Transcript: Episode 0087

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<v SPEAKER_1>Welcome to the Stone Choir Podcast.

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<v SPEAKER_1>I am Corey J.

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<v SPEAKER_1>Mahler.

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<v SPEAKER_2>And I'm still, whoa.

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<v SPEAKER_2>On today's Stone Choir, we're going to continue the two-part series that we began last week on the image of God.

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<v SPEAKER_2>The first episode that we did last week, we were specifically focused on the image of God as it relates to that concept from scripture that applies to every man.

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<v SPEAKER_2>From the moment of conception, every man has the image of God, in the sense that we discussed last week.

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<v SPEAKER_2>Part of the reason we did two episodes, not only because we didn't want to do a four-episode, is that this week we're going to be talking about one where that is not true at all.

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<v SPEAKER_2>The image of God, as we're discussing this week, which is also the same term as used in scripture to talk about two different things, this week we're talking about the image of God as it relates exclusively to the regenerate Christian.

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<v SPEAKER_2>What that means is that anyone who is not a believer does not have the image of God.

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<v SPEAKER_2>And part of the reason we segregated them is that that's completely contradictory to what we said last week, except we're talking about two different things.

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<v SPEAKER_2>Scripture uses the same term, so we're going to use the same term.

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<v SPEAKER_2>So by segregating them, we're just going to say believers have the image of God, unbelievers don't have the image of God.

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<v SPEAKER_2>It's not contradicting last week because we're talking about something else.

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<v SPEAKER_2>It's related, and we'll talk about how it's related, but it's two distinct things.

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<v SPEAKER_2>So I'm giving this caveat up front because we're not going to have a bunch of excuses throughout the episode.

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<v SPEAKER_2>Oh, and by the way, here's the asterisk, and it's not really the blah, blah, blah.

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<v SPEAKER_2>No, unless someone is regenerate, they do not have the image of God.

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<v SPEAKER_2>That's what we're talking about this week.

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<v SPEAKER_2>So definitionally, obviously, it's got to be something fundamentally different.

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<v SPEAKER_2>Another way of talking about it is the sanctified Christian life.

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<v SPEAKER_2>Really what we're talking about is, okay, you're Christian, now what?

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<v SPEAKER_2>That sounds familiar, if you've listened to most of our episodes.

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<v SPEAKER_2>That's kind of the purpose of Stone Choir.

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<v SPEAKER_2>We're not talking about how to be saved.

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<v SPEAKER_2>We are talking about once you are saved, how to be.

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<v SPEAKER_2>Because that's important.

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<v SPEAKER_2>That's in scripture.

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<v SPEAKER_2>That's what God is giving us as believers.

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<v SPEAKER_2>You have been sanctified by God.

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<v SPEAKER_2>You have been redeemed by God.

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<v SPEAKER_2>You've been justified as a believer, given the gift of faith.

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<v SPEAKER_2>Okay, now what?

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<v SPEAKER_2>Are you done?

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<v SPEAKER_2>Is that it?

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<v SPEAKER_2>You've been baptized, and so, okay, just go on, keep doing what you're doing?

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<v SPEAKER_2>No.

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<v SPEAKER_2>And someone who is new to the faith understands that intrinsically.

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<v SPEAKER_2>Like, okay, I'm a Christian, now what?

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<v SPEAKER_2>I know that I was doing things before that I didn't even know were wrong, or I knew and I didn't care, because why should I care?

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<v SPEAKER_2>Sure, I was wrong, but who am I wronging?

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<v SPEAKER_2>You know, if you do something that's bad for you, you're only hurting yourself.

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<v SPEAKER_2>That's the libertarian ethos.

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<v SPEAKER_2>So what's the big deal?

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<v SPEAKER_2>Once you realize that you have a creator and you have an owner, then the things that we do to ourselves that are harmful, those things that are sins, we understand why.

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<v SPEAKER_2>We understand why it was actually damning that we did something even if no one else was involved.

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<v SPEAKER_2>And so the regenerate man who has been justified by faith receives the Holy Spirit, the indwelling of the Holy Spirit.

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<v SPEAKER_2>As we've talked about before, it's not really how Christians speak of it.

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<v SPEAKER_2>When we talk about the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, we don't think of it in terms of demonic possession.

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<v SPEAKER_2>And it's not.

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<v SPEAKER_2>I'm not comparing the two.

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<v SPEAKER_2>But there's a similarity in that when someone is demon possessed, they have to some degree lost control.

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<v SPEAKER_2>They're acting evilly.

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<v SPEAKER_2>Evil is acting through them, and maybe they're not participants at all.

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<v SPEAKER_2>It's an evil, twisted, it's horrifying.

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<v SPEAKER_2>It's the root of horror.

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<v SPEAKER_2>A lot of horror movies use some aspect of that.

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<v SPEAKER_2>The indwelling of the Holy Spirit for a Christian is nothing of the sort.

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<v SPEAKER_2>We do have the Spirit of God, the Holy Ghost, inside of us as believers.

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<v SPEAKER_2>We receive that through baptism.

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<v SPEAKER_2>We receive that through the gift of faith that comes by hearing.

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<v SPEAKER_2>And what do you hear when you're baptized?

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<v SPEAKER_2>You hear the Word of God.

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<v SPEAKER_2>So it's the same picture.

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<v SPEAKER_2>Baptism and hearing the Word of God are the same thing.

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<v SPEAKER_2>That's why baptism has its power.

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<v SPEAKER_2>We did a little episode on that to explain the Lutheran understanding, but it's more broadly the historic Christian understanding of how faith comes about.

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<v SPEAKER_2>When a Christian has the in-dwelling of the Holy Ghost, we're not possessed, we're not being operated remotely by God.

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<v SPEAKER_2>We don't lose control of our faculties or our bodies, but we are enlightened and sanctified by God's Word progressively.

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<v SPEAKER_2>And that's one of the things, it's one of the fights that occurred during the Reformation, is that disagreements about exactly what happened, and when it happened, and how it happened, cause some very different theological conclusions.

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<v SPEAKER_2>And so, a lot of ink was spilled in the Reformation, arguing against some of the papal positions on how we are saved, soteriology, how are we justified before God.

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<v SPEAKER_2>And so, one of the reasons Corey and I have argued about this subject for a couple of years now, before we could even do this episode, because the Lutheran confessions only talk about what we are talking about today.

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<v SPEAKER_2>They only talk about the image of God, which is only present in regenerate man, meaning every unbeliever doesn't have the image of God, not as we are talking about it this week.

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<v SPEAKER_2>And we had to argue privately, because Corey came to the Lutheran understanding of Christianity as an adult.

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<v SPEAKER_2>I was raised Lutheran, so I didn't know the things that he knew when he read the Book of Concord, because I didn't care.

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<v SPEAKER_2>I was raised from a little kid to believe, you know, basically Luther's explanation of the First Commandment.

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<v SPEAKER_2>We should fear, love, and trust in God above all things.

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<v SPEAKER_2>And Scripture is where God reveals the particularity of his plan for the world.

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<v SPEAKER_2>And so, as the cradle Lutheran is the superficial one who didn't read the Confessions, I didn't have to subscribe to anything.

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<v SPEAKER_2>I didn't make some big declaration one day and say, I'm a Lutheran now because I accede to all of this.

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<v SPEAKER_2>It was just given to me.

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<v SPEAKER_2>And so the fact for me that the things that we said last week weren't present in the Book of Concord didn't matter.

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<v SPEAKER_2>Like the Bible says, everyone is made in the image of God, and the Bible says that no one is made in the image of God until they receive it through faith.

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<v SPEAKER_2>And it means two different things.

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<v SPEAKER_2>It's inconvenient that the same term is used, but once you understand that this is all the product of the fall, this is all the fact that Adam had both, there was no confusion in Adam, and there's no confusion in the person of Christ, and those were the only two perfect men who have ever existed.

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<v SPEAKER_2>Everyone else, including Adam himself after the fall, then lost the image of God.

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<v SPEAKER_2>Not the first one, not last week's image, but this week's image was lost through the fall, and then progressively restored through faith.

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<v SPEAKER_2>But the progression of sanctification is never perfected in this life.

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<v SPEAKER_2>So, one of the things that's important, especially for someone who's coming new to the faith, or someone like me who was raised, I've been Christian my whole life, because my parents were Christians, I was raised that way.

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<v SPEAKER_2>So there's never for me a period of time where I wasn't.

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<v SPEAKER_2>And that means that men like me are in a particularly precarious position, because we assume that's just how it is.

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<v SPEAKER_2>And when you assume your faith, when it doesn't mean anything to you other than, well, thanks God, thanks for baptizing me and giving me these gifts, that's great.

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<v SPEAKER_2>Now I'm going to go do a bunch of other stuff.

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<v SPEAKER_2>It's very easy to ignore the sanctification part.

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<v SPEAKER_2>It's very easy to ignore, okay, I'm a Christian, now what?

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<v SPEAKER_2>There are still rules.

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<v SPEAKER_2>And so those of you who are newer to the faith are really blessed in a way that you lived a period of darkness where you know better than I do how bad things can get when you don't have God.

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<v SPEAKER_2>And so you do not take for granted the gift that you've been given.

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<v SPEAKER_2>And having received the gift of faith as a young adult or as an adult, you understand, okay, I'm a Christian, now what really means something?

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<v SPEAKER_2>Because you're believing behind maybe things that I in some cases wouldn't have done, in other cases I did knowingly, which is much worse, I knew things were bad and I did them anyway.

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<v SPEAKER_2>That's a very different kind of wicked than someone who is being wicked when they didn't know any better.

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<v SPEAKER_2>Through the process of sanctification, which involves study of scripture, prayer, fasting, meditation, proper meditation on God's word, not on your navel, we talked about that in the very Eastern Last Orthodox episode, just thinking about what does God want from us?

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<v SPEAKER_2>What does He say in scripture?

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<v SPEAKER_2>What do God's teachers in this life teach?

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<v SPEAKER_2>Are they right?

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<v SPEAKER_2>Are they saying the things that God says?

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<v SPEAKER_2>When God says something in scripture, and then a man comes along and says something else right after him, then we're all put in a precarious position.

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<v SPEAKER_2>We got to pick one.

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<v SPEAKER_2>That shouldn't be the case.

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<v SPEAKER_2>The teachers in the church should be saying what God said right after he said it.

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<v SPEAKER_2>If you ever seen a submarine movie, like Red October or Crimson Tide, that's how orders are given on a naval ship.

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<v SPEAKER_2>The captain gives an order, the first officer repeats it, or the executive officer repeats it, and then it goes on down the rank to whomever needs to actually execute the order.

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<v SPEAKER_2>But one man says it, and the next man repeats it exactly.

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<v SPEAKER_2>There's no argument, there's no debate.

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<v SPEAKER_2>Captain says it, everyone else follows, and they repeat exactly what's said.

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<v SPEAKER_2>Christianity should behave that way.

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<v SPEAKER_2>Scripture should be the captain speaking.

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<v SPEAKER_2>We're talking about God here.

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<v SPEAKER_2>When God speaks, there should be no back talk.

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<v SPEAKER_2>And so, the challenge that we have in the world is that there's confusion about things.

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<v SPEAKER_2>That example falls apart when you're talking about free will, which is part of what this is, because the sanctification of man involves us cooperating with the Holy Ghost to do better, to sin less, to consciously avoid sinning.

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<v SPEAKER_2>When we think about it, it's sinful to want to sin or to contemplate sinning, but then to turn away from it is sanctification.

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<v SPEAKER_2>That is not sin, you flee from it.

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<v SPEAKER_2>Even though your sinful flesh is still drawn towards whatever bad thing gets you, the indwelling of the Holy Spirit means that you can turn from that.

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<v SPEAKER_2>And that is us cooperating with God.

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<v SPEAKER_2>And it does not violate justification to say that, because we're already justified.

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<v SPEAKER_2>We're justified at the cross by Christ's perfect life.

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<v SPEAKER_2>When we stand before the judgment throne, we're not gonna stand there holding all of our good works up to God and say, look at all the good stuff I did.

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<v SPEAKER_2>We are going to be cloaked in Christ's righteousness, his imputed righteousness from his perfect life.

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<v SPEAKER_2>And that is what is credited to us for our salvation.

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<v SPEAKER_2>So it's crucial to be redundant in so many episodes when we talk about these things, because particularly those of the Protestant persuasion really don't understand that you can just set aside this justification stuff and talk about the rest of the Christian life.

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<v SPEAKER_2>You can make clear to someone, I'm not saying you can save yourself, and then have a serious conversation about what the Christian life looks like.

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<v SPEAKER_2>That is what the image of God means today.

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<v SPEAKER_2>What does it mean to conform ourselves to the image of God?

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<v SPEAKER_2>And it's solely by God's grace that we're able to.

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<v SPEAKER_2>There's no power in man to be able to do this.

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<v SPEAKER_2>It is solely the gift of faith that makes any of this possible.

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<v SPEAKER_2>So we're going to have a number of passages in Scripture that we refer to today, and we'll talk about some of the various confessions.

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<v SPEAKER_2>But fundamentally, the image of God as we're speaking about it today is very specifically the reconforming of our fallen sinful nature in the image of God as His gift to us.

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<v SPEAKER_2>With the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, we are able to cooperate with God and to sin less, never stop sinning perfectly.

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<v SPEAKER_2>We cannot become perfect as some other denominations get wrong, and it's a terrible, wicked lie to tell a man he can ever stop sinning completely, because that sets up the situation where, well, maybe I can be so good, I don't need God anymore.

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<v SPEAKER_2>Look how great I am God.

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<v SPEAKER_2>And it's impossible.

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<v SPEAKER_2>You can't do it.

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<v SPEAKER_2>It should be a goal to which we all strive, but we should understand that it's only achievable in death, in our resurrection.

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<v SPEAKER_2>And so we do the best we can in this life.

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<v SPEAKER_2>And that is what this is.

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<v SPEAKER_2>This is best effort until God perfects us in the resurrection.

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<v SPEAKER_2>Before the fall, everything was perfect.

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<v SPEAKER_2>There's after the fall, there's this huge mess that God is piecing back together in time and in creation.

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<v SPEAKER_2>And then on judgment day, everything will be perfected.

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<v SPEAKER_2>We're in the in-between time now.

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<v SPEAKER_2>And so for us, the re-creation of the image of God in the regenerate man, again, it's just the Christian life.

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<v SPEAKER_2>But it's important to focus on it as Scripture does, because once you understand what the image of God means in this sense, you understand how horrific sin is.

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<v SPEAKER_2>When you look at all the various things that are enumerated in Scripture, we all commit sins that we commit in our hearts and with our lips and with our hands, we realize that we're not being conformed to the image of God.

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<v SPEAKER_2>God says, don't do that.

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<v SPEAKER_2>And He does it as chastisement.

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<v SPEAKER_2>And we shouldn't receive it and become dejected.

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<v SPEAKER_2>We should fall on Christ for His mercy and know that we receive it, and then get back up with God's help and do better, not do the thing that we know we shouldn't do.

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<v SPEAKER_2>That's sanctification.

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<v SPEAKER_2>That is the Christian life.

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<v SPEAKER_2>And that is the image of God as it's regenerated in us.

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<v SPEAKER_1>Last week, I mentioned specifically the tripartite division of man, which of course, again, to remind you, is body, mind, and soul.

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<v SPEAKER_1>When we speak of original sin and original righteousness, which will be part of this, and we speak of this restoration in sanctification, we are primarily dealing with the mind and the soul.

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<v SPEAKER_1>The body isn't as directly involved in this, because of course, as we have noted many times before, and as all of you well know, when you convert to Christianity, it doesn't make missing limbs regrow.

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<v SPEAKER_1>The body is not restored to a state of perfection through the process of sanctification.

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<v SPEAKER_1>Yes, God may very well heal some things, and He does do that when He decides to do that, but that is not part of the deal as it were.

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<v SPEAKER_1>The body is not restored.

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<v SPEAKER_1>The consequences, the physical consequences of sin are not undone by justification, by conversion.

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<v SPEAKER_1>And so we are dealing primarily with the mind and the soul.

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<v SPEAKER_1>But to turn briefly to the passage from the Book of Concord as Woe mentioned, the one most salient line is from the Apology, in this case Article 2, which is on original sin.

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<v SPEAKER_1>Because of course, when we're dealing with this image of God in man, and we're dealing with the loss, the corruption of that image, we are dealing with original sin.

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<v SPEAKER_1>And so that line from the Apology is, that soul is not therefore in the image of God in which God is not at all times.

00:15:29.452 --> 00:15:39.152
<v SPEAKER_1>Now, that is a quote from the Book of Concord, from specifically the Apology of the Augsburg Confession, but it's actually a quote from Ambrose.

00:15:39.152 --> 00:15:50.932
<v SPEAKER_1>And for those who don't know, Ambrose is traditionally considered one of the doctors of the Church, and he is one of the men who was partly responsible for the conversion of Augustine to Christianity.

00:15:51.392 --> 00:15:57.412
<v SPEAKER_1>A very important man, a serious, solid theologian in the history of the Church.

00:15:57.412 --> 00:16:00.632
<v SPEAKER_1>That is a quote from his writings.

00:16:00.632 --> 00:16:07.552
<v SPEAKER_1>And this is to contrast what happens to man, what happened to man in the fall.

00:16:07.552 --> 00:16:11.412
<v SPEAKER_1>And that is the loss of the image of God.

00:16:11.412 --> 00:16:18.012
<v SPEAKER_1>Now, of course, we contrasted that last week, as Woe already mentioned, and so we're not dealing with those issues in this episode.

00:16:18.012 --> 00:16:27.912
<v SPEAKER_1>We're dealing, rather, with the consequences of original sin and the undoing of those consequences through the process of sanctification.

00:16:29.612 --> 00:16:47.572
<v SPEAKER_1>To expand on that issue of original sin and how that plays into the image of God in man, there are really two ways in which that plays out with regard to original righteousness and the loss of that in the fall.

00:16:47.572 --> 00:16:54.532
<v SPEAKER_1>Again to read from the Book of Concord, this time from the Formula of Concord, which goes into more detail.

00:16:54.532 --> 00:17:02.172
<v SPEAKER_1>I'm going to start in the middle of this particular section, but I will link it in the show notes so you can read the entire article if you're so inclined.

00:17:02.172 --> 00:17:10.332
<v SPEAKER_1>Secondly, that is an entire want or lack of the concreated hereditary righteousness in paradise or of God's image.

00:17:11.412 --> 00:17:28.072
<v SPEAKER_1>And so, to make sure it's clear what was just said there, God's image, the image of God in man, is concreated hereditary righteousness, which is to say in contrast to original sin, which has corrupted our nature.

00:17:28.072 --> 00:17:35.032
<v SPEAKER_1>And do note carefully, it has corrupted our nature, not replaced, because Satan cannot create.

00:17:35.032 --> 00:17:36.292
<v SPEAKER_1>Satan can corrupt.

00:17:36.432 --> 00:17:42.112
<v SPEAKER_1>And so, the corruption of sin is original sin.

00:17:42.112 --> 00:17:45.892
<v SPEAKER_1>It is not a substance, to use the technical philosophical term.

00:17:45.892 --> 00:17:48.232
<v SPEAKER_1>It is not a thing in itself.

00:17:48.232 --> 00:17:54.452
<v SPEAKER_1>It is rather a corruption of an existing thing, because God created the nature of man.

00:17:54.452 --> 00:17:56.312
<v SPEAKER_1>That is God's good creation.

00:17:56.312 --> 00:18:08.352
<v SPEAKER_1>Insofar as it is still God's good creation, and not corrupted by original sin, that which remains uncorrupted in man, it is still good because it is God's creation.

00:18:08.352 --> 00:18:11.392
<v SPEAKER_1>The corruption is original sin.

00:18:11.392 --> 00:18:24.812
<v SPEAKER_1>But to continue reading the paragraph here, According to which man was originally created in truth, holiness, and righteousness, and at the same time in inability and unfitness for all things of God.

00:18:24.812 --> 00:18:35.832
<v SPEAKER_1>The definition of original sin takes away from the unrenewed nature, the gifts, the power, and all activity for beginning and affecting anything in spiritual things.

00:18:36.932 --> 00:18:44.892
<v SPEAKER_1>And of course, this is simply the standard Christian definition of what it means to be dead in our sins and trespasses.

00:18:46.232 --> 00:18:50.712
<v SPEAKER_1>Scripture does not speak of us as dead lightly or for no reason.

00:18:50.712 --> 00:18:56.832
<v SPEAKER_1>When it says that we are dead in sin and trespass, it means we cannot save ourselves.

00:18:56.832 --> 00:18:59.072
<v SPEAKER_1>We cannot make a decision for God.

00:18:59.072 --> 00:19:00.732
<v SPEAKER_1>We cannot decide to believe.

00:19:01.152 --> 00:19:04.352
<v SPEAKER_1>We cannot decide to turn from our sins and believe.

00:19:04.352 --> 00:19:06.332
<v SPEAKER_1>It is God's work.

00:19:06.332 --> 00:19:09.792
<v SPEAKER_1>Justification is holy God's work.

00:19:09.792 --> 00:19:12.972
<v SPEAKER_1>Sanctification is synergistic.

00:19:12.972 --> 00:19:18.272
<v SPEAKER_1>We cooperate with the Holy Spirit in the process of sanctification.

00:19:18.272 --> 00:19:22.072
<v SPEAKER_1>And that is why it is important to keep those two distinct, to separate them.

00:19:22.072 --> 00:19:23.032
<v SPEAKER_1>They are not the same.

00:19:24.012 --> 00:19:26.432
<v SPEAKER_1>Justification is monergistic.

00:19:26.432 --> 00:19:28.812
<v SPEAKER_1>God alone is the actor.

00:19:28.812 --> 00:19:31.372
<v SPEAKER_1>Sanctification is synergistic.

00:19:31.372 --> 00:19:36.092
<v SPEAKER_1>We cooperate, having been renewed already, in justification.

00:19:37.192 --> 00:19:39.132
<v SPEAKER_1>The next paragraph.

00:19:39.132 --> 00:20:17.912
<v SPEAKER_1>That original sin in human nature is not only this entire absence of all good in spiritual, divine things, but that instead of the lost image of God and man, it is at the same time also a deep, wicked, horrible, fathomless, inscrutable, and unspeakable corruption of the entire nature and all its powers, especially of the highest principal powers of the soul, in the understanding, heart, and will, so that now, since the fall, man inherits an inborn wicked disposition, an inward impurity of heart, evil lust, and propensity.

00:20:19.152 --> 00:20:20.252
<v SPEAKER_1>I'll leave off the reading there.

00:20:20.252 --> 00:20:24.292
<v SPEAKER_1>And again, there will be a link in the show notes for the entire article.

00:20:24.292 --> 00:20:32.972
<v SPEAKER_1>In essence here, the way to think of this is to contrast original sin and original righteousness.

00:20:32.972 --> 00:20:41.032
<v SPEAKER_1>This is particularly with regard to the soul, of course, but it also touches on the mind, because again, the mind sort of straddles the body and the soul.

00:20:41.032 --> 00:20:42.672
<v SPEAKER_1>It's sort of the connection between the two.

00:20:44.872 --> 00:20:52.432
<v SPEAKER_1>The attributes that we have are matters of the mind and the soul, primarily, as we're discussing them in this episode.

00:20:52.432 --> 00:21:00.952
<v SPEAKER_1>And so in original righteousness, we had those perfectly with regard to what God intended for us.

00:21:00.952 --> 00:21:05.952
<v SPEAKER_1>Again, remember what I went over last week with regard to the different kinds of perfection.

00:21:05.952 --> 00:21:10.432
<v SPEAKER_1>We're speaking here, of course, of the relative kind, the perfection with regard to the creature.

00:21:11.872 --> 00:21:16.112
<v SPEAKER_1>And so there is a perfect version of you that exists in the mind of God.

00:21:17.212 --> 00:21:30.852
<v SPEAKER_1>Through the process of sanctification, and through, of course, the ongoing process of heading Godward in eternity, you are becoming the perfect creature God intended you to be, God made you to be.

00:21:30.852 --> 00:21:36.872
<v SPEAKER_1>You are not currently that, because in this life, of course, we exist in a fallen state.

00:21:36.872 --> 00:21:42.992
<v SPEAKER_1>And as well already mentioned, the process of sanctification is not completed in this life.

00:21:42.992 --> 00:21:46.872
<v SPEAKER_1>The process of sanctification is, in fact, a process.

00:21:47.992 --> 00:21:49.952
<v SPEAKER_1>It is an ongoing matter.

00:21:49.952 --> 00:21:51.992
<v SPEAKER_1>You are moving toward God.

00:21:51.992 --> 00:21:57.272
<v SPEAKER_1>You are moving toward what God wanted and wants you to be.

00:21:57.272 --> 00:22:01.432
<v SPEAKER_1>But you will not arrive at that destination in this life.

00:22:02.692 --> 00:22:03.712
<v SPEAKER_1>Yes, you are getting better.

00:22:04.932 --> 00:22:20.652
<v SPEAKER_1>For instance, some besetting sins and things like that should fall away through the process of sanctification when you are spending that time in God's Word, when you are spending that time praying, when you are meditating in the Christian sense on God's Word.

00:22:20.652 --> 00:22:33.652
<v SPEAKER_1>These are things that will help you to overcome sin, will help you to put to death the wickedness of the flesh, those desires to sin, concupiscence, as we already mentioned.

00:22:33.652 --> 00:22:37.232
<v SPEAKER_1>That will not be something that is perfect in this life.

00:22:37.232 --> 00:22:39.732
<v SPEAKER_1>It will not be complete in this life.

00:22:39.732 --> 00:22:47.492
<v SPEAKER_1>And so you will never be sinless as long as you are living on this earth, in this body.

00:22:49.512 --> 00:22:56.952
<v SPEAKER_1>Because that perfection takes place at the resurrection when God completely renews you.

00:22:56.952 --> 00:23:10.032
<v SPEAKER_1>And so one of the reasons that we will condemn in the strongest terms any false theology that teaches that you can attain perfection in this life is that that sets people up for despair.

00:23:10.032 --> 00:23:21.892
<v SPEAKER_1>Because if you are told that you can be perfect in this life, and then you look at the state of your life, which is most certainly not going to be perfect, that is occasion for despair.

00:23:21.892 --> 00:23:25.292
<v SPEAKER_1>Because you will be comparing yourself to an impossible standard.

00:23:25.292 --> 00:23:31.432
<v SPEAKER_1>That's not to say that the standard is not perfection, because of course the standard is perfection.

00:23:31.432 --> 00:23:38.492
<v SPEAKER_1>But it has to be undertaken and understood within the context of it being impossible in this life.

00:23:40.212 --> 00:23:45.052
<v SPEAKER_1>You are a sinner in this life because you are tainted by original sin.

00:23:45.052 --> 00:23:53.032
<v SPEAKER_1>That is not wholly removed with regard to the fallen nature of man in this life.

00:23:54.392 --> 00:24:11.052
<v SPEAKER_1>That is not to say, and I know that some of the Roman Catholic listeners will have perked up at that particular point, because this is a sort of point of debate that the Roman Catholic Church and the Lutheran Church had historically, although we really come to the same conclusion.

00:24:11.052 --> 00:24:13.332
<v SPEAKER_1>And perhaps it's a slightly technical point.

00:24:13.332 --> 00:24:25.752
<v SPEAKER_1>But what I am saying, and what the Lutherans were saying at the time, is not that God does not justify you and restore you in baptism or whenever he gives you faith.

00:24:25.752 --> 00:24:32.212
<v SPEAKER_1>However, that happens, whatever means are used to give you faith, the means of grace.

00:24:32.212 --> 00:24:38.712
<v SPEAKER_1>Rather, it is that the fallen nature of man remains fallen in this life.

00:24:38.712 --> 00:24:45.112
<v SPEAKER_1>Original sin, once you are justified, is not counted against you.

00:24:45.112 --> 00:24:47.472
<v SPEAKER_1>That is the point of justification.

00:24:47.472 --> 00:24:59.172
<v SPEAKER_1>The point of justification is that your sins are not counted against you on account of Christ, on account of his perfect life, suffering, death, resurrection.

00:24:59.172 --> 00:25:00.872
<v SPEAKER_1>Your sins are not counted against you.

00:25:00.872 --> 00:25:04.152
<v SPEAKER_1>You are legally justified in God's court.

00:25:04.152 --> 00:25:08.172
<v SPEAKER_1>You are declared not guilty on account of Christ.

00:25:08.172 --> 00:25:14.972
<v SPEAKER_1>However, in this life, the fallen nature remains, because that is not fully restored.

00:25:14.972 --> 00:25:20.932
<v SPEAKER_1>And so, for instance, with regard to the body, you will still get sick, you will still die.

00:25:20.932 --> 00:25:30.792
<v SPEAKER_1>With regard to the mind, your faculties are impaired, because they are not what God intended them to be, because of the consequences of original sin.

00:25:30.792 --> 00:25:37.712
<v SPEAKER_1>Because again, man is tripartite, and each part is affected by original sin, by the fall.

00:25:37.712 --> 00:25:49.132
<v SPEAKER_1>With regard to the soul, that original righteousness being in the perfect image of God, we no longer have that in our fallen state.

00:25:49.132 --> 00:25:53.332
<v SPEAKER_1>And so that is why we have concupiscence, the desire to sin.

00:25:53.332 --> 00:25:57.632
<v SPEAKER_1>That is with regard, of course, to the soul and the mind as well.

00:25:57.632 --> 00:25:59.412
<v SPEAKER_1>But that remains in this life.

00:25:59.412 --> 00:26:19.932
<v SPEAKER_1>The process of sanctification, again, and this warrants repeating, the process of sanctification will start to put to death the sinfulness that is in your flesh, the concupiscence, that desire to sin, the Holy Spirit will slowly tamp that down and put it to death in you.

00:26:19.932 --> 00:26:28.212
<v SPEAKER_1>That is what it means to live the Christian life, in this particular area we're discussing today.

00:26:28.212 --> 00:26:34.672
<v SPEAKER_1>That is what it means to be sanctified, to cooperate with the Holy Spirit in his work.

00:26:36.512 --> 00:26:40.452
<v SPEAKER_1>So it's not to say that justification is ongoing.

00:26:41.752 --> 00:26:48.072
<v SPEAKER_1>It's not to say that justification doesn't deal with or handle original sin.

00:26:48.072 --> 00:27:06.552
<v SPEAKER_1>Rather, it is to recognize that the consequences, not the legal consequences, of being damned to hell for eternity, but rather the consequences of the loss of original righteousness, the corruption of the image of God in man, those things remain in this life.

00:27:06.552 --> 00:27:16.952
<v SPEAKER_1>Slowly through the process of sanctification, those things are improved, but they are completed, they are perfected, only at the resurrection, not in this life.

00:27:16.952 --> 00:27:21.732
<v SPEAKER_2>And every Christian should be praying daily for precisely that.

00:27:21.732 --> 00:27:35.652
<v SPEAKER_2>You personally should pray to God to increase your faith and to give you the strength through the Holy Spirit to resist the temptation of the devil and to turn away from the sin that comes upon you.

00:27:36.512 --> 00:27:46.172
<v SPEAKER_2>Everyone has some thing that gets them, something that is a natural desire, a wicked desire that isn't going to be common to all men.

00:27:46.172 --> 00:27:53.372
<v SPEAKER_2>The list is common, but different men are subject to different sins in different degrees.

00:27:53.372 --> 00:27:56.852
<v SPEAKER_2>What I mean by that is that, I don't really have any addictions.

00:27:56.852 --> 00:27:59.972
<v SPEAKER_2>The things that I enjoy, I can never have again, not care.

00:28:00.012 --> 00:28:02.972
<v SPEAKER_2>I am basically free from envy.

00:28:02.972 --> 00:28:08.492
<v SPEAKER_2>When I see something that someone else has that I don't have, I am completely happy for them.

00:28:08.492 --> 00:28:10.132
<v SPEAKER_2>And when I say that, I'm not saying I'm free from sin.

00:28:10.132 --> 00:28:12.552
<v SPEAKER_2>I'm horrible in all sorts of other ways.

00:28:12.552 --> 00:28:14.352
<v SPEAKER_2>But I don't struggle with those things.

00:28:14.352 --> 00:28:18.092
<v SPEAKER_2>Maybe you struggle with envy, but you don't struggle with the things that I do.

00:28:18.092 --> 00:28:26.032
<v SPEAKER_2>Whatever your personal struggle is, whatever sin is the one that you have to constantly fight, pray to God for relief.

00:28:26.032 --> 00:28:30.732
<v SPEAKER_2>Pray to God for the strength to resist the devil, and he will give it to you.

00:28:30.732 --> 00:28:32.412
<v SPEAKER_2>It will take time.

00:28:32.412 --> 00:28:33.232
<v SPEAKER_2>It will take years.

00:28:33.232 --> 00:28:34.352
<v SPEAKER_2>It will take the rest of your life.

00:28:35.072 --> 00:28:42.432
<v SPEAKER_2>But the more you pray for it and the more you focus on it, the greater the rewards from God will be for whatever that is.

00:28:42.432 --> 00:28:46.072
<v SPEAKER_2>And that's going to pay dividends in every other aspect of your life.

00:28:46.072 --> 00:28:48.532
<v SPEAKER_2>It's what God wants for us.

00:28:48.532 --> 00:28:55.092
<v SPEAKER_2>The reading material, the homework for this, I'm just going to say, after you're done listening, go read the Book of Colossians.

00:28:55.092 --> 00:28:56.332
<v SPEAKER_2>Just read the whole thing.

00:28:56.332 --> 00:29:06.892
<v SPEAKER_2>It's not entirely about this, but once you understand the image of God as it's being restored in the sanctified man, you're going to find that it's really everywhere in the New Testament, especially.

00:29:06.892 --> 00:29:15.552
<v SPEAKER_2>I'm going to read a couple of passages here that kind of make the point that I made in my intro that tie last week to this week in Christ.

00:29:15.552 --> 00:29:18.012
<v SPEAKER_2>This is from Colossians 1.

00:29:18.012 --> 00:29:22.912
<v SPEAKER_2>Jesus Christ is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation.

00:29:22.912 --> 00:29:27.452
<v SPEAKER_2>For by Him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible.

00:29:27.452 --> 00:29:33.532
<v SPEAKER_2>Whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities, all things were created through Him and for Him.

00:29:33.532 --> 00:29:35.592
<v SPEAKER_2>And He is before all things.

00:29:35.592 --> 00:29:37.712
<v SPEAKER_2>And in Him all things hold together.

00:29:37.712 --> 00:29:40.032
<v SPEAKER_2>And He is the head of the body, the church.

00:29:40.032 --> 00:29:45.832
<v SPEAKER_2>He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything He might be preeminent.

00:29:45.832 --> 00:29:56.492
<v SPEAKER_2>For in Him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and through Him to reconcile to Himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of the cross.

00:29:57.192 --> 00:30:24.132
<v SPEAKER_2>And you who were once alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds, He has now reconciled in His body of flesh by His death, in order to present you holy and blameless, and above reproach before Him, if indeed you continue in the faith, stable and steadfast, not shifting from the hope of the Gospel that you heard, which has been proclaimed in all creation under heaven, under which I, Paul, became a minister.

00:30:24.132 --> 00:30:25.572
<v SPEAKER_2>So what is being written here?

00:30:25.672 --> 00:30:43.912
<v SPEAKER_2>What God is saying in Scripture is that when Jesus, who is the image of the invisible God, lived the perfect life, He fulfilled all the demands of the law by being that which we should have been, had we not been the product of the fall through Adam.

00:30:43.912 --> 00:30:49.172
<v SPEAKER_2>We inherit Adam's sin, which is why we have to be adopted again as sons of God.

00:30:49.192 --> 00:30:54.292
<v SPEAKER_2>Adam was a son of God in the garden, and he ceased to be a son of God by his sin.

00:30:55.552 --> 00:31:07.032
<v SPEAKER_2>Everything that's happened since the incarnation, the birth, death, and resurrection of Christ, all of this is so that the image of God can be restored in man.

00:31:07.052 --> 00:31:18.132
<v SPEAKER_2>And in the rest of Colossians and numerous other places in scripture, we get lists of sins, and we get lists of fruits of the spirit, things that are properties of God.

00:31:18.132 --> 00:31:26.992
<v SPEAKER_2>And we talked in other episodes about, you know, one, the indivisibility of God, and so it's imperfect for us to talk about properties, because God is one.

00:31:26.992 --> 00:31:29.652
<v SPEAKER_2>But we can't understand that.

00:31:29.652 --> 00:31:31.452
<v SPEAKER_2>We can't fit God in our minds.

00:31:31.452 --> 00:31:33.252
<v SPEAKER_2>And so our language kind of falls apart.

00:31:33.252 --> 00:31:38.912
<v SPEAKER_2>When we try to say things precisely, it's always going to be somewhat imperfect.

00:31:38.912 --> 00:31:46.612
<v SPEAKER_2>But the fruits of the spirit are examples of things that the indwelling of the Holy Ghost produces in us.

00:31:46.612 --> 00:31:50.792
<v SPEAKER_2>And they're the opposite of the evil that is our human nature.

00:31:51.532 --> 00:31:53.912
<v SPEAKER_2>This is from Colossians 3.

00:31:53.912 --> 00:32:02.952
<v SPEAKER_2>Put to death, therefore, what is earthly in you, sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire and covetousness, which is idolatry.

00:32:02.952 --> 00:32:05.792
<v SPEAKER_2>On account of these, the wrath of God is coming.

00:32:05.792 --> 00:32:09.112
<v SPEAKER_2>In these you too once walked, when you were living in them.

00:32:09.112 --> 00:32:15.892
<v SPEAKER_2>But now you must put them all away, anger, wrath, malice, slander, and obscene talk from your mouth.

00:32:15.892 --> 00:32:20.552
<v SPEAKER_2>Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have put off the old self with its practices.

00:32:20.992 --> 00:32:27.312
<v SPEAKER_2>And it put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator.

00:32:27.312 --> 00:32:30.692
<v SPEAKER_2>So see there, that is the very image of God that we're talking about.

00:32:30.692 --> 00:32:32.572
<v SPEAKER_2>We are putting off the old self.

00:32:32.572 --> 00:32:39.532
<v SPEAKER_2>We are putting away the sinful practices, some of which we already knew were wrong before we were regenerate, and we did them anyway.

00:32:39.532 --> 00:32:45.472
<v SPEAKER_2>In some, only a Christian is gonna understand why certain things are even sins, or what sin means.

00:32:45.472 --> 00:32:47.612
<v SPEAKER_2>What does God's will mean?

00:32:47.612 --> 00:32:49.472
<v SPEAKER_2>It doesn't mean anything to someone who's not a Christian.

00:32:49.912 --> 00:32:51.912
<v SPEAKER_2>If you don't believe you have a creator, then you have no duty.

00:32:51.912 --> 00:32:53.272
<v SPEAKER_2>It's like, whatever.

00:32:53.272 --> 00:33:00.472
<v SPEAKER_2>I'm gonna try to be nice and kind of align to some mythical standard, but you don't know where it comes from.

00:33:00.532 --> 00:33:10.052
<v SPEAKER_2>Once the Christian life is conformed and reoriented towards you having a creator, and you having duties as a result of that, again, not to save yourself.

00:33:10.052 --> 00:33:15.792
<v SPEAKER_2>We never want anyone, no one can possibly listen to Stone Choir and think you can save yourself.

00:33:15.792 --> 00:33:16.752
<v SPEAKER_2>You just can't.

00:33:17.412 --> 00:33:21.392
<v SPEAKER_2>But at the same time, once you're saved, okay, what do I do, God?

00:33:21.392 --> 00:33:23.612
<v SPEAKER_2>Thank you for everything you've done.

00:33:23.612 --> 00:33:24.572
<v SPEAKER_2>I'm in it.

00:33:24.572 --> 00:33:25.372
<v SPEAKER_2>Help me.

00:33:25.372 --> 00:33:26.252
<v SPEAKER_2>Lord, I believe.

00:33:26.252 --> 00:33:27.992
<v SPEAKER_2>Help my unbelief.

00:33:27.992 --> 00:33:30.192
<v SPEAKER_2>That's a description of sanctification.

00:33:30.192 --> 00:33:31.912
<v SPEAKER_2>It's not saying, okay, you're perfect now.

00:33:32.012 --> 00:33:32.792
<v SPEAKER_2>You've nailed it.

00:33:32.792 --> 00:33:33.432
<v SPEAKER_2>You're baptized.

00:33:33.432 --> 00:33:34.392
<v SPEAKER_2>You're done.

00:33:34.392 --> 00:33:36.352
<v SPEAKER_2>It's saying, Lord, I believe.

00:33:36.352 --> 00:33:37.812
<v SPEAKER_2>Help my unbelief.

00:33:37.812 --> 00:33:39.992
<v SPEAKER_2>Help take away the things that I shouldn't be doing.

00:33:39.992 --> 00:33:47.892
<v SPEAKER_2>Help to sanctify me in this life so that my spirit, my words, my actions are conformed to the image of God.

00:33:47.892 --> 00:33:55.992
<v SPEAKER_2>We talked a little bit last week, and we were talking about the other sense of the image of God, which every man possesses by virtue of being created.

00:33:55.992 --> 00:33:59.272
<v SPEAKER_2>This is a point that I made on X last week.

00:33:59.272 --> 00:34:08.852
<v SPEAKER_2>I think that Christian preachers should maybe think a little bit harder about the fact that every single man is created not as a Christian.

00:34:08.852 --> 00:34:12.992
<v SPEAKER_2>And then after having created man, God makes some men Christians.

00:34:13.852 --> 00:34:19.912
<v SPEAKER_2>Now, election is a part of that, but even just the order of operations there, A, it's a product of the fall.

00:34:19.912 --> 00:34:21.752
<v SPEAKER_2>That was not the way it was supposed to be.

00:34:21.752 --> 00:34:29.632
<v SPEAKER_2>That, what I just described where you're created a fallen man and then you were renewed through the Holy Spirit, wasn't the case with Adam.

00:34:29.632 --> 00:34:31.892
<v SPEAKER_2>It wasn't the case with Christ.

00:34:31.892 --> 00:34:35.472
<v SPEAKER_2>Those are the exceptions to everything else that's fallen.

00:34:35.472 --> 00:34:38.312
<v SPEAKER_2>The only thing that we know is the fall.

00:34:38.312 --> 00:34:42.752
<v SPEAKER_2>Nevertheless, even in the fall, God didn't begin by making Christians.

00:34:42.872 --> 00:34:46.692
<v SPEAKER_2>God began by making man, and then he makes man Christian.

00:34:46.712 --> 00:34:52.912
<v SPEAKER_2>And the reason that this emphasis, I think, is vital is particularly for Christian preaching, which we're not doing.

00:34:52.912 --> 00:34:54.152
<v SPEAKER_2>We're not preachers.

00:34:54.152 --> 00:34:54.792
<v SPEAKER_2>We're teachers.

00:34:54.792 --> 00:34:56.412
<v SPEAKER_2>We're talking about these things.

00:34:56.412 --> 00:35:09.212
<v SPEAKER_2>But I want to see the preaching in churches conform to what's in scripture and not run away from these things where there's some sharp edges that we've been doing harm by not paying attention to them.

00:35:09.212 --> 00:35:18.872
<v SPEAKER_2>Part of the reason I think that so much Christian preaching today can't handle creation is because all the emphasis has been on justification for centuries.

00:35:18.872 --> 00:35:20.552
<v SPEAKER_2>How are we justified before God?

00:35:20.552 --> 00:35:21.152
<v SPEAKER_2>How are we saved?

00:35:21.152 --> 00:35:22.472
<v SPEAKER_2>That's vital.

00:35:22.472 --> 00:35:24.932
<v SPEAKER_2>That's a crucial part of the gospel.

00:35:24.932 --> 00:35:28.752
<v SPEAKER_2>Again, crucial and crucified have the same root word.

00:35:28.752 --> 00:35:32.092
<v SPEAKER_2>Anytime I use crucial, it is always in view of the cross.

00:35:32.092 --> 00:35:35.152
<v SPEAKER_2>It's not merely a word used for emphasis.

00:35:35.152 --> 00:35:43.992
<v SPEAKER_2>The point is that it's absolutely crucial that we not forget God made us men, and then He made us Christians.

00:35:43.992 --> 00:35:52.912
<v SPEAKER_2>The preacher who can deal with both can handle all the various political problems that come up in the world today, because he understands that God made all of these men.

00:35:52.912 --> 00:35:57.872
<v SPEAKER_2>God made every man, and not all of them come out Christian.

00:35:58.892 --> 00:36:07.212
<v SPEAKER_2>As Christians, we have a duty to share the gospel with everyone that we can, but we also have to face the fact that God is making men, period.

00:36:07.512 --> 00:36:13.632
<v SPEAKER_2>The man comes first, and then the faith is given, because that is the two different images of God we're dealing with.

00:36:13.632 --> 00:36:16.512
<v SPEAKER_2>Last week's image of God is creation.

00:36:16.512 --> 00:36:19.372
<v SPEAKER_2>This week's image of God is sanctification.

00:36:19.372 --> 00:36:21.252
<v SPEAKER_2>It's after justification.

00:36:21.252 --> 00:36:26.452
<v SPEAKER_2>It is the subset of men who are elect unto salvation.

00:36:26.452 --> 00:36:42.492
<v SPEAKER_2>So as you're reading through scripture, just whenever you stumble across those paragraphs, Paul has some very lengthy and weighty senses and paragraphs, and they're frequently just long lists of either, again, sins or fruits of the spirit that are the opposite of those sins.

00:36:42.492 --> 00:36:47.212
<v SPEAKER_2>When you see those, know that those are talking about the restored image of God.

00:36:47.212 --> 00:36:49.392
<v SPEAKER_2>Those are talking about sanctification.

00:36:49.392 --> 00:36:50.692
<v SPEAKER_2>And take them seriously.

00:36:50.692 --> 00:36:54.892
<v SPEAKER_2>Every time I read through one of those lists, I find myself failing left and right.

00:36:54.892 --> 00:36:58.372
<v SPEAKER_2>Some things, you know, there are a couple of things like, yeah, I don't really have a problem with that.

00:36:58.372 --> 00:36:59.412
<v SPEAKER_2>And it's not just arrogance.

00:36:59.412 --> 00:37:00.732
<v SPEAKER_2>It's not a blind spot.

00:37:01.372 --> 00:37:05.852
<v SPEAKER_2>I'm thankful for the things that satan can't tempt me with.

00:37:05.852 --> 00:37:08.952
<v SPEAKER_2>But there's a bunch of other stuff that I'm not excited about.

00:37:08.952 --> 00:37:13.792
<v SPEAKER_2>I'm like, yeah, God had to save me for this stuff.

00:37:13.792 --> 00:37:14.752
<v SPEAKER_2>We all have that.

00:37:14.752 --> 00:37:20.052
<v SPEAKER_2>And so when we see that in scripture, pause, pray, you know, maybe just say the Lord's prayer.

00:37:20.052 --> 00:37:34.932
<v SPEAKER_2>Be thankful in the moment that you see your sins, that when you look to the cross and see Christ's body hanging there, naked and dead, humiliated for you, it's how much he loved you when you were doing all that stuff.

00:37:34.932 --> 00:37:36.212
<v SPEAKER_2>That's the gospel.

00:37:36.212 --> 00:37:47.332
<v SPEAKER_2>God loved us so much that all these lists of horrible things, that's why he died, to save us from the punishment, from the legal consequences of that stuff.

00:37:47.332 --> 00:37:50.752
<v SPEAKER_2>The price had to be paid and only Christ could pay it.

00:37:50.752 --> 00:37:58.492
<v SPEAKER_2>Now that we know that, what can we possibly do but try to conform ourselves to God's will, knowing it's going to be imperfect.

00:37:58.492 --> 00:38:04.712
<v SPEAKER_2>It's an imperfect comparison, but it's kind of like getting in shape, eating better, working out more.

00:38:04.712 --> 00:38:09.352
<v SPEAKER_2>You're never going to have the perfect body or the perfect diet, but you can improve.

00:38:09.352 --> 00:38:15.972
<v SPEAKER_2>You can eat fewer calories, you can eat a bit less garbage and a bit more of something that's actually beneficial.

00:38:15.972 --> 00:38:22.172
<v SPEAKER_2>You can do certain motions that don't involve just clicking a mouse, maybe they involve moving something heavy.

00:38:22.172 --> 00:38:23.732
<v SPEAKER_2>You can improve.

00:38:23.732 --> 00:38:38.892
<v SPEAKER_2>It's a point that I sometimes make to people who aren't believers to illustrate that the obedience to God and the conformity to how God has created creation works the same in every realm, whether it's the spiritual or it's the physical.

00:38:38.892 --> 00:38:43.032
<v SPEAKER_2>There are rules baked into creation, and when we violate them, things get worse.

00:38:43.032 --> 00:38:44.892
<v SPEAKER_2>The punishment's baked right in.

00:38:44.892 --> 00:38:53.952
<v SPEAKER_2>If you eat crap, if you eat too much, which is usually the problem, you can eat so-called healthy food, but if you're eating 4,000 calories a day, you're going to be fat.

00:38:54.892 --> 00:38:57.172
<v SPEAKER_2>Very few people are burning that many calories.

00:38:57.172 --> 00:38:59.092
<v SPEAKER_2>If you're working out a lot, it's a completely different matter.

00:38:59.092 --> 00:39:01.092
<v SPEAKER_2>You understand how to deal with that.

00:39:01.092 --> 00:39:04.672
<v SPEAKER_2>If you never move, if you never exercise, your body will atrophy.

00:39:04.672 --> 00:39:09.492
<v SPEAKER_2>Our bodies are built up by the resistance against the things that we struggle doing.

00:39:09.492 --> 00:39:14.792
<v SPEAKER_2>When you struggle doing something physically, your body gets bigger, so you don't struggle as much next time.

00:39:14.792 --> 00:39:17.832
<v SPEAKER_2>It's an allegory for the process of sanctification.

00:39:17.832 --> 00:39:19.732
<v SPEAKER_2>It improves over time.

00:39:19.732 --> 00:39:22.152
<v SPEAKER_2>By trying to do the thing, you get better at doing it.

00:39:23.112 --> 00:39:28.292
<v SPEAKER_2>This pattern plays out everywhere in creation because that's how God made things.

00:39:28.292 --> 00:39:30.352
<v SPEAKER_2>And sanctification is a part of that.

00:39:30.352 --> 00:39:35.252
<v SPEAKER_2>Now, we don't know what the world would have been like absent the fall with regard to sanctification.

00:39:35.252 --> 00:39:40.192
<v SPEAKER_2>We do know that Adam and Eve were somewhat infants in terms of what they knew.

00:39:40.192 --> 00:39:44.572
<v SPEAKER_2>You know, it's obvious that man was created even in perfection to learn.

00:39:44.572 --> 00:39:48.432
<v SPEAKER_2>So I think that, you know, sanctification is not learning.

00:39:48.432 --> 00:39:51.512
<v SPEAKER_2>It's the pursuit of godly living.

00:39:52.072 --> 00:39:54.032
<v SPEAKER_2>But part of that is absolutely learning.

00:39:54.032 --> 00:39:58.932
<v SPEAKER_2>Understanding scripture, understanding god's will properly is a vital part of it.

00:39:58.932 --> 00:40:02.012
<v SPEAKER_2>You can't follow the rules if you don't know what they are.

00:40:02.012 --> 00:40:06.192
<v SPEAKER_2>You know, and when we talk about rules and obedience, it's not to be a burden.

00:40:06.192 --> 00:40:10.952
<v SPEAKER_2>It's not to be, oh, here's this list of things you have to do or you're going to be in trouble with god.

00:40:10.952 --> 00:40:13.312
<v SPEAKER_2>That's not the Christian attitude towards those things.

00:40:13.312 --> 00:40:16.872
<v SPEAKER_2>So it's not the attitude that we bring when we talk about them.

00:40:16.872 --> 00:40:23.212
<v SPEAKER_2>But it's important to reflect that when you read through Colossians or any other book, you're going to find lists of sins.

00:40:23.212 --> 00:40:28.372
<v SPEAKER_2>You're going to find a list of things we should be doing instead, examples of things that we should be doing instead.

00:40:28.372 --> 00:40:29.932
<v SPEAKER_2>And we should aspire to that.

00:40:29.932 --> 00:40:33.712
<v SPEAKER_2>And aspiration is more than just, oh gosh, I wish I were like that.

00:40:33.712 --> 00:40:36.592
<v SPEAKER_2>It needs to be, I need to do better.

00:40:36.592 --> 00:40:37.912
<v SPEAKER_2>This is what god expects of me.

00:40:37.912 --> 00:40:39.472
<v SPEAKER_2>This is what god is telling me.

00:40:39.472 --> 00:40:40.692
<v SPEAKER_2>I need to do that.

00:40:40.692 --> 00:40:45.792
<v SPEAKER_2>Whatever it is, maybe you got some stuff nailed and you got some other stuff that you're weak on, focus on it.

00:40:45.792 --> 00:40:47.312
<v SPEAKER_2>And again, as I said earlier, pray.

00:40:48.272 --> 00:40:53.692
<v SPEAKER_2>Pray for the specific thing that you need help with, and god will answer that prayer.

00:40:53.692 --> 00:40:57.392
<v SPEAKER_2>Can you imagine any prayer that god would rather hear from you than that?

00:40:57.392 --> 00:40:59.132
<v SPEAKER_2>Lord, help my unbelief.

00:40:59.132 --> 00:41:00.512
<v SPEAKER_2>Help me serve you better.

00:41:00.512 --> 00:41:03.752
<v SPEAKER_2>Help me be better as you want me to be.

00:41:03.752 --> 00:41:04.972
<v SPEAKER_2>That's gratitude.

00:41:04.972 --> 00:41:06.552
<v SPEAKER_2>And it can't come from a place of terror.

00:41:06.552 --> 00:41:10.472
<v SPEAKER_2>It can't come from a place of, God, if I don't do this, I know you're going to damn me.

00:41:10.472 --> 00:41:12.832
<v SPEAKER_2>That's never the case.

00:41:12.832 --> 00:41:15.572
<v SPEAKER_2>We have to be redundant when we're talking about these things.

00:41:15.572 --> 00:41:21.672
<v SPEAKER_2>We don't want anyone ever to feel like there's this impossible goal that's been set.

00:41:21.672 --> 00:41:25.452
<v SPEAKER_2>The impossible goal was fulfilled on the cross.

00:41:25.452 --> 00:41:28.192
<v SPEAKER_2>Jesus lived the life that was impossible for you.

00:41:28.192 --> 00:41:30.152
<v SPEAKER_2>So you don't need to worry about that.

00:41:30.152 --> 00:41:32.592
<v SPEAKER_2>You don't need to worry about living up to God's perfection.

00:41:32.592 --> 00:41:33.692
<v SPEAKER_2>He did that.

00:41:33.692 --> 00:41:37.192
<v SPEAKER_2>And that is imputed to us as righteousness.

00:41:37.192 --> 00:41:42.812
<v SPEAKER_2>When we stand before the judgment throne, we will be judged by those actions, by Christ's actions.

00:41:43.672 --> 00:41:44.312
<v SPEAKER_2>So then what?

00:41:44.312 --> 00:41:46.232
<v SPEAKER_2>You're Christian, what do you do?

00:41:46.232 --> 00:41:48.452
<v SPEAKER_2>You don't just sit back and not care.

00:41:48.452 --> 00:41:51.192
<v SPEAKER_2>Sanctification involves work.

00:41:51.192 --> 00:41:57.532
<v SPEAKER_2>I think that's one of the problems that we don't hear much of this in good Christian preaching today, because this is work.

00:41:57.532 --> 00:41:59.772
<v SPEAKER_2>This is stuff you have to do for God.

00:41:59.772 --> 00:42:08.112
<v SPEAKER_2>And especially Protestants just have a terrific allergic reaction to that, because it sounds like works righteousness.

00:42:08.112 --> 00:42:12.212
<v SPEAKER_2>And to belabor the point once again, you cannot possibly think we're talking about works righteousness.

00:42:12.632 --> 00:42:13.892
<v SPEAKER_2>None of this can save you.

00:42:13.892 --> 00:42:15.712
<v SPEAKER_2>You're already saved.

00:42:15.712 --> 00:42:23.452
<v SPEAKER_2>The process of sanctification, the process of putting to death that which is earthly in you, is conforming to the image of God.

00:42:23.452 --> 00:42:26.012
<v SPEAKER_2>That's the image of God we're talking about this week.

00:42:26.012 --> 00:42:27.252
<v SPEAKER_2>This is a blessing.

00:42:27.252 --> 00:42:29.152
<v SPEAKER_2>It's something to be thankful for.

00:42:29.152 --> 00:42:31.932
<v SPEAKER_2>It's something to aspire to properly.

00:42:31.932 --> 00:42:40.352
<v SPEAKER_2>Just as you look at someone who's in better shape than you, and you aspire to look like that, to be fit, to feel better like that, and then you have to do the work.

00:42:40.352 --> 00:42:41.772
<v SPEAKER_2>And when you do the work, you will.

00:42:42.372 --> 00:42:47.452
<v SPEAKER_2>You may not be, again, these are imperfect comparisons because you see someone who's very fit.

00:42:47.452 --> 00:42:48.932
<v SPEAKER_2>It doesn't matter if you get as fit as them.

00:42:48.932 --> 00:42:50.672
<v SPEAKER_2>You just need to improve.

00:42:50.672 --> 00:42:54.172
<v SPEAKER_2>That's not the case when we're talking about the moral law.

00:42:54.172 --> 00:42:59.452
<v SPEAKER_2>We should be as perfect as Christ, and we must know that that is an impossible standard.

00:42:59.452 --> 00:43:01.412
<v SPEAKER_2>That's not a cause for despair.

00:43:01.412 --> 00:43:10.232
<v SPEAKER_2>But as Christians with the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, we absolutely have the choice, moment by moment and day by day, to say, no, I'm not going to do that.

00:43:10.812 --> 00:43:26.072
<v SPEAKER_2>Even if something disgusting crosses your mind, something evil pops into your head, something that maybe you would have done yesterday or you did last year, and something in your head, whether it's your own spirit or it's some demon whispering in your ear, says, hey, you should do that again.

00:43:26.072 --> 00:43:34.172
<v SPEAKER_2>You have the ability to say no, to turn away from it in disgust, and to say that that sin is no longer me.

00:43:34.172 --> 00:43:41.332
<v SPEAKER_2>It's what my flesh desires, but it is not what my spirit conforms to because I belong to God.

00:43:41.332 --> 00:43:42.712
<v SPEAKER_2>And then you choose.

00:43:42.712 --> 00:43:46.572
<v SPEAKER_2>And whether it's conscious or unconscious, you are choosing in many cases.

00:43:46.572 --> 00:43:52.092
<v SPEAKER_2>And the hard part is that these things become habits in both directions.

00:43:52.092 --> 00:43:58.692
<v SPEAKER_2>Before we have Christ, the habits are mostly going to be bad, similar to not knowing anything about nutrition.

00:43:58.692 --> 00:44:00.552
<v SPEAKER_2>You're just going to eat whatever is tasty.

00:44:00.552 --> 00:44:09.712
<v SPEAKER_2>Once you learn a little bit, you understand the harm you can potentially do to your body by what you ingest and how much you ingest, then you understand the rules differently.

00:44:09.712 --> 00:44:10.912
<v SPEAKER_2>Like, I can't do that.

00:44:10.912 --> 00:44:16.592
<v SPEAKER_2>Even though I enjoyed it, even though I thought it was fine, now that I know what it's doing, I can't do that anymore.

00:44:16.592 --> 00:44:24.832
<v SPEAKER_2>If you can tame your body in that way, you can tame your moral life as well, because it's thoughts, it's actions, it's words.

00:44:24.832 --> 00:44:26.432
<v SPEAKER_2>It's us in the world.

00:44:26.432 --> 00:44:28.192
<v SPEAKER_2>We're going to be an image of something.

00:44:28.192 --> 00:44:37.412
<v SPEAKER_2>Either we act as the sanctified image of God, or we act as the image of fallen man, which is basically being Satan's hands in the world.

00:44:37.412 --> 00:44:39.012
<v SPEAKER_2>And those are the only two choices.

00:44:39.012 --> 00:44:40.912
<v SPEAKER_2>There's no third player on the board.

00:44:40.912 --> 00:44:42.952
<v SPEAKER_2>There's no neutral position.

00:44:42.952 --> 00:44:49.752
<v SPEAKER_2>And that's why it's important to actually talk about these things and not pretend just for the sake of not confusing anyone about works righteousness.

00:44:49.752 --> 00:44:51.732
<v SPEAKER_2>Protestants have to get over that.

00:44:51.732 --> 00:44:54.352
<v SPEAKER_2>If you think you can save yourself, you're a fool.

00:44:54.372 --> 00:44:56.132
<v SPEAKER_2>The truth is not in you.

00:44:56.132 --> 00:45:00.252
<v SPEAKER_2>You can't get that from the Bible, and you can't get that from what we say here.

00:45:00.252 --> 00:45:08.472
<v SPEAKER_2>But once we know what God wants, then it becomes very simple in terms of understanding what we must do.

00:45:08.472 --> 00:45:09.712
<v SPEAKER_2>The hard part is doing it.

00:45:09.712 --> 00:45:12.732
<v SPEAKER_2>It's like it's easy to understand nutrition and exercise.

00:45:12.732 --> 00:45:14.252
<v SPEAKER_2>The hard part is doing it.

00:45:14.252 --> 00:45:17.572
<v SPEAKER_2>The benefit is from doing it, not from just thinking about it.

00:45:17.572 --> 00:45:25.352
<v SPEAKER_2>There are imperfect examples, but there are also still very good examples, because it's the doing that produces the fruit, the not eating.

00:45:25.352 --> 00:45:29.652
<v SPEAKER_2>You know, personally, I can pork up if I'm lazy about my shopping.

00:45:29.652 --> 00:45:34.132
<v SPEAKER_2>If I don't buy things that I'm going to pig out on, I'm fine at home.

00:45:34.132 --> 00:45:37.612
<v SPEAKER_2>I have to exercise self-control when I'm walking around the grocery store.

00:45:37.612 --> 00:45:39.252
<v SPEAKER_2>Once I get home, I'm fine.

00:45:39.252 --> 00:45:47.592
<v SPEAKER_2>But the self-control for me is avoiding certain aisles entirely, or, you know, swooping in, getting one thing, knowing it's going to be a treat.

00:45:47.592 --> 00:45:51.352
<v SPEAKER_2>And then when I'm out of that, it's going to be a couple weeks before I have it again.

00:45:51.392 --> 00:46:00.072
<v SPEAKER_2>Once we understand that we have to resist, and we have to pay attention, we have to be diligent, we're on the path of sanctification to being conformed to the image of God.

00:46:00.772 --> 00:46:03.212
<v SPEAKER_2>We'll never get there, but it's still joyous.

00:46:03.212 --> 00:46:10.552
<v SPEAKER_2>It just like is joyous to go down a belt size, to be able to get to your next level of physical fitness.

00:46:10.552 --> 00:46:13.772
<v SPEAKER_2>You couldn't do something one day, and the next day you're able to do it.

00:46:13.772 --> 00:46:16.652
<v SPEAKER_2>It's something to be celebrated.

00:46:16.652 --> 00:46:18.692
<v SPEAKER_2>You're never perfect, and that's okay.

00:46:18.692 --> 00:46:27.032
<v SPEAKER_2>God does not demand perfection for the sake of salvation, but he shows us that here's what you shouldn't do.

00:46:27.032 --> 00:46:28.612
<v SPEAKER_2>Here's the list of things you shouldn't do.

00:46:29.152 --> 00:46:30.452
<v SPEAKER_2>And the list isn't even exhaustive.

00:46:30.452 --> 00:46:33.592
<v SPEAKER_2>It just shows what the image of God actually looks like.

00:46:33.592 --> 00:46:41.852
<v SPEAKER_2>You can infer from all the things in scripture, here's a big list of sins, you can infer a dozen other things that fit somewhere between the lines.

00:46:41.852 --> 00:46:43.732
<v SPEAKER_2>So it's not like it's a menu.

00:46:43.732 --> 00:46:44.672
<v SPEAKER_2>Sin is not a menu.

00:46:44.672 --> 00:46:47.672
<v SPEAKER_2>There's always some new creative way to do something terrible.

00:46:47.672 --> 00:46:49.932
<v SPEAKER_2>Satan's really good at that, and so are we.

00:46:49.932 --> 00:46:53.592
<v SPEAKER_2>We don't even need Satan's help to come up with new ways to be terrible.

00:46:53.592 --> 00:47:01.432
<v SPEAKER_2>When we study scripture, when we conform our spirit to the image of God by just remembering, I get to choose.

00:47:01.432 --> 00:47:03.712
<v SPEAKER_2>The unregenerate man doesn't get to choose.

00:47:03.712 --> 00:47:07.272
<v SPEAKER_2>Someone who's not a Christian can't choose to be Christian.

00:47:07.272 --> 00:47:12.752
<v SPEAKER_2>There's no free will involved to get over the hump of justification.

00:47:12.752 --> 00:47:14.712
<v SPEAKER_2>For the regenerate man, there is.

00:47:14.712 --> 00:47:18.772
<v SPEAKER_2>You choose every morning to get out of bed when the alarm clock goes off.

00:47:18.772 --> 00:47:23.972
<v SPEAKER_2>Whether or not you eat too much, exercise, whatever good things you're doing, you choose.

00:47:23.972 --> 00:47:27.692
<v SPEAKER_2>It may not be something that you see as a conscious choice, but it is.

00:47:27.692 --> 00:47:34.532
<v SPEAKER_2>At some level, it is a choice that you're making, even if the choice was made years ago by forming a habit.

00:47:34.532 --> 00:47:43.792
<v SPEAKER_2>And so as we reflect on scriptures, we study and we meditate on God's word, we will find more places where you need to reevaluate your life.

00:47:43.792 --> 00:47:49.152
<v SPEAKER_2>Something that was a habit, that you realize you need to break that habit and substitute a new habit.

00:47:49.152 --> 00:47:51.972
<v SPEAKER_2>That's sanctification, just setting it aside.

00:47:51.972 --> 00:47:54.492
<v SPEAKER_2>I was doing something I didn't even know was wrong.

00:47:55.012 --> 00:47:59.152
<v SPEAKER_2>Now that I know that it's not godly, I'm going to do better.

00:47:59.152 --> 00:48:05.732
<v SPEAKER_2>You know, the what would Jesus do and the Christ-like tropes that become annoying because they're used for the wrong purposes.

00:48:05.732 --> 00:48:07.972
<v SPEAKER_2>At some level, they're true.

00:48:07.972 --> 00:48:11.752
<v SPEAKER_2>You have a choice as a Christian not to do some heinous crap.

00:48:11.752 --> 00:48:13.432
<v SPEAKER_2>You have a choice.

00:48:13.432 --> 00:48:15.872
<v SPEAKER_2>You have a choice to do good things.

00:48:15.892 --> 00:48:22.632
<v SPEAKER_2>And it's okay for Christians to talk in these terms as long as we understand that we're not saving ourselves.

00:48:22.632 --> 00:48:23.752
<v SPEAKER_2>We're not impressing God.

00:48:24.272 --> 00:48:27.452
<v SPEAKER_2>We're not justifying ourselves for eternity.

00:48:27.452 --> 00:48:30.572
<v SPEAKER_2>We're just doing what he wants us to do because he told us what to do.

00:48:30.572 --> 00:48:32.212
<v SPEAKER_2>It's really simple.

00:48:33.452 --> 00:48:43.372
<v SPEAKER_1>You may have noticed that thus far, we have not given a list of things that constitute the image of God in man.

00:48:43.372 --> 00:48:48.412
<v SPEAKER_1>And perhaps disappointingly for some of you, we are not going to do that.

00:48:48.412 --> 00:48:54.472
<v SPEAKER_1>Now, I'm going to push back a little bit on that, but perhaps being disappointed because I do not think that it should be.

00:48:55.972 --> 00:49:11.752
<v SPEAKER_1>For those of you who are familiar with some of the historical theology in this particular area, you may have in mind any of the various ways in which different theologians have formulated what constitutes the image of God in man.

00:49:11.752 --> 00:49:23.492
<v SPEAKER_1>And so you may think of perhaps the substantive view, we could call it, for Augustine and Aquinas, which deals with man's intellect, his various capacities, free will.

00:49:24.512 --> 00:49:44.052
<v SPEAKER_1>If you are of the reformed persuasion, you may think more of the dominion view, the relationship of man to creation as ruling over creation, being a steward, but certainly a steward in a position of authority because we are, of course, God's image in creation, his icon.

00:49:45.472 --> 00:49:55.232
<v SPEAKER_1>You may think of the teleological view, the end of man, which you can think of the last chapter of Ecclesiastes for that, or any of a number of other ones.

00:49:56.412 --> 00:50:00.772
<v SPEAKER_1>We are not going to resolve all of that as it were.

00:50:00.772 --> 00:50:08.792
<v SPEAKER_1>And the reason for that is that all of these things are aspects of the image of God in man.

00:50:08.792 --> 00:50:18.292
<v SPEAKER_1>Again, man is tripartite, and so different aspects are going to relate to the different parts of man in different ways.

00:50:18.292 --> 00:50:24.252
<v SPEAKER_1>Original righteousness is mostly a matter of the soul, but also a matter of the mind.

00:50:24.252 --> 00:50:30.812
<v SPEAKER_1>Some of the other aspects may be more related to the body or more related to the mind exclusively.

00:50:30.812 --> 00:50:32.612
<v SPEAKER_1>These things vary.

00:50:34.692 --> 00:50:47.812
<v SPEAKER_1>However, this is not a matter of simply enumerating or listing the various attributes of man that are related to, relative to God in some way.

00:50:49.472 --> 00:51:04.312
<v SPEAKER_1>We've previously spoken about different infinites, how there are smaller infinites and larger infinites, which seems like an insane thing to say, quite frankly, but it's not and it's real.

00:51:04.312 --> 00:51:22.072
<v SPEAKER_1>Because accountable infinite, for instance, the real numbers, one, two, three, on and to infinity, are different from the most obvious example being the absolute infinite, the infinite of infinites, which would be God.

00:51:22.072 --> 00:51:26.932
<v SPEAKER_1>God being absolutely infinite is in a different category.

00:51:26.932 --> 00:51:28.952
<v SPEAKER_1>He is a different thing.

00:51:28.952 --> 00:51:35.112
<v SPEAKER_1>It's not different in degree, it's different in kind from the other limited, as it were, infinites.

00:51:38.052 --> 00:51:53.252
<v SPEAKER_1>Man's attributes are not infinite, but they are more in the category of the limited, the countable infinite, in the sense of they relate to the absolute infinite, but they are a lesser form of it.

00:51:53.252 --> 00:52:08.272
<v SPEAKER_1>To put that another way, perhaps more clearly, all of the various attributes of God, which are of course infinite, perhaps in their number, but certainly infinite in their degree, in their scope, in their quantity, as it were.

00:52:09.852 --> 00:52:17.172
<v SPEAKER_1>Man reflects those as God's image in creation, but we reflect them in a limited way.

00:52:17.172 --> 00:52:34.192
<v SPEAKER_1>We have our own, again, version of perfection, that relative perfection with regard to these things, because there is a standard, there is a perfect version of us toward which God is pulling us.

00:52:34.192 --> 00:52:51.992
<v SPEAKER_1>Hopefully, we are cooperating now in sanctification, as we should be, but God is bringing us up to that perfect standard, that perfect image of us that he has in mind, because, of course, the perfect version of us exists in the mind of God, as does the perfect version of all things.

00:52:53.592 --> 00:53:06.252
<v SPEAKER_1>But our attributes, the various aspects of man that constitute the image of God in man, are all reflections of those attributes of God, those perfections of God.

00:53:06.252 --> 00:53:12.812
<v SPEAKER_1>For us, they're attributes, for God, they're perfections, because he, of course, has the ultimate version of it.

00:53:12.812 --> 00:53:17.872
<v SPEAKER_1>To give a concrete example, God is omnipotent.

00:53:17.872 --> 00:53:20.512
<v SPEAKER_1>Man is capable.

00:53:20.512 --> 00:53:24.032
<v SPEAKER_1>You could say potent in that sense of the term.

00:53:24.032 --> 00:53:25.912
<v SPEAKER_1>Man is not capable of all things.

00:53:26.032 --> 00:53:28.192
<v SPEAKER_1>Man cannot do all things.

00:53:28.192 --> 00:53:41.252
<v SPEAKER_1>But man can do many things, because insofar as we have that attribute of being capable, it is a reflection of God's omnipotence, God's ability to do all things.

00:53:41.252 --> 00:53:43.852
<v SPEAKER_1>Similarly, God is omniscient.

00:53:43.852 --> 00:53:46.292
<v SPEAKER_1>God knows all things.

00:53:46.292 --> 00:53:48.272
<v SPEAKER_1>Man is knowledgeable.

00:53:48.272 --> 00:53:51.232
<v SPEAKER_1>Man knows a limited subset of things.

00:53:51.232 --> 00:53:52.912
<v SPEAKER_1>Some men know very many things.

00:53:52.912 --> 00:53:54.332
<v SPEAKER_1>Some know relatively few.

00:53:55.352 --> 00:54:06.452
<v SPEAKER_1>But insofar as we have that capacity for knowledge, it is part of the image of God and man, because it is a reflection of the perfection in God that is omniscience.

00:54:06.452 --> 00:54:17.152
<v SPEAKER_1>And we could go through this for dozens or potentially more, as many of the various different aspects of God as we can bring to mind.

00:54:17.152 --> 00:54:22.492
<v SPEAKER_1>As Will mentioned, as human beings, we have to deal with this by breaking it into pieces.

00:54:24.312 --> 00:54:28.772
<v SPEAKER_1>Because we cannot understand God as he is.

00:54:28.772 --> 00:54:30.672
<v SPEAKER_1>That should be obvious.

00:54:30.672 --> 00:54:33.572
<v SPEAKER_1>God is the infinite.

00:54:33.572 --> 00:54:41.052
<v SPEAKER_1>The finite cannot understand the infinite, because if you could understand the infinite, you would be the infinite.

00:54:41.052 --> 00:54:43.932
<v SPEAKER_1>And so only God knows the mind of God.

00:54:43.932 --> 00:54:47.652
<v SPEAKER_1>Only God understands God fully.

00:54:47.652 --> 00:55:01.592
<v SPEAKER_1>We, as creatures, limited creatures, understand God insofar as he has revealed himself to us, and insofar as we ourselves reflect him with regard to these various aspects, attributes.

00:55:01.592 --> 00:55:05.072
<v SPEAKER_1>Whatever term you want to use, these things are basically interchangeable.

00:55:06.972 --> 00:55:22.752
<v SPEAKER_1>And so with regard to the image of God in man, this isn't a limited sort of thing where you can just produce a list and then say, these 12 things, these 48 things, however many it happens to be, these constitute the image of God in man.

00:55:24.272 --> 00:55:31.972
<v SPEAKER_1>Rather think of it with regard to sort of the metaphysical aspect we went over in the previous episode.

00:55:31.972 --> 00:55:33.532
<v SPEAKER_1>What is man?

00:55:34.752 --> 00:55:37.552
<v SPEAKER_1>Think about the term, image of God.

00:55:37.552 --> 00:55:39.512
<v SPEAKER_1>We are an image of God.

00:55:39.512 --> 00:55:41.612
<v SPEAKER_1>We image God in creation.

00:55:41.612 --> 00:55:46.092
<v SPEAKER_1>We image God because after a fashion, what we're doing is reflecting God.

00:55:47.572 --> 00:55:57.732
<v SPEAKER_1>And so, that isn't just a matter of these attributes, this particular list that's drawn up by a particular theologian at a particular time.

00:55:57.732 --> 00:56:00.512
<v SPEAKER_1>Rather, it is something more holistic.

00:56:00.512 --> 00:56:07.732
<v SPEAKER_1>It is more a recognition and a comprehension of the totality of what it means to be man.

00:56:07.732 --> 00:56:12.672
<v SPEAKER_1>And man with regard, and so sort of the relational view, but with regard to God.

00:56:13.892 --> 00:56:17.212
<v SPEAKER_1>Because we are that reflection of God in creation.

00:56:17.212 --> 00:56:22.632
<v SPEAKER_1>And so, trying to draw up any sort of finite list will always fall short.

00:56:22.632 --> 00:56:25.472
<v SPEAKER_1>It doesn't mean that those finite lists are not helpful.

00:56:25.472 --> 00:56:27.612
<v SPEAKER_1>They are very helpful at times.

00:56:27.612 --> 00:56:40.092
<v SPEAKER_1>Because explaining, as Aquinas does, that man's intellectual capacity and his free will are part of the image of God in man is very useful.

00:56:40.092 --> 00:56:41.272
<v SPEAKER_1>That is sound theology.

00:56:41.552 --> 00:56:43.732
<v SPEAKER_1>It is useful for the Christian to read that.

00:56:43.732 --> 00:56:50.132
<v SPEAKER_1>It is useful to meditate on that, because that is part of what it means to be an image of God.

00:56:50.132 --> 00:56:51.712
<v SPEAKER_1>But it is not the sum of it.

00:56:51.712 --> 00:56:53.852
<v SPEAKER_1>It is not the total of it.

00:56:53.852 --> 00:57:01.292
<v SPEAKER_1>Because we are a lesser in the absolute sense, not in a pejorative sense, certainly.

00:57:01.292 --> 00:57:07.272
<v SPEAKER_1>We are a lesser version of God in creation, because we are his image, we are his icon.

00:57:07.272 --> 00:57:14.152
<v SPEAKER_1>And so we are reflecting, we are echoing back that infinite image that is God.

00:57:14.152 --> 00:57:23.492
<v SPEAKER_1>And so again, you cannot sum up the image of God in man with any particular finite, any particular concrete list.

00:57:23.492 --> 00:57:26.212
<v SPEAKER_1>It is always going to exceed that.

00:57:26.212 --> 00:57:34.052
<v SPEAKER_1>And that's why we are not resolving what some may think, well, there is a disagreement here, because this theologian said that, and this one said that.

00:57:34.052 --> 00:57:38.352
<v SPEAKER_1>We are not necessarily disagreeing with any of the sound theologians, of course.

00:57:39.652 --> 00:57:44.792
<v SPEAKER_1>What we are saying is that this is greater than the sum of those things.

00:57:44.792 --> 00:57:54.892
<v SPEAKER_1>The image of God in man is the very nature of man, which of course it may seem like we are playing around there with a tautology.

00:57:54.892 --> 00:57:59.292
<v SPEAKER_1>And to some degree, yes, because that is the way we have to speak of these things.

00:57:59.292 --> 00:58:10.132
<v SPEAKER_1>Because again, when you are dealing with infinites, you can't possibly, regardless of how much time you are given, list all of the things under that umbrella.

00:58:10.132 --> 00:58:14.112
<v SPEAKER_1>And so the image of God in man is the attributes of man.

00:58:14.112 --> 00:58:15.212
<v SPEAKER_1>It is the free will.

00:58:15.212 --> 00:58:17.492
<v SPEAKER_1>It is the intellectual capacity.

00:58:17.492 --> 00:58:28.132
<v SPEAKER_1>It is the dominion of man, being a steward, being the head of creation, particularly with regard to Adam, of course, as he is the federal head of the human race.

00:58:28.132 --> 00:58:37.712
<v SPEAKER_1>It is the relational aspect, the way in which man relates to God, being his image in creation, reflecting him to the creation itself.

00:58:37.712 --> 00:58:40.112
<v SPEAKER_1>It is the teleological sense.

00:58:40.112 --> 00:58:47.092
<v SPEAKER_1>It is man's purpose, the end for which man was created in creation.

00:58:47.092 --> 00:59:02.612
<v SPEAKER_1>And that's not just, as I said before, that last chapter of Ecclesiastes, which is fear God and keep his commandments, of course, but it is all of those things for which God has created us, because those are part of what it means to be that image in creation.

00:59:04.152 --> 00:59:13.752
<v SPEAKER_1>The end of man's existence is not simply the worship of God, in the sense of worship most men mean when they use it.

00:59:14.792 --> 00:59:32.252
<v SPEAKER_1>Rather, the teleological sense, the end of man, is the worship of God in the most broad sense possible, because we worship God every time we do the things for which God made us and do them with thanks to God.

00:59:33.172 --> 00:59:45.552
<v SPEAKER_1>And so, for instance, when you enjoy food, as a Christian, when you enjoy your food, and you should certainly pray before your meal, and perhaps after as well, but that is worship of God.

00:59:45.552 --> 00:59:58.732
<v SPEAKER_1>You are enjoying a good gift of God as a son of God, because, of course, we're talking about Christians, those who have been justified, those who have faith, those whose works are pleasing to God.

00:59:58.732 --> 01:00:16.552
<v SPEAKER_1>Because, of course, as we've mentioned in previous episodes, but I'll repeat it here, the reason that those who are not believers are not pleasing to God, the reason they have no good works, is that the status of the person doing the works matters.

01:00:16.552 --> 01:00:20.812
<v SPEAKER_1>It is not sufficient for the work itself to be good.

01:00:20.812 --> 01:00:27.612
<v SPEAKER_1>If you are not regenerate, if you are not a Christian, feeding the hungry does not count for you.

01:00:28.372 --> 01:00:32.732
<v SPEAKER_1>Clothing the homeless does not count for you.

01:00:32.732 --> 01:00:40.592
<v SPEAKER_1>None of these things that are objectively good works count for you as a good work, because you are not in Christ.

01:00:40.592 --> 01:00:44.392
<v SPEAKER_1>And so everything you do is sin.

01:00:44.392 --> 01:00:56.012
<v SPEAKER_1>But if you are a Christian, the things that seem like just a routine part of your daily life, that don't seem like a particularly good work, it's not that there's some exceptional good work.

01:00:56.892 --> 01:01:12.272
<v SPEAKER_1>Rather, it is that everything you do as a Christian that is, of course, not sin, is good in the eyes of God, is pleasing to God, because you are doing the things for which you were created, the things you were created to do.

01:01:12.272 --> 01:01:16.652
<v SPEAKER_1>And so again, enjoying a meal can be worship of God.

01:01:16.652 --> 01:01:21.552
<v SPEAKER_1>Because think of what scripture says with regard to part of the meaning of life.

01:01:21.552 --> 01:01:23.332
<v SPEAKER_1>It basically says eat, drink, and be merry.

01:01:24.172 --> 01:01:27.712
<v SPEAKER_1>Go read Ecclesiastes if you do not believe me.

01:01:27.712 --> 01:01:37.192
<v SPEAKER_1>And so it comes down to whether or not you are in Christ with regard to whether or not these things are good, whether they are counted to you as good or as sin.

01:01:37.192 --> 01:01:39.192
<v SPEAKER_1>If you are in Christ, they're good.

01:01:39.192 --> 01:01:43.652
<v SPEAKER_1>If you're not in Christ, it doesn't matter how good they seem to the world.

01:01:43.652 --> 01:01:49.072
<v SPEAKER_1>It doesn't even matter how good they are objectively according to moral standards.

01:01:49.072 --> 01:01:50.312
<v SPEAKER_1>They are not counted to you.

01:01:51.612 --> 01:01:56.572
<v SPEAKER_1>Does that mean that it's irrelevant what you do if you are an atheist?

01:01:56.572 --> 01:02:00.372
<v SPEAKER_1>No, because some parts of hell are worse than others.

01:02:00.372 --> 01:02:16.532
<v SPEAKER_1>If you spend your life murdering people, committing all sorts of grievous injuries and harm, you are going to have a worse eternity than if you spend your life doing things that are objectively morally good, but they will not save you.

01:02:16.532 --> 01:02:24.052
<v SPEAKER_1>As we've been very clear in many episodes, in practically every episode, you cannot save yourself.

01:02:24.052 --> 01:02:27.812
<v SPEAKER_1>You are justified by Christ alone.

01:02:27.812 --> 01:02:39.192
<v SPEAKER_1>And so it doesn't matter how many good works you have, if you're not in Christ, they do not benefit you, except insofar as your eternity will not be worse.

01:02:39.192 --> 01:02:45.592
<v SPEAKER_1>If you are a Christian, they are counted to you as good works, which is a wonderful thing for Christians.

01:02:45.592 --> 01:02:48.052
<v SPEAKER_1>Our sin is not counted to us on account of Christ.

01:02:48.752 --> 01:02:52.652
<v SPEAKER_1>Our good works are counted to us, again, on account of Christ.

01:02:53.832 --> 01:03:07.032
<v SPEAKER_1>And so to be an image of God, you have to think of it as this holistic whole, this approach to, really we're speaking of a gestalt again, to use a term that I have used now in a number of episodes.

01:03:08.712 --> 01:03:20.452
<v SPEAKER_1>We are more than just some list of attributes or abilities or characteristics or whatever it happens to be, whichever focus a particular theologian takes.

01:03:20.452 --> 01:03:31.472
<v SPEAKER_1>We are greater than that, and that some that is in fact greater than the mere some is what it means to be in the image of God.

01:03:31.472 --> 01:03:37.312
<v SPEAKER_1>And so we aren't going to resolve the supposed conflict, because there is no supposed conflict.

01:03:37.312 --> 01:03:41.752
<v SPEAKER_1>It's not a matter of just saying, I'm these 13 things and nothing else.

01:03:41.752 --> 01:03:43.232
<v SPEAKER_1>No, you are an image of God.

01:03:43.492 --> 01:03:47.392
<v SPEAKER_1>You are a reflection in creation of the Creator himself.

01:03:47.392 --> 01:03:48.812
<v SPEAKER_1>You are a reflection.

01:03:48.812 --> 01:03:51.712
<v SPEAKER_1>You are an icon of the infinite.

01:03:51.712 --> 01:03:55.452
<v SPEAKER_1>And no list is ever going to encompass that.

01:03:56.472 --> 01:04:07.072
<v SPEAKER_2>I'd like to give a couple more passages from the New Testament that will emphasize just how often this pattern of referring to the image of God and then talking about these things is.

01:04:07.072 --> 01:04:10.512
<v SPEAKER_2>Because once you think about it, you're going to find it all over the place.

01:04:11.412 --> 01:04:20.372
<v SPEAKER_2>And I think an important part of the emphasis for this episode is that this is not simply, well, here's a bunch of stuff you have to do for God.

01:04:20.372 --> 01:04:22.652
<v SPEAKER_2>This is God's promise to us.

01:04:22.652 --> 01:04:29.812
<v SPEAKER_2>When we're past justification, when we're talking about sanctification, this is also something that God does for us.

01:04:29.812 --> 01:04:33.572
<v SPEAKER_2>The indwelling of the Holy Spirit is something that God is doing for you.

01:04:33.572 --> 01:04:36.392
<v SPEAKER_2>Making it possible is something that God is doing.

01:04:36.992 --> 01:04:42.472
<v SPEAKER_2>And our cooperation doesn't diminish God's work in it.

01:04:42.472 --> 01:04:45.272
<v SPEAKER_2>It just means that we have to show up to…

01:04:45.272 --> 01:04:56.392
<v SPEAKER_2>I think if you take the focus of, God has given me the blessing of sanctification, of regenerating His image in me as a blessing, rather than as…

01:04:56.392 --> 01:04:59.792
<v SPEAKER_2>Not that it's not a duty, but it just is a gift.

01:04:59.792 --> 01:05:05.092
<v SPEAKER_2>The fact that God has made this possible, that you don't have to die and be resurrected in order to be better.

01:05:05.992 --> 01:05:12.132
<v SPEAKER_2>You know, I think that's something that sometimes comes up in Christian preaching, where we're like, well, we're stuck here.

01:05:12.132 --> 01:05:15.072
<v SPEAKER_2>We're after the fall, so we're all sinful.

01:05:15.072 --> 01:05:20.752
<v SPEAKER_2>But we're for the resurrection of the dead, so we can't be perfect.

01:05:20.752 --> 01:05:21.732
<v SPEAKER_2>I guess all bets are off.

01:05:21.732 --> 01:05:25.232
<v SPEAKER_2>Like, you know, just try to be good, sort of, but it doesn't really matter.

01:05:26.732 --> 01:05:30.392
<v SPEAKER_2>It's nebulous, and there's no there, there.

01:05:30.392 --> 01:05:38.112
<v SPEAKER_2>There's no recognition of the blessing that we have of being told by God what the Christian life looks like.

01:05:38.112 --> 01:05:42.012
<v SPEAKER_2>I think it's one of the huge things that's missing from Christian preaching.

01:05:42.012 --> 01:05:44.192
<v SPEAKER_2>It is not missing from the Bible.

01:05:44.192 --> 01:05:48.452
<v SPEAKER_2>If you never heard anybody talk, and you just read the Bible, you would get all this stuff.

01:05:48.452 --> 01:05:51.312
<v SPEAKER_2>So here's a passage from Ephesians 4.

01:05:51.312 --> 01:05:58.472
<v SPEAKER_2>Now this I say and testify in the Lord, that you must no longer walk as the nations do in the futility of their minds.

01:05:58.472 --> 01:06:07.112
<v SPEAKER_2>They are darkened in their understanding, alienated from the life of God, because of the ignorance that is in them, due to their hardness of heart.

01:06:07.112 --> 01:06:12.852
<v SPEAKER_2>They have become callous and have given themselves up to sensuality, greedy to practice every kind of impurity.

01:06:12.852 --> 01:06:18.012
<v SPEAKER_2>But that is not the way you learned Christ, assuming that you have heard about Him and were taught in Him.

01:06:18.012 --> 01:06:36.432
<v SPEAKER_2>As the truth is in Jesus, to put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life, and is corrupt through deceitful desires, and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in the true righteousness and holiness.

01:06:36.432 --> 01:06:44.832
<v SPEAKER_2>It is God's blessing that these things are revealed to us, and it's God's blessing that it's possible for us to be renewed in the image of God.

01:06:44.832 --> 01:06:53.292
<v SPEAKER_2>So although we talk about this as a duty, that doesn't make it a burden any more than eating better should be a burden.

01:06:53.292 --> 01:07:00.752
<v SPEAKER_2>Maybe it seems like a bit of a nuisance at first, but once you create the new habit, it's not a burden anymore, it's just the new habit, it's a better habit.

01:07:00.752 --> 01:07:04.092
<v SPEAKER_2>It's a habit that pays dividends, it bears good fruit.

01:07:04.092 --> 01:07:09.312
<v SPEAKER_2>Another passage from 2 Corinthians 3 says very similar things to what's in Ephesians 4.

01:07:09.312 --> 01:07:18.772
<v SPEAKER_2>I'm repeating this just to emphasize, once you're listening for the image of God being re-created in man, you'll find that this pattern plays out all over the place.

01:07:18.772 --> 01:07:21.092
<v SPEAKER_2>It's not just one place, it's everywhere.

01:07:21.092 --> 01:07:23.812
<v SPEAKER_2>Again, this is the Christian life.

01:07:23.812 --> 01:07:26.872
<v SPEAKER_2>Scripture talks about the Christian life having a tenor.

01:07:26.872 --> 01:07:32.812
<v SPEAKER_2>It has commands, it has things that we shouldn't do and things that we should begin doing.

01:07:32.812 --> 01:07:40.592
<v SPEAKER_2>And as Corey said, there's not going to be a wrote list of, here's a punch list, you go down and, you know, once you've checked all the boxes, you can take off.

01:07:40.592 --> 01:07:42.152
<v SPEAKER_2>And we're not talking about an airplane here.

01:07:43.372 --> 01:07:51.132
<v SPEAKER_2>The principle of understanding who God is and what he wants from us means that in every situation, you're going to be able to act wisely.

01:07:51.132 --> 01:07:55.572
<v SPEAKER_2>In every situation, a Christian should know what not to do.

01:07:55.572 --> 01:07:58.652
<v SPEAKER_2>Now, you don't just automatically get that by being baptized.

01:07:58.652 --> 01:08:00.912
<v SPEAKER_2>You don't get that by owning a Bible.

01:08:00.912 --> 01:08:03.972
<v SPEAKER_2>You have to study, you have to consider, you have to pray for it.

01:08:03.972 --> 01:08:07.032
<v SPEAKER_2>And it takes time and it takes development.

01:08:07.032 --> 01:08:21.372
<v SPEAKER_2>I think that's part of this, is that it's crucial in Christian theology to emphasize that God is doing things so that we don't take credit and then try to make ourselves gods by acting as equals with him.

01:08:21.372 --> 01:08:26.752
<v SPEAKER_2>It's crucial that all these things are seen as being received as gifts.

01:08:26.752 --> 01:08:39.112
<v SPEAKER_2>At the same time, if everything is always received as a gift and there's no participation by man in any sense, again, we're not intruding on justification here, but there is participation in the Christian life.

01:08:40.072 --> 01:08:55.752
<v SPEAKER_2>When that is missing from Christian preaching, what you end up with is something that we see, frankly, play out all the time online, especially where new converts who are new to the faith, who don't know anything, and that's not an insult, that's not criticism, that's how anything works.

01:08:55.752 --> 01:09:04.612
<v SPEAKER_2>Whatever it is, if you show up for a new job, you're gonna be as bad at that job as you will ever be, because you don't know all the stuff that you're gonna know after you've been there for 20 years.

01:09:05.312 --> 01:09:10.152
<v SPEAKER_2>Experience gives benefit of wisdom, of knowledge.

01:09:10.152 --> 01:09:13.352
<v SPEAKER_2>You know what to do after you've done it for a while.

01:09:13.352 --> 01:09:17.132
<v SPEAKER_2>And this is true for the Christian life as well, and that's part of what this is about.

01:09:17.132 --> 01:09:23.032
<v SPEAKER_2>It's true of the Christian life that when you're new to it, you're not gonna be as good at it as you are later.

01:09:23.032 --> 01:09:26.732
<v SPEAKER_2>And that shouldn't be a scandalous thing to say about Christianity, it's true of everything.

01:09:26.732 --> 01:09:28.972
<v SPEAKER_2>It's true of literally everything.

01:09:28.972 --> 01:09:32.132
<v SPEAKER_2>You're gonna be better after you've done it a bunch, whatever it is.

01:09:32.532 --> 01:09:35.412
<v SPEAKER_2>And that's part of why creating bad habits is so deadly.

01:09:35.412 --> 01:09:38.332
<v SPEAKER_2>If you live a life of sin, you're gonna get better at that too.

01:09:38.332 --> 01:09:43.392
<v SPEAKER_2>You will make yourself a master of optimized sinfulness.

01:09:43.392 --> 01:09:47.632
<v SPEAKER_2>You see many lives, maybe yours in the past have been like that.

01:09:47.632 --> 01:09:56.132
<v SPEAKER_2>So the pattern and the habit that we form is going to conform whatever the outcome is gonna be for good or evil.

01:09:56.132 --> 01:10:12.152
<v SPEAKER_2>In 2 Corinthians 3, God says, since we have such a hope, we are very bold, not like Moses, who had put on a veil over his face so that the Israelites might not gaze at the outcome of what was being brought to an end, but their minds were hardened.

01:10:12.152 --> 01:10:19.732
<v SPEAKER_2>For to this day, when they read the Old Covenant, that same veil remains unlifted, because only through Christ is it taken away.

01:10:19.732 --> 01:10:24.112
<v SPEAKER_2>Yes, to this day, whenever Moses is read, a veil lies over their hearts.

01:10:24.112 --> 01:10:27.732
<v SPEAKER_2>But when one turns to the Lord, the veil is removed.

01:10:27.732 --> 01:10:30.512
<v SPEAKER_2>Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit is, the Lord is.

01:10:30.992 --> 01:10:32.692
<v SPEAKER_2>There is freedom.

01:10:32.692 --> 01:10:37.052
<v SPEAKER_2>Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.

01:10:37.052 --> 01:10:46.632
<v SPEAKER_2>And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another.

01:10:46.632 --> 01:10:49.912
<v SPEAKER_2>For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.

01:10:49.912 --> 01:10:53.832
<v SPEAKER_2>I want to emphasize that this is about God giving us a gift.

01:10:53.832 --> 01:10:59.952
<v SPEAKER_2>I don't want anyone to come away from this episode feeling dejected that man got a bunch more stuff to do.

01:10:59.952 --> 01:11:09.032
<v SPEAKER_2>We should all be reinvigorated by knowing that God has given us the gift of sanctification, that it's actually possible, and that he's doing it and working it in us.

01:11:09.032 --> 01:11:13.452
<v SPEAKER_2>And the fact that there's cooperation, like, okay, well, you're going to do something.

01:11:13.452 --> 01:11:22.712
<v SPEAKER_2>You know, presumably every one of us has gotten out of bed today to do something, whether you slept in a little or you got up early, you have to get up, you got to do something.

01:11:23.692 --> 01:11:29.252
<v SPEAKER_2>The conscious will, the conscious act, is always going to manifest somehow.

01:11:29.252 --> 01:11:30.812
<v SPEAKER_2>So what's it going to be?

01:11:30.812 --> 01:11:33.752
<v SPEAKER_2>Is it going to be more Godlike or is it going to be less Godlike?

01:11:33.752 --> 01:11:35.392
<v SPEAKER_2>Christians actually have a choice.

01:11:35.392 --> 01:11:41.852
<v SPEAKER_2>We can choose to be more Godlike, to do the things that God tells us, because he's given us that gift.

01:11:41.852 --> 01:11:45.692
<v SPEAKER_2>And so don't, please don't see these things as burdens.

01:11:45.692 --> 01:11:51.112
<v SPEAKER_2>Even though it's the duty of the Christian, a burden is lifted because you actually know what you should do.

01:11:52.112 --> 01:12:01.012
<v SPEAKER_2>And we've said before, one of the hardest things on anyone is not to know their place, not to know what they should be doing, not to know where they belong, not to know what their identity is.

01:12:01.012 --> 01:12:09.552
<v SPEAKER_2>When someone's in that position, it's incredibly difficult and it's alienating to know, okay, this is who you are and this is what you do.

01:12:09.552 --> 01:12:12.972
<v SPEAKER_2>That's one of the greatest blessings any man can ever receive.

01:12:12.972 --> 01:12:15.752
<v SPEAKER_2>This is who you are and this is what you need to do now.

01:12:15.752 --> 01:12:18.772
<v SPEAKER_2>A good man is gonna respond like, okay, I'm gonna do it the best I can.

01:12:19.192 --> 01:12:21.232
<v SPEAKER_2>Whatever it is, I'm gonna deliver.

01:12:21.232 --> 01:12:23.952
<v SPEAKER_2>If it's your boss, if it's in a relationship, it doesn't matter.

01:12:23.972 --> 01:12:27.892
<v SPEAKER_2>Once you know what the rules are, you can do a better job at it.

01:12:27.892 --> 01:12:32.232
<v SPEAKER_2>And then you put your nose to the grindstone and you deliver.

01:12:32.232 --> 01:12:33.732
<v SPEAKER_2>That doesn't make it a burden.

01:12:33.732 --> 01:12:35.712
<v SPEAKER_2>It's like, okay, I understand now.

01:12:35.712 --> 01:12:39.252
<v SPEAKER_2>I didn't know before I was lost, I was confused, now I get it.

01:12:39.252 --> 01:12:43.292
<v SPEAKER_2>God has said, here's what the Christian life looks like.

01:12:43.292 --> 01:12:45.332
<v SPEAKER_2>It's not gonna save you to do these things.

01:12:45.332 --> 01:12:46.252
<v SPEAKER_2>God already saved you.

01:12:46.252 --> 01:12:47.492
<v SPEAKER_2>It's in the rear view mirror.

01:12:48.292 --> 01:12:50.712
<v SPEAKER_2>Now, we need to turn around to give thanks.

01:12:50.712 --> 01:12:54.072
<v SPEAKER_2>We need to turn to the cross and give thanks for that sacrifice.

01:12:54.072 --> 01:12:56.912
<v SPEAKER_2>We'll never say anything to belittle that.

01:12:56.912 --> 01:13:00.712
<v SPEAKER_2>But you can't spend your whole life staring at the cross either.

01:13:00.712 --> 01:13:02.212
<v SPEAKER_2>We have lives to live.

01:13:02.212 --> 01:13:03.752
<v SPEAKER_2>We have Christian duties.

01:13:03.752 --> 01:13:06.592
<v SPEAKER_2>We have good works, as Corey was saying, to share with others.

01:13:06.592 --> 01:13:10.332
<v SPEAKER_2>We're God's hands in His mouth in the world.

01:13:10.352 --> 01:13:14.092
<v SPEAKER_2>And that's why our actions need to be conformed to His image.

01:13:14.092 --> 01:13:20.072
<v SPEAKER_2>When we act in a manner that isn't befitting God, it brings disrepute to the church.

01:13:20.072 --> 01:13:21.932
<v SPEAKER_2>It's important that that not be the case.

01:13:21.932 --> 01:13:30.012
<v SPEAKER_2>And we all fail to varying degrees, and we need to police ourselves, and we need to help each other out as brothers, and say, look, you need to get this thing right.

01:13:30.012 --> 01:13:31.452
<v SPEAKER_2>No one delivers that perfectly.

01:13:31.452 --> 01:13:32.632
<v SPEAKER_2>I certainly don't.

01:13:32.632 --> 01:13:35.732
<v SPEAKER_2>That's not one of the things I get right all the time.

01:13:35.732 --> 01:13:39.272
<v SPEAKER_2>But I'm always cognizant of it, because it's so important.

01:13:39.272 --> 01:13:43.792
<v SPEAKER_2>Please remember, as you're thinking about the image of God, looking through scripture, find it.

01:13:43.792 --> 01:13:48.612
<v SPEAKER_2>Whatever passage you're reading, I've read from my Fear of Four Epistles now of Paul.

01:13:48.612 --> 01:13:50.152
<v SPEAKER_2>You find it everywhere.

01:13:50.152 --> 01:13:51.992
<v SPEAKER_2>And it's not that everything is image of God, image of God.

01:13:51.992 --> 01:13:54.232
<v SPEAKER_2>We're not just delivering some new hermeneutic for scripture.

01:13:54.232 --> 01:13:55.952
<v SPEAKER_2>It's not some decoder ring.

01:13:55.952 --> 01:14:01.552
<v SPEAKER_2>It's just that once you understand that this is all about the Christian life, it's a little bit easier.

01:14:01.552 --> 01:14:05.612
<v SPEAKER_2>You don't need a fancy, sophisticated theological term for this.

01:14:05.612 --> 01:14:09.312
<v SPEAKER_2>It's literally just, okay, I'm Christian, what's next?

01:14:10.092 --> 01:14:11.832
<v SPEAKER_2>And God has told us what that is.

01:14:11.832 --> 01:14:13.432
<v SPEAKER_2>That is sanctification.

01:14:13.432 --> 01:14:34.252
<v SPEAKER_2>That is the image of God being restored in us through the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, through attending church, through reading scripture, through discussing these things with Christian friends, especially those with greater wisdom than you and greater experience, teachers who are competent to actually say the same things that God said after him.

01:14:34.252 --> 01:14:35.332
<v SPEAKER_2>Those are your resources.

01:14:35.332 --> 01:14:36.972
<v SPEAKER_2>Those are your blessings.

01:14:36.972 --> 01:14:43.152
<v SPEAKER_2>One of our goals here is try to make sure that Stone Choir is a positive benefit in that space.

01:14:43.152 --> 01:14:48.992
<v SPEAKER_2>The more time we spend on this stuff, the less time we have to get into trouble, you know, if nothing else.

01:14:48.992 --> 01:14:55.052
<v SPEAKER_2>If you were not to get anything else out of reading scripture that had kept you out of trouble, it would be worth it.

01:14:55.052 --> 01:14:56.632
<v SPEAKER_2>That's certainly not what happens.

01:14:56.632 --> 01:15:00.512
<v SPEAKER_2>But again, this is about habit for me as much as anything.

01:15:00.512 --> 01:15:01.692
<v SPEAKER_2>You're going to have habits.

01:15:01.692 --> 01:15:02.652
<v SPEAKER_2>You already do.

01:15:02.652 --> 01:15:03.792
<v SPEAKER_2>We all have habits.

01:15:03.792 --> 01:15:04.472
<v SPEAKER_2>Some of them are good.

01:15:04.472 --> 01:15:05.792
<v SPEAKER_2>Some of them are bad.

01:15:05.792 --> 01:15:10.552
<v SPEAKER_2>When you evaluate, you're like, well, maybe I should do less of this or none of this.

01:15:10.552 --> 01:15:13.712
<v SPEAKER_2>Maybe I can substitute it with a little bit more of this.

01:15:13.712 --> 01:15:16.072
<v SPEAKER_2>Congratulations, that's sanctification.

01:15:16.072 --> 01:15:22.952
<v SPEAKER_2>The image of God is being born out in your life by simply considering what God desires for you.

01:15:22.952 --> 01:15:24.352
<v SPEAKER_2>That's a blessing.

01:15:24.352 --> 01:15:27.812
<v SPEAKER_2>It's a blessing to have gone from not knowing to knowing.

01:15:27.812 --> 01:15:34.812
<v SPEAKER_2>And whenever teachers come along to say, hey, you didn't know you were getting something wrong, straighten up, do it right, here's a good way.

01:15:35.952 --> 01:15:38.452
<v SPEAKER_2>You should be thankful for that.

01:15:38.452 --> 01:15:45.652
<v SPEAKER_2>There's so much ego that's bound up in realizing that we made a mistake that, I think it's especially difficult for Christians and it shouldn't be.

01:15:45.652 --> 01:15:49.492
<v SPEAKER_2>We have all the people in the world should know we are not free from sin.

01:15:49.492 --> 01:15:54.012
<v SPEAKER_2>And if we make mistakes, we do things that are sinful, that are contrary to God's will.

01:15:54.012 --> 01:15:57.572
<v SPEAKER_2>When you find out that there's one more, be thankful for it.

01:15:57.572 --> 01:16:03.752
<v SPEAKER_2>This should always be a source of thanksgiving and not of certainly despair, not even not of drudgery.

01:16:03.752 --> 01:16:05.132
<v SPEAKER_2>It's just okay.

01:16:05.132 --> 01:16:07.172
<v SPEAKER_2>God has told me what to do.

01:16:07.172 --> 01:16:10.192
<v SPEAKER_2>That's part of what makes scripture so precious.

01:16:10.192 --> 01:16:19.532
<v SPEAKER_2>You know, we talk about the blessings of seeing God in creation, but he doesn't tell you in creation how to live, not the way he does in scripture.

01:16:19.532 --> 01:16:22.432
<v SPEAKER_2>It's only in scripture that these things are revealed.

01:16:22.432 --> 01:16:24.552
<v SPEAKER_2>And so it's a blessing.

01:16:24.552 --> 01:16:26.132
<v SPEAKER_2>It's something to give thanks for.

01:16:26.132 --> 01:16:31.992
<v SPEAKER_2>And the fact that you have homework after you learn about God, it needs to be a source of joy.

01:16:31.992 --> 01:16:33.632
<v SPEAKER_2>That's also part of sanctification.

01:16:33.632 --> 01:16:36.512
<v SPEAKER_2>It's like, oh man, I'm a Christian now.

01:16:36.772 --> 01:16:39.132
<v SPEAKER_2>I got to do a bunch of this stuff.

01:16:39.132 --> 01:16:39.752
<v SPEAKER_2>What a pain.

01:16:39.752 --> 01:16:46.672
<v SPEAKER_2>No, it's a blessing to know what the rules are and to know who created you and who created the rules.

01:16:46.692 --> 01:16:56.672
<v SPEAKER_2>And having been given the blessing of sanctification, that it's even possible for these things from Colossians and Ephesians and Second Corinthians and all the other books.

01:16:57.452 --> 01:17:00.812
<v SPEAKER_2>The fact that it's even possible is a tremendous blessing.

01:17:00.812 --> 01:17:02.432
<v SPEAKER_2>So please don't take away from this.

01:17:02.432 --> 01:17:03.552
<v SPEAKER_2>Oh man, this is a duty.

01:17:03.552 --> 01:17:04.632
<v SPEAKER_2>It's a burden.

01:17:04.632 --> 01:17:05.672
<v SPEAKER_2>It's not.

01:17:05.672 --> 01:17:07.732
<v SPEAKER_2>It's a duty in the joyous sense.

01:17:07.732 --> 01:17:13.932
<v SPEAKER_2>You know, when a soldier is doing his duty, there are some downsides, but there's honor in that.

01:17:13.932 --> 01:17:22.732
<v SPEAKER_2>There's honor in serving in a way that gives glory up the ranks to have served faithfully as we're called upon to do so.

01:17:23.592 --> 01:17:24.732
<v SPEAKER_2>It's a blessing.

01:17:24.732 --> 01:17:27.152
<v SPEAKER_2>It means everything's working.

01:17:27.152 --> 01:17:30.632
<v SPEAKER_2>It's okay for Christian preaching to talk about these things, too.

01:17:30.632 --> 01:17:32.312
<v SPEAKER_2>Certainly can't flee from it.

01:17:32.352 --> 01:17:34.192
<v SPEAKER_2>I've given just a few examples from Scripture.

01:17:34.192 --> 01:17:35.112
<v SPEAKER_2>There are a ton more.

01:17:35.112 --> 01:17:37.072
<v SPEAKER_2>This is barely scratching the surface.

01:17:37.072 --> 01:17:40.872
<v SPEAKER_2>You're going to go find a bunch in the coming years as you're reading through Scripture.

01:17:40.872 --> 01:17:46.552
<v SPEAKER_2>You're going to find things about the likeness and image of God all over the place, and it's always going to be in this context.

01:17:46.552 --> 01:17:49.492
<v SPEAKER_2>It's always going to be in the context of obedience to God.

01:17:50.632 --> 01:17:54.972
<v SPEAKER_2>Obedience is not something that should be seen as a burden, even if it's a duty.

01:17:54.972 --> 01:17:56.932
<v SPEAKER_2>Duty and burden are two different words.

01:17:56.932 --> 01:17:59.212
<v SPEAKER_2>They have very different commentations.

01:17:59.212 --> 01:18:01.772
<v SPEAKER_2>A duty is something that can be a blessing.

01:18:01.772 --> 01:18:03.432
<v SPEAKER_2>A burden is always downside.

01:18:03.432 --> 01:18:06.892
<v SPEAKER_2>It's something that weighs you down, something that's difficult.

01:18:08.172 --> 01:18:13.112
<v SPEAKER_2>The duty of serving God faithfully is a blessing that we've been given.

01:18:13.112 --> 01:18:32.792
<v SPEAKER_2>And so just remember that as you're reflecting on the image of God in your life, both as you were created in the image of God from last week and as you're renewed after your baptism through sanctification, through the Christian life, that God is working through you for your benefit and for the benefit of others.

01:18:32.792 --> 01:18:35.312
<v SPEAKER_2>Because all these good things don't end with us.

01:18:35.312 --> 01:18:38.372
<v SPEAKER_2>They radiate outwards for good or ill.

01:18:38.372 --> 01:18:41.612
<v SPEAKER_2>The habits you have, if they're good habits, they're going to benefit those around you.

01:18:41.612 --> 01:18:43.512
<v SPEAKER_2>The bad habits are going to harm those around you.

01:18:44.232 --> 01:18:52.892
<v SPEAKER_2>Talk to a number of people who have begun taking their faith more seriously and have become more focused on even just thinking about these things.

01:18:52.892 --> 01:18:57.952
<v SPEAKER_2>And people in their lives have commented to them that they seem like better people.

01:18:57.952 --> 01:18:59.472
<v SPEAKER_2>That's an inward change.

01:18:59.472 --> 01:19:05.092
<v SPEAKER_2>It's an inward change given by God that manifests in ways that even people who aren't believers can notice.

01:19:05.092 --> 01:19:06.292
<v SPEAKER_2>That's God working through you.

01:19:06.292 --> 01:19:07.572
<v SPEAKER_2>That means it's working.

01:19:07.572 --> 01:19:09.292
<v SPEAKER_2>It's something to be joyful for.

01:19:09.292 --> 01:19:11.952
<v SPEAKER_2>So none of this should ever be a burden, even if it's a duty.

01:19:12.492 --> 01:19:16.572
<v SPEAKER_2>This is God pouring out his blessings, even when he's telling us what the rules are.

01:19:16.572 --> 01:19:20.712
<v SPEAKER_2>Because as Christians, we actually have the possibility to follow the rules.

01:19:20.712 --> 01:19:24.292
<v SPEAKER_2>Not perfectly, but even just to know them as a blessing.

01:19:24.292 --> 01:19:32.572
<v SPEAKER_2>To know that we've fallen short is a blessing, because it points us back towards the cross to know, I don't have to worry about the fact that I've been imperfect.

01:19:32.572 --> 01:19:35.052
<v SPEAKER_2>God took care of the perfect life.

01:19:35.052 --> 01:19:38.972
<v SPEAKER_2>I don't have to worry about anything, but I do have to focus on obedience.

01:19:38.972 --> 01:19:40.252
<v SPEAKER_2>It's a question of attitude.

01:19:41.272 --> 01:19:42.732
<v SPEAKER_2>I think so much of this comes down to that.

01:19:42.732 --> 01:19:44.112
<v SPEAKER_2>What is your attitude?

01:19:44.112 --> 01:19:51.412
<v SPEAKER_2>Our attitude when we're talking about these things is never, I'm going to pile up a bunch of good works, so Jesus can say, yeah, you didn't even need my justification.

01:19:51.412 --> 01:19:53.252
<v SPEAKER_2>You did a great job by yourself.

01:19:53.252 --> 01:19:56.132
<v SPEAKER_2>No Christian would ever have that attitude.

01:19:56.132 --> 01:20:03.752
<v SPEAKER_2>And the attitude shouldn't be, man, God is such a, you know, this is so burdensome, got all these rules, and he's a taskmaster.

01:20:03.752 --> 01:20:05.352
<v SPEAKER_2>There's nothing of the sort.

01:20:05.352 --> 01:20:07.452
<v SPEAKER_2>God is our Father in heaven.

01:20:07.452 --> 01:20:08.692
<v SPEAKER_2>He's telling us how to live.

01:20:09.112 --> 01:20:13.352
<v SPEAKER_2>That's the greatest gift of love that has ever occurred.

01:20:13.352 --> 01:20:17.272
<v SPEAKER_2>For you to know your place, to know what is expected, it's a blessing.

01:20:17.272 --> 01:20:21.592
<v SPEAKER_2>And that's why people who hear these things rejoice, they're thankful for them.

01:20:21.592 --> 01:20:28.792
<v SPEAKER_2>Christian preaching should sound more like some of these things, and people would give thanks, and their lives would be transformed.

01:20:28.792 --> 01:20:33.932
<v SPEAKER_2>When Christian preaching doesn't transform lives, how can you even call it Christian preaching?

01:20:33.932 --> 01:20:35.272
<v SPEAKER_2>What is it?

01:20:35.272 --> 01:20:41.732
<v SPEAKER_2>There's feeding and there's sustenance, but if nothing ever changes, something's wrong.

01:20:41.732 --> 01:20:45.812
<v SPEAKER_2>That's part of the maturity of the Christian life, is learning and growing.

01:20:45.812 --> 01:20:52.052
<v SPEAKER_2>There are many places in scripture that talks about soft foods and milk versus solid foods and meat.

01:20:52.052 --> 01:20:58.452
<v SPEAKER_2>Those comparisons are given because maturity and the faith is going to change what you can handle.

01:20:58.452 --> 01:21:09.012
<v SPEAKER_2>There are certain things, certain doctrines and certain emphases that you would never begin with if you were just introducing someone of the Christian faith, because they would get the wrong impression, even when it's true.

01:21:09.012 --> 01:21:15.372
<v SPEAKER_2>So it's fine to parcel things out and to make sure that you have a structure to the way ideas are presented.

01:21:15.372 --> 01:21:20.272
<v SPEAKER_2>But at the end of the day, everything in scripture matters or it wouldn't be there.

01:21:20.272 --> 01:21:24.092
<v SPEAKER_2>And so with that in mind, take it all seriously.

01:21:24.092 --> 01:21:30.932
<v SPEAKER_2>In turn, everything that you think about can't be, I got to serve God and I got to be faithful and I got to do duties and I don't know.

01:21:30.932 --> 01:21:32.692
<v SPEAKER_2>You end up getting frazzled.

01:21:32.692 --> 01:21:33.992
<v SPEAKER_2>That's not the right attitude.

01:21:35.052 --> 01:21:38.472
<v SPEAKER_2>It's a gift and it's a blessing that these things have been given to us for edification.

01:21:38.472 --> 01:21:40.192
<v SPEAKER_2>They do edify us.

01:21:40.192 --> 01:21:44.052
<v SPEAKER_2>So, receive this knowledge with thanksgiving.

01:21:44.052 --> 01:21:46.332
<v SPEAKER_2>And again, like it's not from us, it's from scripture.

01:21:46.332 --> 01:21:48.612
<v SPEAKER_2>It's just reading a bunch of passages.

01:21:48.612 --> 01:21:51.212
<v SPEAKER_2>Read the Bible and you're going to find it and pay attention.

01:21:51.212 --> 01:21:53.232
<v SPEAKER_2>Pay attention to everything that's around it.

01:21:53.232 --> 01:21:59.232
<v SPEAKER_2>If you see some passage that happens to mention the image of God, go back to the beginning of the book and read the whole book.

01:21:59.232 --> 01:22:00.692
<v SPEAKER_2>Even if you weren't planning on it.

01:22:00.692 --> 01:22:02.612
<v SPEAKER_2>Most books in the Bible, you can read in a few minutes.

01:22:02.612 --> 01:22:03.432
<v SPEAKER_2>They're not that long.

01:22:03.892 --> 01:22:08.232
<v SPEAKER_2>There are a few that will take a while, so you can lay off the hook for Romans.

01:22:08.232 --> 01:22:12.192
<v SPEAKER_2>But Colossians, read the whole thing after you're finished listening to this.

01:22:12.192 --> 01:22:18.252
<v SPEAKER_2>Not long, and you're going to find that God talks about this in this way all the time.

01:22:18.252 --> 01:22:22.052
<v SPEAKER_2>Christians need to sound more like God when we're talking about the godly life.

01:22:22.052 --> 01:22:23.712
<v SPEAKER_2>It's as simple as that.

01:22:24.892 --> 01:22:35.412
<v SPEAKER_1>Some of you will have undoubtedly noticed that we often will note when we are repeating something in the same episode or across episodes.

01:22:36.512 --> 01:22:45.492
<v SPEAKER_1>And I want to make clear that the reason we do that, well, the reasons we do that, are not tantamount to an apology.

01:22:45.492 --> 01:22:56.672
<v SPEAKER_1>We're not saying, we know we already said this, sorry for saying it again, because of course, as we have previously noted, repetition is key to learning.

01:22:57.652 --> 01:23:01.972
<v SPEAKER_1>Repetition is key to committing things to memory.

01:23:01.972 --> 01:23:05.372
<v SPEAKER_1>Repetition is very important.

01:23:05.372 --> 01:23:15.072
<v SPEAKER_1>And so I want to close out this episode by going over, by repeating a number of things that we have said in this episode and in previous episodes.

01:23:16.232 --> 01:23:28.652
<v SPEAKER_1>With regard to man's will, with regard to man's free will, and I know that some of the Reformed are going to wince at that phrase, but it is a doctrine that is in scripture.

01:23:30.052 --> 01:23:40.392
<v SPEAKER_1>With regard to man's free will, man does have the ability, even when not regenerate, to choose to do or not to do certain things.

01:23:41.712 --> 01:23:46.832
<v SPEAKER_1>Man can stay his hand from murder, whether or not he is regenerate.

01:23:46.832 --> 01:23:50.272
<v SPEAKER_1>He has a free will in that.

01:23:50.272 --> 01:23:59.912
<v SPEAKER_1>On the other hand, with regard to man's bound will, and I know the reform will love that, and some others of you will not.

01:23:59.912 --> 01:24:08.092
<v SPEAKER_1>With regard to man's bound will, in spiritual matters, the unregenerate man has no free will.

01:24:08.092 --> 01:24:14.632
<v SPEAKER_1>Again, as scripture says, he is dead in his sins and trespasses.

01:24:14.632 --> 01:24:16.732
<v SPEAKER_1>Corpses do not act.

01:24:16.732 --> 01:24:22.752
<v SPEAKER_1>And so the man who is dead, the man who is unregenerate, cannot act in spiritual matters.

01:24:24.172 --> 01:24:31.692
<v SPEAKER_1>A helpful way to think of the distinction here is the traditional division of the Ten Commandments.

01:24:31.692 --> 01:24:34.712
<v SPEAKER_1>You have the first table, which is one through three.

01:24:34.712 --> 01:24:37.272
<v SPEAKER_1>I am, of course, using the traditional numbering.

01:24:37.272 --> 01:24:41.552
<v SPEAKER_1>I will link to this in the show notes for those of you who are unfamiliar with the numbering.

01:24:42.792 --> 01:24:47.832
<v SPEAKER_1>But the first three commandments deal explicitly with the things of God.

01:24:47.832 --> 01:24:50.212
<v SPEAKER_1>They are spiritual matters.

01:24:50.212 --> 01:24:52.092
<v SPEAKER_1>Now of course, this isn't black and white.

01:24:52.172 --> 01:24:56.272
<v SPEAKER_1>It's not hard line because some commandments shade into others.

01:24:56.272 --> 01:25:00.012
<v SPEAKER_1>There are positive and negative aspects of the commandments.

01:25:00.012 --> 01:25:04.532
<v SPEAKER_1>But by and large, the first table is spiritual matters.

01:25:04.532 --> 01:25:10.252
<v SPEAKER_1>And with regard to those, the unregenerate man has no free will.

01:25:10.252 --> 01:25:16.212
<v SPEAKER_1>The second table is with regard to earthly matters, matters affecting our neighbor.

01:25:17.872 --> 01:25:22.212
<v SPEAKER_1>With regard to these, man has free will.

01:25:22.212 --> 01:25:27.992
<v SPEAKER_1>Because you can, in fact, honor your father and mother, whether you are regenerate or not.

01:25:27.992 --> 01:25:32.052
<v SPEAKER_1>You can keep your hand from murder, whether you are regenerate or not.

01:25:32.052 --> 01:25:36.292
<v SPEAKER_1>You can keep your hand from adultery and theft.

01:25:36.292 --> 01:25:38.252
<v SPEAKER_1>You can avoid covetousness.

01:25:38.252 --> 01:25:42.732
<v SPEAKER_1>These are things that you can do even before you are regenerate.

01:25:42.732 --> 01:25:59.372
<v SPEAKER_1>But again, they are not pleasing to God, because it is the status of the person, whether he is in Christ or not, that determines whether or not these objectively good things are pleasing to God, whether they are credited to you on account of Christ.

01:26:00.572 --> 01:26:09.692
<v SPEAKER_1>This is one of those things that bears repeating virtually endlessly because it is one of the core matters of the Christian faith.

01:26:09.692 --> 01:26:17.112
<v SPEAKER_1>We're discussing really here justification, because if you are justified, then your good works are pleasing.

01:26:17.112 --> 01:26:32.852
<v SPEAKER_1>If you are not justified, which is just a way of saying whether you believe or not, whether you have faith or not, whether you're a Christian or not, if you are not justified, nothing you do is pleasing to God, because everything you do is sin, in the words of scripture.

01:26:34.852 --> 01:26:40.652
<v SPEAKER_1>There's a particular paragraph from the large catechism that is directly on point here.

01:26:40.772 --> 01:26:46.792
<v SPEAKER_1>I'm just going to read the paragraph, because Luther puts it very well, as is so often the case.

01:26:48.192 --> 01:27:04.772
<v SPEAKER_1>And what else are such supercilious presumptuous saints who are unwilling to read and study the catechism daily, doing than esteeming themselves much more learned than God himself with all his saints, angels, patriarchs, prophets, apostles, and all Christians?

01:27:04.772 --> 01:27:39.332
<v SPEAKER_1>For inasmuch as God himself is not ashamed to teach these things daily, as knowing nothing better to teach and always keeps teaching the same thing, and does not take up anything new or different, and all the saints know nothing better or different to learn, and cannot finish learning this, are we not the finest of all fellows to imagine, if we have once read or heard it, that we know it all, and have no further need to read and learn, but can finish learning in one hour what God himself cannot finish teaching, although he is engaged in teaching it from the beginning to the end.

01:27:58.652 --> 01:28:03.752
<v SPEAKER_1>The first of this is habit-forming, because that is just how God made us.

01:28:03.752 --> 01:28:18.752
<v SPEAKER_1>We are designed to form habits, and yes, there is insight from psychology and other fields of study with regard to habit formation, but ultimately it is just a matter of willing yourself to do it until it becomes a habit.

01:28:18.752 --> 01:28:33.092
<v SPEAKER_1>With regard to the Christian faith, with regard to sanctification, that's a matter of daily prayer, daily study of God's word, attending at least weekly services, all of these various things.

01:28:33.092 --> 01:28:38.592
<v SPEAKER_1>And now it may sound like I'm just giving a list of commandments, thou shalt do X, Y, and Z.

01:28:38.592 --> 01:28:44.112
<v SPEAKER_1>And to some degree, yes, that's true, because these are the things that God tells us to do.

01:28:44.112 --> 01:28:50.532
<v SPEAKER_1>But he doesn't tell us to do them because they're difficult or burdensome.

01:28:50.532 --> 01:28:56.572
<v SPEAKER_1>Yes, to draw that distinction again, these things are matters of duty, but they're not matters of burden.

01:28:57.792 --> 01:29:04.012
<v SPEAKER_1>It is the highest, greatest honor to be an image of God.

01:29:04.012 --> 01:29:06.172
<v SPEAKER_1>Think about what that means.

01:29:06.172 --> 01:29:10.592
<v SPEAKER_1>You are an image in creation of the Creator himself.

01:29:11.652 --> 01:29:19.372
<v SPEAKER_1>What higher honor could he possibly afford you, other than of course having his son die for you to redeem you from your sins?

01:29:19.372 --> 01:29:21.272
<v SPEAKER_1>That's not a burden.

01:29:21.272 --> 01:29:23.992
<v SPEAKER_1>Duties flow from it, but that is a high honor.

01:29:25.152 --> 01:29:30.492
<v SPEAKER_1>The same thing is true with regard to the Christian faith, with regard to the Christian walk.

01:29:30.492 --> 01:29:33.252
<v SPEAKER_1>All of these things are benefits.

01:29:33.252 --> 01:29:35.372
<v SPEAKER_1>They are blessings from God.

01:29:35.372 --> 01:29:39.072
<v SPEAKER_1>It is a blessing to have God's word and be able to read it.

01:29:39.072 --> 01:29:48.312
<v SPEAKER_1>It is a blessing to be able to gather together with the saints and hear God's word, to hear the words of absolution, to partake of the sacrament.

01:29:48.312 --> 01:29:50.432
<v SPEAKER_1>All of these things are blessings from God.

01:29:50.432 --> 01:29:52.632
<v SPEAKER_1>We should not view them as burdens.

01:29:53.852 --> 01:29:58.572
<v SPEAKER_1>These are gifts from God, our Father, and should be viewed as such.

01:29:59.752 --> 01:30:07.852
<v SPEAKER_1>There is another distinction here that is a parallel distinction with duty and burden, and that would be work and labor.

01:30:07.852 --> 01:30:10.052
<v SPEAKER_1>Scripture also draws this distinction.

01:30:11.212 --> 01:30:19.752
<v SPEAKER_1>The fall turned man's work into labor, this particular distinction, using very particular senses of these two terms.

01:30:20.792 --> 01:30:22.032
<v SPEAKER_1>Man was made to work.

01:30:23.152 --> 01:30:25.472
<v SPEAKER_1>Work is part of why God made us.

01:30:25.472 --> 01:30:27.832
<v SPEAKER_1>It's one of the things he made us to do.

01:30:27.832 --> 01:30:30.752
<v SPEAKER_1>It is where man finds his fulfillment.

01:30:30.752 --> 01:30:33.912
<v SPEAKER_1>Without work, life becomes meaningless.

01:30:33.912 --> 01:30:37.652
<v SPEAKER_1>No, I'm not saying in the economic or the capitalist sense of work.

01:30:37.652 --> 01:30:41.772
<v SPEAKER_1>That's shading into labor in many cases.

01:30:41.772 --> 01:30:50.472
<v SPEAKER_1>Rather, work is something God has given you to do, something he has given you the attributes, the ability, the capacity in order to do.

01:30:52.052 --> 01:30:55.152
<v SPEAKER_1>That is part of what fulfills you in life.

01:30:55.152 --> 01:30:57.892
<v SPEAKER_1>Man was made for work.

01:30:57.892 --> 01:31:03.312
<v SPEAKER_1>Labor is a consequence of the fall, because labor is burdensome.

01:31:03.312 --> 01:31:10.152
<v SPEAKER_1>And there's a reason that the pain that attends childbirth is called labor.

01:31:10.152 --> 01:31:17.112
<v SPEAKER_1>Both man and woman were cursed with labor in the fall, in different senses of the term.

01:31:17.112 --> 01:31:22.572
<v SPEAKER_1>But some overlap, of course, because woman's work after the fall is also laborious.

01:31:22.572 --> 01:31:25.512
<v SPEAKER_1>It's not just men who were cursed with regard to that.

01:31:26.592 --> 01:31:28.572
<v SPEAKER_1>There's a difference between those.

01:31:28.572 --> 01:31:31.272
<v SPEAKER_1>Work and labor are not the same.

01:31:31.272 --> 01:31:34.712
<v SPEAKER_1>The same is true with regard to duty and burden.

01:31:34.712 --> 01:31:46.452
<v SPEAKER_1>The things we are speaking of with regard to being an image of God, with regard to cooperating with the Holy Spirit in sanctification, these things are duty.

01:31:47.292 --> 01:31:49.692
<v SPEAKER_1>Again, they are also blessings, but they are duty.

01:31:49.692 --> 01:31:52.032
<v SPEAKER_1>They are not burdensome.

01:31:52.032 --> 01:32:04.072
<v SPEAKER_1>And they become more and more a duty and less and less a burden if they start off seeming that way as you progress in your Christian walk, as you progress in sanctification.

01:32:05.512 --> 01:32:09.572
<v SPEAKER_1>Because at some point, it simply becomes habit.

01:32:09.572 --> 01:32:13.072
<v SPEAKER_1>It becomes part of your day that you wake up and you pray.

01:32:13.072 --> 01:32:14.672
<v SPEAKER_1>You pray and then you go to bed.

01:32:14.672 --> 01:32:15.852
<v SPEAKER_1>You pray before meals.

01:32:16.072 --> 01:32:17.692
<v SPEAKER_1>You read God's word.

01:32:17.692 --> 01:32:31.412
<v SPEAKER_1>These things become a part of your life, and they become a feedback loop, because you are being sanctified by these acts, and that sanctification makes it easier to continue doing those things.

01:32:31.412 --> 01:32:35.092
<v SPEAKER_1>This is all part of the Christian life, and again, it is blessing.

01:32:35.092 --> 01:32:37.892
<v SPEAKER_1>Think of what this actually is.

01:32:37.892 --> 01:32:44.432
<v SPEAKER_1>Don't look at it as, oh, well, I have to spend an hour reading scripture, or if it's 10 minutes, however long it happens to be.

01:32:45.592 --> 01:32:50.712
<v SPEAKER_1>Don't look at it as some burdensome thing on a checklist that you have to do.

01:32:50.712 --> 01:32:54.772
<v SPEAKER_1>Rather look at it as the great honor and blessing that it is.

01:32:54.772 --> 01:33:03.432
<v SPEAKER_1>You get to spend time with the creator of the universe, and he's going to speak to you personally in that time.

01:33:03.432 --> 01:33:05.352
<v SPEAKER_1>And you may think, well, it's just the word.

01:33:05.352 --> 01:33:08.272
<v SPEAKER_1>It's written and it's the same for everyone.

01:33:08.272 --> 01:33:10.092
<v SPEAKER_1>Yes and no.

01:33:10.092 --> 01:33:14.332
<v SPEAKER_1>Yes, the same words appear on the page, and yes, it is the same for everyone.

01:33:15.392 --> 01:33:24.412
<v SPEAKER_1>But no, it's not the same for everyone, because for Christians who are in-dwelt by the Holy Ghost, he is going to speak to you.

01:33:24.412 --> 01:33:31.252
<v SPEAKER_1>I'm not saying you're going to hear a voice in your head, or you're going to hear a voice from the corner of the room, or whatever it happens to be.

01:33:32.352 --> 01:33:41.892
<v SPEAKER_1>But God promises to be in his word and to be active in and through his word, and he does that in Christians through the in-dwelling of the Holy Spirit.

01:33:43.352 --> 01:33:47.472
<v SPEAKER_1>And so God is going to speak to you personally when you do these things.

01:33:47.472 --> 01:33:57.652
<v SPEAKER_1>That is one of the highest possible honors that could be afforded any creature, to have that sort of intimate personal relationship with the creator of the universe.

01:33:57.652 --> 01:34:15.452
<v SPEAKER_1>And as human beings, we have the additional layer to that of being images of God, of imaging God in creation, of having these reflected attributes, these perfections that are present in God, that are present in us, as aspects of being images of God.

01:34:17.052 --> 01:34:26.612
<v SPEAKER_1>This is what it means to be a Christian, to have a Christian worldview, to participate in the Christian life, to have this walk with God.

01:34:26.612 --> 01:34:33.172
<v SPEAKER_1>I know that some people don't particularly like that term because it's sort of been co-opted in modern discourse.

01:34:33.172 --> 01:34:34.432
<v SPEAKER_1>But it's correct.

01:34:34.432 --> 01:34:36.952
<v SPEAKER_1>The apostles literally walked with Christ.

01:34:36.952 --> 01:34:38.492
<v SPEAKER_1>That was their walk with God.

01:34:39.332 --> 01:34:50.372
<v SPEAKER_1>For us, here and now, our walk with God is prayer and reading the scriptures and fasting, all of the various things that are part of Christian praxis.

01:34:50.372 --> 01:34:53.232
<v SPEAKER_1>It's important to get doctrine and theology right.

01:34:53.232 --> 01:34:56.872
<v SPEAKER_1>This podcast is largely about doctrine and theology.

01:34:56.872 --> 01:35:00.312
<v SPEAKER_1>It's about thinking about the Christian life.

01:35:00.312 --> 01:35:05.552
<v SPEAKER_1>But it's also about exhorting you to behave as a Christian, to live the Christian life.

01:35:06.832 --> 01:35:10.932
<v SPEAKER_1>And living the Christian life is a matter of praxis.

01:35:10.932 --> 01:35:15.552
<v SPEAKER_1>So yes, it's important to understand what it means to be an image of God.

01:35:15.552 --> 01:35:17.032
<v SPEAKER_1>It's not a list.

01:35:17.032 --> 01:35:18.532
<v SPEAKER_1>It's reflecting God in creation.

01:35:18.532 --> 01:35:20.432
<v SPEAKER_1>It's imaging God in creation.

01:35:20.432 --> 01:35:23.372
<v SPEAKER_1>It's being in that relationship with God.

01:35:23.372 --> 01:35:26.952
<v SPEAKER_1>It's all of these things that we mentioned in these two episodes.

01:35:28.692 --> 01:35:50.192
<v SPEAKER_1>But you transform that into your Christian life, into these things that you do as a Christian, because they help you to grow, because this is the process by which you are sanctified, because ultimately you are being conformed to that perfect image of God, which is Christ.

01:35:50.192 --> 01:35:52.432
<v SPEAKER_1>That is the goal of the Christian life.

01:35:52.432 --> 01:36:14.812
<v SPEAKER_1>The goal of the Christian life is to be the image of God that you were meant to be, to cooperate with the Holy Spirit in your sanctification that brings you in line with the perfect version of yourself, that God has always wanted you to be, that he created you to be, to which he will restore you at the resurrection.

01:36:14.812 --> 01:36:21.632
<v SPEAKER_1>These things will not be perfect in this life, because in this life, the consequences of the fall remain.

01:36:21.632 --> 01:36:26.992
<v SPEAKER_1>However, as Christians, we get to look forward to the last day.

01:36:26.992 --> 01:36:40.492
<v SPEAKER_1>We get to look forward to the judgment, because unlike the goats, we will be told, well done, good and faithful servant, and we will get to join the sheep at the right hand of God.

01:36:40.492 --> 01:36:42.012
<v SPEAKER_1>That is the goal of the Christian life.

01:36:42.012 --> 01:36:44.272
<v SPEAKER_1>That is the goal of all of this.

01:36:44.272 --> 01:36:58.992
<v SPEAKER_1>It is living through a process of sanctification to reach the end goal, because the goal is to run the race successfully, to spend eternity becoming more and more what God wants us to be.

01:36:58.992 --> 01:37:06.552
<v SPEAKER_1>Because this is an eternal process, not just a temporal, because we will forever be moving Godward in eternity.

01:37:06.552 --> 01:37:13.312
<v SPEAKER_1>But there, it will come without any burden, without any of the suffering and pain that takes place here.

01:37:13.312 --> 01:37:17.952
<v SPEAKER_1>Because then we will be perfected in the way that we cannot be in this life.

01:37:17.952 --> 01:37:21.492
<v SPEAKER_1>Because living in a fallen world, we are not perfect.

01:37:21.492 --> 01:37:23.472
<v SPEAKER_1>We will not be perfected.

01:37:23.472 --> 01:37:32.292
<v SPEAKER_1>But there, in the blink of an eye, we will once again be what God intended for us to be, what Adam was in the garden.

01:37:32.292 --> 01:37:34.012
<v SPEAKER_1>That is the Christian life.

01:37:34.012 --> 01:37:36.412
<v SPEAKER_1>That is what it means to be an image of God.

01:37:36.412 --> 01:37:38.012
<v SPEAKER_1>That is sanctification.

01:37:38.012 --> 01:37:39.972
<v SPEAKER_1>And all of it is good news.