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Back to the Garden · Stornoway Free Church of Scotland - Sermons

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Let's turn again to, not the second chapter, but the first chapter of Genesis.
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! Of course, it's the second chapter, or much of the content of the second chapter that I'd like us to think about.
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But in the first chapter, you get the first account of the creation of man.
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And it's in verse 26. Genesis 1, verse 26.
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Then God said,
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And subdue it and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.
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Amen.
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Amen.
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Amen.
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Amen.
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Amen.
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This is where we find the source of our being.
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It answers one of the most fundamental questions that we could ever ask, which is, who am I?
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No other creature asks that question.
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It is a question that is entirely found within human beings.
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Animals don't know and don't care who they are.
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They act in instinct, and no matter how intelligent we think they are or they appear to be, it is only humankind that asks the question, who am I?
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Because it is of fundamental importance to our being.
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And if ever there was a day when the world needs to hear that we find our origin in God, that is how the question of identity can be decisively answered.
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If you take away God, then it's open season for anyone you can identify as anything you want to, because God is not in the picture.
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We are only atoms and molecules having been thrown together by chance.
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But here is God's decisive, loving, clear, authoritative message to all of mankind, which is, you are who you are because of me.
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Because I have made you who you are.
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You find your identity in me.
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And so it is vitally important that this message comes across clearly and loudly to a confused world.
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A world that is in darkness and despair.
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And a world that needs to find God to lift them out of that despair.
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He alone is the answer.
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So that's why I want us to look at the content of what I've read in chapter 1 and chapter 2 and to explore it in some greater detail.
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And I want us to think of, I was going to think of four things, but I don't think we're going to have time.
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I want to keep things as short as possible.
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This is the end of a working week.
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I'm sure many of us are tired.
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And so we probably won't get on to the fourth one.
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But here they are anyway.
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Number one is I want us to explore the uniqueness of man.
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Now when I use the word man, I'm not being sexist.
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I'm not trying to offend anybody.
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I'm old school.
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I use old school terminology.
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And so man means generic humankind.
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If you prefer me to use humankind, that's fine.
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I'm okay with that.
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But I just am conditioned to say, well, man is just human beings.
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So you'll forgive me if I trade on anybody's toes.
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Humankind, it's the same thing.
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The world, then secondly, I want us to look in chapter 2 at the work that is given to humankind, Adam and Eve.
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I want us to look at the work as the reason why humankind was created, why Adam was created.
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He was, God put him to work right away.
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The first thing he does is that he assigns him this task in the Garden of Eden.
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I want us to explore that and humankind's ability and the gifts that God gave him in order to fulfill this mandate of being able to subdue the world and to have dominion over it.
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But then thirdly, I want us to look at the companion that God created for him.
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Not just as the marriage bond, but as the foundational bond from which every other type of relationship arose.
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So you get ripples.
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You get the first two human beings, Adam and Eve, and God brought them together in their marriage.
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But then from then on, you have every other human relationship because you have the beginnings of community and family and friendships and every other kind of human relationships.
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And once again, I think we're going to see that we were created in order to have that kind of relationship.
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But the fourth thing I was going to talk about is that the choice that God gave to Adam and Eve.
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But we're definitely going to leave that until tomorrow night.
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And the choice, of course, is that either Adam was to fulfill the command that God gave him, which was the permission to eat of any tree in the garden or to eat of the forbidden fruit.
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And sadly, as we know, because you'll know the end of the story, that he decided to do the latter.
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We're going to explore that tomorrow and what the consequences of those were.
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I want us to look, first of all, then, at how unique human beings are.
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And, of course, when we go back to the very beginning, we're talking about our first parents.
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We're talking about that uniqueness that has extended.
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Despite the fact that we've become separated from God, nonetheless, that humanness has extended throughout all the generations and it belongs to us.
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And so when I talk about Adam and Eve, I'm talking about ourselves as well as belonging to that same species of creation.
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And I want us to look at it in terms of the way it's presented to us here in such dramatic form.
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First of all, let's look at in the process of creation in chapter one.
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You'll notice that there's a kind of repetitiveness about it.
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Up until the sixth day, God says, let there be, let there be, let there be fish, let the fish, let the seas team with, let there be animals, let there be, and so on and so forth.
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But when it comes to the sixth day, there's a kind of dramatic pause, isn't it?
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If you read it, just as often, we just don't read the Bible often enough as within the flow that God intends it to be.
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Because as you read that, when you get on to the sixth day, it's almost like God is saving the best to last.
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There's a crescendo happening.
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There's an upward movement in creation.
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And then at last, he changes the language that he's using.
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Mankind is created, last of all, after a pause, a dramatic pause, in which God rephrases his terminology.
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And he says this, let us make man.
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Now, scholars have argued and wondered about what does the us mean?
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Let us make man.
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And I believe, quite simply, I don't, certainly I'm not going to start going into the different opinions that some people have offered.
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I'm going to say very plainly that this is the first glimpse in the Bible of God as Trinity.
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God as one and God as more than one.
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And, of course, in the course of the Bible, he identifies and he clarifies who he is as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
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We have the great privilege of being able to read Genesis 2 through the lens of the New Testament.
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And so we can see, I believe, quite clearly that God is speaking to himself.
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The Father is speaking to the Son.
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And, of course, there's a council in the Trinity coming together.
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And they are intentionally and deliberately making a point of this moment in time, this climax in creation,
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in which they're saying, now it's time to do something completely unique.
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I'm not saying that the animals weren't unique.
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Of course, there's a uniqueness about them.
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But now, this is different.
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This is God reaching the peak of his process of creation.
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He's not going to do anything more.
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He's reaching the very pinnacle of the process of creation.
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And he says, let us make man.
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But he says more than that, doesn't he?
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He says, let us make man in our image, after our likeness.
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In other words, what God is doing is, for the first time in history, if I can call it that,
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for the very first time in creation history, God, who is himself relational,
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Father, Son, and Spirit, three persons of the Godhead,
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He is creating a being who is relational and who can relate not only to his own species, but to God.
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He is creating a being in his likeness.
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There is something God-like about Adam and God-like about Eve.
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First time ever that's happened.
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Never happened before.
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He's creating someone outside of himself who he can speak to and relate to and indeed have communion with.
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This is a momentous moment.
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This is a historic moment.
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And it is the moment when our species, who we are, came into being.
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It's really important, I think, to read slowly these verses
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and to notice the deliberate drama that is in order to impress upon us
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that this is a unique moment.
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You notice also that it's not simply a fiat.
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Remember in Genesis chapter 1, the way he creates other forms of life is
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let there be lights and let there be extended.
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I'm not trying to trivialize this, by the way.
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I'm just saying there's a certain repetitiveness in it.
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And God said let the water swarm with living creatures
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and let them fly above the earth, across the expanse of the heavens.
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But now there is not just a let there be,
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but there is an intentional creation process.
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He makes man not out of nothing, but out of the dust of the ground.
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He takes what already is and somehow he forms the man.
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He fashions and molds him and creates him from what already exists.
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It's interesting, isn't it, that there is an affinity
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between humankind and the rest of the world, the rest of the natural world.
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I'm not surprised that people love the natural world.
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It's part of our human nature to love what God has created,
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whether it's mountains or rivers or trees or flowers or whatever.
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We feel an affinity toward us because God's created us from this world.
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He's used the world as the raw material to create humankind.
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It's also why it's not surprising that there is a DNA similarity,
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that there is some relationship.
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I'm not a scientist.
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I'm not a biologist.
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I don't know much about it, but again,
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there is an affinity between humankind and the rest of creation.
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But then God gives him a command,
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and he is to subdue.
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He's told in common with every other life form that he is to propagate.
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He is to go out and to fill the earth.
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But then he is to subdue.
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He's to exercise dominion over the world.
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He is to do so with authority and with ability.
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It's almost like God comes to the point of creation where he stops,
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but there's still more work to be done,
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not this time in creating something brand new,
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but in developing what God has already done.
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He's to explore it and to discover it,
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and he's to manage it,
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and he's to have dominion over it.
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Now, right away,
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I know what some of you are thinking.
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You're thinking,
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well, I don't like dominion.
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I don't like the idea of humankind having dominion
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because that's where all the trouble of the world comes from,
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is humankind rising above everything else
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and exercising his own selfish will on the earth.
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Yes, you're right.
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You're absolutely right.
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But that's not because man doesn't have dominion.
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It's because of sin.
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He's become a tyrant.
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He's become selfish.
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He does things for his own good or for his own benefit
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rather than for the glory of God.
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But this is before sin comes into the world.
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This is what our original purpose was,
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to live, to enjoy.
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We'll see tomorrow that God gave him every tree in the garden.
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It doesn't get better than that in a perfect world.
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But he gave him,
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he set before him the whole world to explore and to manage
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and to subdue.
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So Francis Schaeffer is not wrong when he says,
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there is something great about man.
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I think we can all identify with that.
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We're all aware, of course, of our deficiencies in ourselves and in others.
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But nonetheless, there is something grand about human beings,
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men and women, boys and girls.
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There is something truly remarkable
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in comparison with every other creature.
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Let's just explore that in just a little bit more detail.
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that what is it about us?
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What is it about Adam,
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which is different to every other creature?
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Well, he's first of all self-aware.
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If there was a mirror in the Garden of Eden,
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there wasn't one until I guess he must have
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probably looked at the river at some point
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and saw himself in the reflection.
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I wonder when that happened,
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when he actually saw himself.
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It's interesting, isn't it?
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All these firsts that there must have been.
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When did he first see himself?
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When did he first look at himself
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in whatever reflective material that there was?
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I don't know.
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But if he did have a mirror,
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he would reflect.
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But it would be more than just,
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well, let me look for the next branch that I can eat.
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No, it's a fundamental question.
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Who is this?
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Who is this person?
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It's an important question.
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He possesses that reflective core.
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He can relate to himself.
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He's not only conscious.
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He is self-conscious.
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He is Adam.
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He can rationalize.
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He can analyze.
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The very fact that he's asking,
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who am I, is unique in itself.
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No other creature asks that question.
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He perceives that there has to be a reason
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why the world is as he sees it and why he is.
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Now, when I was preparing this,
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I looked up AI.
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It wasn't ChatGPT.
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It was Google.
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You can do this yourself when you get home.
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And I asked the question,
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what's the difference between human beings and animals?
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All right?
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So this is the answer.
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And the answer was truly astonishing.
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Where did you hear this?
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And remember, this is not the Bible.
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This is AI.
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Right?
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Listen to this.
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If I can find it.
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Humans possess the capacity for abstract reasoning,
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complex problem solving and logical thinking,
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allowing them to analyze situations,
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form hypotheses,
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and develop innovative solutions.
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Humans are self-aware,
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meaning they can understand their own existence
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and mental states.
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They also have the ability to understand
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the mental states of others,
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a concept known as the theory of the mind.
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Humans have developed complex symbolic language,
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enabling them to communicate abstract ideas,
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share knowledge,
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and build intricate social structures.
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That's exactly what the Bible tells us.
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And how did all that come about?
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How do you explain why all of these features
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and characters exist in humanity?
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It can only be explained
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by their having been created
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in the image of God
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and the likeness of God.
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And so the reason we look in the mirror
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and ask the question,
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who am I,
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is because we're human.
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And sometimes, of course,
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the process of asking who am I
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can lead to all kinds
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of distorted answers.
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But that doesn't necessarily mean
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it's wrong.
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It is entirely natural
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to ask the question.
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But then humans are built
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with this horizontal capacity
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of being able to relate
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to one another.
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Chapter 2,
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we read that God saw
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that it wasn't good
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for the man to be alone.
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And this means, of course,
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that because man is relational,
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he needs relationship,
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which involves communication
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and mutual interaction
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with all,
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with mutual interaction
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of all kinds,
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with someone of his own kind.
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And so God created
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another of the same kind
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to be a helper
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that was suitable for him.
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We'll look at that
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a little bit later on.
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Man was built
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with the capacity
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to relate horizontally.
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But then,
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he is also able
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to relate vertically.
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Because God didn't create him
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just to interact
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with his own kind
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or to name the animals.
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He created him
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so that he could talk to him.
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He speaks to Adam.
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Adam listens
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and understands
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and obeys.
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He's made him capable
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of conscious understanding
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his mind and his will.
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They're on the same page.
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When God says something,
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Adam knows what he's saying.
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Animals can only respond
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to distinct happenings
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and according to their
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inbuilt programmed instincts.
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instinct,
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but we can respond
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and sometimes instinctively,
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but we can also see
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the world
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from God's side.
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And so can Adam.
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He sees
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the big,
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big picture.
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But he's also able
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to obey.
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When he hears God,
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he understands
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the command of God
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and he has the ability
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to obey.
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We'll see tomorrow
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he also has the ability
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not to obey.
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That's part of the free will
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that God gave to Adam uniquely,
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but we'll wait
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until tomorrow to see that.
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But nonetheless,
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it was entirely possible
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for him to obey.
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That's because obedience
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wasn't alien to Adam.
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It was natural.
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It was second nature,
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if you like.
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He was made for God
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and he knew
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that happiness
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was found.
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The security
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that he had
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was found
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in God
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and he's of one mind
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with God
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and yet it was
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possible for him
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to take the other road
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as well.
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So then,
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that was the uniqueness.
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What about
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the work
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that was given
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to man?
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And I'm not going to spend
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as much time
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on this,
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but you'll notice
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that both from chapter 1
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and chapter 2
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that both accounts,
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they tell us
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that right away,
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immediately,
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he was sent to work.
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God built
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the garden
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for him
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and he
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was sent
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into it
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and he gave him
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the ability
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to fulfill
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the mandate
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that God
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gave to him.
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He has the
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managerial skill
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to rule over
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the earth.
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He has the creative
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ability
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to rationally
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reorder the environment.
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He's got the
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scientific ability
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to explore
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and to describe
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and to catalogue
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and to discover
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features of other
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creatures in the world.
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There's a world
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of discovery
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to be had
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if he had
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obeyed God.
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You can see,
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of course,
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as you make
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your way
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through Genesis,
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the way
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that culture
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develops,
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that industry
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develops,
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a very interesting
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family
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in chapter 4,
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which one of them
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is called Jabal,
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another one is called Jubal,
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and another one is called
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Jubal Cain.
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You can read it
23:15
in chapter 4.
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And Jabal,
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chapter 4,
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verse 20,
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became the father
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of those who dwell
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in tents
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and have livestock.
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He was the first
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agricultural man.
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Then you have Jubal,
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chapter 4,
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verse 21,
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and he's the father
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of all those
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who play the lyre
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and the harp.
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He's the culture man.
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And then you have
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Jubal Cain
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in chapter 4,
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verse 22,
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and he's the forger
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of all instruments
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of bronze and iron.
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We have the first
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glimpses
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of industry.
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mechanics.
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You have the first
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industrial man.
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So it's no surprise
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that in the opening
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chapters,
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the opening words
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of these chapters,
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that God didn't leave
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man a day
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to himself.
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He is made
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to work,
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he's given the ability
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to work,
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and he is given
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the mandate
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to work
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and to explore
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and to systematize
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the world.
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And in that world,
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God built
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or created
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a garden,
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the Garden
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of Eden,
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the perfect,
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the place
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of perfect
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bliss
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and happiness.
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Apparently,
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they tell me
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that the word
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Eden is a Hebrew
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word meaning
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delight.
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It's a place
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of idyllic
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delight
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and rest.
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The idea
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of the garden
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is an enclosure,
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a place
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of security,
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a place
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of a royal
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parkland,
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apparently the word
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paradise.
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It means
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the royal
24:50
parkland.
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And that
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picks up
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echoes of the
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biblical narrative
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and here the
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subordinate king
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is placed by his
24:58
overlord
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in a protected
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shelter spot.
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He was invited
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to fill the
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earth
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and every
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moment
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was joy
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to him.
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It's hard
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for some of us
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to think of
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work as joy.
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I know that
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some of you
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probably enjoy
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your work
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and it's a
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great thing.
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Be very thankful
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if you enjoy
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your work.
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Be very thankful
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if you wake up
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on a Monday
25:20
morning and
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say,
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yes,
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I'm going
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to go to
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work.
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I love it.
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I can't
25:23
wait to get
25:24
in because
25:25
it could
25:25
equally be the
25:26
opposite.
25:27
I saw
25:27
an interview
25:30
with somebody
25:30
and there was
25:31
this big
25:31
train exhibition
25:32
down in
25:33
Derby last
25:33
week and
25:35
they asked
25:35
this train
25:36
driver about
25:37
his work
25:37
and this is
25:38
what he said.
25:38
He says,
25:38
if you love
25:39
your job,
25:40
you come to
25:40
work for
25:41
the fun of
25:41
it.
25:42
Well,
25:42
that could
25:42
be said
25:43
for Adam.
25:43
Adam,
25:44
every day
25:44
was bliss.
25:46
Every day
25:46
was just,
25:47
he couldn't
25:47
wait to
25:48
do what
25:49
God had.
25:50
It's hard
25:50
for us to
25:51
understand that
25:52
because in
25:52
a sinful
25:53
world,
25:54
very often
25:54
work becomes
25:55
tedious.
25:55
It's a chore
25:56
and there are
25:57
all kinds of
25:57
frustrations.
25:58
Many of you
25:59
tonight,
26:00
you'll probably
26:00
say,
26:00
I don't want to
26:01
hear about
26:02
this.
26:02
I've had a
26:04
week,
26:04
I'm up to
26:06
my eyes
26:06
with,
26:07
you have no
26:07
idea the
26:08
kind of
26:08
frustrations
26:09
I've been
26:09
having at
26:09
work and
26:10
you want to
26:11
talk about
26:11
work in a
26:11
sermon.
26:12
That's just
26:13
completely not
26:14
what I came
26:14
here to
26:15
do.
26:15
Well,
26:16
you need to
26:18
maybe rethink
26:19
work.
26:21
And you
26:22
need to
26:22
reorient
26:23
your
26:24
theology of
26:25
work because
26:25
there is a
26:26
theology of
26:26
work.
26:27
Remember that
26:28
work existed
26:29
before the
26:29
fall.
26:30
It's not a
26:30
consequence of
26:31
the fall.
26:32
It is a
26:33
privilege.
26:35
Okay,
26:36
in a sinful
26:37
world,
26:38
things go
26:39
wrong,
26:39
as they do
26:40
everywhere.
26:43
Nonetheless,
26:45
work is
26:46
our
26:47
calling.
26:50
It's where
26:51
God has
26:52
sent us
26:52
to.
26:54
And if
26:54
anything,
26:55
even this
26:56
weekend,
26:57
I hope it
26:58
will be a
26:58
strength to
27:00
us,
27:02
having
27:02
gazed
27:03
again on
27:04
what Jesus
27:05
did to
27:05
secure our
27:06
salvation,
27:07
that we
27:08
go out in
27:09
renewed
27:09
strength,
27:10
back into
27:11
Monday morning,
27:12
ready to
27:12
do our
27:13
work to
27:13
the glory
27:14
of God.
27:16
that's
27:17
what we've
27:17
been programmed
27:18
to do.
27:20
Despite
27:20
all of
27:21
the
27:22
problems,
27:23
I know
27:24
what it
27:24
was.
27:24
I was
27:25
in
27:25
secular
27:25
employment
27:26
before I
27:26
went into
27:27
ministry,
27:27
and even
27:28
in ministry
27:28
there is
27:28
frustrations.
27:29
There are
27:29
frustrations
27:30
everywhere.
27:31
I know
27:32
what it's
27:32
like to
27:33
fall out
27:33
with people
27:33
at work.
27:34
I know
27:34
what it's
27:34
like when
27:35
there's
27:36
jealousy,
27:36
and when
27:36
there's
27:37
griping in
27:37
the workplace,
27:38
and when
27:38
things go
27:39
wrong,
27:39
and when
27:39
there's
27:39
injustice,
27:40
and when
27:40
work
27:41
becomes
27:41
a
27:41
joke.
27:42
I
27:42
know all
27:42
about
27:42
that.
27:43
And yet,
27:45
when we
27:45
come back
27:46
to it,
27:48
God has
27:49
said we've
27:50
been created
27:50
to work,
27:51
and it is
27:52
possible to
27:52
work to
27:53
his glory.
27:53
So,
27:57
then,
27:58
very briefly,
27:59
and time
27:59
is fast
28:00
running out,
28:01
the companion
28:02
that God
28:03
made for
28:04
man.
28:04
Now,
28:04
let me just
28:05
say,
28:05
I know
28:05
that some
28:06
of you
28:06
are not
28:07
married,
28:07
and I'm
28:08
not going
28:08
to make
28:08
this,
28:09
I don't
28:09
want to
28:09
focus only
28:11
on the
28:12
marriage
28:12
bond,
28:12
because I
28:12
don't
28:13
believe that
28:13
this does
28:14
focus only
28:15
on it,
28:15
primarily,
28:17
because this
28:18
was the
28:18
first human
28:20
to human
28:20
bond that
28:21
God created,
28:22
from which
28:23
every other
28:23
relationship
28:24
would arise.
28:27
But,
28:28
again,
28:29
there is
28:29
something
28:30
deeply
28:30
dramatic
28:31
about what
28:32
God does.
28:32
He doesn't
28:33
just create
28:34
a woman
28:34
out of
28:34
nothing.
28:36
He takes
28:37
the man,
28:37
he puts
28:37
him to
28:38
sleep,
28:38
he opens
28:39
him up,
28:39
he takes
28:40
a rib
28:40
out of
28:41
him,
28:42
and from
28:42
the rib
28:43
he creates
28:44
this
28:46
perfect
28:47
soulmate
28:48
for Adam.
28:50
And when
28:50
he brings
28:51
him to
28:51
Adam,
28:52
Adam's
28:52
words
28:52
are,
28:54
this
28:54
at last
28:55
is bone
28:55
of my
28:56
bones,
28:56
this is
28:56
what was
28:57
lacking,
28:58
this is
28:59
bone of
28:59
my bones
29:00
and flesh
29:00
of my
29:00
flesh,
29:01
she shall
29:01
be called
29:02
woman,
29:02
because she
29:03
was taken
29:03
out of
29:05
man,
29:06
therefore
29:06
shall a
29:06
man leave
29:07
his father
29:07
and mother
29:07
and hold
29:08
fast to
29:08
his wife.
29:09
This was
29:09
the first
29:10
marriage
29:10
bond,
29:11
but it
29:12
was the
29:13
first primary
29:14
human
29:15
relationship,
29:16
and from
29:17
then there
29:18
came
29:18
children,
29:19
and from
29:19
them came
29:20
more children,
29:21
and cousins,
29:22
and family,
29:23
and wider
29:23
family,
29:24
and ripples,
29:25
and community,
29:28
and towns,
29:29
and villages,
29:30
and friendships,
29:31
and all kinds
29:32
of working
29:33
relationships in
29:34
which we could
29:36
relate to one
29:37
another and find
29:38
meaning and
29:39
belonging,
29:40
and fellowship.
29:41
so we are
29:45
here for
29:47
this evening.
29:49
God has
29:50
called us
29:50
into fellowship
29:51
with one
29:52
another,
29:53
a unique
29:53
relationship
29:54
in the
29:55
family of
29:56
God.
29:58
I don't
29:59
want to say
29:59
anything else
30:00
about that.
30:01
There isn't
30:02
time.
30:02
What I want
30:03
to do is
30:03
in two
30:04
minutes,
30:04
I want to
30:05
talk about
30:06
takeaways.
30:06
how does
30:08
this relate
30:09
to where
30:11
we are
30:11
this evening?
30:13
Well,
30:13
let me ask
30:14
this question.
30:17
When we
30:17
think of
30:19
Eden,
30:19
and what
30:20
God did
30:21
there at
30:21
the very
30:22
beginning of
30:22
the world,
30:23
and what
30:23
God is
30:24
doing now
30:24
in the
30:24
gospel,
30:25
and what
30:25
God will
30:25
one day
30:26
do in
30:27
bringing
30:27
about the
30:28
new heaven
30:28
and the
30:29
new earth,
30:30
as he
30:30
will one
30:31
day,
30:32
what about
30:33
now?
30:34
What about
30:35
this life
30:35
now?
30:36
For you
30:37
and me
30:37
as Christians,
30:38
as God's
30:39
people.
30:40
Here's my
30:40
question.
30:41
Is there
30:42
any sense
30:42
in which
30:44
we have
30:45
been restored
30:46
to Eden?
30:48
Or,
30:48
let me put it
30:49
another way,
30:49
is there any
30:50
sense in which
30:50
Eden has
30:51
been restored
30:52
already?
30:53
We know
30:53
it's going
30:53
to be restored
30:54
one day.
30:54
We know
30:55
it's going
30:55
to be a
30:55
new heaven
30:55
and a
30:56
new earth.
30:57
The Bible
30:57
tells us
30:58
that.
30:58
But what
30:59
about now?
31:00
Is the
31:01
life that
31:02
we live
31:02
now only
31:04
to be
31:05
tolerated
31:06
until we
31:06
get to
31:07
heaven?
31:09
Is it
31:09
something to
31:10
be suffered
31:10
only until
31:11
we get
31:13
to heaven?
31:15
I want to
31:15
suggest to
31:16
you very
31:16
strongly the
31:16
answer to
31:17
that is
31:17
no.
31:19
The life
31:19
we have
31:20
now,
31:22
it is
31:22
not perfect,
31:23
it's not
31:24
complete,
31:25
but God
31:27
has already
31:30
started the
31:30
process of
31:31
recreation
31:32
within us.
31:33
let me
31:33
prove that
31:33
from the
31:34
Bible.
31:34
First of
31:35
all,
31:35
let me
31:36
give you
31:36
some
31:36
quotes.
31:37
All of
31:37
them are
31:37
from the
31:38
New
31:38
Testament.
31:39
First of
31:39
all,
31:39
when Paul
31:40
tells us
31:40
that for
31:41
God who
31:42
said let
31:42
light shine
31:43
out of
31:43
darkness,
31:44
he has
31:44
shone in
31:45
our hearts
31:46
to give
31:47
the light
31:47
of the
31:48
knowledge
31:48
of the
31:48
glory of
31:49
God
31:49
in the
31:49
face of
31:50
Jesus
31:50
Christ.
31:51
In
31:51
other
31:51
words,
31:52
in the
31:52
gospel,
31:53
God
31:53
has gone
31:53
all the
31:54
way back
31:54
to
31:54
Genesis
31:55
chapter 1
31:55
and verse
31:56
!
31:56
1,
31:56
and the
31:57
same God
31:57
who said let
31:58
light shine
31:58
out of
31:59
darkness,
31:59
he's done
31:59
the same
32:00
again in
32:01
the gospel,
32:01
except this
32:02
time he's
32:03
done it in
32:03
our hearts
32:04
through Jesus
32:04
Christ.
32:06
New
32:06
creation,
32:07
new process.
32:09
Here's the
32:10
next one,
32:11
Colossians 3
32:12
verse 10,
32:13
listen to
32:13
this,
32:14
we have
32:14
put on
32:15
the new
32:15
self
32:16
which is
32:17
being
32:18
renewed
32:19
in
32:20
knowledge
32:21
after the
32:22
image of
32:23
its
32:24
creator.
32:26
That's
32:26
not in
32:28
the future,
32:28
that's
32:28
now.
32:30
Right
32:31
now,
32:31
God is
32:32
renewing
32:33
his
32:34
image
32:35
in
32:36
us.
32:37
What did
32:37
we say
32:38
before?
32:38
When God
32:39
created Adam
32:40
and Eve,
32:40
he created
32:41
them in
32:41
his
32:42
image.
32:43
What does
32:43
he say
32:43
in Colossians?
32:44
He's created
32:44
us in
32:45
his
32:46
image.
32:47
We
32:47
bear the
32:48
image of
32:48
God in
32:48
a new
32:49
and a
32:49
living
32:49
way in
32:50
the
32:51
Lord
32:51
Jesus
32:51
Christ.
32:53
And
32:53
then,
32:54
he tells
32:55
us in
32:55
Romans
32:55
chapter 8,
32:56
for those
32:56
whom he
32:57
foreknew,
32:57
he
32:57
predates
32:58
to be
32:58
conformed
33:00
to the
33:01
image of
33:02
his
33:02
Son.
33:03
In
33:03
other words,
33:04
remember all
33:04
these things
33:05
I said?
33:05
The horizontal
33:06
relationship,
33:07
the vertical
33:08
relationship,
33:10
it's all
33:10
there.
33:12
It's all
33:12
there now
33:13
in us.
33:13
God has
33:14
done it.
33:14
He's made
33:15
us into
33:16
new creation,
33:17
a new
33:18
creation in
33:19
the Lord
33:20
Jesus
33:20
Christ.
33:21
Christ.
33:27
And so,
33:28
as we
33:28
come to
33:29
remember
33:31
Christ's
33:32
death,
33:33
let's
33:34
do so
33:35
as
33:39
God's
33:39
new
33:41
creation
33:42
in
33:42
Christ
33:42
Jesus.
33:43
That's
33:44
who we
33:45
are.
33:45
God's
33:46
And when
33:48
!
33:47
And when
33:48
we think
33:49
about our
33:50
deficiencies,
33:51
as we
33:51
naturally do
33:52
at a time
33:53
like this,
33:53
we should be
33:53
doing it
33:54
every day,
33:55
but we do
33:56
so in the
33:56
context of
33:57
we are
33:58
new
33:58
creatures
33:59
in
33:59
Jesus
34:00
Christ.
34:01
That's
34:02
the first
34:03
thing.
34:07
Because that's
34:08
what God
34:08
has promised
34:09
us.
34:09
confidence
34:10
and that's
34:11
what gives
34:11
us confidence
34:12
to come
34:14
to God
34:14
and to
34:16
know
34:17
that He
34:18
is our
34:19
Savior
34:19
and has
34:21
done a
34:21
marvelous
34:22
work in
34:23
our hearts.
34:25
Because the
34:26
truth is that
34:27
when we talk
34:27
about Adam's
34:28
fellowship with
34:29
God,
34:31
that vertical
34:32
relationship that
34:33
we talked about
34:34
earlier on in
34:35
which God
34:35
spoke,
34:36
Adam understood
34:37
and he spoke
34:37
back to God
34:38
and there was
34:39
this
34:39
wonderful,
34:41
wonderful
34:41
interaction.
34:42
We have
34:43
it.
34:45
Let me
34:45
prove it to
34:46
you.
34:47
1 John
34:47
chapter 1
34:48
and verse 3.
34:50
The purpose
34:51
of the
34:51
gospel,
34:51
John says,
34:52
is that we
34:53
have fellowship
34:54
and indeed
34:56
our fellowship
34:57
is with
34:59
the Father
34:59
and His
35:01
Son,
35:02
Jesus
35:02
Christ.
35:04
That's
35:05
now,
35:05
tonight,
35:06
we have
35:07
fellowship
35:07
with the
35:08
Father,
35:09
and His
35:10
Son,
35:11
Jesus
35:11
Christ.
35:12
Now,
35:12
the first
35:12
thing that
35:12
comes into
35:13
our minds,
35:13
I guess,
35:14
is,
35:14
well,
35:14
I wish
35:14
it was
35:14
better.
35:15
I wish
35:16
I was
35:16
more
35:16
conscious
35:17
of it.
35:18
I wish
35:19
I was
35:19
more
35:20
obedient.
35:21
Well,
35:22
we're
35:22
coming
35:22
tonight
35:23
to God
35:24
with whom
35:24
we have
35:24
fellowship
35:25
and who
35:26
hears
35:26
and answers
35:27
all our
35:28
prayer.
35:28
And when
35:29
we're asking
35:29
God,
35:30
Lord,
35:31
I want
35:31
to be
35:32
more like
35:32
you.
35:33
I am
35:35
so,
35:36
so
35:36
conscious
35:36
of my
35:37
who do
35:38
you think
35:38
has put
35:38
that
35:38
consciousness
35:39
into your
35:39
heart?
35:40
The
35:41
Holy
35:41
Spirit.
35:43
He's
35:43
troubled
35:44
you,
35:44
rightly
35:45
so.
35:45
What's
35:46
the purpose
35:46
of that
35:46
trouble?
35:47
To bring
35:48
you afresh
35:48
to Jesus
35:49
where there
35:51
is a
35:51
reminder
35:52
of His
35:52
forgiveness
35:53
and His
35:53
cleansing
35:54
and the
35:56
newness
35:56
of life
35:56
that He
35:57
promises
35:57
to give
35:58
us.
36:02
God
36:03
did not
36:04
love
36:05
Adam
36:06
any more
36:08
than He
36:10
loves you.
36:16
You say,
36:18
I have a
36:19
problem with
36:19
that.
36:20
Adam was
36:21
perfect.
36:22
God didn't
36:22
love him
36:22
because he
36:23
was perfect.
36:25
God loved
36:26
him because
36:27
He loved
36:27
him because
36:27
He was a
36:28
man after
36:28
His own
36:29
image.
36:30
And as
36:31
God has
36:31
recreated
36:32
us in
36:32
Christ Jesus,
36:33
He loves
36:33
us with
36:34
that same
36:35
love.
36:40
He did
36:40
not love
36:41
Adam any
36:42
more than
36:44
He loves
36:44
us.
36:47
And so
36:48
therefore,
36:49
in that
36:49
love and
36:50
in the
36:50
confidence
36:50
that that
36:51
love ought
36:52
to bring
36:53
to us,
36:55
we
36:55
worship
36:57
worship and
36:58
adore
36:59
the God
37:01
who has
37:01
created us
37:02
and has
37:02
redeemed
37:03
us in
37:05
the Lord
37:05
Jesus Christ.
37:06
Let's pray
37:06
together.
37:08
Our
37:08
Father in
37:08
heaven,
37:09
we ask
37:09
that you
37:11
will bless
37:12
your word
37:12
to us.
37:13
We thank
37:14
you for
37:14
who we
37:15
are.
37:15
We thank
37:15
you for
37:15
giving us
37:16
not only a
37:17
self-awareness
37:18
but an
37:18
awareness of
37:19
God.
37:21
Thank you
37:22
for speaking
37:22
to us and
37:23
for giving us
37:24
ears that
37:25
listen and
37:25
that want to
37:26
listen to
37:26
more.
37:28
We thank
37:28
you for
37:28
giving us
37:29
willing hearts,
37:30
repentant
37:30
hearts,
37:31
for drawing
37:32
us afresh to
37:34
Jesus.
37:35
And we
37:36
pray that you
37:36
will continue
37:37
to do that,
37:37
not only through
37:38
the course of
37:38
this weekend,
37:39
but on and
37:40
on and on
37:41
through the
37:41
course of
37:42
our lives
37:42
as we
37:44
live in
37:46
the light
37:47
of your
37:48
Spirit.
37:49
So,
37:50
Father,
37:50
take us,
37:51
we pray,
37:51
accept us,
37:52
we confess
37:53
all of our
37:54
failures to
37:55
you.
37:56
And we
37:57
ask that
37:57
you will
37:59
remind us
37:59
of the
37:59
blood of
38:00
Jesus
38:00
Christ that
38:02
cleanses us
38:02
from all
38:03
sin.
38:04
In his
38:04
name,
38:05
amen.
38:07
Well,
38:07
we're going
38:08
to close by
38:08
singing in
38:09
Psalm 8.
38:10
We've already
38:10
started singing
38:11
it.
38:11
It's the
38:12
Sing Psalms
38:13
version.
38:13
It's on
38:14
page 8.
38:15
And we're
38:15
singing from
38:16
verse 5 to
38:17
verse 8.
38:18
The last
38:18
three stanzas,
38:19
verse 5 to
38:20
verse 9.
38:21
You made
38:23
him little
38:24
less than
38:25
those who
38:25
dwell in
38:26
heaven above,
38:26
and you
38:27
have crowned
38:27
and honoured
38:28
him with
38:29
glory and
38:30
with love.
38:30
You gave
38:30
him charge
38:31
of all the
38:31
works created
38:32
by your
38:32
hand, and
38:33
everything that
38:34
you had
38:34
made, you
38:35
gave him
38:36
to command.
38:37
We'll sing
38:37
these last
38:38
three stanzas
38:38
from 5 to
38:39
verse 9,
38:40
and we'll
38:41
stand if
38:42
you're able
38:42
to.
38:42
you made
38:50
him little
38:51
less than
38:54
those who
38:56
dwell in
38:58
heaven above,
39:00
and you
39:03
have crowned
39:05
and honoured
39:07
him with
39:10
glory and
39:13
with love.
39:16
You gave
39:18
him charge
39:20
of all
39:22
the
39:23
works
39:23
created
39:26
higher
39:28
on,
39:30
and everything
39:33
that you
39:36
had made,
39:38
you gave
39:40
him to
39:41
command.
39:45
All
39:46
flocks and
39:48
birds and
39:50
birds and
39:51
fish, all
39:53
he's
39:54
clothed,
39:55
wild and
39:57
tame,
39:59
in all
40:01
the
40:02
earth, O
40:04
Lord our
40:05
Lord,
40:06
our
40:07
glorious
40:09
sister
40:10
name.
40:15
And now
40:15
may the
40:15
grace of
40:16
our Lord
40:16
and
40:16
Saviour
40:17
Jesus
40:17
Christ,
40:18
the love
40:18
of God
40:18
the Father,
40:19
and the
40:19
communion
40:19
and
40:20
fellowship
40:20
of the
40:20
Holy Spirit
40:21
rest on
40:21
and abide
40:22
with each
40:22
one of
40:23
you both
40:23
now and
40:24
always.
40:25
Amen.
40:26
put it
40:41
put it in.
40:41
Thank you.
41:11
Thank you.