WEBVTT STYLE ::cue { color: #ffffff; } 00:00:00.810 --> 00:00:01.034 Grace, 00:00:01.082 --> 00:00:02.206 mercy and peace be to you 00:00:02.228 --> 00:00:02.953 from God our Father, 00:00:03.002 --> 00:00:03.886 from our Lord and our 00:00:03.908 --> 00:00:05.280 Savior Jesus Christ. 00:00:06.610 --> 00:00:08.414 The Bible passage is one 00:00:08.452 --> 00:00:09.838 Corinthians, chapter five. 00:00:09.924 --> 00:00:10.686 And near the end, 00:00:10.708 --> 00:00:12.174 the Apostle Paul simply says, 00:00:12.212 --> 00:00:14.110 we are always of good courage. 00:00:14.610 --> 00:00:17.162 Yes, we are of good courage. 00:00:17.226 --> 00:00:19.582 We are confident as we walk 00:00:19.636 --> 00:00:22.590 by faith and not by sight. 00:00:24.610 --> 00:00:28.118 Yet times happen when that 00:00:28.204 --> 00:00:29.922 confidence can be shaken. 00:00:29.986 --> 00:00:31.442 There can be doubts and fears, 00:00:31.506 --> 00:00:33.270 and the courage becomes more 00:00:33.340 --> 00:00:35.126 discouraged because of what 00:00:35.148 --> 00:00:37.960 we see or hear or feel. 00:00:40.190 --> 00:00:42.460 Quite a few number of years ago, 00:00:43.310 --> 00:00:45.180 I was not feeling well. 00:00:45.870 --> 00:00:48.010 I woke up on a Saturday morning 00:00:48.160 --> 00:00:50.346 and I knew I was not going to 00:00:50.368 --> 00:00:51.958 preach at Grace Chapel in 00:00:51.984 --> 00:00:52.954 Bellefontaine Neighbors 00:00:53.002 --> 00:00:54.110 that afternoon. 00:00:56.370 --> 00:00:59.626 I went and told my wife sue, 00:00:59.658 --> 00:01:01.002 we need to go to the emergency 00:01:01.066 --> 00:01:02.866 room because there was a pain in 00:01:02.888 --> 00:01:05.154 my lower back on one side that 00:01:05.191 --> 00:01:07.490 was nearly unbearable. 00:01:09.030 --> 00:01:10.802 So we get to the emergency room 00:01:10.856 --> 00:01:13.380 and we wait and wait 00:01:13.830 --> 00:01:15.380 and wait some more. 00:01:16.090 --> 00:01:17.766 Finally the doctor comes in and 00:01:17.788 --> 00:01:19.606 he starts poking and prodding on 00:01:19.628 --> 00:01:20.466 my back and he hits 00:01:20.498 --> 00:01:21.590 that one spot. 00:01:22.970 --> 00:01:25.218 There was a noticeable groan 00:01:25.314 --> 00:01:27.320 in that examinating room. 00:01:28.890 --> 00:01:29.350 Says, 00:01:29.420 --> 00:01:30.262 I'm going to order 00:01:30.316 --> 00:01:31.334 an X ray for you. 00:01:31.372 --> 00:01:32.986 And so it takes a while for 00:01:33.008 --> 00:01:34.490 the X ray to be done. 00:01:34.640 --> 00:01:35.946 And then we go back to that 00:01:35.968 --> 00:01:37.066 examining room and we 00:01:37.088 --> 00:01:37.978 wait some more. 00:01:38.064 --> 00:01:39.706 And finally the doctor comes in. 00:01:39.728 --> 00:01:41.450 It is now in the afternoon. 00:01:42.770 --> 00:01:43.646 And he says, well, 00:01:43.668 --> 00:01:45.406 what the X ray shows is that you 00:01:45.428 --> 00:01:48.030 have a mass on your kidney. 00:01:49.970 --> 00:01:51.086 But that's all we can 00:01:51.108 --> 00:01:52.074 see with the X ray. 00:01:52.122 --> 00:01:54.846 We need to do an MRI in order to 00:01:54.868 --> 00:01:56.034 be able to tell what actually 00:01:56.072 --> 00:01:57.042 is going on there. 00:01:57.096 --> 00:01:58.594 And the person who does the 00:01:58.632 --> 00:02:00.418 MRI has already left, 00:02:00.504 --> 00:02:01.954 so we will need to schedule that 00:02:01.992 --> 00:02:03.700 for you tomorrow morning. 00:02:06.390 --> 00:02:07.254 I can tell you, 00:02:07.292 --> 00:02:08.485 you do not want to hear the 00:02:08.508 --> 00:02:11.734 words mass and kidney and a 00:02:11.772 --> 00:02:13.654 hospital stay because he was 00:02:13.692 --> 00:02:16.022 going to admit me and then 00:02:16.076 --> 00:02:18.394 needing to wait to find out 00:02:18.432 --> 00:02:19.900 what's actually wrong. 00:02:21.950 --> 00:02:24.518 A bit of discouragement or fear 00:02:24.614 --> 00:02:27.210 or doubt, confidence shaking, 00:02:28.190 --> 00:02:29.370 discouraged instead 00:02:29.440 --> 00:02:31.690 of encourage. 00:02:33.570 --> 00:02:35.600 Certainly a moment like that. 00:02:39.170 --> 00:02:42.750 The Apostle Paul knows that 00:02:42.820 --> 00:02:44.560 our bodies will groan 00:02:47.010 --> 00:02:47.918 at the beginning of 00:02:47.924 --> 00:02:48.474 this passage. 00:02:48.522 --> 00:02:50.042 He simply compares our bodies 00:02:50.106 --> 00:02:52.506 to tents. As a tent maker, 00:02:52.538 --> 00:02:53.214 he would know what 00:02:53.252 --> 00:02:53.946 happens to tents. 00:02:53.978 --> 00:02:55.026 They're not a particularly 00:02:55.098 --> 00:02:56.898 permanent or strong structures. 00:02:56.994 --> 00:02:58.246 Winds can come and blow them 00:02:58.268 --> 00:02:59.780 away if they stay up too long. 00:03:00.250 --> 00:03:01.866 The material disintegrates, 00:03:01.978 --> 00:03:03.520 and then they are gone, 00:03:05.330 --> 00:03:07.310 just much like our bodies. 00:03:11.370 --> 00:03:14.440 A few years ago, COVID hit. 00:03:15.530 --> 00:03:15.894 Now, 00:03:15.932 --> 00:03:17.542 we may not have been able to see 00:03:17.596 --> 00:03:18.834 that tiny little virus 00:03:18.882 --> 00:03:19.414 with our eyes, 00:03:19.452 --> 00:03:21.079 but we could see what it did. 00:03:21.690 --> 00:03:23.014 Well over a million people 00:03:23.052 --> 00:03:23.910 die in our country. 00:03:23.980 --> 00:03:25.014 There are still those who 00:03:25.052 --> 00:03:26.530 suffer from long COVID, 00:03:26.610 --> 00:03:28.154 and the fear and the doubt 00:03:28.202 --> 00:03:28.974 can still be there. 00:03:29.012 --> 00:03:30.829 When you hear that word COVID, 00:03:33.010 --> 00:03:34.880 people still die from it. 00:03:36.450 --> 00:03:37.454 Earlier this week, 00:03:37.492 --> 00:03:39.226 we prayed for Andrew Johnson, 00:03:39.258 --> 00:03:39.894 a pastor, 00:03:39.962 --> 00:03:41.234 recent graduate from here 00:03:41.272 --> 00:03:43.250 in his early 30s. 00:03:43.320 --> 00:03:45.054 He received that diagnosis 00:03:45.102 --> 00:03:46.882 of cancer many years ago, 00:03:46.936 --> 00:03:49.220 and it finally took his life. 00:03:50.790 --> 00:03:53.798 Maybe you know of a heart attack 00:03:53.964 --> 00:03:56.754 or heart disease or Parkinson's 00:03:56.802 --> 00:03:58.946 or some other affliction 00:03:58.978 --> 00:03:59.880 of the body. 00:04:01.850 --> 00:04:03.793 Or you can be in a grocery 00:04:03.841 --> 00:04:04.942 store, a Walmart, 00:04:05.026 --> 00:04:07.260 a movie theater, a school, 00:04:07.870 --> 00:04:10.329 a bank at a concert, 00:04:10.750 --> 00:04:12.940 and gunshots will fire, 00:04:14.590 --> 00:04:15.866 and you could be one 00:04:15.888 --> 00:04:17.100 of the next ones 00:04:18.610 --> 00:04:20.750 on the floor in a pool of blood. 00:04:22.690 --> 00:04:24.174 But it doesn't have to be some 00:04:24.212 --> 00:04:26.409 of these really significant 00:04:26.490 --> 00:04:30.270 major diseases or tragedies. 00:04:32.210 --> 00:04:33.154 For many of us 00:04:33.192 --> 00:04:33.986 it's just that our 00:04:34.008 --> 00:04:35.540 bodies wear out 00:04:36.870 --> 00:04:38.834 and you get older. Now, 00:04:38.872 --> 00:04:39.874 I look out at many of these 00:04:39.912 --> 00:04:41.074 faces, and you're still young. 00:04:41.111 --> 00:04:42.546 You may not know this yet, 00:04:42.648 --> 00:04:44.194 but I am almost 68. 00:04:44.232 --> 00:04:46.166 It is time for me to cut back on 00:04:46.188 --> 00:04:47.378 my time here because I don't 00:04:47.394 --> 00:04:49.010 have the same amount of stamina 00:04:49.090 --> 00:04:51.266 and I get tired in the evenings. 00:04:51.457 --> 00:04:53.430 The reflexes are slower, 00:04:54.330 --> 00:04:56.490 the muscles are weaker. 00:04:57.790 --> 00:04:59.366 Last Sunday for Easter, 00:04:59.478 --> 00:05:01.385 we had our son and daughter in 00:05:01.408 --> 00:05:02.698 law and our daughter and son in 00:05:02.704 --> 00:05:03.974 law and our four grandchildren 00:05:04.022 --> 00:05:05.190 over for lunch. 00:05:05.350 --> 00:05:09.034 Easter meal services ran late. 00:05:09.162 --> 00:05:10.878 We're finally sitting down, 00:05:11.044 --> 00:05:12.714 and my youngest grandson, 00:05:12.762 --> 00:05:14.400 who will be two next week, 00:05:16.210 --> 00:05:17.520 had had enough, 00:05:19.890 --> 00:05:21.034 a little cranky. 00:05:21.082 --> 00:05:22.494 And finally my son says, 00:05:22.532 --> 00:05:23.786 you're going down for a nap. 00:05:23.818 --> 00:05:25.186 And he did not like that. 00:05:25.288 --> 00:05:26.626 And when we put him in the room 00:05:26.648 --> 00:05:28.014 for his nap, he was screaming. 00:05:28.062 --> 00:05:29.166 And I'm sitting at the kitchen 00:05:29.198 --> 00:05:31.346 table saying, hey, 00:05:31.528 --> 00:05:34.310 I'll take the nap. I'm tired. 00:05:39.289 --> 00:05:41.080 The body wears down. 00:05:41.530 --> 00:05:44.630 It grows old, it dies. 00:05:46.250 --> 00:05:47.720 And then what happens 00:05:50.010 --> 00:05:52.885 with that sight and sound and 00:05:52.988 --> 00:05:55.094 touch and all that's going 00:05:55.132 --> 00:05:56.760 on with our mind our 00:05:57.090 --> 00:05:58.030 bodies? 00:05:59.409 --> 00:05:59.850 Tents. 00:06:01.050 --> 00:06:02.462 How does Paul say, 00:06:02.596 --> 00:06:04.586 we are always of good courage. 00:06:04.698 --> 00:06:07.390 Be confident, walk by faith. 00:06:09.570 --> 00:06:11.742 And he knew what happens 00:06:11.876 --> 00:06:12.960 to the body. 00:06:13.730 --> 00:06:15.146 Earlier, in First Corinthians, 00:06:15.178 --> 00:06:16.666 he had had a brush with death 00:06:16.698 --> 00:06:18.650 that shook him to his very core. 00:06:18.810 --> 00:06:20.234 He had been persecuted, 00:06:20.282 --> 00:06:22.330 run out of town, thrown in jail, 00:06:22.490 --> 00:06:24.222 faced death numerous times 00:06:24.276 --> 00:06:25.670 his body was going. 00:06:25.820 --> 00:06:27.714 I'm sure he had hoped that Jesus 00:06:27.762 --> 00:06:29.174 would come back before but now 00:06:29.212 --> 00:06:31.090 he's really beginning to realize 00:06:31.250 --> 00:06:32.760 the end is happening 00:06:34.010 --> 00:06:36.310 and he is soon to die. 00:06:39.620 --> 00:06:40.944 And with that in mind, 00:06:41.062 --> 00:06:43.490 he gives the Corinthians and us 00:06:45.380 --> 00:06:49.090 a better word and a best word. 00:06:50.500 --> 00:06:52.404 The better word is that whether 00:06:52.442 --> 00:06:55.104 we live or whether we die, 00:06:55.232 --> 00:06:57.380 we will be with Jesus 00:06:57.960 --> 00:06:59.460 after our death. 00:07:01.159 --> 00:07:02.324 And then there will come 00:07:02.362 --> 00:07:04.150 a time that's the best, 00:07:04.680 --> 00:07:06.256 because there will be a 00:07:06.298 --> 00:07:08.409 resurrection of the body. 00:07:09.980 --> 00:07:11.192 Good to be in this life, 00:07:11.246 --> 00:07:12.632 to serve the Lord better, 00:07:12.686 --> 00:07:14.196 to be with him after we die 00:07:14.228 --> 00:07:15.448 and before he comes back. 00:07:15.534 --> 00:07:17.690 But the best is yet to come. 00:07:20.930 --> 00:07:22.414 That in between time. 00:07:22.532 --> 00:07:24.361 A time where we are with Jesus, 00:07:24.426 --> 00:07:25.742 a time of peace and rest. 00:07:25.796 --> 00:07:27.200 That's about all we know. 00:07:27.970 --> 00:07:29.562 The body deteriorates. 00:07:29.626 --> 00:07:31.506 We can see it in a 00:07:31.528 --> 00:07:34.094 grave or ashes, 00:07:34.142 --> 00:07:38.610 in an urn or lost or decaying. 00:07:39.350 --> 00:07:41.380 We know what's happening to it. 00:07:41.750 --> 00:07:44.258 And our soul rests with Jesus. 00:07:44.433 --> 00:07:45.960 And that is better, 00:07:47.050 --> 00:07:48.200 Paul says, 00:07:49.850 --> 00:07:52.280 but what is best is yet to come. 00:07:55.210 --> 00:07:58.186 A very gifted writer by the name 00:07:58.207 --> 00:08:01.462 of Chad Bird writes for 1517. 00:08:01.526 --> 00:08:05.290 And one of his recent pieces 00:08:05.630 --> 00:08:07.938 had a title that caught 00:08:07.974 --> 00:08:08.909 my attention. 00:08:09.890 --> 00:08:12.606 It said I can't wait to 00:08:12.628 --> 00:08:13.870 get out of Heaven. 00:08:16.370 --> 00:08:18.286 And what he was getting at is 00:08:18.308 --> 00:08:19.726 we've become sloppy in our 00:08:19.748 --> 00:08:21.086 language about when we die, 00:08:21.118 --> 00:08:21.938 we go to heaven and 00:08:21.943 --> 00:08:22.626 that's about it. 00:08:22.648 --> 00:08:24.466 And that's all we're hoping for. 00:08:24.648 --> 00:08:25.490 And he says, 00:08:25.560 --> 00:08:27.374 that's not our Christian 00:08:27.422 --> 00:08:29.490 hope in its entirety. 00:08:31.110 --> 00:08:32.909 That's not the heaven 00:08:33.069 --> 00:08:34.213 we are looking for. 00:08:34.251 --> 00:08:35.510 And he gives this example 00:08:35.659 --> 00:08:37.138 suppose you have a house that's 00:08:37.154 --> 00:08:38.566 been built to your exact 00:08:38.668 --> 00:08:41.042 specifications by a wonderful 00:08:41.106 --> 00:08:43.559 blue pond. Nice area, 00:08:43.930 --> 00:08:46.002 has all the creaturely comforts, 00:08:46.066 --> 00:08:47.526 everything you ever wanted in a 00:08:47.548 --> 00:08:48.966 home and it's ready for 00:08:48.988 --> 00:08:50.198 you to move into it. 00:08:50.284 --> 00:08:52.120 But it's a two day drive, 00:08:52.970 --> 00:08:54.534 so you spend the first 00:08:54.572 --> 00:08:56.002 night in a motel. 00:08:56.146 --> 00:08:58.542 And this motel is out side of 00:08:58.596 --> 00:08:59.770 the Rocky Mountain National. 00:09:00.250 --> 00:09:02.218 Park, Grand Vistas. 00:09:02.314 --> 00:09:03.962 The room is comfortable, 00:09:04.026 --> 00:09:05.054 a nice bed. 00:09:05.172 --> 00:09:06.222 Everything's been taken 00:09:06.276 --> 00:09:07.454 care of for you. 00:09:07.572 --> 00:09:08.526 But when you wake up 00:09:08.548 --> 00:09:09.566 the next morning, 00:09:09.748 --> 00:09:10.606 you're not going to 00:09:10.628 --> 00:09:11.870 stay in the motel. 00:09:12.850 --> 00:09:14.480 You're going to turn in the key 00:09:14.930 --> 00:09:16.078 and you're going to get back in 00:09:16.084 --> 00:09:18.026 the car because you know there's 00:09:18.058 --> 00:09:19.566 a home waiting for you. 00:09:19.748 --> 00:09:21.280 That's even better. 00:09:23.250 --> 00:09:25.040 And so he says yes, 00:09:25.770 --> 00:09:27.400 that in between time, 00:09:27.850 --> 00:09:29.574 like a motel room, 00:09:29.772 --> 00:09:31.190 can be wonderful. 00:09:32.250 --> 00:09:34.840 But the best is yet to come. 00:09:35.370 --> 00:09:36.870 Because on that last day, 00:09:36.940 --> 00:09:39.910 all of creation is renewed. 00:09:39.990 --> 00:09:41.798 And there is no more groaning, 00:09:41.894 --> 00:09:43.494 no more pain, no more death, 00:09:43.542 --> 00:09:44.694 no more disintegration, 00:09:44.742 --> 00:09:45.930 no more decay. 00:09:48.350 --> 00:09:49.894 And we rise with our 00:09:49.952 --> 00:09:51.200 bodies once again. 00:09:51.970 --> 00:09:54.014 Our eyes see colors more 00:09:54.052 --> 00:09:55.870 vivid than any rainbow. 00:09:56.850 --> 00:09:59.022 Taste buds exploding and with 00:09:59.076 --> 00:10:00.094 foods that we could 00:10:00.132 --> 00:10:01.470 not even imagine. 00:10:02.390 --> 00:10:03.230 Smells. 00:10:03.310 --> 00:10:04.290 Aromas. 00:10:05.990 --> 00:10:08.062 You can touch with nerve endings 00:10:08.126 --> 00:10:10.498 that are just alive once again, 00:10:10.664 --> 00:10:12.819 a face of someone you may know. 00:10:14.390 --> 00:10:15.800 And the sounds, 00:10:16.330 --> 00:10:17.080 music, 00:10:17.530 --> 00:10:19.206 lifting your soul to the 00:10:19.228 --> 00:10:20.550 greatest heights. 00:10:24.010 --> 00:10:27.694 And this we know because Jesus 00:10:27.842 --> 00:10:29.450 is the first fruits. 00:10:31.150 --> 00:10:33.580 That Easter meal with my family 00:10:34.270 --> 00:10:36.540 came after that Easter service. 00:10:37.470 --> 00:10:39.546 And Jesus has risen from the 00:10:39.568 --> 00:10:42.510 dead with body glorified. 00:10:44.370 --> 00:10:45.866 Mary's outside the tomb. 00:10:45.898 --> 00:10:47.354 He speaks her name, Mary. 00:10:47.402 --> 00:10:49.550 And she grabs hold of his legs. 00:10:50.290 --> 00:10:52.206 He sees the disciples in an 00:10:52.228 --> 00:10:53.454 upper room and he eats a piece 00:10:53.492 --> 00:10:54.626 of fish to show him that 00:10:54.648 --> 00:10:55.970 he is not a ghost. 00:10:56.390 --> 00:10:59.394 He can let Thomas touch his 00:10:59.432 --> 00:11:01.234 hands inside and then say, 00:11:01.272 --> 00:11:02.658 blessed are those who believe, 00:11:02.744 --> 00:11:04.418 even though they do not see. 00:11:04.584 --> 00:11:06.518 And he eats a breakfast on the 00:11:06.524 --> 00:11:08.354 beach with his disciples. Jesus, 00:11:08.402 --> 00:11:09.154 the first fruits, 00:11:09.202 --> 00:11:10.722 has risen from the dead. 00:11:10.866 --> 00:11:12.198 And because he has, 00:11:12.284 --> 00:11:14.630 we too will one day rise. 00:11:15.450 --> 00:11:17.746 And that's our permanent home. 00:11:17.867 --> 00:11:19.626 The immortality we put 00:11:19.648 --> 00:11:20.874 on over this body, 00:11:20.992 --> 00:11:22.582 the earthly tent 00:11:22.646 --> 00:11:24.380 and groaning no more 00:11:25.950 --> 00:11:28.170 but in eternity with Jesus. 00:11:34.450 --> 00:11:36.462 And yet we are not there 00:11:36.516 --> 00:11:39.470 yet. We are still alive. 00:11:40.210 --> 00:11:42.846 And Paul says it is good that 00:11:42.867 --> 00:11:43.806 we are always to be 00:11:43.828 --> 00:11:44.910 of good comfort, 00:11:46.050 --> 00:11:49.630 good courage and confidence 00:11:50.130 --> 00:11:52.030 as we walk by faith. 00:11:52.930 --> 00:11:54.330 And here's the lesson. 00:11:54.410 --> 00:11:56.790 Seeking to please the Lord 00:11:57.610 --> 00:11:59.030 with our bodies. 00:12:01.050 --> 00:12:02.574 And sometimes that calls for 00:12:02.612 --> 00:12:05.054 courage in a world where the 00:12:05.092 --> 00:12:06.302 sanctity of human life 00:12:06.356 --> 00:12:08.000 is often thrown away. 00:12:09.250 --> 00:12:11.562 And so we do take a courageous 00:12:11.626 --> 00:12:12.926 stand for those who have 00:12:12.948 --> 00:12:14.350 not yet been born 00:12:15.730 --> 00:12:17.706 or for the children in an inner 00:12:17.738 --> 00:12:19.520 city who cannot get an education 00:12:21.330 --> 00:12:23.050 or for those who are struggling 00:12:23.130 --> 00:12:24.750 with depression, and 00:12:25.130 --> 00:12:27.414 discouragement and thoughts of 00:12:27.452 --> 00:12:30.118 suicide and for those who can no 00:12:30.124 --> 00:12:31.766 longer fully care for themselves 00:12:31.868 --> 00:12:33.160 in their old age. 00:12:34.330 --> 00:12:36.134 Or maybe it calls for a 00:12:36.172 --> 00:12:37.814 courageous stand in the midst 00:12:37.862 --> 00:12:39.434 of what's all happening with 00:12:39.472 --> 00:12:41.526 sexuality and gender 00:12:41.638 --> 00:12:42.890 and marriage. 00:12:43.710 --> 00:12:45.706 And we simply say it is a 00:12:45.728 --> 00:12:47.386 marriage between a man and a 00:12:47.408 --> 00:12:49.398 woman and all sexuality, 00:12:49.494 --> 00:12:51.330 all nakedness is to conclude, 00:12:51.430 --> 00:12:53.006 be in that relationship and 00:12:53.028 --> 00:12:54.414 that relationship only, 00:12:54.532 --> 00:12:56.174 even though we live in really 00:12:56.212 --> 00:12:58.160 what is a xxx world. 00:13:00.370 --> 00:13:01.950 Calls for courage. 00:13:05.170 --> 00:13:07.114 But perhaps the greatest 00:13:07.162 --> 00:13:08.319 courage is 00:13:10.069 --> 00:13:12.610 to say no to even our own bodies 00:13:13.990 --> 00:13:15.554 for the desires that we have 00:13:15.592 --> 00:13:17.066 that will not please the Lord, 00:13:17.117 --> 00:13:18.754 whether it has a desire 00:13:18.802 --> 00:13:20.440 for more or 00:13:21.610 --> 00:13:24.165 jealousy or an anger or the 00:13:24.188 --> 00:13:26.246 words that we want to use or the 00:13:26.268 --> 00:13:27.254 things we want to look 00:13:27.292 --> 00:13:28.520 at and have. 00:13:29.870 --> 00:13:30.522 Finally, 00:13:30.656 --> 00:13:34.220 the courage is to say no to some 00:13:34.750 --> 00:13:37.046 and yes to what pleases 00:13:37.238 --> 00:13:38.330 the Lord. 00:13:40.430 --> 00:13:42.670 And that's a courage that comes 00:13:42.740 --> 00:13:44.430 not from within ourselves 00:13:45.010 --> 00:13:46.746 but from that promised, 00:13:46.858 --> 00:13:49.760 guarantee spirit within 00:13:51.569 --> 00:13:53.834 who works through his word and 00:13:53.892 --> 00:13:55.474 his sacrament to give 00:13:55.512 --> 00:13:57.890 us that good courage 00:13:59.190 --> 00:14:00.210 even when everything 00:14:00.280 --> 00:14:01.540 we see in here 00:14:02.950 --> 00:14:04.740 can discourage us. 00:14:08.250 --> 00:14:09.640 Go back to that 00:14:10.650 --> 00:14:12.280 emergency room, 00:14:13.210 --> 00:14:14.422 the examining room, 00:14:14.476 --> 00:14:17.542 I said to my wife after 00:14:17.596 --> 00:14:18.706 the doctor left, 00:14:18.828 --> 00:14:22.810 please go home and get my Bible. 00:14:25.310 --> 00:14:26.540 And that night 00:14:27.790 --> 00:14:29.914 I read Psalms like I had never 00:14:29.952 --> 00:14:31.500 read the Psalms before. 00:14:33.810 --> 00:14:35.614 And I read promises from the New 00:14:35.652 --> 00:14:36.862 Testament like I had never 00:14:36.915 --> 00:14:37.920 read them before. 00:14:41.090 --> 00:14:42.800 Was I scared? Yes. 00:14:44.130 --> 00:14:45.754 Discouraged, disheartened, 00:14:45.802 --> 00:14:46.670 fearful, 00:14:48.130 --> 00:14:51.520 doubting? Yes, I'll admit that. 00:14:52.210 --> 00:14:53.694 Yet in the midst of that, 00:14:53.812 --> 00:14:55.710 that guaranteed spirit worked 00:14:55.780 --> 00:14:58.150 in me good courage. 00:15:00.570 --> 00:15:01.950 To walk by faith. 00:15:03.810 --> 00:15:05.070 Now, as it turned out, 00:15:05.140 --> 00:15:06.634 it was not a cancerous 00:15:06.682 --> 00:15:07.802 mass on my kidney. 00:15:07.866 --> 00:15:09.914 I had an infection in my kidney. 00:15:10.042 --> 00:15:12.334 And the fluid had pushed the 00:15:12.372 --> 00:15:13.854 outer wall of the kidney away 00:15:13.892 --> 00:15:15.454 from the kidney itself and gave 00:15:15.492 --> 00:15:16.718 it an appearance of a 00:15:16.724 --> 00:15:18.430 mass on the x ray. 00:15:19.570 --> 00:15:21.214 A significant dosage of 00:15:21.252 --> 00:15:23.118 antibiotics and about three, 00:15:23.204 --> 00:15:25.686 four weeks of staying at 00:15:25.708 --> 00:15:26.678 home took care of it. 00:15:26.684 --> 00:15:27.960 And here I am today. 00:15:31.100 --> 00:15:32.216 And yet I'll tell you, 00:15:32.238 --> 00:15:33.130 that night 00:15:34.860 --> 00:15:36.600 that night was one 00:15:36.750 --> 00:15:37.876 of difficulty 00:15:37.908 --> 00:15:39.480 to be of good courage. 00:15:41.500 --> 00:15:44.104 And yet the Spirit guaranteed it 00:15:44.222 --> 00:15:47.236 for me and guarantees 00:15:47.268 --> 00:15:48.650 it for you as well. 00:15:49.900 --> 00:15:51.500 It is good to walk by faith 00:15:51.540 --> 00:15:53.424 and not by sight in this 00:15:53.462 --> 00:15:55.456 life to be of good courage to do 00:15:55.478 --> 00:15:56.780 what is pleasing the Lord. 00:15:56.860 --> 00:15:58.176 It is better to die and 00:15:58.198 --> 00:15:59.600 to go and be with him. 00:15:59.750 --> 00:16:03.090 And what is best is yet to come. 00:16:04.340 --> 00:16:05.410 And so 00:16:06.819 --> 00:16:11.600 always we are of good courage. 00:16:12.819 --> 00:16:14.460 Amen.