Latest / HBCWestminster / 4.30.23 Romans 8:14-17 Pastor Danny Gardner

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4.30.23 Romans 8:14-17 Pastor Danny Gardner · HBCWestminster

• 0:00
  Well, Romans chapter 8 and verse 14, if you guys are able to stand in honor of God's word as I read four short verses, but like I said, they pack a powerful punch. Romans 8 and verse 14, the word of God says, For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the spirit of adoption as sons by whom we cry, Abba, Father. The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God.
• 0:29
  and if children, then heirs, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him. And pray with me. God, our Father, we know that you are the creator and the sustainer of all things. You are the true source of light and wisdom, and we thank you, Lord, for calling us to faith and for planting your word in our hearts and for delivering us from our sin.
• 1:00
  We ask now that you would empower us to live in light of the gospel, declaring its truth with our words, embodying that truth through our actions. Give us this morning love for one another and love for you. In Jesus' name, amen. Amen. Thank you, church. Well, chapters 3 to 7 of Romans describe how the Lord removed the condemnation of man.
• 1:25
  By justifying and sanctifying him through faith in Jesus Christ, you could call this a no-condemnation salvation. Chapter 8 demonstrates how the Holy Spirit secures this no-condemnation salvation. And we've said many times already, and we will continue to say, that if you've ever wondered who the Holy Spirit is and what the Holy Spirit actually does, read Romans chapter 8. We've said that without the Holy Spirit of God, we would remain in our sin with no assurance of salvation.
• 1:55
  dead and in the dark, both physically and spiritually. Last week, we included yet another of the Spirit's work in our lives. You guys remember from last week what that work was? Nope. Nobody could from the other two services either, right? Stunned silence as I asked that question. The last two services, I have been tempted on occasion.
• 2:19
  to preach, just kind of to run an experiment, to preach the exact same sermon two Sundays in a row, just to see if anybody would notice. I've never done it because it would be sin, okay? But I've always been curious, would anybody even notice if I did? I hope that you would. Verse nine, chapter eight and verse nine says, you are not in the flesh, but in the spirit, if in fact the spirit of God dwells in you. Now, do you remember what is the work of the spirit of God in you?
• 2:50
  indwelling we said in the that in the old testament the holy spirit would anoint and fill but would not indwell would not take up permanent residence in the hearts and lives and minds of his people in the new testament that changed the holy spirit of god lives in us and does not depart lives in us
• 3:12
  So that those who are called by His name actually have the Spirit of God. In fact, those who are called by His name are now the temple of God's Holy Spirit. He lives in us and works through us. And I've got to keep going or I'm going to get off track and start preaching about something entirely different. We were reminded last Sunday of the magnificent victory that Christians have over our mindsets and our mortal bodies. The victory over our death-bound flesh has been secured.
• 3:40
  The fire of sin has been put out. All that remains for us to do is to go around and stomp on what continues to smolder there. Any smoke that you see, go step on and extinguish. Colossians 3 and verse 5 words it this way, put to death what is earthly in you. Things like immorality and impurity and evil desires. And instead put on
• 4:06
  holiness and compassion and kindness and humility and meekness and patience and forgiveness and love this last monday my middle school aged son chase and i drove up to jackson lake state park many of you know where that is kind of straight through brighton and on out toward the plains our intention on monday was to hike a little bit and fish but as i was out there i was reminded of five years ago right about this time of year when our youth group
• 4:35
  planned a camping and water skiing trip to Jackson Lake State Park. Forty of our youth, 7th through 12th grade, and then all of the adults were in their tents. They had enjoyed a full day of sunshine, beautiful weather, water skiing, tubing, and all of that. Then came back, had dinner together, started campfires, sung together, heard from God's Word. They all went to bed in the middle of the night. The clouds rolled in, and the heavens opened.
• 5:01
  And large hailstones, bigger than golf balls size, many of them began to rain down on them in their little plastic and nylon tents. I received a call. I wasn't on that trip, but my oldest son, Pearson, was. And I think my middle son, Zach, was on that trip also. I received a call from Pearson in the middle of the night, right, 2 a.m.
• 5:24
  He calls, and that's not a call you ever want to get. When your kids are on a youth group trip and they call you at two in the morning, you're like, what happened? Pearson, what happened? He started with, dad, we're okay. We're okay, but everything is trashed. He said, all of the tents are trashed. The sleeping bags are trashed. The boats are trashed. All of the vehicles are trashed. Dad, I'm so sorry about your truck.
• 5:52
  He said that. I'm so sorry about your truck. I had let the youth group borrow my truck to put kids in and to pull one of the trailers out there. It's the last time I've ever let them borrow my truck. I'm so sorry. He said in the middle of the night, hail began to rain down, and he sent me pictures of him holding these hailstones. I mean, this big.
• 6:13
  And he said it was so scary. He said everybody was crying. We were so scared. I said, what happened? He said, Pastor Sam literally ran out into the hailstorm, started grabbing kids, throwing them into Henry and Val's RV, which was also trashed, all right? But Henry and Val's RV now was the house.
• 6:34
  to secure those kids. And like 50 people, 40 kids and 10 adults, all smashed into their RV. They sent me pictures of all of these kids mashed in there as the hail just had its way with everything outside. Have you ever wished that you had Henry and Val's RV? Have you ever wished, honestly, that when the hailstorms start coming, the hail starts coming, and you feel like you're just getting pulverized, that you had a place
• 7:09
  that you could escape to, that you could run to, that you could seek shelter in, a place that was going to protect you, a place where you could find security. We long for security. We've just finished tax season, right? We've all either gotten our refunds or written our checks. I was surprised this year to find out that my family actually owed significantly less in taxes this year than we did last year. I mean, way less.
• 7:38
  And at first I thought this is cause for celebration, right? You get that final number at the end and you're like, yes, I owe way less. But then it kind of washes over you, the realization that the reason you owe less is because you made less. And if you owe a lot less, then you made a lot less. And so I called the guy who does my tax and I said, what gives? And he said, the stock market and bonds both had historically bad years. In fact, he said.
• 8:08
  Bonds, which are normally like your go-to. Bonds, he said, had the worst year in their history since there have been bonds. The worst year in their history. And so congratulations, Danny, you owe a lot less. I thought, wait, stocks and bonds, don't they call those securities? I think they call them securities. I told the guy, they should change the name. They should be called insecurities. They don't work.
• 8:38
  We long for security, fiscal security, finding investments that will work and take care of us, relational security, finding friends, loved ones, family members that we can count on, social security, emotional security, but maybe more than all of those, we long for spiritual security. We long to know the truth. We long to know where our souls stand.
• 9:04
  The good news this morning, church, is that according to Romans 8 and verse 14, we can find soul security, spiritual security, and it can be found in a whisper. Whispers are far more powerful than we imagine and than we ever give them credit for. Proverbs 16 and verse 28 says, A dishonest man spreads strife. We know that to be true. But look at this. In a whisperer, it says, separates close friends. What a great picture that is. This guy coming in and saying, Hey, have you heard?
• 9:36
  Hey, what about this? What do you think about this person? Right? And you can imagine these close friends being divided like a wedge being driven between them because of this whisperer, whispering rumors, slander, causing strife and discord. Whispers are actually very powerful things. Remember when Elijah the prophet needed to hear the voice of God, there was a mighty wind, but the Lord wasn't in the wind.
• 10:03
  And after the wind, there was a great earthquake, but the Lord couldn't be found in the earthquake. And after the earthquake, there was a fire. The Lord wasn't in the fire. And finally, there came what? A still, small voice, a whisper. And he found the Lord's voice in the whisper. And the Lord's powerful whisper can become, if we allow it to, the greatest influence in our lives as we learn to listen to his whisper rather than to the voices of others.
• 10:31
  The wind, the earthquake, the fire, even the hailstones. And rather, instead, focus on His still small voice. We've already said that the Holy Spirit dwells within every believer. The moment they express saving faith, then now we read what He's doing there. Last week, we talked about that the Spirit of God lives in us, dwells in us. This week, we discover what He's doing. You want to know what He's doing in you? He's whispering. He's whispering.
• 11:02
  We study the threefold effect of the whispering Holy Spirit on our souls. And notice first, the Holy Spirit whispers confirmation even in the midst of displacement. Confirmation even in the midst of displacement. He tells you where you belong even when you feel like you don't belong.
• 11:24
  Everyone is looking for belonging. Everyone is looking for friendship, family, kindness. And notice the promise of verse 14. It says, all who are led by the Spirit of God are what? Sons of God. Don't be afraid to speak up. We'll have more fun together if this is interactive. All who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. And what a promise. The God of heaven is your spiritual father. And if he's your spiritual father, that makes you his kids.
• 11:59
  And if we are all his kids and we share the same father, then what does that make us? It makes us brothers and sisters. We belong to the same spiritual family. We are siblings in the kingdom. And in our seemingly never-ending search for belonging, isn't it nice to know you found where you belong? You belong here. You belong with the people of God.
• 12:23
  Do you remember if you've got school-age kids or perhaps your kids are already grown, do you remember sending your first kid to their first day of school when your oldest son or daughter had their first day of kindergarten and you drove over there and your own heart, you're trying to instill courage in them because they're scared and yet your own heart is filled with trepidation. Like, I do not want to pass this precious baby off to anyone else.
• 12:53
  Certainly they cannot go eight hours without us. It's a real disappointment when you pick them up the first day and you say, how was your day? And they say, it was great. You're like, that hurts daddy's feelings. That's not what I wanted to hear. You wonder though, you're handing them off. Will they be liked? Will they have friends? Is someone going to be mean to them? Which one of these little kindergartners is a bully? Are you not looking at them all? And then when you find them, you're like, it's got to be that kid. Then you check to see how big his dad is.
• 13:22
  How big is he? Because you're like, hey, if his dad is big, then Pearson, just leave that kid alone, okay? Don't talk to that kid. His dad is huge, all right? It's a lot easier with your second kid. You've been around a little while. You realize at that point school is not going to kill them. You assume that your older one is going to look out for your younger one.
• 13:42
  You actually coach your younger one. If anything comes up, if you need anything, you find your older brother or sister, right? And you go and ask them and they'll take care of it. They'll show you where to go. They'll show you where your classroom is. They'll introduce you to some friends. They'll take care of you. When I used to drive my sons to school, which honestly hasn't happened for years at this point, I used to give my boys a speech on the way. They'd be sitting in the back seat of my truck. Say, boys, Pearson and Zach, why do you go to school? And they were first and third grade or something.
• 14:12
  Why do you go to school? And they'd say, well, I go to school to learn. And I'd say, wrong. You go to school to make disciples of Jesus. But while you're there, you better learn. And boys, who are your friends? And they would list a bunch of names, Jaden, Robbie, Brennan, Nolan, and so forth. And I would ask, yes, those are all fine, but who's your best friend? And I had trained them at this point. They would point at each other. I said, that's right. There are two friends the Lord has given you who will always have your back.
• 14:39
  who will always protect you, who will always look out for you, and those are your brothers. I look at Pearson, my oldest. I'd say you look out for your younger brothers before you go running off with all of your buddies because you've got all these friends. Before you go running off with your buddies, you make sure they're okay. You make sure they've got somebody to sit with at lunch because sitting alone at lunch stinks. So if they're sitting alone at lunch, you ditch your buddies and you go sit with your brother. You make sure they have everything they need.
• 15:08
  Maybe mommy and daddy forgot to put something in Zach's lunchbox. You make sure he has what he needs. One afternoon, I went to pick them up from school, which also happened very infrequently. When I'd pick them up, they'd always get excited because it meant, and I did it every time, I would take them to donuts. I wanted to hear about their day. And so anytime they saw my truck in the line to pick them up, I was like, yes, Lamar's, right? We're going, getting a bear claw. And so they jump into my truck. I expect them to be excited. I looked at Pearson. How was your day? Oh, dad, it was great.
• 15:38
  Look at Zach, little first grade Zach. Zach, how was your day? He didn't say great. Instead, he began to tear up. His little bottom lip quivered a little bit. And he said, Dad, I went out to lunch with a couple of my friends and I sat on the sidewalk on the concrete next to the schoolyard. And that's where we sit to eat our lunch. And I had my, you know, he's got one of those little soft side lunch boxes.
• 16:02
  I opened it up. I put it down. I opened it up, and I flipped the thing open, and I'm getting ready to eat lunch, and some older boys, and he said, Dad, I mean, he's crying at this point. He said, Dad, I'm sure they didn't mean to do it. I'm sure it was an accident. Maybe they didn't even know that they did it, but a bunch of older boys were running past, and he said, one of them, as soon as I opened up my lunchbox, one of them ran through and stomped right in my lunch, and Dad, he said, it exploded. It exploded. Everything was ruined, and he's crying, and he's crying, and man.
• 16:31
  I'm in the front seat. I'm like, you give me that boy's name. I'm calling the principal. We're getting together with his parents. This kid needs to hear what happened. I'm getting angry. He's talking more about it. Dad, I didn't get to eat my lunch and all of this. And now hours have gone by, and I'm thinking, man, I'm so mad at that kid. I'm already mad at his dad. And now my anger's turning a little bit to my oldest son, Pearson, who's sitting next to him. And I'm like, Pearson!
• 16:59
  What's the deal? Your whole job is an older brother. Literally your job. I coached you. I told you. You look out for your younger brother. He didn't get to eat lunch today. Pearson said, he ate lunch? He ate my lunch. Some kid squashed his lunch, so I gave him my lunch. He ate my lunch. I didn't eat lunch today. I looked at Zach. I was like, Zach, did you eat his lunch? He's like, yeah.
• 17:28
  You should have led with that. You got to tell me this. You should have led with that. I was like, Pearson, you gave him your lunch and you didn't eat lunch. He said, yeah. I said, Pearson, anything you want for dinner. What do you want to eat? You can have anything. You get to choose what we have for dinner today. What a hero you are. You want to know what it means that you're siblings in God's family? Look at that phrase again, sons of God.
• 17:53
  You share a father. You are all his kids. You are his family. You are siblings in the kingdom. You want to know what it means that you have family in Christ? That's what it means. It means you've got people looking out for you. It means you never have to sit alone. You ever sit alone? I'll come sit with you. You never have to eat alone. Some bully squashes your lunch. Somebody in here will give you theirs. That's what it means. It means we look out for each other. We belong.
• 18:24
  We might be the only people on the planet who have found where they belong. We've been united together under the love of our Heavenly Father. Notice, though, who it is who are sons of God. Go back up to the front of verse 14. Read that again. Figure it out. Who are sons of God? It says, for all who what? Are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. Now, I've heard people really ponder what it means to be led by the Spirit. You get some pretty wacky ideas.
• 18:53
  Books have been written, podcasts produced, sermons preached, breaking down the intricacies of being led by the Spirit. I don't want to make light of those things. Some of them are helpful and good. Can I encourage us not to overthink it? What does it mean to be led by the Spirit? It's actually pretty simple. It means the Spirit is in the front and you're in the back. That's what it means. If you're in the front and the Spirit is in the back, then who's leading who?
• 19:21
  It means the Spirit is in the front and you are in the back. It means the Spirit is in the driver's seat and you're in the passenger's seat. It means the Spirit is the pilot and you're the passenger. And notice Paul's phrase here, are led or are being led.
• 19:36
  Last week we described, meaning it's an ongoing, continuous process. It's not a one-time thing. I was led by the Spirit once, and therefore I'm a son of God. It says you are continually led by the Spirit. We describe the Christian life as arcing toward Christ's likeness and conformity with the Scriptures, not arcing away.
• 19:53
  Over the course of time, it's not to say that we will be perfect. It's not to say that we're going to be sinless. We're never going to make mistakes. We're never going to fail again. We're never going to struggle with temptation and sin again. That's not what it said. But over the course of time, our lives will generally arc toward conformity to the Scriptures, not away, not rebellion toward the Scriptures. And being led by the Spirit is the same.
• 20:18
  It doesn't imply uninterrupted, continuous action. Like if you mess up one time, you're out. Because if that were true, then who among us would be in? None of us. Like, man, I mess up all the time. That's not what it's saying. Rather, it means that the believer's life will be generally characterized as spirit-led. He is calling the shots, and I am simply obeying. It's like taking your dog for a walk.
• 20:51
  The dog may become distracted, may turn to the side. I mean, unless it is very well trained, it's going to see the rabbit out in the field and it's going to want to chase the rabbit. But as soon as it runs off track, what do you, its owner, do? You correct it. You pull on that leash. You give it the nudge. You give it the correction. Leave it. Don't touch it. That's not for you. Get back in a straight line. Now, if you were to plot the dog's course over the course of your walk,
• 21:20
  it's all over the place left and right and zigzagging and even though you're walking in a straight line that dog is going all over the place but eventually as long as you continue to give it correction and nudges and pull on that leash the dog does end up at the right destination that's the same way for us we become distracted we turn temporarily aside we may even walk through the muddy puddle of sin but the spirit nudges us and pulls the leash to keep us on the path spirit
• 21:52
  And so can I ask you, friends, are you Spirit-led? Is the Spirit of God driving your life? Is He in the front? Are you in the back? Is He calling the shots? You pick up in verse 15. It says, In just a few short words, the author describes not only that intimacy of being children of God, but the permanence of that relationship.
• 22:22
  It will not be taken away. And he does this by illustrating his point with adoption. At one time, you had no name, you belonged nowhere, you had no family, but now God has chosen you, purchased you, and adopted you. The Greek word for adoption is one of my favorites. It's a compound word. Hwios means son. Thesis, the placement of. Literally, adoption means to be placed as a son.
• 22:54
  In verse 15, it refers to the relationship believers have through the Holy Spirit who produces in them both the position and attitude of sons. And let me explain why that is such a big deal. What's the only difference between having a son and having a daughter? The only difference between having a son and having a daughter, besides the superficial like pink or blue, the baseball parties or tea parties, the shopping or shooting, those are the...
• 23:24
  kind of the superficial differences between them. And I understand that those are overcharacterizations and whatever. They can bleed between the two and all of that. So don't get mad. But besides those superficial things, why is it so critical to understand our relationship to God, whether we are male or female? Why is it critical to understand our relationship as sons? You'll notice the translators are very careful there to say you've been adopted as sons. It does not include the word daughters, even though you'd expect it to.
• 23:54
  You'd expect him to say you've been adopted as sons and daughters, but that's not what it says. He's intentional. You've been adopted as sons. I have no biological daughters, none. I was beyond blessed one day when a young lady who our family had known for many years named Claudia asked me not only to officiate her wedding, but to be the man who would walk her down the aisle and give her to her soon-to-be husband, Jordan.
• 24:22
  You guys all know Jordan and Claudia Bucher. She is our Wednesday children's director here at the church. I was privileged that day to walk her down this church aisle and to give her away. She had asked me to do that. She said, Danny, I know you have no daughters. And she said, and I have no dad. Would you walk me down the aisle? What a privilege. I have enjoyed watching as Jordan and Claudia have grown their family now to include two beautiful kids, a son and daughter of their own.
• 24:52
  who call me uncle pastor danny now let me ask you again what is the only difference between having a son and having a daughter you don't ever walk your sons down the aisle you don't give them away they will bear your name for the remainder of their lives they will never change their names they will never join the family of another why is it so critical to understand that even though half of you in here are female
• 25:23
  And he rejoices over you as daughters of his. He has placed you not as a daughter, but as a son. What is the significance of that? Say it out loud. You're allowed. He will never give you away. You will bear his name forever. He's never going to give you to another family. Even if somebody asks, can I have your daughter's hand in marriage? He'll say, no, I have no daughters. I've got a lot of girls, but I have no daughters. I only have sons.
• 25:52
  And I don't give sons away. Before you guys think that's too weird, right? Calling daughters sons. Keep in mind the New Testament also calls all of us, all of the men in the room, it calls us the bride of Christ, okay? So if you can picture yourself wearing a wedding dress, it goes both ways, all right? But the important thing to remember there is that he will never give you away. He's never handing you off.
• 26:17
  To another, he will always be your father in heaven. And in fact, it even reminds us of that in verse 15, by whom we cry, Abba, Father. Abba is an informal Aramaic term for father. It's like our English word, daddy. It connotes intimacy, tenderness, dependence, a complete lack of fear. I love that verse 15 says, you don't have a spirit of slavery to fall back into fear.
• 26:45
  If you're in Christ and if the spirit of God is in you, you have nothing to be afraid of. God is not some overbearing slave driver. That's not who he is at all. You get to call him daddy. Pater, the Greek word for father, recognizes God as our provider, our protector, our nourisher, and his children get to call him both. Abba and father.
• 27:10
  And as his children, he draws us close, he embraces us, and just like a dad would with his young child, he begins to whisper truths into their ears, not only of confirmation when we feel like we don't belong, but of affirmation in the midst of doubt. Affirmation in the midst of doubt. Look at verse 16. The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God. You can imagine the adoption has been finalized and the paper's processed and the judge's signature secured.
• 27:42
  But just because a kid has been transplanted from one space to another does not mean that they will never again struggle or feel insecure about their placement as a son. Adopted kids no doubt struggle with this as they wonder, do I actually belong here? And must be reminded, proven again and again, yes, you're mine.
• 28:04
  You're mine. And just because the process looked different than some of your friends and maybe even some of your other siblings makes no difference. You are mine. And again, you go back to that idea of adoption. The very first mention of adoption in the Old Testament was Moses. You guys remember the story, the Hebrew baby boys were being slaughtered. Moses' mother hid him in a basket and entrusted him to God by shoving him out in that basket into the Nile River.
• 28:33
  He was discovered, both the baby and the basket were discovered by none other than Pharaoh's daughter who thought he was cute and so decided to keep him. She had pity on him and so she adopted him. The Queen Esther was also adopted by her older cousin or uncle, kind of an ambiguous title there, but her uncle or cousin Mordecai. She was orphaned as a young girl and he had a family obligation, said this.
• 28:59
  Who knows what's going to happen to her, and I, as her living relative, male relative, I'll take her in. I'll raise her as my own. The clearest picture of Old Testament adoption as it relates to Romans 8, and our adoption into God's family can be found in 2 Samuel 9. It's one of my favorite Old Testament stories. David had finally been coronated as king over all of Israel. It had taken years to get to that point.
• 29:27
  predecessor, Saul, and all of Saul's sons were dead, one of whom was Jonathan, David's closest earthly friend. With standard practice in ancient times, maybe even in modern times as well, to kill the sons and grandsons of your enemies.
• 29:42
  In order to ensure that their lineage was completely destroyed, you wanted to ensure that you not only displaced the king, you had to kill all of his sons and all of his grandsons and all of his nephews. You didn't want some heir to his line to show up with an army at your doorstep and try to get his throne back. And so normal practice, you humiliate or you kill, you execute the king, and then you go on a manhunt and round up all of his living relatives and put them all to death.
• 30:09
  King David had an opportunity to solidify his own throne by tracking down and killing any remaining claimants to Saul's throne, who would have been mostly grandsons at that point. Rather than showing Saul's sons severity, David intended to show them mercy. He was able to find one. In all of his inquiries, he found one remaining grandson of King Saul. He was a man named Mephibosheth. Maybe you've heard the story of Mephibosheth. It's an unusual name, and so you tend to remember it.
• 30:40
  Mephibosheth was the crippled son of Jonathan, David's closest friend. He'd been tragically dropped by a servant when he was five years old. News, when he was only in kindergarten, kindergarten age, reached Saul's palace that Saul and all of his sons had been killed. As a young servant girl went to pick up Mephibosheth and run to safety, she accidentally dropped him, broke both of his legs. He was never able to walk normally again, nor could he provide for himself.
• 31:12
  Years went by, Mephibosheth grew up, and all of his relatives were killed. He alone would have been the heir to his grandfather Saul's throne. So you can imagine his fear in 2 Samuel 9 when he receives a summons from King David. King David, who I'm sure is a nice guy, but I don't know this guy. And he is, after all, the king who took over after my grandfather's death. And my grandfather hated him, tried to kill him multiple times.
• 31:44
  Pretty standard practice that you would execute all of his known relatives and now I get a summons from the king. Show up in his throne room at his palace. He didn't know the kindness that was in David's heart. He didn't know what David was thinking. Maybe, perhaps along these lines as Mephibosheth comes in and David sitting on his throne sees Mephibosheth for the first time and just thinks to himself, man, he looks just like his dad. He's got his father's eyes.
• 32:12
  The color waviness of his hair looked just like Jonathan's. In fact, I'll bet if he could stand upright, I'll bet he would be as tall as his dad. Jonathan was always taller than me, although never quite as good looking. He doesn't know this is going through David's mind. And so when you pick up in verse 6 of chapter 9, it makes sense. Mephibosheth, the son of Jonathan, son of Saul, came to David and fell on his face and paid homage. Yeah, he's falling on his face, getting ready to beg for his life.
• 32:44
  David said, Mephibosheth, and he answered, behold, I am your servant. I really think at this point Mephibosheth must have been so tired, exhausted from running his entire life from his grandfather's enemies. His grandfather had a lot of them. He might have in that moment been thinking, you know what? They've already taken my legs. Maybe if you will just take my head, at least I won't have to run anymore. And David said to him, do not fear.
• 33:14
  I will show you kindness for the sake of your father, Jonathan. Like, so a merciful, quick killing? What do you mean, right? I will restore to you all the land of Saul, your father, and you shall eat at my table always. Do you remember your grandfather, Saul? A little bit. I was in kindergarten when he died. Do you remember how big his house was? Do you remember trying to play hide and seek in his palace? Do you remember the borders of his land? Do you remember all of it? Do you remember how big it was? I'm giving it all to you. Wait, what?
• 33:47
  He says, you shall, oh, he continues. I will restore to you all the land of Saul your father. You shall eat at my table always. You're always going to have a home here with me. I will treat you as a son. He paid homage and said, what is your servant that you should show regard for a dead dog such as I? King David, you shouldn't do this. I'm a dead dog. I'm worthless. I have nothing to give to you. I can't serve you. I can't pay you back. I have nothing to offer you. I can't even be a servant in your house. I'm a dead dog. That's what I'm worth.
• 34:17
  In verse 9, the king called Ziba. Now, Ziba was one of Saul's old servants. He worked in Saul's house, okay? So he calls this guy in, this old guy, and he says, do you remember everything that Saul owned? And Ziba's like, well, yeah. All that belonged to Saul and to all his house I have given to your master's grandson. He's pointing at Mephibosheth, who's on his face on the ground. You and your sons and your servants shall till the land for him. You now work for him. You don't work for me anymore.
• 34:43
  You're going to bring in the produce, all of the income that your master's grandson may have bread to eat. But Mephibosheth, your master's grandson, shall always eat at my table. Ziba, it turns out, had quite a crew. He had 15 sons and 20 servants. 35, 36 guys. He says, you all now work for Mephibosheth. You don't work for me anymore. Does this make sense, Ziba? Ziba says, according to all that my lord the king commands a servant, so will your servant do. I got it.
• 35:11
  And then it says this, Mephibosheth ate at David's table. And what does it say? Like one of the king's sons. He adopted him. You're in. I know that we don't share a name. That's meaningless. I know that we don't share blood. Meaningless. Doesn't matter to me. You're going to eat as one of my sons. You're not even eating at the table as a servant. You don't have to sit down at the end. Your chair isn't a little bit lower than everyone else's. No. You come as a son.
• 35:42
  Mephibosheth had a young son whose name was Micah. The assumption is that Micah was also included. All who lived in Ziba's house became Mephibosheth's servants. So Mephibosheth lived in Jerusalem, for he ate always at the king's table, and he was lame in both of his feet. This crippled man, eating with the king, his own son being treated as a grandson to King David, bouncing on his knee. What a picture. There's a painting that I like that I think represents it well.
• 36:11
  crutches leaning against the king's table. You know, Moses was adopted out of pity and sympathy, and Esther was adopted out of family duty, but Mephibosheth was adopted by King David out of gracious love. David took the initiative. Despite Mephibosheth being the grandson of David's greatest enemy, David invited Mephibosheth into his home, into his family. He gave him an inheritance. Despite the fact that Mephibosheth had nothing to offer in return, he was an outcast and now invited to eat with the king.
• 36:41
  He was an enemy adopted as a son. And beloved friends, is this not exactly what the Lord has done for us? A bunch of dead dogs. A bunch of people with nothing to offer. 2 Corinthians 6, the Lord speaking, it says, I will welcome you. I will be a father to you. You shall be my sons and daughters to me. I'm adopting you into my family. And listen, you never need doubt the Lord's love for you. His patience with you, his tenderness toward you.
• 37:12
  All you got to do when you forget, when you wonder, is this real? Am I really one of his? You just listen to his whisper. You're mine, he says. You're invited to eat with me and to live with me. And if you ever need a reminder, just look back at the end of the table and see your crutches leaning there. In fact, imagine all of the crutches through all of the time, all of the redeemed who have laid their crutches and are now dining at my table. The Holy Spirit whispers not only confirmation, but affirmation.
• 37:43
  Even when you would doubt your adoption. And finally, last, the Holy Spirit whispers assurance. Even in the midst of suffering, the Holy Spirit whispers assurance. Notice verse 17, he says, and if you are children, then you are heirs. Heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ. The full proof of our adoption as sons is that we become co-heirs with Christ. We receive an inheritance.
• 38:13
  It's not like he says, yes, you can have my name, but I'm not writing you into the will. He wrote us into the will. Everything that my son Jesus gets, you also will get. Can you imagine the inheritance waiting for you in heaven? What a pile that must be. Maybe you've never received an inheritance here on earth. I know that we're all waiting for the day that we get a telegram in the mail saying, guess what, Danny? You had a rich uncle you knew not of.
• 38:43
  And he has died. And now I, as lawyer and executor of his estate, am telling you everything that was his is now yours. Congratulations. You have no more cares for the remainder of your days. I know we're all waiting for that telegram that will never come. But listen, that would be a pittance compared to the inheritance that is awaiting us. We have an inheritance in Christ that would make the Rockefellers blush.
• 39:14
  Their money would be a joke. Their wealth, their prestige, their influence, their buying power, the value would be a joke. We have an inheritance awaiting us. Everything that is due to Christ is now due to us. Everything that he was owed by divine right, we are now owed by divine grace. We are co-heirs with Christ. And then he says, finally, provided, of course, that we suffer with him.
• 39:43
  in order that we may also be glorified with him. We must walk the same road on this earth, enduring hardship, suffering, temptation, just like he did temporary suffering for eternal glory. No doubt you had to remind your kids when they were young that what you were asking them to do or perhaps telling them to do was good for them. When they were little, things like eating their vegetables, making them practice music, doing their homework, in the moment they thought you were torturing them.
• 40:17
  Eating broccoli? It's like waterboarding. Just rip my fingernails out. Broccoli's the worst. Playing piano? I don't want to practice piano. That's the worst. This is the worst human suffering in history. No doubt they will write books about me. My parents made me eat broccoli and practice piano. When they get to their teens, they realize maybe you knew some things that they didn't. But then in their teens, new problems come along.
• 40:45
  You deny them certain friendships, you will not hang out with that boy. Why not? Because he's a knucklehead. And he'll make you a knucklehead too, so no. You can hang out with that one but not that one. You can't go to that movie. Why not? Because there's nothing good for you in that movie. You cannot have social media on your phones. Well, why? Again, it's torture.
• 41:07
  Torture in the moment. But then they hit their 20s, and they realize again, you might have known what you were talking about. And then in their 20s, new advice, new counsel, new prohibitions, right? Be careful about the career you select. Be really careful about the spouse you select, and so on. We as parents only want what is good for our kids. Even when we allow them to endure hardship, we know that it's for their good. The same thing is true of our Heavenly Father. Even the suffering that we endure on this earth and in this life is temporary.
• 41:40
  compared to the inheritance that we will receive. The Holy Spirit whispers assurance that God is good, that we can trust Him even in the midst of suffering. I told you last week we would discuss briefly what quenching or grieving the Spirit is, why it matters so much. And so let me conclude with this idea. Two times in the Scriptures it says, Ephesians 4, 1 Thessalonians 5, don't grieve the Spirit, don't quench the Spirit.
• 42:05
  Well, what does it mean if the Holy Spirit lives in us, as we discussed last Sunday, and if the Holy Spirit is whispering to us as we discussed this Sunday, what is the effect of quenching or grieving the Spirit is, in essence, choking the Spirit's whisper out. It is through sin or through the cares of this world, anxiety, depression, discouragement, and other things, choking out the natural flow, the natural ministry of the Holy Spirit in your life. It is plugging your ears so you can't hear His...
• 42:35
  whispers anymore the holy spirit is indeed dwelling in us and his primary ministry is to whisper powerfully that we are his sons and daughters and to affirm us when we doubt and to assure us in the midst of suffering when we sin what we're doing is plugging the ears of our hearts
• 42:53
  So that, of course, we would wonder if we're truly indeed sons and daughters of God. We'd be filled with doubt, wracked with doubt, just like Mephibosheth would have been if every time King David had said, Mephibosheth, I love you, and yes, this is real, if he had just stood there with his ears plugged. Every time we suffer, if we will not allow the Holy Spirit to do His job, then we will wonder about the goodness and love of God in us. We create heart traffic jams so that the Spirit can no longer whisper to us. And if we can't hear His whisper,
• 43:23
  We will begin to feel displaced. We will begin to doubt our belonging. We may even question God's goodness. But if we will allow him free reign in our lives, if we will give free reign of the Holy Spirit to our hearts, to our minds, he will provide the RV that our hearts long for in the hailstorm. He will give us the security that our souls need. Let me pray for us. Lord, thank you.
• 43:54
  for this short but powerful truth, that your spirit bears witness with our spirit, that we are indeed children of God, and if children, then heirs, heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ. And Lord, what a promise that is. May we not become distracted like that dog on a walk, chasing after other things, muddying our paws, and so unable to hear the Holy Spirit's whisper to us. God, give us the strength and courage to offer you free reign over our lives so that we are indeed led
• 44:26
  by the Spirit of God, so that our sonship is proven in Jesus' name. Amen.