say
or do.
We don't have to be afraid ofliving for what really matters,
because we are valuable to him.
If you acknowledge him, he willacknowledge you If you reject
(18:32):
him and deny him.
That's something you shouldprobably be afraid of, because
he will reject and deny you.
That's what it says.
I didn't make it up.
As Jesus followers, we all havemoments of truth, those times
where we have to put our soulwhere our mouth is, and as Jesus
(18:53):
followers, we will often facepeople who don't understand us,
who reject the biblicalprinciples that we attempt to
live by, and maybe we findourselves facing those who are
hostile to our beliefs.
Sometimes, the opportunity toshare Jesus brings the
(19:13):
opportunity for rejection andliving for what really matters.
It begs some serious questions.
Will you fear God or will youfear those around you?
Does your value and worth comefrom God or your neighbors?
What will you do when sharingyour faith might lead to
(19:38):
rejection from a friend?
What if it's a family member?
Or that crazy keyboard warriorthat always comments on every
post?
What if?
Are you willing to refrain fromhypocrisy and risk being the
weird one?
And what does it even look liketo not run away from the world
(20:03):
but to rush to it?
What does it look like toengage with people who believe
differently than you do and tobe bold enough to just lovingly
share your faith experiences?
Are you willing to live for whatreally matters?
It's a really big deal.
(20:24):
Are you willing to live forwhat really matters?
We are accountable to God andGod alone for how we respond in
situations and pressures thatcome as a result of our walk
with him, but thankfully we cantrust that he cares for us and
(20:46):
that he values us, that he has apurpose and a plan for us.
To fear him means to respecthis presence, to trust in his
care and to not worry about howothers react to us.
To fear him means to live forwhat really matters.
(21:08):
That's the comfort that we canfind.
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