WEBVTT - Discovering Your Spiritual Gifts and Fasting 0:00:00.440 --> 0:00:04.360 Coming to you from the Morning Star Mission sponsored studio. 0:00:04.720 --> 0:00:08.120 This is Carl and crew on Moody Radio. 0:00:09.000 --> 0:00:11.280 I really hope and trust that you're experiencing some healing 0:00:11.280 --> 0:00:14.960 from God today with whatever has pained you going through 0:00:14.960 --> 0:00:18.800 a moment of difficulty challenge. Maybe there's a health concern 0:00:18.800 --> 0:00:22.439 that you have. God just minister powerfully to this person 0:00:22.440 --> 0:00:27.000 right now who's just going through it. Let it begin today. 0:00:28.800 --> 0:00:33.080 You know, it's an interesting thing because the church has 0:00:33.080 --> 0:00:38.800 shifted radically for about 1700 years. We went from home 0:00:38.800 --> 0:00:42.120 church where we needed each other, and everybody needed to 0:00:42.400 --> 0:00:45.280 bring their gifts to the table because, hey, we're a 0:00:45.280 --> 0:00:49.319 group of ten, 12, 20 people huddled up. Who's going 0:00:49.320 --> 0:00:51.960 to bring the word? Who's going to administrate stuff? Who's 0:00:51.960 --> 0:00:55.000 got that gift of mercy? Who's got that gift of healing? What? 0:00:55.160 --> 0:00:57.639 Who's got what gifts? And are they going to bring 0:00:57.640 --> 0:01:02.350 them to the table here? And in about 300 AD 0:01:02.390 --> 0:01:06.630 it went from small church in a home to main 0:01:06.630 --> 0:01:11.750 stage consumers. And that was both good and it had 0:01:11.750 --> 0:01:16.869 some inherent challenges. And what it's created is we get 0:01:16.870 --> 0:01:19.869 some interesting stats here this morning that are quite shocking 0:01:19.910 --> 0:01:22.669 to me, I might add. Um, is a big gap 0:01:22.670 --> 0:01:28.070 between people who know their gifts versus those who don't. 0:01:28.430 --> 0:01:31.870 And I think probably a bigger gap between those who 0:01:31.870 --> 0:01:35.470 employ their gifts, even though they know them and don't. 0:01:35.510 --> 0:01:37.670 What do you say here, Ali? You're finding some good stuff. 0:01:37.709 --> 0:01:40.430 Yeah. I'm looking at a Barna report. This is from 2022, 0:01:40.470 --> 0:01:42.750 and it looks at the breakdown of. How well do 0:01:42.750 --> 0:01:46.750 you know and understand your individual gifts by generation. Now, 0:01:46.750 --> 0:01:50.430 this may surprise you. The youngest among us are the 0:01:50.430 --> 0:01:56.070 most likely to know their own giftings extremely well. 27% 0:01:56.070 --> 0:01:59.060 of Gen Z say they know their own giftings abilities 0:01:59.060 --> 0:02:03.460 skills extremely well. 38% or 36% of millennials. When you 0:02:03.460 --> 0:02:05.780 get to Gen X, Gen X, and boomers, it drops 0:02:05.780 --> 0:02:09.460 down to about 20% who know their own giftings extremely well. 0:02:09.500 --> 0:02:10.740 Does that surprise you? 0:02:10.780 --> 0:02:14.740 Yes. But the more I cogitate on it, the more 0:02:14.740 --> 0:02:17.580 intrigued I am with this. I think boomers, we come 0:02:17.620 --> 0:02:21.060 out of an age in a stage where it was 0:02:21.500 --> 0:02:28.660 there were there was more of a dependence upon the 0:02:28.660 --> 0:02:31.700 master teacher, the guy up front on Sundays. And I 0:02:31.700 --> 0:02:35.940 do think that with these millennials and Gen Zs, I 0:02:35.940 --> 0:02:40.419 think there is a great growing understanding that, hey, we 0:02:40.460 --> 0:02:42.740 are the body of Christ. And I think there's a 0:02:42.740 --> 0:02:45.459 move away from the main stage into the home. Church 0:02:45.460 --> 0:02:47.540 movements are springing up everywhere, by the way. 0:02:48.100 --> 0:02:51.419 Yeah, absolutely. Another thing, I'm just ideating here. I don't 0:02:51.419 --> 0:02:53.380 have numbers in front of me. But I wonder this too, 0:02:53.419 --> 0:02:56.810 in terms of work ethic between generations, there has always 0:02:56.810 --> 0:02:59.410 been a difference of some of the older generations have 0:02:59.410 --> 0:03:02.290 had more of the work ethic of I. I pick 0:03:02.290 --> 0:03:04.610 a job that maybe I don't necessarily love, but I 0:03:04.610 --> 0:03:06.770 do it to get by and support my family. And 0:03:06.770 --> 0:03:09.530 a lot of younger generations say no. I need to 0:03:09.570 --> 0:03:11.890 believe in the the mission of my job. I need 0:03:11.889 --> 0:03:13.410 to know what my job is doing and that I 0:03:13.410 --> 0:03:16.210 can stand behind it in order to take it. And 0:03:16.210 --> 0:03:19.650 I wonder if maybe that mentality makes them ideate about 0:03:19.650 --> 0:03:22.330 what their spiritual gifting could be a little bit more? 0:03:22.650 --> 0:03:25.290 Yeah, I mean, we've had stats here about Gen Z 0:03:25.290 --> 0:03:27.769 and that their work ethic is a lot higher than millennials. 0:03:27.770 --> 0:03:32.290 Millennials crack up over that one. I'm not sure they're 0:03:32.290 --> 0:03:36.210 all too fired up about that. But it's it's interesting 0:03:36.210 --> 0:03:38.570 because there's a shift I'm stunned by these numbers. 0:03:39.010 --> 0:03:41.690 Well you know I think that I mean I'm a 0:03:41.690 --> 0:03:45.930 millennial and I, I feel like our generation grew up 0:03:45.930 --> 0:03:49.850 with a, a heightened sense of wanting to know kind 0:03:49.850 --> 0:03:53.410 of how we're wired. You know, I remember taking like those, like, 0:03:53.450 --> 0:03:56.880 17 magazine quizzes when I was a kid like that. Like, 0:03:56.880 --> 0:04:01.040 what is your type of this or what career should 0:04:01.040 --> 0:04:03.520 you go into? So there was a lot of that 0:04:03.520 --> 0:04:05.440 that I grew up with, that you would take these 0:04:05.440 --> 0:04:08.080 simple little quizzes that promise to tell you a little 0:04:08.120 --> 0:04:10.200 bit about yourself. And I mean, they were usually pretty 0:04:10.240 --> 0:04:15.040 generic and and broad, but I do sense a greater desire. 0:04:15.040 --> 0:04:17.039 And then like when I look at my kids and 0:04:17.080 --> 0:04:21.599 like even younger generation, they want to know there's it's 0:04:21.640 --> 0:04:24.880 a self-focus that can be good and bad. So, I mean, 0:04:24.920 --> 0:04:27.040 the bad side of it, obviously, if you're too focused 0:04:27.040 --> 0:04:30.320 on self, your eyes are taken off of God. But 0:04:30.320 --> 0:04:32.520 the good side of that is like, no, I want 0:04:32.560 --> 0:04:36.080 to know how I'm wired. How has God made me? 0:04:36.880 --> 0:04:41.080 Yeah, I love that. Yeah. It's interesting. I'm just cogitating 0:04:41.080 --> 0:04:43.760 sitting here thinking, oh, now what's going on? Even on 0:04:43.760 --> 0:04:46.320 our two campuses here in Chicagoland, what's going on there? 0:04:46.360 --> 0:04:49.120 You know, it's interesting. I can honestly tell you we've 0:04:49.120 --> 0:04:52.080 got way more Gen Zers per capita jumping in to 0:04:52.120 --> 0:04:55.880 serve than we do Boomers. Boomers. Isn't that fascinating? 0:04:55.920 --> 0:04:56.799 What do you make of that? 0:04:57.440 --> 0:05:01.480 I don't know. I don't know. I don't know. I 0:05:01.520 --> 0:05:05.520 think I think boomers were trained on the I go 0:05:05.560 --> 0:05:09.480 to church to get fed from the master teacher. And 0:05:09.480 --> 0:05:14.760 I think Gen Z and millennials have more of a 0:05:15.040 --> 0:05:17.560 that's not the only that's not the main reason I 0:05:17.560 --> 0:05:19.760 go there. I see this as a launching pad, not 0:05:19.760 --> 0:05:22.360 a landing pad, which is really healthy if the church 0:05:22.360 --> 0:05:23.120 can go that way. 0:05:23.160 --> 0:05:25.800 Yeah. And I think, I mean, again, this there's, there's 0:05:25.800 --> 0:05:27.280 the good and the bad side of this, I think 0:05:27.279 --> 0:05:31.200 the younger generation, there's a higher questioning of authority, less 0:05:31.200 --> 0:05:33.880 of an assumed authority just because there's a position or 0:05:33.920 --> 0:05:34.680 a title. 0:05:34.720 --> 0:05:37.080 So give me that ball. Right. Give me that. 0:05:37.080 --> 0:05:40.719 Ball. And again, that can be problematic I get that. 0:05:40.760 --> 0:05:40.920 Yeah. 0:05:40.920 --> 0:05:42.559 That can be the good side of it. Is that 0:05:42.760 --> 0:05:47.080 maybe not just an assumption that that guy is the 0:05:47.080 --> 0:05:48.400 only one who's gifted? 0:05:48.440 --> 0:05:50.560 Yeah, I love it, I love you. Yeah. This is 0:05:50.560 --> 0:05:53.270 a great discussion. Okay. Coming up here in a little bit, 0:05:53.270 --> 0:05:55.510 we're going to take this discussion a little bit further. 0:05:55.510 --> 0:05:59.390 Because no matter where you're at on this gifts discovery, 0:06:00.230 --> 0:06:03.030 getting you equipped is everything. Hang on. 0:06:03.350 --> 0:06:06.070 She was trying to earn her way to God, but 0:06:06.070 --> 0:06:09.549 God showed her she didn't have to. Ali is in 0:06:09.550 --> 0:06:12.990 the crew. It's Carl and crew on Moody Radio. 0:06:13.110 --> 0:06:15.710 You know, when you get that mindset, it's like, My God, 0:06:15.710 --> 0:06:18.029 can I am a vessel. I'm going to lay down 0:06:18.029 --> 0:06:23.350 my life as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God. Okay, 0:06:23.350 --> 0:06:26.830 we get that posture and then we begin to go, God, 0:06:26.830 --> 0:06:28.350 how do you want to use me? What are the 0:06:28.350 --> 0:06:33.150 spiritual gifts you've given me? And I'm. I'm so encouraged 0:06:33.150 --> 0:06:35.270 by these stats you found. Ali. This is one of 0:06:35.270 --> 0:06:37.630 the best things going. I think you could look at 0:06:37.630 --> 0:06:41.029 it with a jaundiced eye like, ah, boy, those those 0:06:41.029 --> 0:06:44.270 Gen Zers, man, they they want to do it their way. 0:06:44.310 --> 0:06:49.309 I think the, uh, I, I firmly believe that there 0:06:49.310 --> 0:06:53.060 is a personal ownership of the church with this new 0:06:53.060 --> 0:06:55.260 generation that we have not seen in a while. And 0:06:55.260 --> 0:06:56.580 the numbers don't lie. Ali. 0:06:56.779 --> 0:07:00.460 Yeah. I mean, the knowing and understanding individual giftings Gen 0:07:00.460 --> 0:07:03.940 Z and millennials are are ahead in terms of knowing 0:07:03.980 --> 0:07:06.779 the how, how they're wired, wanting to know how they're 0:07:06.779 --> 0:07:10.620 wired at a greater, higher degree than Gen X and boomers. 0:07:10.660 --> 0:07:13.140 I love that. So the question is what do you do? 0:07:13.140 --> 0:07:15.420 And I want to I want you to hear me 0:07:15.420 --> 0:07:18.940 on this one right now. This is so important. There 0:07:18.940 --> 0:07:23.020 are not in a group of 3 to 500 disciples 0:07:23.020 --> 0:07:27.020 of Christ. There are not 1 or 2 teachers. There 0:07:27.020 --> 0:07:30.860 are far more. And there's some of you that feel 0:07:30.860 --> 0:07:33.740 like you've got a gift of teaching. Or you wonder, 0:07:33.740 --> 0:07:35.620 do I have a gift of teaching or leadership? And 0:07:35.620 --> 0:07:37.900 some of you I don't. Whatever age and stage we 0:07:37.900 --> 0:07:40.980 might have more Gen Zers respond to this per capita 0:07:41.020 --> 0:07:45.300 than we have boomers, but I'm calling you every age 0:07:45.300 --> 0:07:47.780 and stage of life to consider. Has God given me 0:07:47.780 --> 0:07:50.330 some gifts that I need to cultivate. Coming up, we 0:07:50.370 --> 0:07:52.970 have got someone who's going to give us some low 0:07:53.010 --> 0:07:55.450 hanging fruit for what to do if you think you've 0:07:55.490 --> 0:07:57.050 got some certain gifts. Right, Ali? 0:07:57.090 --> 0:08:00.929 Yes. Particularly if you feel called to teach the Word 0:08:00.930 --> 0:08:01.489 of God. 0:08:01.970 --> 0:08:05.010 He's a sports fanatic with a stat for anything you 0:08:05.010 --> 0:08:09.250 can think of. Young Thunder is in the crew. It's 0:08:09.250 --> 0:08:11.530 Karl and crew on Moody Radio. 0:08:12.090 --> 0:08:17.170 How in the world can they hear if someone doesn't 0:08:17.210 --> 0:08:20.450 tell them it's Karl and crew mornings. One of the 0:08:20.450 --> 0:08:25.650 key elements of the good news is Proclamation Ali. We 0:08:25.690 --> 0:08:29.530 sometimes sell short the preaching of God's Word. Today we're 0:08:29.530 --> 0:08:31.210 going to put a fork in that notion. 0:08:31.210 --> 0:08:35.490 And Moody has something really exciting to help strengthen the 0:08:35.490 --> 0:08:38.370 proclamation of God's Word. I'm going to give you the 0:08:38.370 --> 0:08:42.090 name of it. It's a mouthful. It's the Moody Bible Institute, 0:08:42.250 --> 0:08:47.560 Moody Theological Seminary, center for compelling biblical old preaching. We've 0:08:47.600 --> 0:08:52.760 got Doctor Eric Redman, who is the executive director. Explain 0:08:52.760 --> 0:08:58.199 the name. The center for Compelling Biblical Preaching. What is that? 0:08:58.400 --> 0:09:01.920 So the Lilly Foundation gave a grant called the Compelling 0:09:01.920 --> 0:09:06.000 Preaching Grant. They gave it to 140 institutions to help 0:09:06.000 --> 0:09:10.040 make preaching more engaging and more effective around the country. 0:09:10.080 --> 0:09:13.079 Most of the institutions picked up some element of that, 0:09:13.080 --> 0:09:17.360 but we added biblical to ours because that's who we 0:09:17.360 --> 0:09:20.640 are as the Moody Bible Institute. So our goal is 0:09:20.640 --> 0:09:25.920 to help Bible Expositors be the most compelling in explaining 0:09:25.920 --> 0:09:30.000 the scriptures, helping people apply them, and pointing people to Jesus. 0:09:30.000 --> 0:09:32.480 I got to tell you, doc, here's the thing for me. 0:09:32.480 --> 0:09:35.400 There's a lot of people that are on the bench 0:09:35.400 --> 0:09:39.160 that God wants to call off the bench. In most churches, 0:09:39.160 --> 0:09:43.280 we think we got a preacher per thousand, a couple 0:09:43.320 --> 0:09:47.630 preachers per 2000. The way, the gifts of the body work. 0:09:47.870 --> 0:09:50.829 There's got to be way more people that have been 0:09:50.830 --> 0:09:56.189 gifted with communication of the gospel than we've identified. Number one, 0:09:56.190 --> 0:09:58.230 and that we've equipped. Number two, what do you say 0:09:58.230 --> 0:09:58.750 to that? 0:09:58.830 --> 0:10:02.910 I think you're absolutely right. In an older generation, and 0:10:02.910 --> 0:10:06.790 maybe as far back as 70s, late 70s, early 80s, 0:10:06.790 --> 0:10:09.710 there would have been moments in our corporate worship services 0:10:09.710 --> 0:10:12.990 where we would have invited people who felt they had 0:10:12.990 --> 0:10:17.710 a calling to preach, to consider answering the call and 0:10:17.710 --> 0:10:21.790 getting training. Maybe even going to Bible school or to seminary. 0:10:21.790 --> 0:10:24.429 And that has kind of fallen off now. I think, 0:10:24.429 --> 0:10:26.750 like you, there are many more people sitting in our 0:10:26.750 --> 0:10:29.309 pews who in whom the Spirit of God is working. 0:10:29.309 --> 0:10:32.550 They are gifted as teachers and God wants to use 0:10:32.550 --> 0:10:37.070 them to explain His Word to many, so we can 0:10:37.070 --> 0:10:40.150 reach the billions of people around the world who still 0:10:40.150 --> 0:10:41.469 need to hear about Jesus. 0:10:41.510 --> 0:10:44.980 Now we know that the Word of God does not change. 0:10:45.260 --> 0:10:48.220 It hasn't changed. And that's what we stand firm on. 0:10:48.260 --> 0:10:51.140 What has changed about how it needs to be proclaimed? 0:10:51.179 --> 0:10:52.740 Why is this necessary? 0:10:52.940 --> 0:10:57.219 So we have in our society people who are more cynical, 0:10:57.420 --> 0:11:00.780 who are more skeptical. Of course, there are questions about 0:11:00.780 --> 0:11:03.380 faith and whether or not religion is even true. With 0:11:03.380 --> 0:11:06.540 all the scandals all over the place. And we could 0:11:06.540 --> 0:11:09.900 go on for days talking about that. We need people 0:11:09.940 --> 0:11:13.860 to first understand, you know, the preacher has the character 0:11:13.940 --> 0:11:16.939 of someone who's following God. That's the most important part. 0:11:16.980 --> 0:11:20.020 And then they need to hear the Word of God 0:11:20.020 --> 0:11:22.700 explain in a way that doesn't seem like a lecture, 0:11:22.700 --> 0:11:25.540 or go on and on for a long time because 0:11:25.580 --> 0:11:28.980 our listening abilities are lesser in there. And so we're 0:11:28.980 --> 0:11:32.580 trying to help preachers understand these changes that have come 0:11:32.580 --> 0:11:35.100 to society and say, how can we still take that 0:11:35.100 --> 0:11:37.860 word of God that has not changed and be most 0:11:37.860 --> 0:11:40.180 effective in communicating it to others? 0:11:40.220 --> 0:11:43.450 I love that Eric Redman with us right now. It's 0:11:43.450 --> 0:11:46.809 called the center for Compelling Biblical Preaching, and we're going 0:11:46.850 --> 0:11:48.290 to give you a link in a moment here, because 0:11:48.330 --> 0:11:51.130 guess what? You ready for this, Katie? Bar the door. 0:11:51.330 --> 0:11:54.970 There is no charge. This thing has been underwritten. You 0:11:54.970 --> 0:11:58.329 need to show up with bells on, pencil in hand 0:11:58.330 --> 0:12:00.010 and ready to roll. And we're going to give you 0:12:00.010 --> 0:12:03.729 all the details coming up. Okay, Eric, I was mentored 0:12:03.730 --> 0:12:06.650 by Haddon. Robinson put his arm around me and said, 0:12:06.650 --> 0:12:08.570 I'm going to we're going to go to another level here, 0:12:08.570 --> 0:12:11.610 young man. And he wrote the book. He's famous for 0:12:11.610 --> 0:12:15.090 biblical preaching. Big idea. I think what helped me with 0:12:15.090 --> 0:12:18.770 biblical preaching even before I met Haddon was we look 0:12:18.850 --> 0:12:22.490 at preaching as, oh my goodness! And we begin to 0:12:22.490 --> 0:12:25.330 break down in our mind all the obstacles to getting there. 0:12:25.690 --> 0:12:30.929 When you just take simple ideas of this is spirit driven, 0:12:31.250 --> 0:12:35.290 God's got the content. We don't make God relevant. We 0:12:35.290 --> 0:12:40.770 reveal his relevance. All of a sudden, what seemed impossible 0:12:41.290 --> 0:12:44.569 Seems possible. That's what you want to tell people that 0:12:44.570 --> 0:12:46.010 are listening right now, right? 0:12:46.050 --> 0:12:48.250 It is. This is what I tell preachers as I 0:12:48.290 --> 0:12:53.810 prepare them. God wants his people to know his word 0:12:53.809 --> 0:12:55.890 more than you want to preach it to them. 0:12:55.929 --> 0:12:56.689 Oh that's good. 0:12:56.730 --> 0:12:58.970 God is the one who wants people to know his word. 0:12:58.970 --> 0:13:01.010 We get up there and we're all nervous, but God 0:13:01.010 --> 0:13:03.410 is the one who wants people to respond to him, 0:13:03.410 --> 0:13:06.050 to have his joy, to follow him in obedience, to 0:13:06.090 --> 0:13:09.530 have his peace, etc. we make it harder by looking 0:13:09.530 --> 0:13:11.890 at all the style and the rhetoric and saying, we 0:13:11.890 --> 0:13:14.370 need a certain amount of education. We need to make 0:13:14.370 --> 0:13:17.689 ourselves available to God, have a walk with God, and 0:13:17.690 --> 0:13:20.330 then ask the Spirit of God to use us and 0:13:20.330 --> 0:13:24.130 get some tools so that we can effectively communicate God's Word. 0:13:24.170 --> 0:13:27.130 Some of the offerings for the center for Compelling Biblical 0:13:27.130 --> 0:13:31.809 Preaching are going to be certification courses, podcasts, social media interviews, 0:13:31.850 --> 0:13:35.810 lunch hour, ministry trainings, workshops, and more. You've got a 0:13:35.809 --> 0:13:40.040 pretty big goal for how many aspiring and current preachers 0:13:40.040 --> 0:13:42.040 you want to be able to train, give us that. 0:13:42.080 --> 0:13:46.280 We're looking to train 6000 would be a reasonable goal 0:13:46.280 --> 0:13:49.920 for us to try to reach by 2030. That's just stateside. 0:13:49.920 --> 0:13:54.240 But we also know there are 2.2 million Christian leaders 0:13:54.240 --> 0:13:57.480 around the world who reside outside of the reach of 0:13:57.480 --> 0:14:01.080 formal Christian education. Well, as moody, we want to play 0:14:01.080 --> 0:14:04.280 our part. If we could reach 10,000 of those, that's 0:14:04.280 --> 0:14:07.839 the goal that we've set. If you can't get to seminary, 0:14:07.880 --> 0:14:11.520 you're priced out. You're geographically distant. We want you to 0:14:11.559 --> 0:14:14.800 take advantage of what we're offering so you can still 0:14:14.800 --> 0:14:18.600 be the best proclaimer of God's Word possible wherever you are. 0:14:18.720 --> 0:14:21.360 You know, it's interesting. I heard, um, I heard a 0:14:21.360 --> 0:14:27.480 guy who's pretty noted evangelist teacher, some views that maybe 0:14:27.520 --> 0:14:30.240 don't align with Moody Bible, but that's for another time. R.T. 0:14:30.280 --> 0:14:32.160 Kendall is his name, and he was asked by a 0:14:32.160 --> 0:14:34.240 seasoned guy. He said, hey, listen, what would you tell 0:14:34.280 --> 0:14:36.560 someone if you could do it all over again from 0:14:36.560 --> 0:14:39.190 your youth? Humble guy, by the way. You know what 0:14:39.190 --> 0:14:42.710 RT Kendall said, Eric? He said I would tell him 0:14:42.710 --> 0:14:46.190 this quit worrying about seminary. It's not as big as 0:14:46.190 --> 0:14:48.310 you think it is, but what is big is looking 0:14:48.310 --> 0:14:54.150 at those early disciples who were recognizably exposed to Jesus 0:14:54.310 --> 0:14:58.230 because of the anointing that came from proximity to him. 0:14:58.230 --> 0:15:02.350 Read your Bible. Pray every day. And what's cool about 0:15:02.350 --> 0:15:06.510 this is whether you've got money for seminary or not, 0:15:06.550 --> 0:15:10.350 that gift that God's given you can be fanned to flame, 0:15:10.350 --> 0:15:13.590 and we want to help. Eric, I'm so pumped about this. 0:15:13.870 --> 0:15:16.790 How sweet. What's your vision for what God could do 0:15:16.830 --> 0:15:18.550 even beyond 10,000? 0:15:18.590 --> 0:15:22.070 So we make our offerings not just available for preachers, 0:15:22.070 --> 0:15:24.830 but a layperson can come and say, I'm interested in 0:15:24.830 --> 0:15:27.310 the topics you're talking about. Like this. Last fall, we 0:15:27.310 --> 0:15:30.590 had a session on preaching and sexual abuse, one of 0:15:30.590 --> 0:15:34.630 our most well attended ones in person and online, and 0:15:34.630 --> 0:15:37.620 many of the people in front of us We're not preachers. 0:15:37.620 --> 0:15:40.700 They were people who sit in the pew week to 0:15:40.740 --> 0:15:44.260 week and want to understand. How should preaching think of 0:15:44.260 --> 0:15:46.660 those being who have been sexually abused or who have 0:15:46.660 --> 0:15:49.780 experienced that? What should it consider are the examples in 0:15:49.780 --> 0:15:52.180 the Bible where we can talk about this and help 0:15:52.180 --> 0:15:54.740 them see that God cares about this? Our vision is 0:15:54.740 --> 0:15:58.700 to reach more than just the preachers. We want churches, 0:15:58.700 --> 0:16:02.300 people inside of churches better equipped in the Word of God, 0:16:02.300 --> 0:16:05.340 which is what the goal of preaching is. And so, 0:16:05.460 --> 0:16:08.540 however many people we can reach to take advantage of 0:16:08.660 --> 0:16:11.300 these offerings, we make them available to you. 0:16:11.340 --> 0:16:13.540 And we want to make them available to you. Just 0:16:13.540 --> 0:16:19.140 text the word center to 800 555 7898. It's the 0:16:19.140 --> 0:16:26.140 center for compelling biblical preaching. Text center to 855 five 7898. 0:16:26.180 --> 0:16:29.820 Do you feel stuck or paralyzed? Are you ready to 0:16:29.860 --> 0:16:34.980 break free? Here are your questions answered. It's time for ask, 0:16:35.050 --> 0:16:36.050 Pastor Carl. 0:16:36.290 --> 0:16:39.850 Okay. We stirred a good pot, and this is great. 0:16:40.250 --> 0:16:42.490 I'm going to give some backstory before I read this 0:16:42.490 --> 0:16:48.690 letter here. We've called for a fast at 180 Chicago 0:16:48.690 --> 0:16:52.490 at both of our campuses to skip a meal. One, uh, 0:16:52.530 --> 0:16:55.530 one meal a day for six days. And then Sunday 0:16:55.530 --> 0:16:59.250 is fast day. That means that you just go for it, man. Morning, 0:16:59.250 --> 0:17:01.970 noon and night. You can eat, but just skip a 0:17:01.970 --> 0:17:05.010 meal to begin to lean in to the spiritual discipline 0:17:05.050 --> 0:17:08.649 of fasting. Now we're going to. This is such a 0:17:08.650 --> 0:17:12.370 big deal that we're going to tackle all aspects of 0:17:12.369 --> 0:17:15.530 the great rewards of fasting and why we fast. And 0:17:15.530 --> 0:17:17.650 some of you are going to be so inspired this week. 0:17:17.650 --> 0:17:20.330 You're going to go, oh my goodness, I can fast 0:17:20.330 --> 0:17:22.490 for that. Yeah, but we got to get down to 0:17:22.490 --> 0:17:26.090 the basics here first because I've got to hide some 0:17:26.090 --> 0:17:28.690 of the details here. But someone writes me and says, 0:17:28.690 --> 0:17:32.770 Pastor Carl, I feel like such a failure when I'm fasting. 0:17:33.440 --> 0:17:37.400 I am so consumed with thinking about food I can 0:17:37.440 --> 0:17:41.119 barely pray at all. And then I find myself trying 0:17:41.119 --> 0:17:45.400 to assuage this need for food by popping a little 0:17:45.440 --> 0:17:48.600 something in my mouth or. And then I feel guilty, 0:17:48.640 --> 0:17:53.360 like I've blown it and it's just a mess. So 0:17:55.000 --> 0:17:58.280 I got more than one response about this, and I 0:17:58.280 --> 0:18:02.359 want to tackle this in the most practical way. It 0:18:02.359 --> 0:18:06.760 all relates to how God sees you kids. And let 0:18:06.760 --> 0:18:09.399 me be really clear. And I'm going to go full 0:18:09.400 --> 0:18:14.359 grandpa mode on you right now. My bride's been helping out. 0:18:14.359 --> 0:18:17.480 My daughter and son in law with little baby Kate 0:18:18.000 --> 0:18:23.920 are Catherine Josephine Kloss and I love this little girl. Man. 0:18:23.920 --> 0:18:25.439 To hold her in my arms was one of the 0:18:25.440 --> 0:18:29.320 most precious things in the world. And I got sent 0:18:29.320 --> 0:18:31.919 a video of little baby Kate. What is she now? Six, 0:18:31.920 --> 0:18:34.350 6 or 7 weeks old? Something like that. Maybe eight, 0:18:34.390 --> 0:18:38.830 I forget. Time flies when they're babies, and it was 0:18:38.830 --> 0:18:41.149 one of the most precious things. My bride has really 0:18:41.150 --> 0:18:47.150 bonded with little baby Kate, and it's beautiful because she 0:18:47.150 --> 0:18:53.070 got this little video out and my bride is talking. Kate, 0:18:53.070 --> 0:18:55.590 how are you doing this morning? It's so good to 0:18:55.590 --> 0:19:01.630 see you. And Kate is now trying to form words 0:19:01.630 --> 0:19:06.430 desperately to talk back to grandma. And it's I'm going 0:19:06.430 --> 0:19:08.149 to try to do it here for you. So just 0:19:08.150 --> 0:19:10.590 hang on. I'm trying to go full baby Kate, but 0:19:10.630 --> 0:19:16.350 it's it's. And her mouth open and she's trying to 0:19:16.390 --> 0:19:20.110 move her tongue and get it, but it isn't in 0:19:20.150 --> 0:19:23.510 a way that something will come out. And it's one 0:19:23.510 --> 0:19:29.070 of the coolest struggles around. I love it, and she's 0:19:29.070 --> 0:19:30.230 fighting for all. 0:19:30.260 --> 0:19:33.940 She can to talk to grandma, and she's trying to say, 0:19:34.060 --> 0:19:38.700 I love you to grandma, but she can't say nothing. 0:19:38.740 --> 0:19:42.700 Nothing's coming out. Boom! 0:19:42.859 --> 0:19:46.979 I want to ask you a question. Is my bride 0:19:47.020 --> 0:19:53.900 ticked off or disappointed in baby Kate? Unable to form words? Nope. Ali? 0:19:54.020 --> 0:19:55.060 Of course not. 0:19:55.900 --> 0:19:56.659 No way. 0:19:57.020 --> 0:20:00.300 Is she like, oh, come on. Come on. You can move. 0:20:00.380 --> 0:20:02.740 Move that tongue. Get the tongue up to the upper 0:20:02.740 --> 0:20:05.659 cleft of your mouth there. No. 0:20:06.859 --> 0:20:08.100 She's overjoyed. 0:20:08.260 --> 0:20:12.100 What? Grandpa, think when he saw that video. Oh. 0:20:12.900 --> 0:20:13.580 Teared up. 0:20:14.140 --> 0:20:19.300 Yeah, it sure wasn't me thinking. Yeah. Boy, she didn't 0:20:19.300 --> 0:20:20.219 quite have it yet. 0:20:21.420 --> 0:20:21.820 No. 0:20:21.859 --> 0:20:23.340 You see how absurd that sounds? 0:20:23.420 --> 0:20:24.460 Yeah, absolutely. 0:20:25.460 --> 0:20:28.660 I want you to know something when it comes to fasting. 0:20:30.970 --> 0:20:39.410 Very few people have a a spiritual discipline of fasting. 0:20:42.090 --> 0:20:49.210 And I am absolutely solid on this one. When you 0:20:49.210 --> 0:20:54.490 begin to take any spiritual discipline and wade into it, 0:20:55.890 --> 0:20:59.810 there is a learning curve. You don't go from no 0:20:59.810 --> 0:21:06.969 Bible reading to Bible exegesis for two hours, parsing Greek 0:21:06.970 --> 0:21:14.570 and Hebrew. In five weeks. You know what you do. 0:21:16.650 --> 0:21:20.369 You're getting your feet under you. Where is the Gospel 0:21:20.369 --> 0:21:26.330 of John? I remember one guy told me, um, he 0:21:26.330 --> 0:21:28.370 came to Jesus Christ at a church where I was 0:21:28.369 --> 0:21:32.810 pastoring up in Alaska. He said, uh, where should I 0:21:32.850 --> 0:21:35.570 be in the word? And I said, well, go to 0:21:35.609 --> 0:21:37.689 the Gospel of John, and here's what I want you 0:21:37.690 --> 0:21:40.090 to do. And I gave him really clear instructions, and 0:21:40.090 --> 0:21:42.489 he called me up. And he's just a dude that 0:21:42.490 --> 0:21:45.330 was just wired for sound. He goes, hey, I got 0:21:45.330 --> 0:21:47.850 a problem. I got one, two and three. John. But 0:21:47.850 --> 0:21:54.530 I don't have John. I don't have John 15. Should 0:21:54.570 --> 0:21:57.010 have I been ticked or was God ticked at him? 0:21:57.369 --> 0:21:58.210 No way. Nope. 0:21:58.250 --> 0:22:01.850 No way. I said, well, just thumb back a little 0:22:01.890 --> 0:22:05.250 bit left. I want you to hear me on this 0:22:05.250 --> 0:22:12.850 fasting thing right now. Our God is delighted with any 0:22:12.890 --> 0:22:17.290 attempt to position yourself more closely to hear his voice. 0:22:21.050 --> 0:22:24.650 And when you get hungry, when you're fasting and when 0:22:24.650 --> 0:22:26.720 you feel like. I thought I could do it, but 0:22:26.720 --> 0:22:29.159 I had to. I had to go get a burrito. 0:22:32.000 --> 0:22:37.360 Our God is not going, boy. They aren't seasoned pros 0:22:37.359 --> 0:22:41.640 at fasting. Look at this. Hey, angels, look at this knucklehead. 0:22:41.680 --> 0:22:44.160 That's not our God. Our God is looking at you 0:22:44.160 --> 0:22:47.400 like I looked at baby Kate and go, oh, you precious, 0:22:47.440 --> 0:22:51.840 you're fighting for it. You're doing all you can to 0:22:51.880 --> 0:22:55.080 try to form a word. And one day it'll come. 0:22:56.000 --> 0:22:58.680 And just opening the mouth like little baby Kate does 0:22:58.680 --> 0:23:02.800 and goes by you and see and wrestle with getting 0:23:02.800 --> 0:23:04.760 that tongue. You know what I'm saying? Guys with their 0:23:04.760 --> 0:23:07.720 mouth wide open. She happens to have Grandpa Klaus and 0:23:07.720 --> 0:23:11.200 my dad's grin. So she's got this huge open mouth. 0:23:11.320 --> 0:23:13.480 And so when she opens her mouth, you can see 0:23:13.480 --> 0:23:16.680 the tongue trying to get in a position where something 0:23:16.680 --> 0:23:20.560 will happen, and our God looks at you the same 0:23:20.560 --> 0:23:26.230 way and says, listen, don't you dare get down on yourself. 0:23:26.310 --> 0:23:35.389 I'm not. You're giving it a go, kid. Baby steps 0:23:35.390 --> 0:23:43.190 are awesome. And I don't care if a fast for 0:23:43.190 --> 0:23:50.470 you begins by nudging breakfast. 15 minutes later than normal 0:23:51.430 --> 0:23:55.350 and just sitting down with God, going, God, I'm hungry 0:23:55.350 --> 0:23:58.830 as all get out. I'm not used to this. Our 0:23:58.830 --> 0:24:02.710 God is gone. No problem. Let's take these few minutes 0:24:02.710 --> 0:24:05.510 that we got together, and then you go get yourself 0:24:05.510 --> 0:24:08.990 a couple eggs over medium with some bacon on the side. 0:24:13.030 --> 0:24:19.629 My heart goes out to anyone in any pastor worth 0:24:19.630 --> 0:24:24.580 his weight. Joins me in this to say, way to go, kid. 0:24:26.260 --> 0:24:28.460 So I'm talking about fasting here, but I don't care 0:24:28.460 --> 0:24:30.820 if it's Bible reading. I don't care if it's prayer. 0:24:31.140 --> 0:24:34.939 I tell men that have ever prayed with their wives before. Dudes, 0:24:34.940 --> 0:24:39.060 you do not have to be eloquent. Just bow your 0:24:39.060 --> 0:24:43.580 head and go, God, I'm not good at this. But 0:24:43.580 --> 0:24:50.020 I love this woman and I want us to. Grow 0:24:50.020 --> 0:24:53.699 up in you. And that that means me being a 0:24:53.700 --> 0:24:56.900 good man. And I just want to tell you I'm here. 0:24:57.619 --> 0:25:01.940 And I love this gal. In Jesus name, Amen. Oh. 0:25:01.980 --> 0:25:08.580 That's awesome. That's awesome. That's a great start. Satan wants 0:25:08.580 --> 0:25:11.460 to discourage you because you get hungry when you're fast. 0:25:12.060 --> 0:25:18.979 Satan wants to discourage you. And tell you your baby 0:25:18.980 --> 0:25:27.210 steps aren't enough. God is not saying that. That's a 0:25:27.210 --> 0:25:29.970 lot of yakking about a very important topic. And if 0:25:30.010 --> 0:25:32.889 you've got more questions about this, I want you or 0:25:32.930 --> 0:25:35.609 any topic I want you to reach out to me. 0:25:35.890 --> 0:25:36.570 And questions. 0:25:36.570 --> 0:25:39.690 About spiritual growth, particularly if you feel like you've reached 0:25:39.690 --> 0:25:42.369 a plateau or you're stuck in some way. Just text 0:25:42.369 --> 0:25:44.530 the word pastor. If you'd like to submit a question 0:25:44.530 --> 0:25:48.610 for our Ask Pastor Carl segment. Text pastor to 805 0:25:48.650 --> 0:25:54.649 55 7898. Pastor to (800) 555-7898. 0:25:54.850 --> 0:25:57.729 We love you guys. God does too, and he's cheering 0:25:57.730 --> 0:26:00.929 for you. Little step at a time. You'll get your 0:26:00.930 --> 0:26:01.770 feet under you. 0:26:02.850 --> 0:26:07.450 She's a choreographer extraordinaire and everything is Greek to her. 0:26:07.850 --> 0:26:11.609 Super die is in the crew. It's Carl and crew 0:26:11.609 --> 0:26:14.490 on Moody Radio. He loves you so much. 0:26:14.530 --> 0:26:17.210 We got to get rid of this old ogre. Lord 0:26:17.210 --> 0:26:20.399 it over looking, you know, like gods. You know, he's 0:26:20.400 --> 0:26:23.080 a hammer and everything looks like a nail. Kind of. God, 0:26:23.840 --> 0:26:26.000 you got to get out of that funk, man. 0:26:26.000 --> 0:26:27.919 It's dangerous. It's so dangerous. 0:26:29.680 --> 0:26:31.600 All right, I'm play. Fill in the blank here. 0:26:32.000 --> 0:26:32.320 Okay. 0:26:33.119 --> 0:26:34.200 Play. Fill in the blank. 0:26:34.480 --> 0:26:36.080 Plays like. Ooh. Yes! Games. 0:26:36.560 --> 0:26:46.040 Is blank. A proper motivation for fasting is blank. A 0:26:46.040 --> 0:26:47.560 proper motivation for fasting? 0:26:47.640 --> 0:26:48.720 Am I supposed to fill it in? 0:26:49.600 --> 0:26:50.000 Yeah. 0:26:50.160 --> 0:26:53.480 Not yet. Oh, okay. Because I think you know the punchline. 0:26:53.520 --> 0:26:54.119 Well, I'm. 0:26:54.160 --> 0:26:55.920 No, I'm trying to think of possible answers. 0:26:55.960 --> 0:26:57.400 Well, what are some possible answers? 0:26:57.520 --> 0:27:00.360 I remember when I was a and I was a teenager, I. 0:27:00.359 --> 0:27:00.680 Would have. 0:27:00.680 --> 0:27:04.000 Filled it out with. Is losing weight a proper motivation? 0:27:05.040 --> 0:27:06.840 Oh, exactly. There's the first one. That's good. 0:27:06.880 --> 0:27:07.320 That's a. 0:27:07.320 --> 0:27:08.320 That's hilarious. 0:27:09.040 --> 0:27:12.879 Is hooking that dude a proper motivation for fasting? 0:27:13.040 --> 0:27:16.120 Like, no, that's to impress my. 0:27:16.119 --> 0:27:16.679 Youth group. 0:27:16.680 --> 0:27:19.790 Leader. A proper motivation. Well, now I want. 0:27:19.830 --> 0:27:22.590 To be careful with that. It's. And I'm not talking 0:27:22.590 --> 0:27:26.590 about fasting because I guess men don't do this a lot, 0:27:26.590 --> 0:27:30.470 but I guess women more so almost starve their bodies right, 0:27:30.510 --> 0:27:32.910 of nutrients to try to get things in. 0:27:32.910 --> 0:27:33.510 Oh, boy. 0:27:33.510 --> 0:27:37.870 That's that's horrible. Uh, but bringing some things in line 0:27:37.869 --> 0:27:40.110 is one thing, but that's not generally fast. And so 0:27:40.109 --> 0:27:44.270 the resolving resounding answer to you, Ali, is no, no. 0:27:44.950 --> 0:27:45.550 No it's. 0:27:45.550 --> 0:27:51.030 Not. But is blank a proper motivation? 0:27:51.230 --> 0:27:52.990 How about religious performance? 0:27:53.310 --> 0:27:55.149 Like law? Church law? 0:27:56.510 --> 0:27:57.750 That one? Definitely no. 0:27:57.790 --> 0:27:59.190 Well, but hold on. 0:27:59.590 --> 0:28:00.030 See? 0:28:00.310 --> 0:28:01.429 Religious performance. 0:28:01.430 --> 0:28:01.830 There's a. 0:28:02.150 --> 0:28:03.070 No no, not not. 0:28:03.070 --> 0:28:06.310 Religious performance. What's the other thing you said? Uh, church 0:28:06.310 --> 0:28:08.710 law or church law or. I'm going to go with 0:28:08.710 --> 0:28:12.350 precept or teaching. Can we can turn into a young 0:28:12.390 --> 0:28:13.670 thunder thinks I've gone. 0:28:13.710 --> 0:28:14.510 Wait a second. 0:28:14.550 --> 0:28:14.910 I was like. 0:28:14.910 --> 0:28:16.109 Whoa, wait, wait wait wait. 0:28:16.150 --> 0:28:19.780 Didn't know we were doing a legalistic bit legalistic. 0:28:20.180 --> 0:28:21.300 Wait, no. I mean. 0:28:21.340 --> 0:28:24.380 Here's here's the problem. So God's laid down precepts galore. 0:28:24.420 --> 0:28:24.900 Yes. 0:28:24.940 --> 0:28:27.460 We can turn them into legalisms or something else. 0:28:27.500 --> 0:28:27.820 Yes. 0:28:27.940 --> 0:28:30.780 All right. So we debunked that one. If you're listening here, 0:28:30.780 --> 0:28:31.979 we are not into angry. 0:28:32.540 --> 0:28:33.500 We're checking them off. 0:28:33.980 --> 0:28:36.980 So we got to clarify okay. Is blank a proper 0:28:36.980 --> 0:28:40.060 motivation for fasting? We'll give you that answer straight ahead. 0:28:40.060 --> 0:28:42.900 It might surprise you. It's a binary choice. Hang on. 0:28:43.340 --> 0:28:46.060 You can take them out of Alaska, but you can't 0:28:46.100 --> 0:28:49.980 take Alaska out of him. Carl is in the crew. 0:28:50.180 --> 0:28:52.780 It's Carl and crew on Moody Radio. 0:28:52.820 --> 0:28:55.300 All right, little fill in the blank action here, man. 0:28:56.460 --> 0:28:59.540 Those of you going back to school, fill in the blank. Oh, no. 0:28:59.580 --> 0:29:01.220 Do they have any options for me here? 0:29:01.540 --> 0:29:02.420 Multiple choice. 0:29:02.420 --> 0:29:05.340 Please give me those four that I can choose from. 0:29:05.340 --> 0:29:08.980 I can usually eliminate the knucklehead one. And then you 0:29:08.980 --> 0:29:12.660 really decide between like two and a half. It's like, oh, boy. 0:29:12.740 --> 0:29:16.060 Show your work problems. We're the worst. Like, you know, 0:29:16.100 --> 0:29:18.940 on a math. On a math test, you'd be like, oh, good. 0:29:18.940 --> 0:29:20.739 There's some multiple choice here. And then he'd look right 0:29:20.740 --> 0:29:22.300 below it and it's like, well, check that box, but 0:29:22.300 --> 0:29:24.260 then show your work as to how you got that answer. 0:29:24.300 --> 0:29:24.940 And I was like, oh. 0:29:25.300 --> 0:29:27.340 You're looking for me to fail, aren't you, teacher? 0:29:27.540 --> 0:29:30.860 Algebra. And me praying. Praying for the rapture before I 0:29:30.860 --> 0:29:31.620 was saved. 0:29:31.780 --> 0:29:32.460 Exactly. 0:29:32.660 --> 0:29:37.500 Oh, boy. Ally was algebra. Woman. I remember. 0:29:37.500 --> 0:29:38.020 Things. 0:29:38.260 --> 0:29:39.180 Yeah, you loved it. 0:29:39.220 --> 0:29:41.820 Trigonometry? Not so much, but algebra I liked. 0:29:41.860 --> 0:29:44.980 I'll take Trig and Geo any day over algebra. 0:29:45.060 --> 0:29:45.540 Algebra. 0:29:45.540 --> 0:29:46.460 Trigonometry. 0:29:46.500 --> 0:29:48.660 One whole page of writing only to get. 0:29:51.740 --> 0:29:53.220 Well, wrong. 0:29:53.260 --> 0:29:55.180 Well, where'd that go wrong? I was out of here. 0:29:55.180 --> 0:29:57.380 I got to go to track and field practice. See ya. 0:29:57.820 --> 0:30:01.020 See ya. Prof. I'm gone. Okay. Fill in the blank. 0:30:01.060 --> 0:30:08.060 Is reward a proper motivation for fasting? You know what 0:30:08.060 --> 0:30:10.420 I think most people would say? No. 0:30:11.220 --> 0:30:13.580 I would agree with that sentiment. Most people would say no. 0:30:13.690 --> 0:30:16.090 Most followers of Christ would say no. 0:30:16.090 --> 0:30:16.810 No, no. 0:30:17.290 --> 0:30:20.850 You shouldn't fast to try to get rewarded. Get rewarded. 0:30:21.250 --> 0:30:27.010 AU contraire Pierre, pure. Pop it off wrongly again. And 0:30:27.010 --> 0:30:29.530 when you fast, Jesus says in the sermon on the Mount, 0:30:29.530 --> 0:30:32.210 do not look gloomy like the hypocrites, for they disfigure 0:30:32.210 --> 0:30:35.410 their faces that their fasting may be seen by others. Truly, 0:30:35.410 --> 0:30:40.170 I say to you, they have received their reward. Whoa! 0:30:41.210 --> 0:30:43.970 So it's a shallow reward. You got people that could 0:30:43.970 --> 0:30:47.130 care less about you going, huh? He's fasting. But that's 0:30:47.130 --> 0:30:52.170 your reward. But when you fast, anoint your head and 0:30:52.170 --> 0:30:54.650 wash your face. That your fasting may not be seen 0:30:54.650 --> 0:30:57.410 by others, but by your father who is in secret. 0:30:57.410 --> 0:31:00.890 And your father who sees in secret will reward you. 0:31:01.290 --> 0:31:06.050 Oh my goodness. How do we miss that in that passage? 0:31:06.050 --> 0:31:08.130 Right right there. How do we miss that, Ali? 0:31:08.330 --> 0:31:11.610 Well, when we think about fasting, we think about the 0:31:11.800 --> 0:31:16.600 discipline that's required, the withholding of food or the abstaining 0:31:16.600 --> 0:31:19.760 from food. I mean, it's it's difficult. And I think 0:31:19.800 --> 0:31:23.160 the difficulty of it keeps us in this mindset of, okay, 0:31:23.600 --> 0:31:26.120 just got to get through this. I want to discipline 0:31:26.160 --> 0:31:29.880 myself to fast, but I think we miss the reward. 0:31:30.280 --> 0:31:34.120 Why is the notion of God's reward being a proper 0:31:34.120 --> 0:31:37.800 motivation for fasting? Why do we resist that? 0:31:38.600 --> 0:31:43.080 I think because when in this passage I think we, we, 0:31:43.560 --> 0:31:45.560 we take one part of it and we don't listen 0:31:45.560 --> 0:31:47.040 to the rest of it, which is. 0:31:47.080 --> 0:31:47.200 Yeah. 0:31:47.240 --> 0:31:48.280 I wonder if that's true. 0:31:48.320 --> 0:31:50.360 Jesus talking about the Pharisees. And he goes, you know, 0:31:50.360 --> 0:31:53.080 they're looking to be seen. You know, they get their reward. 0:31:53.080 --> 0:31:55.280 You do this in secret. And so we kind of 0:31:55.320 --> 0:31:57.760 think about the humility it takes to do it in secret. 0:31:57.760 --> 0:32:00.360 And so and when we think about getting a reward, 0:32:00.360 --> 0:32:02.840 we think about it in the, in the human sinful 0:32:02.880 --> 0:32:06.320 terms of doing it with pride. But we're not fasting 0:32:06.320 --> 0:32:09.120 with pride. We're fasting in secret with our father, and 0:32:09.120 --> 0:32:12.470 he rewards us, and it's a good reward. He tells 0:32:12.470 --> 0:32:14.710 us about the reward because he wants us to know 0:32:14.710 --> 0:32:16.190 about it and want to have it. 0:32:16.230 --> 0:32:18.230 I mean, we got to take this at face value. 0:32:19.710 --> 0:32:23.110 It's a binary choice. That's what Jesus says. You can 0:32:23.110 --> 0:32:25.910 either get rewards from people that it really doesn't matter, 0:32:25.910 --> 0:32:27.430 because all you're going to get is a little bit 0:32:27.430 --> 0:32:30.030 of hand clapping, but they really don't care about you anyway. 0:32:30.350 --> 0:32:33.030 And they're kind of mocking you for doing it publicly. Yeah. 0:32:33.190 --> 0:32:36.830 Or you can get reward from your father who sees 0:32:36.830 --> 0:32:40.710 what's done in secret. But reward is there is reward 0:32:40.750 --> 0:32:46.510 a proper motivation for fasting. And the conclusive answer is yes. 0:32:46.510 --> 0:32:49.430 Now what those rewards look like, Ali? We don't know. 0:32:49.470 --> 0:32:51.870 We don't know. And you have to think it's not 0:32:51.870 --> 0:32:55.470 a gold star. It's not a trophy. It's likely the secret, 0:32:55.470 --> 0:32:59.510 hidden things of the father that are worth fasting for. 0:32:59.790 --> 0:33:09.390 Like peace, joy, comfort, direction. Hearing his voice go after 0:33:09.390 --> 0:33:09.950 the reward.