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Redeeming The Time · Providence Baptist Church - Sermons

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Good morning. Open up your copy of God's Word to Ephesians chapter 5.
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I want to start off by just kind of extending a real, you know, a genuine welcome to returning college students.
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For many of you, this is your first time coming around and maybe your second Sunday.
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But we have always had a very special place in our hearts at this church for college students.
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And as you look out over the congregation, there's, I would say, a lot of the core members of our church are former college students that were here at some point.
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And either got married and stayed here or just chose to find a job around here and to continue investing and being on mission in this area.
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So we've always had a very soft spot for your demographic.
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And actually, some of the leaders of this church, including myself and Nathan and Wes Shalnut, we met at North Georgia.
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And Nathan was actually the second person I ever met in Dahlonega.
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Kind of odd that he would never leave me alone like after that.
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And still, we're still here.
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And so very grateful for how God used those years in my life.
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And though the message today is going to be particularly for college students, it is going to go across the board.
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No matter where you are, no matter how old you are, no matter what stage of life you're in, it's still going to be very applicable to you.
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And it's going to be very easy to draw the application for where you are.
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But just because many of you are returning college students, we will have this message in a lot of ways directed at you.
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But as I've said many times, college is a crossroads for many of you.
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It's the first time a lot of you have been away from home.
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It's the first time you're forming your opinions on what you actually believe, what life's about,
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and a lot of big decisions being made about your job, your career, your relationship situation.
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So many big changes that you're undergoing.
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And it's such a pivotal time for professing Christians to either fall away a lot of the time from the faith
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or really grow deeper in their faith.
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That's typically what you see.
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You don't see many middle ground people in that area.
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It's a great time to grow spiritually.
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And so that in mind, I just want to lead us in prayer just for a second.
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Ask God to help us as we've been doing.
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Father, I just want to submit to you that apart from the power of your word being applied by the Holy Spirit,
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we have no hope of believing the truth from your word today.
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And I pray that you would help us to worship you through our listening to your word,
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by treasuring it, loving it, and when we leave here to live it out by grace, Lord, wherever we go.
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So just be our teacher now.
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Hold our attention.
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If we're hungry, let us forget our hunger.
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If we're tired, let us forget how tired we are.
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And just be able to focus in on what you would have to say to us today.
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And help me, Lord, a broken, feeble man who's not even the best public communicator,
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just to throw himself at your mercy and to ask you, Lord, to beg you to teach your word to your people today.
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In Christ's name, amen.
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So the message today, I'm going to be speaking on redeeming the time or making the most use of the time.
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And it's a message that's very particularly dear to me.
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And a lot of you will know why, but I'll talk about it more later.
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But you've turned to Ephesians 5, and usually I would just choose to use a larger text.
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But today, I just want to focus in particularly on two verses.
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Now, Paul, the Apostle Paul, wrote the letter to the Ephesian church.
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And in the first three chapters of it, a lot of that is him spending time telling them who they are in Christ,
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telling them about what God has done for them, about how they are the church,
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and how God has saved them and made them his own, about salvation.
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And then the latter three chapters mostly are about, in light of that reality, here's how you should live.
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And that's how we kind of find ourselves in chapter 5.
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So he's talking about Christian living now, living out who you are in Christ.
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So let's look at chapter 5, verse 15.
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Paul says,
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Look carefully, then, how you walk, not as unwise, but as wise,
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making the best use of the time, because the days are evil.
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So I want these two verses to kind of burn into your mind.
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In our text, we see that God has allotted each one of us time.
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Let's focus on that word time to kind of get rolling here.
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But the time he's using here is not the word chronos, which means like a clock time or chronology.
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It's actually kairos, which means a season or opportunity, a fixed period within a time
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when you're giving divine appointments to live for God and to do something for him.
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We call those divine appointments a lot of the time.
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And they're prearranged, providential times that God gives us to be faithful to him.
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They're windows of time that are opened up by God for us to use.
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And eventually, those times will also end and close.
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You won't have it again, in other words.
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And so, there's a lot of examples like that in the Scripture.
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Example, in Isaiah 55, 6, God is calling his people to repent of their sins and come to him for forgiveness.
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And he's saying, there's a time that I'm going to allow you to do that.
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And then it'll stop.
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But he says, seek the Lord while he may be found.
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Call upon him while his name is near.
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That's a kairos.
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Also, in Psalm 69, David prays, oh, Lord, my prayer to you is in an acceptable time.
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So, there's these little segments, windows, seasons of allotted time that God gives you to do something specific, something special.
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And after that's over, it will be lost.
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So, I want you to think of the college years as a special kairos in the span of the kairos of your lifetime.
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All right?
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So, big picture your life, small picture, this season of life that you have in school.
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And the next phrase I want you to look at, so we've talked about time, is the phrase, making the best use of the time.
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It's another awesome Greek word, but it also implies to redeem or purchase for one's use.
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It's also using Colossians 4 or 5, the same word.
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But the imagery here is of someone going to the marketplace.
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And you catch something, something catches your eye, and it's something very valuable, something that draws your attention.
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And you go to it, and the seller tells you that this very valuable item is available for purchase at this price only now, only in this moment.
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And it will soon go off the market, and it won't be available for purchase anymore.
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So, your choice is either to purchase it immediately or to walk away and lose that opportunity to buy it again.
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You can't go back to the marketplace the next day or next week and expect to find the same item for sale.
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So, you have to be swift.
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You have to act immediately.
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You have to take advantage of that.
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You have to purchase it, redeem it for your use.
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Because when you leave, it won't be there again.
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You can't procrastinate.
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It's a transaction that you have to move on or walk away from.
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That's kind of like what the weight of this phrase, making the best use of the time or redeeming the time means.
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So, God is saying to us in this passage, very simply, redeem the best use of the kairos, this season of allotted time that God has given you for eternity.
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Redeem it for eternity.
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Because it will come and go like the wind, and you won't be able to get it back.
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Some of you say, I hate stuff like that.
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I hate impulse sayings that I have to just make a quick decision on.
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You're very indecisive.
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Well, hopefully this message will challenge you to at least be decisive in this way, to make the best use of the time God has given you.
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So, just a quick overview of these two verses, and then we'll get through some points.
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And when you're used to having points, we'll have points.
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But a text overview, okay?
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An observation of this text, you'll see a few connections.
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Just look at it with me, these two verses.
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It says, you've been given a kairos and a lot of season of time by God.
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You can choose to either waste it or redeem it.
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Redeeming the time, according to our text, means walking carefully in wisdom with eternity in view.
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And wasting the time means walking the opposite, carelessly in foolishness with only this present life in view and not eternity.
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So, I want you to think about that.
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And he throws in there, why?
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Because the days are evil.
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There is so much happening around you to lull you to sleep, to make you think that this life is all there is to it.
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That eternity is not on the horizon.
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They're clouding your vision.
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And so, with this in mind, we want to take a look at just three things that will help you redeem the time or make the best use of the time that you've been given in this special kairos of your life.
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I want you to remember that word.
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I'm going to say it a lot today.
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Strange words are different and they stand out to you and hopefully you'll remember it.
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Instead of just saying, remember the time.
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So, kairos.
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Number one.
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Very simple.
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Why you should redeem the time.
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Life is short.
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Life is short.
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You need to beware in some cases, not every case.
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I'm not a doomsday-ish type person.
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But a lot of universities will seek to daily indoctrinate you to adopt a secular humanistic worldview that basically says,
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life is not about God.
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Life is about you.
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You are the center of the universe.
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And therefore, you should live in a way that makes you the center of the universe.
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It's about the here and now.
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And there's many voices that are presenting that anti-God worldview to you.
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And the following system of the world will say that college is a means to help you attain those things.
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Self-fulfillment and your own desires.
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Education is a means to success.
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Education can be a blessing.
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All right?
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But knowledge itself is useless unless it's used in a way that honors Christ and helps others.
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Okay?
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So just because you know a lot doesn't mean you're a wise person at all.
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Sometimes it makes you a fool.
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Scripture actually says, knowledge puffs up, but love builds up.
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One of my heroes of the faith, Jim Elliott, a missionary who was martyred in Ecuador,
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he wrote this while he was in college at Wheaton.
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And he was just kind of laying like, why am I doing it in school again?
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Sort of thing.
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Sort of like, why am I here?
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And he actually wrote this really quick.
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Just remember this.
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Wisdom comes from God, not from PhDs.
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PhDs.
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Wisdom comes from God and not PhDs.
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And they're going to, the system of the world, the fallen world,
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is going to seek to make you buy a certain package, a bill of goods.
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And it kind of goes something like this.
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Now hear me out.
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Just follow me.
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This is the propaganda that at least Western culture tries to sell a lot,
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particularly to young people in college.
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It says, you were here in school.
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And if you work hard, you get a degree.
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That degree will lead to you getting a good job,
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which will also give you a good salary, good money, good benefits.
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Then you can buy fancy vehicles and a big house
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and acquire more toys and possessions.
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Get married or don't get married.
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Maybe have kids, but if you do, only enough,
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that's not going to get in the way of your personal consumption,
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personal happiness.
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And then eventually you can put your kids through college
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and help them accomplish the same goal you just did.
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And you eventually quit working,
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retire by another house in the mountains or on the lake or on the coast,
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and then just spend the latter hours and days and years of your life
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just kicking back, doing nothing.
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And believe me, the message here is not retirement is wrong or evil.
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I kind of hope that I will one day.
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But I work out with a man at the gym.
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He's in his mid-60s.
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He's one of those guys that just puts me to shame.
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Like, I'll get off, like, the bench press machine,
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and he, in, like, his 65 years old,
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will sit down and put on, like, 20 more pounds of me.
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And I'm like, come on.
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So he's that kind of guy.
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But he was a former ranger
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and also worked in law enforcement.
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And currently he's the Lumpkin County manager.
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Stan Kelly is his name.
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And I love this man because he's such an example.
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And we have many other examples in our church of older people
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who are using their retirement well for Jesus.
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But he told me, like, Clay, I am scared to death
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to join a lot of my friends
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who are just settling down, retiring,
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throwing all their money into their stuff and their toys
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and maintaining that stuff in their toys.
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I just don't want to join them.
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That's what he told me.
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He's like, I want to use my retirement well.
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Like, God has given me help at this age in my life
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to use for him.
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And so he's doing two things in his retirement,
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or three things.
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He's being a faithful member of his church.
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He's giving as much as he can to missions
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going to unreached peoples.
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And he himself is going to unreached peoples.
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He's been to Nepal.
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He's been, I think, three times to Nepal
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in the last few years.
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You know, God's given him that help, so he goes.
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He's like, I don't want to go out just doing nothing,
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you know, when my legs kicked up.
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That's how we all should want to finish.
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But that's the sell that they'll tell you.
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Like, that's the goal.
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That's the goal.
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Is just get to this point in your life
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where you can just enjoy all you've worked for.
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And I've seen it.
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It's a miserable thing to watch
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retired communities just do nothing.
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And as the world just is being destroyed
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all around them,
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when they have such potential to help.
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Also in college,
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you're kind of built with a certain invincibility.
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Most of you are 18 to 25 years old.
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Physically, most of you are in the prime of your life.
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You feel invincible, young, fast, smart.
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Can go all day long and sometimes all night too.
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And however, you know, you have to think,
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though for most of you,
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you have many years ahead of you.
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But for some of you, you might not.
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The grim reality is that you can't ignore
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as that life ends.
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And your life will end.
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My life will end.
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And you can't turn a blind eye to it.
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God says,
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you are not invincible.
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You are not immortal.
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You will die.
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You will leave this life behind.
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And no one can take your place.
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Like you're going to pass away.
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We are physically going to pass away one day.
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And God's word is filled with this imagery.
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Let me just read a few to you.
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Job 8, 7.
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For we are but of yesterday and know nothing.
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For our days on earth are a shadow.
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Let's write that word down.
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Shadow.
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Job 14.
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Or unto you,
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A man who is born of woman
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is few of days and full of trouble.
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He comes out like a flower and withers.
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He flees like a shadow and continues not.
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Psalm 103.
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As for a man, his days are like grass.
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He flourishes like a flower of the field.
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For the wind passes over it.
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And then is gone.
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And his place knows it no more.
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There are so many passages that say the same kind of thing.
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Your life is a vapor.
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Your life is a shadow.
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Your life is a breath.
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And we tend to be blind to that.
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But I'm telling you,
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It's a gift if you can grasp that at an early age.
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Because you can use all the years ahead to redeem the time.
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To know that there will be an end.
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Your life had a definite start.
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And will have a definite end.
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So, don't deceive yourself.
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It's foolish for you to deceive yourself into thinking that this present life is all that there is.
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And that this life is ultimately about the here and the now.
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So, do whatever you can to pursue it and enjoy it.
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And if you have to knock people down to do it, do it.
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That's the goal of life.
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But those are all broken cisterns.
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Jeremiah 2.13.
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They're things that you want to put your life into and pour your life into.
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But they're broken.
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And they're going to let you down.
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That's where you need to have your hope in the living God.
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And Him alone.
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The goal of this life is not money, wealth, possessions, toys, clothes, and nice vehicles and big houses.
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It's just going to absolutely and totally let you down.
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Think about how many hours that you spend watching TV or being on social media.
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Which a new statistic says that you almost spend three hours a day on social media.
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It's just sad.
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Playing video games, going to the gym or library.
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There's so many things that aren't bad endeavors.
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But if the goal of your life is to pursue those things,
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then you're going to be severely disappointed.
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I actually saw an article a while back that we've gotten to this point, okay?
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Parents are hiring coaches to teach them to help raise their kids
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so their kids aren't dependent on iPhones.
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That's bad.
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It's things like, go take a walk.
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Go throw a ball with your kid outside.
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It's things like that.
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And that's just to the point where we are now.
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And we're wasting and squandering the special keros of our life.
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We won't get it back.
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So that's foolishness.
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But wisdom says it is wise for you to recognize and embrace that your time on earth is short.
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Don't let that scare you.
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Like, see it as like, okay, now I know what life's about.
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I have the right perspective.
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I can come and see how to make the most of my life.
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Because when you're ready to die, that's when you're really ready to live.
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I kind of sounded catchy, but I didn't mean it that way.
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When you're ready to die, you're truly ready to live.
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And wake up and realize that each morning you get out of bed,
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God has sustained you while you slept.
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And by His grace, He'll help you get through the day.
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And He's doing it for the purpose of you knowing Him deeper and you making Him known to other people.
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If you're not doing that, you're wasting it.
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You're wasting the keros.
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And you're doing it and you can do this in all that you do to make Christ known to other people.
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And recognize that your time at school is meant not just to help you succeed in life,
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not just to consume and enjoy, but it was made to glorify Christ.
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Thomas Case, a Puritan who was thrown in prison for preaching the gospel,
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this is something he wrote about redeeming the time.
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Most men study rather how to pass away their time than to redeem it.
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They waste precious hours as if they had no more.
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They had more than knew what to do with.
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Our season is short and we make it shorter.
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How sad a thing it is to hear men complain.
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Oh, how shall I pass the time?
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I'm bored.
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But oh, when trouble comes,
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when the sword is at the body,
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when the pistol is at the breast,
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the knife at the throat,
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death at the door,
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how precious one of those despised hours be.
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Evil days cry with a loud voice in our ears.
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Redeem the time.
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In life, threatening dangers,
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when God threatens, as it were,
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we can think of redeeming the time for prayer,
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reading, meditation.
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We can gather up the very fragments of time
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so that nothing can be lost.
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Please, God, teach our souls wisdom of redeeming the time.
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Yeah, so Gary read earlier from Psalm 39.
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Hope that stuck out to you.
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But it talks about how asking God to help us know the measure of our days,
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help us to realize how transient we are,
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that we are but ham breaths.
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We heap up wealth and it goes, disappears, right?
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So that's the first point is life is short.
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And it's tied to the next point.
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Eternity is long.
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Very catchy, did they?
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Life is short.
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Number two, eternity is long.
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And according to our passage,
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it's foolish for you to think that there's not another life
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and another world that's waiting for you after this one.
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Even for those of us who know Christ,
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like, man, we so easily are lured into so many different traps
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just to waste time and do nothing.
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And I'm not talking about resting.
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I'm talking about laziness, apathy,
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disengagement, those sort of things.
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So we can grow very nearsighted because the days are evil.
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It says in verse 16,
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it's trying to get us to forget about eternity.
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Remember, life is about the here and now.
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And we need frequent reminders to wake up.
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That's why we need each other in the church
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to help remind ourselves,
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look, this life is going to come and go.
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So hold your hand in Ephesians 5,
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but flip to 1 Corinthians 3 really quick.
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1 Corinthians 3.
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This is one of those passages
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that kind of can sober us a little bit.
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1 Corinthians 3, verse 12.
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And so the Scripture speaks of a judgment
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one day for unbelievers
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where they'll be judged basically
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if they are in Christ or not.
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We will not really face that judgment.
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But it is very clear that even as the people of God,
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even those who are found in Christ
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will face another type of judgment
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where we'll give an account
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for how we've been faithful,
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for our obedience,
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things that we have done
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to honor the Lord in this life,
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which is kind of scary.
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1 Corinthians 3, verse 12.
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Paul says,
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Now if anyone builds on the foundation
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with gold, silver, precious stones,
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wood, hay, straw,
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each one's work will become manifest
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for the day, capital D,
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will disclose it
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because it will be revealed by fire.
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And the fire will test
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what sort of work each one has done.
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If the work that anyone has built
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on the foundation survives,
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he will receive a reward.
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If anyone's work is burned up,
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he will suffer loss,
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though he himself will be saved,
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but only as through fire.
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You ever heard someone say,
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Man, I just want to get into heaven.
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That's not really like the right attitude at all.
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Be concerned.
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But look at that last part.
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It's like,
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yeah, some people will be saved.
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Some people will enter into God's presence,
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but they're going to suffer loss.
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I don't know what that means.
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But maybe holy regret,
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as one writer called it,
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wishing that you had spent
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more focus on redeeming the time
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than wasting the time.
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Wishing like I wish
26:31
I had taken care of
26:33
all these opportunities that I had
26:35
instead of squandering them.
26:37
But,
26:38
the work that we do
26:40
that will last for eternity
26:42
will be rewarded,
26:43
and those that have squandered it
26:44
will lose it.
26:47
So,
26:47
one of those very
26:48
sobering texts.
26:50
That is foolish to think
26:51
that there's not eternity
26:52
on the horizon,
26:53
but it's wisdom,
26:55
it is wisdom
26:57
for us to realize
26:58
that this life is going somewhere.
27:01
Like,
27:01
after we breathe our last,
27:02
we will step into another world.
27:04
God has set that beginning
27:08
and the end of this time
27:09
on earth.
27:10
So,
27:11
we need to maximize
27:12
the kairos,
27:14
maximize the kairos.
27:17
I'll read this to you really quick.
27:19
2 Corinthians 4.
27:21
One of my favorite passages,
27:22
I guess,
27:23
I kind of used
27:23
the eternal type language.
27:25
2 Corinthians 4,
27:28
verse 16 says,
27:29
So we do not lose heart,
27:32
though our outer self
27:33
is wasting away.
27:36
Our inner self
27:38
is being renewed
27:39
day by day.
27:41
For this light
27:42
and momentary affliction
27:44
is preparing for us
27:45
an eternal weight
27:47
of glory
27:48
beyond all comparison.
27:50
As we look not
27:53
to the things
27:53
that are seen,
27:55
but to the things
27:56
that are unseen.
27:58
For the things
27:58
that are seen
27:59
are transient.
28:01
For the things
28:01
that are unseen
28:02
are eternal.
28:04
Ah,
28:04
let that,
28:04
hmm,
28:05
we've got to put
28:06
our minds
28:07
and our hearts
28:08
in this type of language.
28:09
What you see
28:10
is not going to be here
28:11
one day.
28:13
What is unseen
28:14
is going to be eternal.
28:16
This outer self
28:17
is wasting away.
28:19
It doesn't matter.
28:21
I don't care
28:21
if you go to the gym
28:22
five days a week.
28:23
I don't care
28:23
how good you look now.
28:25
I go to CrossFit.
28:26
Well,
28:27
you can cross
28:28
whatever you want to cross.
28:29
You're going to die one day.
28:30
You're not going to look
28:31
that way forever.
28:33
We need reminders
28:34
this life is transient
28:36
and the eternal
28:37
weight of glory
28:38
is before us.
28:41
Likewise,
28:41
Paul said in Colossians,
28:42
seek the things
28:43
that are above,
28:45
not the things
28:46
that are on the earth.
28:49
So,
28:49
life is short,
28:52
eternity is long,
28:54
and then thirdly,
28:56
in light of those two things,
28:57
thirdly,
28:57
redeem the time.
28:59
Make the best use
29:00
of the time,
29:02
the best use
29:03
of the kairos,
29:04
the sacred time
29:05
that God has given you.
29:07
Remember that.
29:09
That when you wake up
29:10
every day,
29:10
remember,
29:11
there's not a moment
29:12
to spare.
29:13
there should be freedom,
29:15
but there should be urgency.
29:17
Okay?
29:17
I'm not saying
29:18
beat yourself up
29:20
every day
29:20
to do a certain thing,
29:22
but there should be
29:23
a weight on you
29:24
that just says,
29:25
I've been given
29:27
another day
29:28
to live
29:28
for Christ.
29:30
Christ.
29:32
And so,
29:33
everything that's given
29:34
to you,
29:35
the money and possessions
29:36
that you have
29:36
are given to you,
29:38
young people
29:39
and older,
29:39
really,
29:40
are given to you
29:41
so you can use them
29:43
in such a way
29:43
that people can look
29:45
at that and say,
29:46
those things
29:46
aren't that person's treasure.
29:48
Christ is.
29:50
Relationships,
29:50
family,
29:52
friends,
29:54
significant others
29:55
are given to you
29:56
so that you can
29:57
live with them
29:58
in such a way
29:59
that shows that
30:00
Christ is your treasure,
30:01
but they are not
30:02
your treasure.
30:03
So many things,
30:04
so many opportunities
30:05
that you'll never
30:06
get replaced
30:07
or replicated again.
30:09
So,
30:10
seize that moment.
30:12
This is so important
30:13
to me because
30:14
most,
30:16
many of you know this,
30:17
but I was born
30:18
with a lung disease
30:20
called cystic fibrosis
30:23
in the early 80s.
30:25
And,
30:26
at the time,
30:27
the age expectancy
30:27
was 18
30:28
when I was born.
30:30
And,
30:31
no cure,
30:33
only treatments
30:34
for that.
30:35
And so,
30:37
I lived a pretty
30:37
normal life
30:38
a lot of the time
30:40
and until I got up
30:40
to my latter teens,
30:42
the disease
30:43
really started
30:44
to hit me.
30:45
But I don't
30:46
begrudge God
30:47
because
30:47
He used that
30:49
to humble me
30:49
and show me
30:50
that I was not
30:51
immortal.
30:52
That I was not
30:53
the awesome
30:55
dude I thought
30:56
I was.
30:58
My dreams
30:59
were I wanted
31:01
to be,
31:02
I wanted to play
31:03
sports in college
31:04
and I wanted
31:05
to go into
31:06
the military.
31:07
I wanted to be
31:09
an elite soldier
31:10
or actually
31:11
the Marine Corps
31:12
because that's
31:12
my family.
31:13
So,
31:14
that's what I wanted
31:15
to do.
31:15
That's like the
31:16
path I carved
31:17
for myself.
31:18
And God
31:19
just shut
31:19
it down.
31:22
I remember
31:23
when 9-11
31:25
came around,
31:26
I had several
31:27
really good friends
31:28
go and join
31:29
the military
31:30
and I remember
31:31
just sort of
31:32
feeling
31:32
left behind.
31:35
But,
31:35
that was early
31:36
in my
31:37
walk with Christ
31:38
and
31:40
it's as if
31:41
God was saying,
31:42
you're going to
31:42
stay here
31:43
and you're going to
31:43
fight a different
31:44
kind of fight.
31:45
and in my
31:47
flesh just
31:47
didn't like that
31:48
but my spirit
31:49
rejoiced.
31:51
And I was really
31:52
kind of bummed
31:53
that all my
31:54
dreams had been
31:54
kind of shot
31:55
down but also
31:57
just aware that
31:58
God was doing
31:59
something,
32:00
I just didn't
32:00
know what.
32:01
And one of my
32:02
best friends
32:02
who was,
32:04
his name was
32:04
Dustin Scoggins,
32:06
he showed up
32:07
one day at my
32:08
house,
32:08
well never mind,
32:09
he got a DUI
32:10
before he was a
32:11
Christian so he
32:11
couldn't drive
32:12
so I was always
32:12
picking him up.
32:13
But I picked
32:15
him up and
32:16
he threw this
32:17
hat at me and
32:17
he had this
32:18
made but it
32:18
basically says
32:19
on it the
32:19
Lord's Marine
32:20
Corps.
32:22
Like this is
32:22
the battle
32:23
you're going to
32:24
fight.
32:25
You're not
32:25
going to get
32:25
engaged in all
32:26
this other
32:26
stuff.
32:28
Forget about
32:28
it.
32:29
And ever
32:30
since then I've
32:31
seen it that
32:31
way even though
32:33
at times I
32:33
still struggle to
32:34
believe.
32:36
And when I
32:36
got to Cali
32:37
and I came up
32:37
here to North
32:38
Georgia in
32:39
Dahlonega,
32:40
this was a book
32:41
that I read
32:41
called Don't
32:42
Waste Your
32:42
Life.
32:43
By John
32:44
Piper.
32:45
So you
32:45
should pick up
32:46
this book
32:46
because it's
32:48
about what we're
32:48
talking about.
32:49
How do you
32:49
make the most
32:50
of the time?
32:51
How do you
32:52
redeem the
32:53
time and not
32:54
waste it?
32:56
So these
32:57
kind of thoughts
32:58
were heavy on
32:59
my mind in
32:59
college.
33:00
I was very
33:01
sick.
33:02
I had to go
33:02
in for
33:03
treatments pretty
33:04
often.
33:05
Somehow I
33:06
managed to
33:06
graduate.
33:08
I remember
33:08
being in the
33:09
hospital and my
33:09
doctor gave me a
33:10
pass to go and
33:11
graduate and come
33:12
back to the
33:13
hospital.
33:14
So I
33:15
walked with all
33:16
my crazy
33:17
friends.
33:18
And
33:19
eventually, as
33:23
most of you
33:23
know, I had to
33:24
get a lung
33:24
transplant in
33:26
2008.
33:28
And somehow I
33:30
survived that.
33:31
The surgeon said
33:32
that it was the
33:32
worst pair of
33:33
lungs he ever
33:34
had seen.
33:34
he had done a
33:37
lot of
33:38
transplants.
33:40
And I also
33:41
got severely
33:42
sick, like
33:42
bad infection
33:43
within the first
33:45
six months of my
33:46
transplant.
33:46
It nearly killed
33:47
me.
33:48
And I don't
33:49
have any memory
33:50
for a month.
33:52
And I was on
33:53
life support.
33:54
And then after
33:55
that I was just
33:55
sort of drug out
33:56
of my mind and
33:57
don't remember
33:57
anything.
33:58
But at one
34:00
point I was in
34:01
the CICU at
34:03
UAB Hospital in
34:05
Birmingham.
34:06
And I was in
34:07
there with two
34:07
other patients.
34:09
One girl and
34:11
one guy.
34:13
Around my age.
34:15
One was waiting
34:16
for a lung
34:17
transplant.
34:19
And one had
34:19
CF and had
34:22
received the
34:22
transplant but
34:23
was not doing
34:24
well at all.
34:25
kind of the
34:26
same thing.
34:27
And so for
34:28
about a week
34:29
we just kind of
34:31
fought to make
34:32
it through.
34:33
My parents met
34:34
their parents and
34:35
hung out with
34:36
their parents and
34:37
talked to their
34:37
parents.
34:39
My parents tried
34:40
to share the
34:41
hope they had in
34:42
Christ with those
34:42
other parents.
34:44
And for some
34:46
reason they both
34:47
died and I'm
34:47
still standing
34:48
here.
34:49
No control
34:50
over that.
34:52
But that
34:52
weighs on me.
34:55
why?
35:00
So God
35:00
chose to
35:01
extend my
35:02
life through
35:03
my transplant
35:04
and now I
35:06
feel that
35:06
weight to
35:06
redeem the
35:08
time.
35:10
In the first
35:11
year of my
35:12
marriage just a
35:13
few years ago
35:13
I got really
35:16
sick again and
35:16
had to go to
35:17
the hospital in
35:18
Birmingham and
35:19
my wife Kathleen
35:20
was with me and
35:21
we walked down
35:22
the hospital
35:24
ward.
35:25
the lung
35:25
transplant unit
35:26
kind of where I
35:27
was for so
35:28
long.
35:30
And
35:30
looked in the
35:32
rooms and saw
35:33
people on life
35:34
support.
35:35
Seeing people
35:36
that had just
35:38
received transplants.
35:40
There's tubes
35:41
coming out of them
35:42
just laying there
35:42
in the bed.
35:44
And it just
35:45
broke me.
35:47
I think that was
35:47
the last time I
35:48
actually just
35:48
bawled my eyes
35:49
out because I
35:50
just remembered
35:50
Lord.
35:53
That could still
35:54
be me.
35:56
Why did I
35:56
make it out of
35:57
there like
35:57
Lord help me
35:58
not to fall
35:59
asleep.
36:01
Let me not
36:02
waste this
36:02
life.
36:05
And even
36:05
though God
36:06
has chosen to
36:07
paint this to
36:08
me in a very
36:08
vivid way it's
36:09
no less true
36:10
for you.
36:11
Like every day
36:12
is a gift from
36:13
the Lord to
36:15
redeem for
36:16
his use.
36:16
And I know
36:19
that the Lord
36:20
loves me and
36:20
that I'm accepted
36:21
fully in Christ
36:22
that I can't
36:23
earn his love
36:24
no matter what
36:24
I've done.
36:25
But I still
36:26
want to
36:27
redeem the time.
36:29
Eternity weighs
36:29
heavy on my
36:30
mind.
36:32
So look back
36:33
at Ephesians
36:34
5.
36:37
Ephesians 5
36:38
verse 15
36:39
and 16
36:40
again.
36:41
Look carefully
36:42
then how you
36:43
walk not as
36:44
unwise but as
36:45
wise.
36:45
making the
36:46
best use of
36:47
the time
36:48
because the
36:48
days are
36:49
evil.
36:55
So I
36:56
want to give
36:56
you just
36:57
three things
36:57
to help you
36:59
redeem the
36:59
time.
37:00
So I'm in
37:00
college.
37:01
Give me some
37:01
things to hold
37:02
on to.
37:03
Give me some
37:03
things to focus
37:04
on to help
37:06
me redeem the
37:07
time.
37:08
This is some
37:09
application but
37:10
one is grow
37:12
in your
37:12
relationship
37:13
with Christ.
37:15
Christ.
37:16
Again for
37:17
many of you
37:18
you've never
37:19
really taken
37:19
your faith
37:20
seriously until
37:21
now.
37:22
Even though
37:23
you have
37:24
great
37:24
responsibilities
37:25
that feel
37:26
very weighty
37:27
to you
37:28
that probably
37:29
won't be as
37:30
weighty as
37:30
when you
37:31
graduate one
37:31
day and
37:31
have a
37:32
full time
37:32
job and
37:33
maybe have
37:33
children.
37:35
There are
37:36
moments of
37:37
time that
37:37
you'll never
37:37
get back to
37:38
study God's
37:39
word to
37:39
dive deep
37:40
into the
37:41
scriptures and
37:42
meditate on
37:42
them day and
37:43
night.
37:43
to realize
37:45
that the
37:45
Bible is
37:46
God's
37:46
written
37:46
revelation of
37:47
himself to
37:49
reveal himself
37:50
to you.
37:52
So much
37:52
time to
37:53
pray and
37:53
to sit at
37:54
the feet of
37:55
Jesus.
37:57
And you can
37:57
do this in
37:58
your time in
37:58
college.
37:59
You can do
37:59
it.
38:00
You can
38:00
redeem that
38:00
time to
38:01
grow close
38:02
to Christ.
38:04
Don't waste
38:05
it.
38:07
Ephesians 5
38:07
17 to read
38:08
on this one
38:09
word.
38:09
It says,
38:09
don't be
38:09
foolish,
38:10
but understand
38:12
what the
38:12
will of
38:13
the Lord
38:13
is.
38:15
Okay.
38:16
Well, I
38:17
thought the
38:17
will of
38:17
God was
38:17
this like
38:18
mystical
38:18
thing I
38:19
was supposed
38:19
to like
38:19
find and
38:20
chase.
38:21
Like, no,
38:22
don't be
38:23
foolish.
38:23
Know what
38:24
the will
38:24
of the
38:25
Lord is.
38:26
It's here.
38:27
If you
38:28
want to know
38:28
what's on
38:28
God's mind,
38:29
it's right
38:29
here.
38:30
What he
38:30
loves, what
38:31
he hates,
38:31
what he
38:32
believes about
38:32
you, what
38:33
he calls
38:33
you to,
38:34
it's all
38:35
in here.
38:35
It's not
38:36
out here.
38:38
Don't be
38:38
foolish, but
38:39
understand what
38:40
the will of
38:40
the Lord
38:41
is.
38:42
What's
38:43
not a word
38:43
for foolish?
38:44
This kind
38:44
of gets
38:44
me stupid.
38:46
Don't be
38:46
stupid.
38:49
Jeremiah
38:49
9, verse
38:51
23, let me
38:52
read this
38:52
to you.
38:54
Thus
38:55
says the
38:55
Lord, let
38:56
not the
38:57
wise man
38:58
boast in
38:58
his wisdom.
39:00
Let not
39:00
the mighty
39:01
man boast
39:02
in his
39:02
might.
39:03
Let not
39:04
the rich
39:04
man boast
39:05
in his
39:05
riches.
39:05
So, that's
39:06
what they're
39:07
going to
39:07
preach to
39:07
you.
39:07
Get some
39:07
money, get
39:08
some
39:08
wisdom, get
39:09
some riches,
39:10
be strong.
39:12
Don't boast
39:12
in that
39:13
stuff.
39:13
He says
39:13
in verse
39:13
24, but
39:15
let him
39:15
who boasts
39:16
boast in
39:16
this, that
39:17
he understands
39:18
and knows
39:19
me, that
39:21
I am the
39:21
Lord who
39:22
practices
39:22
steadfast
39:23
love, justice
39:25
and righteousness
39:26
in the earth.
39:27
For these
39:28
things I
39:29
delight, declares
39:30
the Lord, and
39:32
grow in your
39:33
walk with
39:33
Jesus while
39:34
you're in
39:34
school.
39:36
And these
39:37
other two
39:37
things actually
39:38
aids you in
39:39
that one
39:39
pursuit.
39:41
Secondly, grow
39:42
in your
39:42
relationship with
39:43
God's people.
39:45
Over the
39:45
years, we've
39:45
noticed a
39:46
huge pattern,
39:48
a difference
39:49
between students
39:50
who just kind of
39:51
chill out on
39:51
campus, hang
39:53
out with other
39:53
students, maybe
39:55
they're a part of
39:56
a campus ministry,
39:56
maybe not, that
39:58
side, and those
39:59
who actually say,
40:00
hey, you know
40:00
what, I actually
40:01
belong to the
40:01
church right
40:02
now, so I'm
40:04
going to throw
40:05
myself into the
40:06
body of Christ,
40:07
the local
40:08
church, and
40:10
they grow
40:10
light years ahead
40:11
of those who
40:12
just shot on
40:13
campus.
40:13
It's just a
40:13
fact.
40:15
It just is.
40:16
That's how God
40:16
designed it.
40:18
The church is the
40:19
family of God, it's
40:20
his people, it's the
40:22
bride of Christ.
40:24
And as I said
40:24
before, don't hate
40:25
on Jesus'
40:26
bride because it
40:26
will clean your
40:27
clock if you hate
40:27
his bride.
40:29
He loves his
40:30
bride.
40:30
And when he did
40:31
die for just
40:32
you, but he
40:32
also died for a
40:34
people that he's
40:35
called you to, to
40:36
be with, to live
40:37
with, they're your
40:38
family.
40:38
This is your home,
40:40
not this building,
40:41
but these people,
40:43
they're your
40:43
family.
40:44
And we need each
40:45
other as pilgrims
40:47
walking on this
40:48
earth.
40:50
Join a local
40:51
church.
40:52
Don't do the
40:52
whole dating the
40:55
church like I'm
40:55
going to be at
40:56
Christ's family this
40:56
Sunday, then go to
40:58
Brownsbridge next
40:59
Sunday, then
41:00
Passion City, then
41:00
next Sunday, and
41:01
then maybe try
41:02
Christ's family
41:02
again.
41:02
Just don't do
41:03
it.
41:04
Just find
41:05
somewhere that
41:06
loves the gospel,
41:07
that loves the
41:08
scripture, that
41:09
loves Jesus Christ
41:10
and loves the
41:10
mission of Christ,
41:12
and stay there and
41:13
pour your life out
41:14
there.
41:17
Young women, you
41:17
need older women to
41:18
learn how to live
41:20
from.
41:21
Like older women
41:22
to say, hey, come
41:22
and walk with me.
41:23
Come and let me
41:24
show you how to
41:25
follow Jesus.
41:26
Guys, you need the
41:27
same thing.
41:27
You need older men
41:28
in your life.
41:29
You're not going to
41:30
get that on campus.
41:33
There are some
41:34
guys and girls
41:35
too, finding their
41:37
lives in so many
41:37
things, and what
41:39
they need is the
41:40
gospel and the
41:42
church can help
41:44
you in that pursuit
41:44
of reaching those
41:45
people.
41:47
We need older
41:48
people to be
41:48
around.
41:50
So campus
41:50
ministries are good.
41:51
I was a part of
41:51
campus outreach.
41:52
I was on staff with
41:53
them for three years.
41:54
Good ministries.
41:55
They're actually not
41:56
in North Georgia
41:56
anymore, and I say
41:57
that with a heavy
41:57
heart.
41:59
But as good as
42:01
campus ministries are,
42:02
they are not to take
42:03
the place of the
42:04
local body.
42:06
And any campus
42:07
ministry worth anything
42:08
will tell you that.
42:09
No, no, no.
42:09
We're not it.
42:09
Go.
42:10
Be part of the
42:11
body.
42:12
Go.
42:12
Go.
42:13
So join a local
42:16
church, a healthy,
42:17
good local church.
42:19
We can tell you a lot
42:20
of them not to go to.
42:21
There's a few that we
42:21
would recommend.
42:22
You're welcome to stay
42:22
here.
42:23
But there are other
42:24
ones as well.
42:26
All right.
42:27
That's the second
42:28
thing.
42:30
Lastly, grow in your
42:32
obedience to Christ's
42:33
mission.
42:34
Grow in your obedience
42:35
to Christ's mission.
42:37
For those of you that
42:38
are in school, most of
42:40
you will never have the
42:42
relational influence you
42:43
have right now ever
42:44
again.
42:45
The special kairos you'll
42:47
never get back.
42:49
A lot of you.
42:51
You're surrounded by
42:52
people on a daily
42:53
basis that need to see
42:56
Christ, that need to
42:57
hear the gospel.
43:00
Colossians 4, verse 5,
43:01
the same kind of
43:02
phrase.
43:02
Walk in wisdom toward
43:04
outsiders, making the
43:06
best use of the time.
43:08
Open your eyes to the
43:11
lost people that are all
43:12
around you.
43:13
It's that young guy who
43:15
never leaves his room and
43:17
just plays video games all
43:19
day and night because he's
43:21
depressed and he doesn't
43:22
want to step out of his
43:22
dorm room to face the
43:23
world.
43:25
It's that girl.
43:27
Some of you know her.
43:29
She won't go out unless
43:30
she spends an hour getting
43:31
ready first to make
43:32
herself look beautiful
43:33
because she's afraid of
43:35
being judged and torn
43:36
apart by people just
43:38
looking at her all day
43:39
long.
43:42
It's that unpopular
43:43
nobody that sits alone in
43:44
the chow hall.
43:45
It's that person trying to
43:48
find their value in the
43:49
dating world or the sex
43:50
world or their party life.
43:52
They're trying so hard and
43:54
they're being destroyed
43:56
because of it.
43:58
Some of you know them.
44:00
It's that girl killing
44:01
herself to look good at the
44:03
gym because she's afraid of
44:05
how people are going to
44:07
evaluate her when she steps
44:09
out in public.
44:10
Look, it's that person
44:12
that always wants to speak
44:13
up in class and that may
44:15
annoy you at times but
44:16
they're trying to say I'm
44:18
smart.
44:18
I have something to offer.
44:19
Listen to me.
44:21
They're all around you.
44:22
Just open your eyes and pray
44:27
that God gives you just eyes
44:28
to see those people.
44:29
They need you.
44:31
They need you to bear
44:31
witness of Christ and the
44:33
freedom that you live in.
44:34
They need to see that.
44:36
Don't just say I'm going to
44:37
wait for the summertime.
44:39
I'm going to do missions
44:40
overseas this summer.
44:42
That's when I evangelize.
44:43
If you're not willing to
44:43
walk across the hall to talk
44:46
to Christ, about Christ to
44:47
someone, please don't go
44:48
overseas this summer.
44:49
The most faithful
44:52
missionaries are people
44:53
who are already being
44:54
faithful right here,
44:55
right now.
44:58
Jim Elliott, once again,
45:01
when he was in college,
45:02
he wrote this.
45:04
Father, make me a crisis
45:06
man.
45:07
Bring those I contact
45:09
to decision.
45:11
Let me not be a mile
45:14
post on a single road.
45:16
Make me a fork that men
45:18
must turn one way or
45:19
another on facing Christ
45:21
in me.
45:23
And on your bulletin,
45:25
there's a quote.
45:25
Jonathan Edwards wrote a
45:26
lot about making the most
45:28
use of his time.
45:30
This is one thing he said
45:32
on your bulletin,
45:34
on top of your bulletin.
45:35
Time is short,
45:37
and the work which we have
45:38
to do in it is so great
45:40
that we have none of it
45:42
to spare.
45:43
So I want to end with this.
45:50
I want you to rest in Christ.
45:52
If you're feeling like,
45:53
man, I feel overwhelmed
45:55
by this,
45:56
you should to some degree.
45:58
But as you study the Gospels,
46:00
you will see that Jesus
46:01
himself was very aware,
46:03
very tuned in to the
46:05
kairos that God had given him.
46:08
He talked about,
46:09
and John,
46:10
but I looked at John,
46:11
John 2, verse 4,
46:13
my hour has not yet come.
46:15
The hour where he was to be
46:17
arrested and tried
46:19
and crucified
46:19
and resurrected,
46:22
that's the time he's talking
46:23
about,
46:24
the culmination,
46:25
the climax of his life.
46:28
My hour has not yet come,
46:30
John 2, verse 4.
46:32
Later on in chapter 7,
46:33
he says,
46:34
my hour is not yet here.
46:36
Also in John 7,
46:40
it says,
46:40
his hour had not yet come.
46:43
John 12,
46:45
Father,
46:45
save me from this hour,
46:47
but for this purpose
46:49
I came into the world.
46:52
John 17,
46:53
Father,
46:53
here it is,
46:54
the hour has come.
46:57
The hour has come.
46:59
Glorify your Son,
47:01
that the Son may glorify you.
47:03
And then John 19,
47:04
verse 30,
47:05
it is finished.
47:08
So the good news
47:09
is even though,
47:10
even though as believers,
47:12
you and I both
47:12
have squandered
47:13
missed opportunities,
47:14
we have wasted time.
47:17
The good news is
47:18
that Christ never did.
47:21
And that he fulfilled
47:23
perfectly all the time
47:25
the Father had given him
47:26
to the very end.
47:27
And he brought us
47:27
eternal salvation.
47:30
So,
47:31
you never can earn that
47:33
no matter how faithful
47:35
you are of your time.
47:36
So remember this,
47:38
as you strive
47:38
to redeem the time,
47:40
know that you are
47:41
not striving
47:42
to enter
47:43
the love of Christ,
47:45
but you're striving
47:46
in the midst
47:47
of the love of Christ.
47:49
But he's already
47:49
secured for you
47:50
through what he did,
47:52
his finished work.
47:53
Yet,
47:55
true faith in you
47:56
will want
47:57
to redeem the time.
47:58
It'll be a fighter.
48:00
It'll say,
48:00
I've got to make
48:01
the most of this opportunity.
48:04
So don't ignore that.
48:06
Run after it.
48:07
Think about it.
48:09
And rest in that reality
48:10
that you can be
48:11
in the finished work
48:12
of Christ.
48:12
Let's pray to that end.
48:16
I want to close
48:17
by looking at Psalm 90.
48:18
Just go ahead
48:19
and turn there
48:19
and we'll pray from here.
48:26
Psalm 90.
48:27
This is a psalm
48:28
that Moses wrote.
48:32
Psalm 90.
48:32
Look at verse 9.
48:34
This kind of sums up
48:35
well our message today.
48:37
For all our days
48:41
pass away
48:42
under your wrath.
48:44
We bring our years
48:46
to an end
48:46
like a sigh.
48:48
The years of our life
48:49
are 70
48:50
or even
48:51
by reason of strength
48:53
80.
48:54
Yet their span
48:55
is but toil
48:56
and trouble.
48:58
They are soon gone
48:59
and we fly away.
49:02
Who considers
49:03
the power
49:03
of your anger
49:04
and your wrath
49:05
according to the fear
49:06
of you.
49:08
So here it is guys.
49:10
So teach us
49:10
to number our days
49:12
that we may get
49:14
a heart
49:14
of wisdom.
49:17
Number our days.