WEBVTT - Enough Already! (Lisa Harper) 0:00:05.040 --> 0:00:06.280 Hey, this is Stephen Ferdick. 0:00:06.280 --> 0:00:09.360 I'm the pastor of Elevation Church, and this is our podcast. 0:00:09.520 --> 0:00:10.000 Be sure to. 0:00:09.960 --> 0:00:13.720 Subscribe so we can get you these new sermons every week. 0:00:13.880 --> 0:00:20.480 I hope you're blessed today. 0:00:20.640 --> 0:00:25.200 I don't know how. Honestly, I'm flamox myself as to 0:00:25.280 --> 0:00:29.880 how I slid in to the dms of Elevation. I 0:00:30.040 --> 0:00:32.800 don't know how. I'm shocked. I told Holly in the 0:00:32.880 --> 0:00:35.840 very beginning. I thought she got me confused with either 0:00:35.960 --> 0:00:39.600 Lisa Turkerst, who sells a lot of books, or Lisa Vivier, 0:00:39.720 --> 0:00:43.279 who preaches in leather pants. And I thought, I know, 0:00:43.600 --> 0:00:46.200 but I can't, or it sounds like Duxter being killed. 0:00:46.200 --> 0:00:49.120 There's a lot of squeaking if I've preached in leather 0:00:49.280 --> 0:00:52.280 and so I really don't know how, other than. 0:00:52.280 --> 0:00:55.000 Pure grace, that I get to be here. 0:00:55.040 --> 0:00:59.120 But I am absolutely delighted I do. There's not too 0:00:59.160 --> 0:01:04.480 many people respect more than Pastor Holly and Pastor Steven. 0:01:05.480 --> 0:01:09.640 I love Wade and Amy, Chris, Colleen Tunis. 0:01:09.640 --> 0:01:11.600 There's just so many people at. 0:01:11.440 --> 0:01:14.720 Elevation who have taught me, who have modeled for me 0:01:15.720 --> 0:01:17.959 what running hard towards Jesus looks like what it looks 0:01:18.000 --> 0:01:21.399 like to be enveloped in a family of faith. And 0:01:21.560 --> 0:01:25.040 so before we dive into God's word, let me get 0:01:25.080 --> 0:01:27.119 you to reach out and touch that saint next to you. 0:01:27.160 --> 0:01:28.880 This is not rhetorical. Go ahead and touch them. 0:01:28.920 --> 0:01:33.920 Don't grope them, just touch them. Gentlemen, I know this 0:01:33.959 --> 0:01:36.640 is real girly, so y'all don't have to interlock fingers. 0:01:36.680 --> 0:01:43.000 You can just awkwardly pinky grip at this point. Those 0:01:43.040 --> 0:01:44.639 of you joining us. 0:01:44.520 --> 0:01:49.800 Online, Epham, you don't have to touch anybody. Hope you're 0:01:49.840 --> 0:01:52.200 in comfy pants, you can just undo the top button 0:01:52.880 --> 0:01:57.440 because this is a safe place to lean into Jesus, 0:01:57.440 --> 0:01:59.440 we want you to be comfortable. Would you pray for 0:01:59.520 --> 0:02:03.720 those on either side of you. If you're watching by yourself, 0:02:03.760 --> 0:02:07.040 pray for yourself and pray then in these next few minutes, 0:02:07.080 --> 0:02:09.720 as we dive into this love letter called the Bible, 0:02:09.840 --> 0:02:14.000 that God will give us eyes to see, bigger, ears 0:02:14.040 --> 0:02:17.720 that hear louder, and hearts that are pliant enough to 0:02:17.760 --> 0:02:21.320 actually receive the glorious good news that. 0:02:21.200 --> 0:02:26.600 We have a perfect God who loves us unconditionally. 0:02:26.639 --> 0:02:31.840 We're the prize, y'all, We're the prize. Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, 0:02:31.880 --> 0:02:34.240 thank you for this time and the space that we 0:02:34.320 --> 0:02:36.480 get to come together and focus our attention and our 0:02:36.480 --> 0:02:37.359 affection on You. 0:02:38.840 --> 0:02:39.080 Lord. 0:02:39.120 --> 0:02:41.240 We confess that most of us come with a lot 0:02:41.280 --> 0:02:46.040 of distraction. It takes me more more than four or 0:02:46.040 --> 0:02:49.000 five songs to actually get my heart into place to 0:02:49.120 --> 0:02:52.160 receive from you, and I wish worship had been an. 0:02:52.080 --> 0:02:52.960 Hour this morning. 0:02:54.200 --> 0:02:56.520 Thank you, thank you, thank you for that promise that 0:02:56.600 --> 0:02:58.560 when we seek you with all our hearts, you will 0:02:58.560 --> 0:03:01.280 be found by us. But Jesus, I praise you even 0:03:01.320 --> 0:03:04.120 more so for that promise in Isaiah the beginning of. 0:03:04.120 --> 0:03:06.200 The book, where you say, so great is. 0:03:06.120 --> 0:03:09.280 Your love for us that you even reveal yourself to 0:03:09.320 --> 0:03:13.480 people who aren't looking for you. Yet, we're undone this morning, 0:03:13.520 --> 0:03:17.600 by your kindness, God, just undone, we confess as your 0:03:17.600 --> 0:03:20.200 sons and daughters. We can't even understand scripture apart from 0:03:20.240 --> 0:03:24.880 Holy Spirit. So Holy Spirit, just have your way in 0:03:24.919 --> 0:03:28.400 this place, and our hearts and our minds just plow 0:03:28.520 --> 0:03:34.560 up ground that's hard or numb or disappointed. Open our eyes, 0:03:35.400 --> 0:03:38.680 lift our view beyond our circumstances, so that we can 0:03:38.720 --> 0:03:43.240 remember this miraculous love story you wrote us into. We 0:03:43.280 --> 0:03:46.440 love you, Jesus, we need you, Jesus. We pray all 0:03:46.480 --> 0:03:50.120 these things and your perfect and holy name, Lord Jesus. 0:03:50.240 --> 0:03:53.360 Men and amen. Speaking of. 0:03:56.960 --> 0:04:04.880 Speaking of sliding into elevations DMS, this is called body glide. 0:04:06.240 --> 0:04:11.280 It's a it's a stick, it's an anti chafing bomb. 0:04:11.400 --> 0:04:14.880 It's all all about getting yourself slippery. And I just 0:04:14.960 --> 0:04:20.080 wanted to start with TMI because I had to wear this. 0:04:20.560 --> 0:04:25.000 The last time I was in an athletic competition, I 0:04:25.640 --> 0:04:29.800 got talked into running a tin k. And even though 0:04:29.839 --> 0:04:33.279 I'm wearing spanks this morning, it's probably very apparent that 0:04:33.320 --> 0:04:36.640 I'm not gifted at long distance running. But a friend 0:04:36.640 --> 0:04:38.840 of mine talked me into it because she said, lisaid, 0:04:38.839 --> 0:04:40.119 they have this amazing swag. 0:04:40.160 --> 0:04:41.640 They have really cute T shirts. 0:04:42.240 --> 0:04:46.680 This was in Colorado, and I thought, Okay, I'll line 0:04:46.760 --> 0:04:48.840 up with all these paleo people and I'll run this 0:04:49.000 --> 0:04:49.640 ten k. 0:04:49.800 --> 0:04:51.640 Because the T shirts are really cute. 0:04:51.680 --> 0:04:54.000 And so before the race, she whipped out one of 0:04:54.000 --> 0:04:56.960 these body glide slides, and she said, I don't want 0:04:56.960 --> 0:04:59.000 to hurt your feelings, but you know you have such 0:05:00.040 --> 0:05:04.599 it's gifted legs that I think that it might help 0:05:04.640 --> 0:05:07.400 you to rub this on your inner thighs. She did 0:05:07.440 --> 0:05:10.000 not say or else she will be arrested for arson, 0:05:10.040 --> 0:05:14.120 but that was the implication, And so I slathered myself 0:05:14.200 --> 0:05:17.159 up with body glide. Gentleman is like, what in the 0:05:17.480 --> 0:05:19.760 sam hill? We're getting to the Bible. We're gonna get 0:05:19.760 --> 0:05:23.200 there in just a second. So I'm all slathered up 0:05:23.240 --> 0:05:25.360 with bodyglides so I won't start a forest fire. And 0:05:25.440 --> 0:05:28.279 the starter's pistol goes off to start this race, and 0:05:28.360 --> 0:05:30.560 I have Kodak courage, so I am up with the 0:05:30.600 --> 0:05:33.480 elite eight like the first two hundred yards of the 0:05:33.560 --> 0:05:36.960 race because everybody's cheering. But then it turns up hill 0:05:37.160 --> 0:05:40.839 and we start running up those gorgeous, rocky mountains that 0:05:40.880 --> 0:05:43.680 were always meant to be skied down, not run up. 0:05:44.279 --> 0:05:46.400 I start running up those mountains and I thought, this 0:05:46.440 --> 0:05:49.160 is horrible. Who would do this as a hobby? 0:05:49.320 --> 0:05:51.280 Who would I mean, I can understand if you were 0:05:51.279 --> 0:05:54.839 being disciplined or this was some kind of parole thing, 0:05:54.920 --> 0:05:57.200 but people do this on purpose. 0:05:57.800 --> 0:06:00.200 And so about halfway through the race, I was like, 0:06:00.440 --> 0:06:02.800 I can't do this. I cannot do this anymore. This 0:06:02.880 --> 0:06:04.039 friction is too much. 0:06:04.360 --> 0:06:09.240 I have what they call hotspots for runners, and so 0:06:09.360 --> 0:06:11.000 I thought, I'm an old athlete. 0:06:11.000 --> 0:06:11.839 I played volleyball and. 0:06:11.839 --> 0:06:14.039 Tennis in college, and I thought, I just can't bring 0:06:14.080 --> 0:06:14.920 myself to quit. 0:06:15.040 --> 0:06:17.800 That just seems sissy ish, and I can't do that. 0:06:18.120 --> 0:06:20.600 But maybe I could find a hole, and I could 0:06:20.600 --> 0:06:22.680 step in a hole and break my ankle, and then 0:06:22.760 --> 0:06:27.599 I could step off this course with some measure of 0:06:27.720 --> 0:06:31.120 dignity left. And so I'm searching for a hole on 0:06:31.160 --> 0:06:33.599 the race course, and all of a sudden, I hear 0:06:33.640 --> 0:06:38.360 this really loud swishing sound behind me, and so I 0:06:38.400 --> 0:06:42.960 look over my shoulder and y'all, there's a six foot bacon, 0:06:43.080 --> 0:06:46.960 lettuce and tomato sandwich beside me. You know how some 0:06:47.000 --> 0:06:50.359 people have so much energy when they run races that 0:06:50.440 --> 0:06:54.159 they actually wear costumes, which I'm like, really, I'm like 0:06:54.240 --> 0:06:58.240 about to crawl and cry and knock somebody over the 0:06:58.240 --> 0:07:00.720 head who has a donut who's watching, so I can 0:07:00.839 --> 0:07:04.200 take their carb, But instead these people have enough energy 0:07:04.560 --> 0:07:08.640 to have a costume. The first guy had this massive 0:07:08.720 --> 0:07:10.800 foam cut out that was like wonderbread. 0:07:10.920 --> 0:07:13.560 Just his face is poking through run and cheese. 0:07:13.600 --> 0:07:16.440 Just his face behind him is like this green tart 0:07:16.520 --> 0:07:19.480 piece of lettuce. It was very lifelike. I want to 0:07:19.480 --> 0:07:23.800 eat it badly. And then he's rope to a middle runner. 0:07:23.840 --> 0:07:26.480 The middle runner, just his little face is poking out 0:07:26.560 --> 0:07:31.800 from a piece of lifelike American cheese. And then attached 0:07:31.800 --> 0:07:35.360 to that is three pieces of very wiggly bacon. I 0:07:35.400 --> 0:07:37.240 don't know what they made that out of. Then there's 0:07:37.240 --> 0:07:42.040 two other ropes pulling up the caboose. He's another giant 0:07:42.120 --> 0:07:45.920 piece of wonderbread. And then he's slathered with all kinds 0:07:45.920 --> 0:07:49.000 of condiments and a life size tomato, well more than 0:07:49.040 --> 0:07:49.960 life sized tomato. 0:07:50.320 --> 0:07:54.200 And I mean it was really incredible, so creative, this giant. 0:07:53.840 --> 0:07:57.680 Six foot blt and it was passing me. 0:07:59.800 --> 0:08:04.600 And that is a lot of wind resistance. And so 0:08:04.800 --> 0:08:05.440 that was. 0:08:05.400 --> 0:08:09.560 The lowest point of my competition. I decided, never ever 0:08:09.960 --> 0:08:12.880 again would I compete in anything where I had to 0:08:13.360 --> 0:08:18.000 wear bodyglide. So I no longer compete in ten ks. 0:08:18.080 --> 0:08:22.240 I don't rollerblade, I don't go to Myrtle Beach because 0:08:24.800 --> 0:08:28.200 because of that particular vacation mecca, there's a lot of 0:08:28.200 --> 0:08:31.000 people there who need bodyglide. 0:08:31.120 --> 0:08:33.360 It's pull a. 0:08:33.320 --> 0:08:35.880 Lot of rubbing going on up at Myrtle Beach. And 0:08:37.559 --> 0:08:40.440 I haven't offended you, Myrtle Beachers, but I was there 0:08:40.480 --> 0:08:44.640 recently and I just mentally I couldn't handle that corporate 0:08:44.760 --> 0:08:48.720 need for something to stop the chafing. 0:08:49.520 --> 0:08:52.800 Now. I don't know if running. 0:08:52.559 --> 0:08:55.960 Is your nemesis or if chafing is real for you, 0:08:56.960 --> 0:09:00.200 but I do know all of us can identify with 0:09:00.320 --> 0:09:04.560 feeling like we're not quite good enough for whatever activity 0:09:04.600 --> 0:09:09.040 we've stepped into, that we don't quite meet the minimum 0:09:09.200 --> 0:09:14.560 requirement for some club, some community that we'd hoped to 0:09:14.640 --> 0:09:20.880 belong to. Feeling like we're not quite good enough. That's 0:09:21.000 --> 0:09:22.959 not just an athletic competition thing. 0:09:23.040 --> 0:09:24.880 That's a human thing. 0:09:25.600 --> 0:09:28.480 Part of the human condition is to feel like we 0:09:29.200 --> 0:09:35.240 were just a little bit less than acceptable. Maybe it's 0:09:35.280 --> 0:09:37.440 that your mother in law always treated you like her 0:09:37.480 --> 0:09:40.880 boy could have done better. Or maybe you're the only 0:09:40.920 --> 0:09:43.839 one who doesn't know how to pronounce sobaccac in your 0:09:43.880 --> 0:09:48.000 e fam, Or maybe it's that you're in a double 0:09:48.040 --> 0:09:50.240 Spans kind of season and you hang out with a 0:09:50.240 --> 0:09:53.920 lot of quto girls. I don't know what it is, 0:09:54.000 --> 0:09:57.880 but there's just something about the human experience that presses 0:09:58.000 --> 0:10:00.920 on the bruise in our human psyche and causes us 0:10:00.960 --> 0:10:04.720 at some level to doubt, am I actually good enough 0:10:05.000 --> 0:10:05.280 for that? 0:10:06.480 --> 0:10:08.800 And the real the real danger is. 0:10:08.800 --> 0:10:12.559 When we superimpose that wondering if we're good enough onto 0:10:12.600 --> 0:10:18.000 the character of our creator, redeemer. It's the human experience 0:10:18.640 --> 0:10:21.080 to think we don't quite measure up. It is actually 0:10:21.200 --> 0:10:26.600 not biblically defensible. It's not in this divine love story 0:10:26.600 --> 0:10:28.559 we call a Bible. If you brought yours, turn to 0:10:28.640 --> 0:10:32.400 Genesis forty eight and I'll prove it. Genesis forty eight. 0:10:32.520 --> 0:10:34.720 It's about a quarter of an inch from the beginning. 0:10:34.800 --> 0:10:36.960 Unless you have a Schofield Bible. We'll have it up 0:10:37.000 --> 0:10:40.520 on the screens. Genesis forty eight, verse eight. And this 0:10:40.640 --> 0:10:43.439 is a long one, so don't play angry birds yet. 0:10:43.480 --> 0:10:44.600 I'll read fast. 0:10:45.000 --> 0:10:48.600 When Israel saw Joseph's sons, he said. 0:10:48.360 --> 0:10:49.400 Who are these? 0:10:49.679 --> 0:10:52.120 And let me qualify this just a minute, because when 0:10:52.120 --> 0:10:55.760 you hear the word Israel, we forget that Israel is 0:10:56.000 --> 0:11:00.120 synonymous for Jacob. So this is one of the patriarchs 0:11:00.120 --> 0:11:02.760 in in scripture, Jacob. So when I read Israel, I 0:11:02.840 --> 0:11:05.200 might just start changing it. I love you, I might 0:11:05.280 --> 0:11:11.520 just start changing it to Jacob because same name and Joseph. 0:11:11.679 --> 0:11:14.520 You all remember who Joseph is. Young, talkback, I'm not 0:11:14.559 --> 0:11:18.320 your pastor. He's the guy who got this really cool 0:11:18.320 --> 0:11:20.240 colored coat from H and M and his brothers got 0:11:20.240 --> 0:11:21.400 all jealous and through him in a hole. 0:11:21.440 --> 0:11:21.880 Remember that. 0:11:22.679 --> 0:11:25.080 And then they dragged him off as a slave. He 0:11:25.160 --> 0:11:28.559 was in Egypt, and then Pharaoh's wife was a total 0:11:28.600 --> 0:11:34.320 Houchi mama, and she accused him of sexual misconduct and 0:11:34.360 --> 0:11:35.960 he didn't do it, but he got thrown in jail away. 0:11:36.000 --> 0:11:38.120 Y'all remember this guy, and then he ends up being 0:11:38.160 --> 0:11:40.920 this great leader and God uses him to actually help 0:11:40.960 --> 0:11:42.360 his people not die of starvation. 0:11:42.440 --> 0:11:44.040 Jaron Famine. Are you with me on the story? 0:11:44.240 --> 0:11:47.760 Okay, so we're the part where he's done all that. 0:11:48.840 --> 0:11:51.320 He's a grown man, he has children of his own, 0:11:51.559 --> 0:11:54.920 and he goes back to Jacob the patriarch with two 0:11:54.960 --> 0:11:58.360 little boys, his two little boys, Ephraim and Manassa, who 0:11:58.400 --> 0:12:03.480 were born in each not in Israel. And so his dad, Jacob, 0:12:03.520 --> 0:12:07.080 the granddaddy of these little boys, Joe says to him, 0:12:07.160 --> 0:12:09.600 these are my sons whom God has given me here, 0:12:09.640 --> 0:12:11.400 and he said, bring them to me, please, that I 0:12:11.440 --> 0:12:14.480 may bless them. Now the eyes of Jacob were dim 0:12:14.520 --> 0:12:17.199 with age so that he could not see, so he 0:12:17.240 --> 0:12:22.000 had cataracts. And Jacob so Joe brought them near him 0:12:22.000 --> 0:12:24.800 and he kissed them and embraced them. And Jacob said 0:12:24.800 --> 0:12:27.040 to Joe, I never expect to see your face, because 0:12:27.040 --> 0:12:29.440 remember they've been separated since his hay for brothers Thum 0:12:29.480 --> 0:12:31.959 and the Pitmoll. He says, I never expected to see 0:12:32.000 --> 0:12:34.680 your face. I never expected this reconciliation and never expected 0:12:34.679 --> 0:12:35.440 you to come back to me. 0:12:35.480 --> 0:12:36.400 But God has let. 0:12:36.280 --> 0:12:40.920 Me see your offspring also. Then Joseph removed them from 0:12:40.920 --> 0:12:43.240 his knees and he bowed himself with his face to 0:12:43.320 --> 0:12:47.120 the earth. He's so delighted to bring his boys to 0:12:47.200 --> 0:12:51.040 his father. And Joe took them both Ephraim and his 0:12:51.200 --> 0:12:53.720 right hand toward Israel's left hand, a Manassa in his 0:12:53.840 --> 0:12:55.840 left hand toward Israel's right. 0:12:55.640 --> 0:12:57.800 Hand, and brought them near him. 0:12:57.840 --> 0:12:59.800 And Jacob stretched out his right hand and laid it 0:12:59.800 --> 0:13:02.840 on the head of Ephraim, who was the younger, and 0:13:02.920 --> 0:13:06.920 his left hand on the head of Manassa, crossing his hands. 0:13:06.960 --> 0:13:08.440 If you've got a brick and mortar Bible and your 0:13:08.440 --> 0:13:12.880 comfortable writing in it, underscore that hugely significant even for us. 0:13:12.760 --> 0:13:14.040 As modern day christ followers. 0:13:14.040 --> 0:13:16.679 We'll get there in just a second, crossing his hands, 0:13:16.960 --> 0:13:20.840 for Manassa was the firstborn, and he blessed Joe and said, 0:13:20.840 --> 0:13:23.600 the God before whom my father's Abraham and Isaac walked 0:13:23.600 --> 0:13:26.160 to God who has been my shepherd all my life 0:13:26.160 --> 0:13:28.120 long to this day, the Angel who has redeemed me 0:13:28.160 --> 0:13:32.080 from all evil, bless these boys, and in them, let 0:13:32.080 --> 0:13:33.680 my name be carried on in the name of my 0:13:33.760 --> 0:13:37.560 father's Abe and Isaac can let them grow into a multitude. 0:13:37.559 --> 0:13:38.199 In the midst of. 0:13:38.200 --> 0:13:40.719 Years, when Joe saw that his dad laid his right 0:13:40.760 --> 0:13:43.680 hand on the head of Ephraim, it displeased him, and 0:13:43.760 --> 0:13:45.959 he took his father's hand to move it from Ephraim's 0:13:46.000 --> 0:13:48.680 head to Manassa's head. And Joe said to his daddy, 0:13:48.760 --> 0:13:51.000 not this way, Dad, since this one is the firstborn, 0:13:51.000 --> 0:13:54.040 and put your right hand on his head. But his 0:13:54.120 --> 0:13:58.640 father refused and said, I know, my son, I know, 0:13:59.000 --> 0:14:02.000 I might have cataract, but I'm not stupid. That's not 0:14:02.280 --> 0:14:07.280 literal Hebrew, it's more message point two. Nevertheless, his younger 0:14:07.320 --> 0:14:09.440 brother shall be greater than he, and his offspring shall 0:14:09.440 --> 0:14:13.680 become a multitude of nations. So Jacob bless them that day, 0:14:13.800 --> 0:14:17.280 saying bless you. Israel will pronounce blessing, saying God make 0:14:17.360 --> 0:14:20.880 you as Ephraim and Asmanassa does he put Ephraim before Manassa. 0:14:20.960 --> 0:14:23.800 Then Israel said to Joe, behold, I'm about to die, 0:14:23.840 --> 0:14:25.440 but God will be with you, and we'll bring you 0:14:25.440 --> 0:14:27.720 again to the land of your fathers. Moreover, I've given 0:14:27.760 --> 0:14:30.080 to you rather than to your brother's one mountain slope 0:14:30.200 --> 0:14:32.000 that I took from the hand of the Amorites with 0:14:32.040 --> 0:14:34.840 my sword and with my bow. So what does that 0:14:34.960 --> 0:14:38.680 Old Testament history mean to us today? Why is it 0:14:38.720 --> 0:14:41.720 significant for us, especially for those of us who wonder, 0:14:42.080 --> 0:14:44.520 how in the world could a perfect God like that 0:14:45.520 --> 0:14:48.680 fully except fully love. 0:14:48.760 --> 0:14:51.160 A damaged woman, a damaged man like me. 0:14:51.800 --> 0:14:54.600 First of all, in this ancient culture, they practice the 0:14:54.680 --> 0:14:58.720 law of primogeniture, and that just means the firstborn got everything. 0:14:59.280 --> 0:15:04.440 Firstborn un goot everything. The law of inheritance was the 0:15:04.480 --> 0:15:05.960 firstborn son was it? 0:15:06.280 --> 0:15:08.840 Second? Really was just a spare? First is the heir 0:15:09.000 --> 0:15:09.800 second as a spare. 0:15:10.640 --> 0:15:14.360 And so what would happen is the patriarch of any 0:15:14.400 --> 0:15:20.440 family community would bless the firstborn with this right hand, 0:15:20.960 --> 0:15:24.040 because in submitted culture, the right hand is the blessed hand. 0:15:24.040 --> 0:15:26.160 The right right hand is the holy hand. The right 0:15:26.200 --> 0:15:29.040 hand is the hand that you want to bless with. 0:15:29.160 --> 0:15:32.440 Left hand is considered subservient. I was just in Israel 0:15:32.640 --> 0:15:35.680 again in marsh and none of my Jewish friends will 0:15:35.680 --> 0:15:39.440 greet me with their left hand. That's considered disrespectful. The 0:15:39.560 --> 0:15:42.560 right hand is the hand of blessing. That's why you 0:15:42.560 --> 0:15:44.840 will never read in scripture that Jesus sat at the 0:15:44.920 --> 0:15:46.000 left hand of God, the Father. 0:15:46.080 --> 0:15:47.360 Always the right, always the right. 0:15:48.120 --> 0:15:52.200 So when when Joe multicolored coat guy brings his two 0:15:52.240 --> 0:15:55.760 little boys to their granddaddy and he says, I want 0:15:55.760 --> 0:16:01.440 you to bless them, dad, and then Jacob crosses his arms, y'all, 0:16:01.520 --> 0:16:04.880 this is the only time that happens in all of scripture. 0:16:04.920 --> 0:16:08.120 That's called a hay pax legomanon. Isn't that cool? Share 0:16:08.160 --> 0:16:09.080 that with your efamgroup. 0:16:09.120 --> 0:16:11.120 If they're thinking you're sliding, just go well, I was 0:16:11.160 --> 0:16:14.680 reading a hay packs legomanon. It's a fancy word that 0:16:15.000 --> 0:16:17.840 means it only happens once in a corpus or in 0:16:17.840 --> 0:16:20.640 a text. You will never read this again in scripture. 0:16:20.680 --> 0:16:23.280 This is the only time, you've got a patriarch crossing 0:16:23.320 --> 0:16:28.360 his arms intentionally to bless the second son instead of 0:16:28.360 --> 0:16:31.240 the first, as was their custom, as was their tradition. 0:16:31.880 --> 0:16:34.240 Joseph is so flustered by it, and he's like, Dad, 0:16:34.720 --> 0:16:35.320 you messed up. 0:16:35.360 --> 0:16:37.480 You bless the wrong kid. And he goes, no, I 0:16:37.520 --> 0:16:39.840 knew exactly what I was doing. 0:16:40.720 --> 0:16:44.320 He says, here's the deal, Joseph, I want both of 0:16:44.520 --> 0:16:51.240 them blessed. What this leads to scholars critical scholars call 0:16:51.360 --> 0:16:56.360 this etology fancy word that means, this is the foundation 0:16:57.080 --> 0:16:59.880 that explains what happens later on. This is the cause 0:17:01.000 --> 0:17:05.920 of something. This explains why Ephraim, who was the second son, 0:17:06.400 --> 0:17:09.560 becomes prominent in Israel's history. 0:17:09.480 --> 0:17:10.760 From then on. 0:17:10.920 --> 0:17:13.640 From Genesis forty eight, when you hear about Manassa, he's 0:17:13.680 --> 0:17:17.000 first born, it says Manassa and Ephraim. You would think 0:17:17.040 --> 0:17:18.840 they were twins by the way you read them in 0:17:18.880 --> 0:17:22.600 biblical narrative. And then Ephraim actually kind of gets bigger 0:17:22.920 --> 0:17:23.800 than Manassa. 0:17:24.359 --> 0:17:25.720 Ephram is the one. 0:17:25.560 --> 0:17:27.919 Where we get a lot of the leaders from in 0:17:28.000 --> 0:17:31.760 the Old Testament. Ephraim is the one when Israel splits 0:17:31.760 --> 0:17:34.280 into two nations. Y'all remember when that happened, because we 0:17:34.280 --> 0:17:36.080 had Solomon third Keen of Israel, and he was a 0:17:36.080 --> 0:17:38.199 player and had way too many wives and concubines, and 0:17:38.200 --> 0:17:39.720 they fought and they couldn't decide for an air. 0:17:39.720 --> 0:17:42.040 Do y'all remember this? And so it was real Jerry Springer. 0:17:42.080 --> 0:17:47.359 And so instead of Israel being one one united nation 0:17:47.840 --> 0:17:51.600 under Yahweh, they split and there was Northern Israel and 0:17:51.640 --> 0:17:54.840 there were Southern Israel. There were twelve tribes, y'all remember 0:17:54.840 --> 0:17:56.280 who the twelve tribes came from? 0:17:56.680 --> 0:17:57.440 Y'a talk back? 0:17:58.560 --> 0:18:04.000 Jacob's Jacob's twelve sons who make up the twelve tribes 0:18:04.080 --> 0:18:06.760 of Israel. Those are the tribes that step over the 0:18:06.840 --> 0:18:09.240 Jordan and they go into Canaan. They're the ones who 0:18:09.280 --> 0:18:11.680 occupy promised land. There are great great great great great 0:18:11.680 --> 0:18:13.040 great great great great great. 0:18:12.800 --> 0:18:15.159 And then some spiritual grandmama's and granddaddies. 0:18:15.840 --> 0:18:20.200 Well, Ephraim and Manassa are sons of Joseph, which means 0:18:20.240 --> 0:18:23.600 technically they aren't one of the twelve tribes. They're half tribe. 0:18:24.160 --> 0:18:27.320 But do you know that after this they're called a tribe. 0:18:27.800 --> 0:18:30.879 Technically they're not a tribe, but they're called a full 0:18:30.960 --> 0:18:35.480 on tribe. And when Israel splits, ten tribes go to 0:18:35.520 --> 0:18:39.160 the north. Two tribes, Judah and Benjamin, go to the south, 0:18:39.200 --> 0:18:42.320 where Jerusalem is. Do you know what they begin calling 0:18:42.520 --> 0:18:48.119 the north Ephraim. The name Ephram becomes a metonym for 0:18:48.400 --> 0:18:52.359 all the Israelites in the North. So he just gets 0:18:52.359 --> 0:18:55.280 bigger and bigger and bigger and bigger and more prominent 0:18:56.200 --> 0:18:57.640 in Israel's history. 0:18:57.880 --> 0:19:01.800 But he's the second son, He's the spare. 0:19:02.600 --> 0:19:06.680 It's so cool, y'all. What this means for us as 0:19:06.760 --> 0:19:10.360 christ followers. It means there's no second best. It means 0:19:10.400 --> 0:19:14.679 there's no jv. It means there's no lesser than. It 0:19:14.760 --> 0:19:16.080 means if you put. 0:19:15.880 --> 0:19:21.040 Your hope in Jesus, we're all favorites, every single one 0:19:21.080 --> 0:19:24.359 of us. He doesn't go, Oh, you know what's it's 0:19:24.359 --> 0:19:25.880 thanksgiving up here in glory. 0:19:25.920 --> 0:19:27.280 You got to sit at the kiddie table. 0:19:27.880 --> 0:19:31.600 Only the mature believers said here that is not biblically defensible. 0:19:31.760 --> 0:19:35.480 He goes, there is now no more hierarchy. You humans 0:19:35.960 --> 0:19:41.800 have hierarchy. You humans elevate certain ethnicities, certain sociodemographic groups, 0:19:42.119 --> 0:19:47.399 certain wayte sizes, certain hair colors. You establish criteria for 0:19:47.560 --> 0:19:52.560 value I don't. If you have put your hope in me, 0:19:53.920 --> 0:19:55.760 you're all favorite sons. 0:19:55.920 --> 0:19:59.600 Paul continues this theme. I just love this theme. He 0:19:59.640 --> 0:20:01.160 can te you use it in Romans eight. 0:20:01.240 --> 0:20:04.919 Romans eight is basically the hub of our theological wheel. 0:20:05.320 --> 0:20:09.280 As believers, you know this Romans eight. Some of y'all 0:20:09.320 --> 0:20:11.239 have instagrammed it, but you might not know it. Know 0:20:11.280 --> 0:20:15.280 it Romans eight, verse fourteen. For all who are led 0:20:15.320 --> 0:20:17.960 by the spirit of God are sons of God. 0:20:18.040 --> 0:20:20.359 That's not a gender exclusive term, by the way. 0:20:20.720 --> 0:20:25.320 Paul goes on to explain later in Galatians three. 0:20:25.600 --> 0:20:27.000 He says, if. 0:20:26.840 --> 0:20:29.439 You are in Christ, there is now no more Greek 0:20:29.680 --> 0:20:34.159 nor Jew, male, nor female, slave nor master. So this 0:20:34.320 --> 0:20:38.560 is actually not a gender exclusive term. It's just in language. 0:20:38.560 --> 0:20:42.040 At this time it was a patriarchal society, so inheritance 0:20:42.160 --> 0:20:43.880 language was masculine. 0:20:43.920 --> 0:20:46.320 But that's not just talking about boys there for all. 0:20:46.640 --> 0:20:49.040 That's the operative word for all who are led by 0:20:49.040 --> 0:20:50.639 the spirit of God or sons of God. For you 0:20:50.640 --> 0:20:52.520 did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back 0:20:52.560 --> 0:20:56.800 into fear, but you receive this received the spirit of adoption. 0:20:56.840 --> 0:20:59.040 As sons by whom we cry. 0:20:58.840 --> 0:21:03.760 Abba, Father, Do you know Jesus is the first one, 0:21:04.480 --> 0:21:06.919 and Luke eleven when he's teaching us how to pray. 0:21:07.119 --> 0:21:11.320 Prior to Jesus, the rabbis had really formal prayers and 0:21:11.359 --> 0:21:13.360 they would approach yahweh God. 0:21:13.240 --> 0:21:14.560 The Father with a title. 0:21:15.800 --> 0:21:18.080 Jesus says, no, you get to approach him as Dad, 0:21:19.200 --> 0:21:22.920 your sons, you're first born. You get to approach him 0:21:23.280 --> 0:21:27.320 has dad aha father Dad. The spirit himself bears witness 0:21:27.359 --> 0:21:30.040 with our spirit that we are children of God. And 0:21:30.200 --> 0:21:35.320 if children, then heirs, heirs of God and fellow heirs. 0:21:35.560 --> 0:21:38.359 Underscore that, y'all fellow heirs. 0:21:38.440 --> 0:21:42.520 Your translation might say co heirs with Christ, provided we 0:21:42.560 --> 0:21:45.520 suffer with Him in order that we may also be 0:21:45.840 --> 0:21:51.240 glorified in him. Colossians one tells us that Jesus is 0:21:51.280 --> 0:21:57.240