Don't Be That Guy! (A Gospel Centered Approach to the Book of Jonah)

[00:00:00] I was intentionally trying to preach a message which I don't think anybody should preach in a church.

[00:00:06] And I hope that you figured that out.

[00:00:08] But I also hope that you felt something in there that I was preaching a message which probably has been preached in some churches, right?

[00:00:16] And so what we're saying is there's not just multiple ways to approach any text,

[00:00:20] but there's some ways that are good to approach a text and some ways that are not good.

[00:00:26] So that's what I want to talk to you about today.

[00:00:27] We talked about, you know, what does it mean to faithfully teach the Bible in a way that is theologically correct and in a way that our listeners actually need.

[00:00:40] Hey guys, welcome to the Expositors Collective podcast.

[00:00:43] I'm your host, Mike Neglia.

[00:00:45] The voice that you heard is that of my friend and colleague, Nick Cady.

[00:00:51] And he is talking about the principle of Christ-centered preaching.

[00:00:58] It's one of our core values here at Expositors Collective is we want to teach and equip and train and encourage preachers,

[00:01:10] not just in expository preaching, but in Christ-centered gospel preaching, grace-oriented expository preaching.

[00:01:20] And so this workshop, which was recorded in Temecula, California back in 2023,

[00:01:29] Nick walks through Jonah chapter four using one method or philosophy of teaching.

[00:01:37] And then Pastor Josh Black comes up and then teaches the same section in a different way.

[00:01:44] Here's what I want to say to you.

[00:01:46] Whatever you do, please don't stop the podcast after Nick finishes his teaching on Jonah four.

[00:01:54] There's a plot twist coming and you need to hear it.

[00:01:58] All right.

[00:01:59] I'm not going to give any spoilers away, but please don't stop it and delete it after the end of that first teaching.

[00:02:05] Well, you know, Expositors Collective is a listener supported and crowd funded ministry initiative.

[00:02:17] We are dependent upon the generous donations of listeners like you to help us to put out weekly content like this.

[00:02:29] This is a sort of thing that I know is important and crucial for younger or newer Bible teachers.

[00:02:37] And if you would like to help keep this going, well, please visit our website, expositorscollective.org.

[00:02:45] On the left side of your screen, there is a support button and that will bring you to a site where you can make a once off or a standing monthly donation that will help us to keep the lights on and will help us to put out this type of great content week after week after week.

[00:03:07] Thank you for your consideration.

[00:03:09] Well, I know that this is going to be a thought provoking and potentially ministry shaping episode that you're about to hear.

[00:03:18] So I'm going to stop talking and you're going to hear from Nick Cady, followed by Josh Black, and then back to Nick Cady once again.

[00:03:32] We're going to be looking at something over the next little bit here.

[00:03:36] It's our third module.

[00:03:38] I think it's one of our most important modules.

[00:03:40] We'd call it one of our core modules.

[00:03:41] And the way we're going to start this out is this.

[00:03:44] You've probably known and experienced this, that two people can take the same passage of Scripture and they can come to different conclusions from it.

[00:03:53] They can preach it in a different way.

[00:03:55] So we're going to kind of show you that.

[00:03:57] Me and Josh are going to do that.

[00:03:59] So here's what's going to happen.

[00:04:00] We're both going to preach a message from the same passage.

[00:04:03] And as we do that, I want you to listen, not just to grade us on maybe our presentation, but primarily I want you to focus on the content and the approach that we take and how it differs.

[00:04:19] So I'm going to preach first on Jonah chapter 4.

[00:04:23] Then Josh is going to preach on Jonah 4.

[00:04:25] And then we're going to ask you to tell us what you observed as being the difference in approach between those two messages.

[00:04:32] Sound good?

[00:04:34] All right.

[00:04:34] Let's get into it.

[00:04:36] So Jonah chapter 4.

[00:04:37] My message is called Don't Be That Guy.

[00:04:40] Okay.

[00:04:41] In some Jewish traditions, there's a practice where when they read the book of Jonah, what they'll do is they'll read the book aloud in its entirety before the whole congregation.

[00:04:52] And then at the end of the reading, then the congregation will say aloud together, we are Jonah.

[00:05:00] Now, as they say we are Jonah, please understand they are not complimenting themselves.

[00:05:06] They are not patting themselves on the back.

[00:05:08] And here's why.

[00:05:08] Why?

[00:05:09] Because Jonah was not a very good role model.

[00:05:12] If you were to give a subtitle to the book of Jonah, you could call it Jonah, Don't Be That Guy.

[00:05:19] That would be the subtitle to the entire book.

[00:05:22] Sometimes Jonah is referred to as the reluctant prophet.

[00:05:26] But I would say that in reality, Jonah is not so much a reluctant prophet as he is a rebellious prophet.

[00:05:33] Because God said, go here.

[00:05:35] And Jonah went there.

[00:05:36] He literally went in the exact opposite direction than the place where God sent him to go.

[00:05:42] God told Jonah to go to Nineveh, the capital of Assyria, which was to the east of Israel.

[00:05:48] But instead, Jonah went to Joppa, which is on the western coast of Israel.

[00:05:52] And he got on a boat going to Tarshish, which is in Spain, which at that time was considered as far west as you could possibly go.

[00:06:00] You see, the issue is not that Jonah was reluctant to obey God.

[00:06:05] You see, Jonah was already a prophet.

[00:06:08] It wasn't that he was reluctant to be a prophet.

[00:06:10] He was already a prophet.

[00:06:11] Prior to God calling him to go to Nineveh, in 2 Kings 14, verse 25, we're told that Jonah was a prominent prophet in the time of Jeroboam II in the northern kingdom of Israel.

[00:06:23] So it wasn't that Jonah was reluctant to be a prophet.

[00:06:26] It's that Jonah was rebellious when it came to this specific calling from God to go to Nineveh.

[00:06:33] Now, maybe you already know the story, but here's what happened.

[00:06:36] As Jonah was on the boat headed to Tarshish, God caused a great storm to happen at the sea.

[00:06:44] And Jonah ends up being thrown off the ship.

[00:06:47] God causes him to be swallowed by a great fish.

[00:06:50] The fish then carries him back to the shores of Israel and barfs him up on the beach.

[00:06:56] So there he is, right back where he started.

[00:06:59] Now he has less money and he's covered in barf.

[00:07:02] And friends, let me tell you, that is where rebellion against God gets you in life.

[00:07:07] It takes your money and it leaves you humiliated and oftentimes covered in barf.

[00:07:11] So Jonah realizes that God's not going to let him get away with running away from this calling.

[00:07:18] So what he says is, he says, fine, I'll do it even though I don't like it.

[00:07:23] So Jonah grumpily walks his way all the way to Nineveh.

[00:07:27] He walks right into the center of the city.

[00:07:31] He's there in the center of the city, right in the main square.

[00:07:34] And he gives the most half-hearted, apathetic, unenthusiastic message anyone could ever possibly give.

[00:07:42] It's the worst altar call in history.

[00:07:44] He basically says, you've got 40 days to repent or God's going to kill you all.

[00:07:49] And he says, and I kind of hope he does, right?

[00:07:52] So now listen, I've heard some bad sermons.

[00:07:54] Maybe you have two.

[00:07:55] But I think this is about as bad as it gets.

[00:07:58] And here's the thing though.

[00:07:59] His message was intentionally bad because he didn't want the people who heard his message,

[00:08:05] he didn't want the people of Nineveh to repent.

[00:08:07] Because Jonah knew that if they did repent, then God would have mercy on them.

[00:08:12] But that was the thing.

[00:08:13] He didn't want God to have mercy on them.

[00:08:15] He actually wanted the people of Nineveh to be judged by God and die and go to hell.

[00:08:21] That was his greatest wish and desire.

[00:08:24] And much to Jonah's chagrin, the people of Nineveh, they hear his terrible sermon.

[00:08:29] And in spite of how bad it is, they actually do repent of their sins.

[00:08:34] And it says at the end of chapter 3, when God saw what they did, how they turned away from their evil way,

[00:08:40] God relented of the disaster that he said he would do to them, and he did not do it.

[00:08:46] That's Jonah chapter 3, verse 10.

[00:08:48] And so in Jonah chapter 4, which we look at now, we now see Jonah's response.

[00:08:53] Let me read to you from verse 1.

[00:08:54] It says,

[00:08:54] It displeased Jonah exceedingly, and he was angry.

[00:08:59] And he prayed to the Lord and said,

[00:09:00] O Lord, is not this what I said when I was yet in my country?

[00:09:05] That is why I made haste to flee to Tarshish, for I knew that you are a gracious God and merciful,

[00:09:12] slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love and relenting from disaster.

[00:09:17] Therefore now, O Lord, please take my life from me, for it is better for me to die than to live.

[00:09:25] And for the rest of chapter 4, there is this now back and forth interaction and conversation

[00:09:31] that goes on between Jonah and God, in which Jonah is very angry, and God is asking him,

[00:09:36] Is it good for you to be angry?

[00:09:39] And then Jonah goes up on a hill overlooking the city of Nineveh.

[00:09:43] He builds a little lean-to, like a little shelter, and he camps out there to wait.

[00:09:48] And of course, what is he waiting for?

[00:09:49] Or he's waiting for the end of that 40 days, hoping that the Ninevites will not repent,

[00:09:55] and that God will judge them and destroy them.

[00:09:58] And while Jonah's there, feeling sorry for himself, and hoping for the destruction of the Ninevites,

[00:10:04] God decides to teach him a lesson.

[00:10:06] God causes a leafy plant to grow up over his shack, to give him shade and relief from the heat.

[00:10:12] And then God kills that plant, and Jonah gets angry again.

[00:10:17] And the book ends with God telling Jonah that his attitude is not good.

[00:10:22] So what is it about Jonah's attitude that was not good?

[00:10:26] I want to point out three things about Jonah in this story,

[00:10:30] about which God would say, Don't be that guy.

[00:10:34] Okay, don't be that guy.

[00:10:35] Number one, Jonah was prejudiced.

[00:10:37] Number two, Jonah was a whiner.

[00:10:40] And number three, Jonah was angry at God.

[00:10:43] Now, let me walk you through each of those.

[00:10:45] But in each of these cases, also as we do this, I'm going to show you how Jesus shows us a better way.

[00:10:51] So number one, Jonah was prejudiced.

[00:10:53] So Jonah was fine with being a prophet until God called him to Nineveh.

[00:10:58] Why?

[00:10:58] Because up until this point, all of the prophets of Israel

[00:11:01] had been called to speak God's message to the people of Israel, not to foreign nations.

[00:11:07] So when Jonah signed up to be a prophet, when he said, okay, I'll be a prophet,

[00:11:11] he did so as an Israeli patriot.

[00:11:14] For him, being a prophet was all about making Israel great again.

[00:11:18] So when God called Jonah to go to Nineveh and preach his word to them,

[00:11:23] Jonah didn't want to go because he understood that this warning of judgment

[00:11:27] was also an offer of mercy if the people repented.

[00:11:30] And Jonah didn't want those people to receive mercy because he hated them,

[00:11:34] as any good Israeli patriot would have.

[00:11:38] You see, because the people of Nineveh, that was the capital of Assyria,

[00:11:42] and Assyria was Israel's biggest rival in the region, both politically and militarily.

[00:11:48] Assyria was powerful.

[00:11:50] It was wealthy.

[00:11:51] And for years, the Assyrians had been encroaching on the territory of Israel,

[00:11:56] threatening to take away their land and trying to bring Israel under their influence.

[00:12:03] Furthermore, Assyria, on some occasions, had even attacked Israel militarily.

[00:12:08] Furthermore, when the Israelites, their culture, right, was shaped by God in the Bible,

[00:12:15] but the Assyrian culture was not.

[00:12:17] It was very pagan, and it was infamous for brutality and depravity.

[00:12:21] Historians and archaeologists have told us that the Assyrians practiced human sacrifice, torture.

[00:12:27] They found ancient drawings in Nineveh which show people having their eyes gouged out

[00:12:32] and hooks put in their faces to have them led around.

[00:12:35] There wasn't much about the Assyrian culture that was worthy of respect or adoration.

[00:12:41] And so for all of these reasons, Jonah hated the Assyrians,

[00:12:45] to the point where he might have even said this.

[00:12:47] He might have even gone to the point of saying,

[00:12:49] if there are Assyrians in heaven, then I'd rather go to hell.

[00:12:54] And he certainly didn't want to be part of a church or a congregation or a community

[00:12:59] if it included people like that in it.

[00:13:02] So to put it simply, we could just say Jonah was a racist, more than just being a patriot.

[00:13:07] He was a nationalist in his attitudes.

[00:13:11] And we see everything that's wrong here with religious nationalism.

[00:13:15] Friends, let me tell you this.

[00:13:17] The Bible does not teach racism.

[00:13:20] What the Bible teaches is that God created all people, and God loves all people,

[00:13:24] and because God loves people of different ethnicities and backgrounds, so should we.

[00:13:30] You know who wasn't racist?

[00:13:32] Jesus.

[00:13:33] Jesus wasn't racist.

[00:13:34] On multiple occasions, Jesus reached out to and spoke highly of people of different ethnicities.

[00:13:40] For example, in John chapter 4, rather than avoiding Samaria, Jesus traveled through Samaria,

[00:13:46] and he honored a woman of Samarian descent by speaking with her and treating her well.

[00:13:52] Jesus, another time, told a parable about a good Samaritan.

[00:13:56] To Jewish listeners, by the way, who looked down on Samaritans.

[00:14:00] Jesus, once on another occasion, took a trip outside of Israel to the region of Tyre and Sidon.

[00:14:05] There he met a woman about whom he said she had more faith than anyone he had ever met in Israel.

[00:14:12] Jesus interacted with Roman centurions and spoke highly of them.

[00:14:15] In other words, Jesus was not a racist.

[00:14:18] He was not a nationalist, and neither should we be those things.

[00:14:22] So, Jonah was prejudiced.

[00:14:24] Don't be that guy.

[00:14:25] Number two, Jonah was a whiner.

[00:14:27] Throughout this story, Jonah spends a lot of time whining and feeling sorry for himself.

[00:14:32] God tells him to do something, he mopes around, he whines, and he complains a bunch about doing it.

[00:14:37] In chapter 4, verse 3, Jonah actually tells God to please kill him

[00:14:42] because he's so upset that God would even offer the hope of mercy to the Ninevites.

[00:14:48] Friends, listen.

[00:14:49] If God calls you to do something, don't complain.

[00:14:52] Just do it.

[00:14:53] Be like Abraham, who when God called him to go to Mount Moriah and offer his son as a sacrifice,

[00:15:00] it says that Abraham arose early the next morning to go out and do what God called him to do,

[00:15:06] even though he wasn't excited about doing it.

[00:15:08] But more importantly than being like Abraham, I want to tell you, be like Jesus.

[00:15:13] You know, the Bible tells us that Jesus was led like a sheep to the slaughter,

[00:15:17] and he didn't even open his mouth.

[00:15:19] He didn't whine.

[00:15:20] He didn't complain.

[00:15:21] He did what the Father told him to do.

[00:15:24] Friends, in our world today, we could say there is a pandemic of Jonah-esque crybabies

[00:15:30] who know nothing about doing the will of God.

[00:15:34] They just, they don't care what God says to do.

[00:15:36] They're wasting a ton of time and energy whining and complaining,

[00:15:40] focusing on how they feel rather than what God has said to do.

[00:15:43] So be like Abraham.

[00:15:45] Be like Jesus.

[00:15:46] Don't be like Jonah.

[00:15:48] Jonah was a whiner.

[00:15:49] Don't be that guy.

[00:15:50] Finally, Jonah was angry at God.

[00:15:53] Here in this chapter, Jonah's really angry at God.

[00:15:55] He's angry that God would show mercy to the Ninevites.

[00:15:58] He's angry that God took away his plant that gave him shade.

[00:16:01] Isn't it funny how we can become so entitled so quickly?

[00:16:05] Something which maybe not long ago we didn't even know existed.

[00:16:09] Now we think that it's owed to us.

[00:16:11] All of a sudden, we become entitled.

[00:16:14] Friends, I hope you understand God doesn't owe you anything.

[00:16:17] Everything you have is a gift from him, and that means it is by grace.

[00:16:21] And the essence of grace is that it's undeserved.

[00:16:24] You will be a lot happier in life if you begin to understand that God owes you nothing,

[00:16:30] and therefore, anything good that happens to you is the grace of God.

[00:16:34] He's not obligated to give you anything.

[00:16:36] Every breath in your lungs, every day you wake up, none of it's a given.

[00:16:41] It's all by grace.

[00:16:42] So learn to be thankful rather than being entitled.

[00:16:46] You know who was a man who had a lot of things?

[00:16:49] Job.

[00:16:49] Job had a lot of things, and he lost it all in one day.

[00:16:53] And yet it says that Job, in spite of everything that happened to him, he did not curse God.

[00:16:58] He said instead, the Lord gives and the Lord takes away.

[00:17:03] Blessed be the name of the Lord.

[00:17:05] Jesus, on the night when he was crucified, he spent the whole night in prayer and fellowship with God.

[00:17:11] And he never got angry at God, even in spite of the pain and injustice that he suffered.

[00:17:17] So be like Job.

[00:17:19] Be like Jesus.

[00:17:20] But don't be like Jonah.

[00:17:21] Jonah was angry at God.

[00:17:23] Don't be that guy.

[00:17:24] Jonah is a good example of what not to do and what not to be.

[00:17:29] Friends, in a world where you can be anything, don't be a racist, don't be a whiner, and don't be entitled and angry at God.

[00:17:37] Instead, follow the good examples in the Bible and be kind to all people.

[00:17:42] Obey God without hesitation or complaint and understand that everything good in your life is a gift of God's grace.

[00:17:50] Thanks.

[00:17:56] What is the book of Jonah about?

[00:18:03] What is this crazy little book about?

[00:18:06] Because there are so many different thoughts and ideas out there about Jonah.

[00:18:12] Many have taken life lessons from the book.

[00:18:16] Wisdom for life.

[00:18:18] Many see it as an allegorical lesson.

[00:18:21] Jordan Peterson has an interesting take on Jonah.

[00:18:24] He basically said, you know, the takeaway is that if you have a message inside you that really needs to get out towards others,

[00:18:32] but if you refrain from being that conduit for the message to get out so that others can hear,

[00:18:39] then the consequences for your life will be so severe you'll end up living in a hell on earth sort of state,

[00:18:46] like being swallowed up by a fish.

[00:18:49] And when I heard that, I thought, wow, that's a really interesting take, isn't it?

[00:18:58] So what is Jonah really all about?

[00:19:03] Before we answer that question, here's something that you need to remember.

[00:19:08] When it comes to reading these Bible stories and narratives, you have to refrain from imposing yourself into the story.

[00:19:17] You can do that with other books and stories and characters.

[00:19:21] I mean, I've always seen a lot of myself in the great and wise Obi-Wan Kenobi.

[00:19:29] Also, if you're not a Star Wars nerd, Gandalf the Grey.

[00:19:33] And I don't know if it's because of my leadership position and the unique challenges they faced,

[00:19:38] or maybe there's just something cool and boyish about a wizard with a sword.

[00:19:44] I don't know.

[00:19:46] But you have to be careful of doing this with the Bible and its characters because it isn't like other books.

[00:19:52] The Bible is God's story.

[00:19:54] And he's the main character.

[00:19:56] And he constantly imposes himself into these stories and characters in order to communicate to us his heart and his plan for humanity.

[00:20:09] So when I consider what the message of Jonah is about,

[00:20:13] I don't hear God threatening me into obedience for fear of getting all swallowed up.

[00:20:20] I don't hear God warning me that a horrific tragedy is going to come upon my life if I don't do what he's wanting me to do.

[00:20:29] When I read Jonah, I hear things like this in chapter 4, verse 2.

[00:20:36] That you are a gracious and merciful God.

[00:20:40] Slow to anger and abundant in loving kindness.

[00:20:44] The one who relents from doing harm.

[00:20:48] And then I hear God say this in verse 11.

[00:20:51] Should I not pity or care deeply for the city of Nineveh?

[00:20:57] It has 120,000 people.

[00:20:59] Would you consider with me how this book reveals God's heart to save people beyond the borders of Israel?

[00:21:06] In this little book, God reaches all the way over to Tarshish, which is Spain.

[00:21:13] And he goes all the way over there just to save a few insignificant pagan sailors.

[00:21:20] And then immediately he reaches across the earth and he goes and he spares the great city of Nineveh.

[00:21:27] It's located near modern day Mosul, northern Iraq.

[00:21:31] So you see, when you focus on God instead of Jonah, when you see God as the protagonist of the story, then this is what you end up paying attention to.

[00:21:48] Chapter 1, verse 1.

[00:21:50] The word of the Lord came to Jonah.

[00:21:53] God is there in the beginning instigating everything.

[00:21:56] Verse 4.

[00:21:57] The Lord caused a violent storm on the sea.

[00:22:02] Verse 17.

[00:22:03] The Lord arranged a great fish.

[00:22:06] Chapter 2, verse 10.

[00:22:08] The Lord spoke to the fish and it vomited Jonah onto dry land.

[00:22:11] Chapter 3, verse 1.

[00:22:12] The word of the Lord came to Jonah a second time.

[00:22:16] Chapter 3, verse 10.

[00:22:17] God relented from destroying Nineveh.

[00:22:20] And then chapter 4.

[00:22:21] The Lord God appointed a plant.

[00:22:23] God appointed a worm.

[00:22:24] God appointed a scorching each wind.

[00:22:27] And I think you get the point.

[00:22:30] The book of Jonah is not about Jonah.

[00:22:35] But what God did through Jonah.

[00:22:40] So as we explore this more, remember that in the Old Testament, God painted many pictures of the coming Christ and the work he would accomplish.

[00:22:48] The book of Jonah is one of these pictures.

[00:22:52] Jesus declared that all the Old Testament scriptures testified and pointed to him.

[00:22:56] And this is very easy to see in the book of Jonah.

[00:23:02] Think about how a Jewish prophet's life had to be sacrificed in order for these pagan sailors to be saved.

[00:23:13] And as soon as Jonah's life was sacrificed, the result was immediate salvation.

[00:23:19] Calm seas and peace to these men.

[00:23:21] It reminds me of when Jesus showed up in the upper room and said, peace be to you.

[00:23:26] And then, both Jonah and Jesus' deaths were unique in that Jonah wasn't really dead and Jesus rose from the dead.

[00:23:36] Both men resurfaced through miraculous means on the third day.

[00:23:41] Both had a message to proclaim that produced repentance in people's lives.

[00:23:45] I mean, the picture of Christ is clear.

[00:23:52] What I see in this book is a loving God sovereignly working out his redemptive plan and continuing to paint a great picture of Jesus in spite of Jonah's disobedience.

[00:24:08] Think about this.

[00:24:09] In chapter 3, God spared some of the most vile Gentiles to ever exist.

[00:24:15] And then in chapter 4, God's mission is to win the self-righteous Jew.

[00:24:20] And God wants them both.

[00:24:21] Because Romans 1.16, the Apostle Paul declares that the power of the gospel is salvation unto everyone who will believe.

[00:24:32] For the Jew and also to the Gentile.

[00:24:38] So, what's the book of Jonah about?

[00:24:45] It's about God and his relentless plan to redeem sinners all over the world through the provision of Jesus Christ.

[00:25:02] But maybe you're sitting there and you're saying, you know what, Josh, that's great.

[00:25:08] I agree.

[00:25:09] I see that.

[00:25:11] I get it.

[00:25:12] I understand the typology.

[00:25:14] I get it.

[00:25:15] It's all about Jesus and I love it.

[00:25:17] I'm encouraged by it.

[00:25:22] But, isn't there any principles or takeaways for my life?

[00:25:28] Just because it's really easy to identify with Jonah.

[00:25:32] I mean, we've all disobeyed God by not doing something that we were supposed to do.

[00:25:38] We've all not spoken up when God was prompting us to.

[00:25:41] We've all been prejudiced.

[00:25:43] We've all whined and complained and gotten angry with God.

[00:25:45] We've all been there just like Jonah.

[00:25:48] Sitting with our arms crossed with a wrong heart.

[00:25:54] Bitter and mad because of some misguided expectation we placed on God.

[00:26:01] So, yeah.

[00:26:02] In that sense, I guess I can relate to Jonah.

[00:26:05] Sure.

[00:26:05] There I am sitting in the dirt pouting, whining with my arms folded.

[00:26:09] And God's there looking at me like he's questioning Jonah, saying, are you really mad at me?

[00:26:16] Are you really mad at me right now?

[00:26:22] So, I guess, sure.

[00:26:24] I can relate to Jonah, especially the whiny parts, you know.

[00:26:32] But do you know what the difference is between me and Jonah?

[00:26:36] Do you know what the difference is between my story and his story?

[00:26:42] In my story, Jesus comes walking over and introduces himself and enters into my life and gives me a brand new heart and forgives me of my sins and I'm born again.

[00:26:57] Yeah, no.

[00:26:57] I'm not sitting there like Jonah, stuck in a place of misery anymore.

[00:27:02] I've been born again.

[00:27:04] Jesus has come and he's changed the direction.

[00:27:06] He's changed the narrative of my story.

[00:27:11] And he's changing the narrative of your story so that we'd not be so concerned with our own stories, but instead be caught up and enamored with living for his story and for his glory.

[00:27:24] So, whether you tend to be more of a heathen, like the Ninevites, or maybe you struggle with being a religious, self-righteous, judgy person.

[00:27:37] Either way.

[00:27:39] A prophet greater and better than Jonah has come.

[00:27:43] And he's pitied us.

[00:27:45] And he's sacrificed himself for us on a Roman cross so that you and I can say confidently,

[00:27:53] you are a merciful and gracious God, slow to anger, abundant in loving kindness, one who relents from doing harm to me.

[00:28:07] Do you believe that?

[00:28:08] God, you are not going to harm me.

[00:28:13] Anything you've allowed in my life or anything you've allowed that you will allow to my life, it's not because you're harming me.

[00:28:22] It's because you're redeeming me.

[00:28:27] I kind of feel this way.

[00:28:29] Like, God's actually turning me into someone he can hang out with for eternity.

[00:28:38] Jesus is the only difference between us and Jonah.

[00:28:44] Jonah.

[00:28:45] And it makes me wonder, how did Jonah end up responding to these questions?

[00:28:50] We don't know how the day ended.

[00:28:54] But I'd really, really like to think that God's grace broke through.

[00:29:01] Don't you?

[00:29:03] As Jonah's sitting there, he's realizing what God's saying to him, and it sinks in, and he goes,

[00:29:10] I have more love and care for a stupid vine than I do 120,000 human beings?

[00:29:20] Oh, Lord.

[00:29:22] I'm so sorry.

[00:29:25] I've been so wrong.

[00:29:27] Would you please be slow in your anger to me?

[00:29:33] Would you please pity me?

[00:29:37] Please forgive me.

[00:29:41] It was Philip Bliss who wrote that we are all ruined sinners to reclaim.

[00:29:51] Hallelujah.

[00:29:53] What a Savior.

[00:29:54] And when he comes, our glorious king, all his ransomed home to bring, then anew his song,

[00:30:02] we will sing.

[00:30:03] And you know what?

[00:30:04] Those sailors are going to be there singing.

[00:30:06] And Nineveh's going to be there singing.

[00:30:08] And somewhere in the crowd, man, Jonah is going to be there singing.

[00:30:15] And the chorus will ring, Hallelujah, Jesus.

[00:30:20] What a Savior.

[00:30:22] Can you say amen to that?

[00:30:33] All right, guys.

[00:30:34] How did Josh do?

[00:30:36] Good.

[00:30:40] So I want to ask you, what do you think was the difference between those two messages?

[00:30:43] You can just say it from where you're at.

[00:30:45] We'll also have a microphone.

[00:30:47] You want to do it, Mike?

[00:30:48] Okay.

[00:30:48] Raise your hand and tell us some of the differences.

[00:30:52] Let's actually just start out.

[00:30:53] I'm just curious.

[00:30:55] Which message was better?

[00:31:01] What?

[00:31:01] The second one.

[00:31:03] Boo.

[00:31:05] All right.

[00:31:05] Who was better?

[00:31:07] Be honest.

[00:31:08] Okay.

[00:31:09] Everybody's saying a second one.

[00:31:11] Does anybody think mine was better?

[00:31:13] That guy does.

[00:31:14] Right on.

[00:31:15] There's my friend.

[00:31:16] That guy does too.

[00:31:17] All right.

[00:31:17] I got a couple friends out there.

[00:31:20] Those of you who think Josh's message was better, can you tell me why you think it was

[00:31:24] better?

[00:31:31] Here we go.

[00:31:33] Here you go, sir.

[00:31:34] Tell us why.

[00:31:34] Well, the reason I think why would be because he brought out Jesus in the story, the purpose

[00:31:43] of Jesus in the story, the grace that he provides.

[00:31:48] Yes.

[00:31:48] And yeah, just the heart of God meeting somebody where they're at and showing them their failure

[00:31:59] and through his goodness, showing them his goodness, giving them opportunity to turn.

[00:32:06] Wait a second, sir.

[00:32:08] I also spoke about Jesus and his goodness.

[00:32:11] What was the difference?

[00:32:15] I also talked about our badness.

[00:32:17] Yeah, I think probably being that it was brought out at the end and made super clear at the

[00:32:27] end.

[00:32:27] All right.

[00:32:28] Yeah.

[00:32:28] I mean, I just want to point out that I did talk a lot about Jesus and I made Jesus, you

[00:32:35] know, I showed how he did things right.

[00:32:38] And that's a good thing, right?

[00:32:39] All right.

[00:32:40] What's this guy think over here?

[00:32:41] There's worse things.

[00:32:42] Yeah.

[00:32:44] Yeah, I agree with what he said, but I think too, like he said, Josh got right to the heart

[00:32:52] of God and his plan, his redemptive plan for each and every one of us.

[00:32:58] Whereas I think you were more like, don't be like that.

[00:33:01] Don't do that.

[00:33:03] Don't, you know, be more like this, be more like that.

[00:33:06] But how, how do we be more like Jesus?

[00:33:10] You know, and he answered it.

[00:33:12] In my case, I thought.

[00:33:15] All right.

[00:33:16] Yeah.

[00:33:16] People like that.

[00:33:17] All right.

[00:33:17] Cool.

[00:33:19] I think that the second message was more God-centered in the sense that it's talking about how can

[00:33:27] we see God in light of the passage we're reading.

[00:33:30] And I liked how he brought up at the end, we are New Testament Christians.

[00:33:34] We have hope because of the sacrifice Jesus made on the cross for us.

[00:33:39] And that's important for us to remember when we are reading passages from the Old Testament,

[00:33:44] because, you know, it's a different story now.

[00:33:47] Like everything pointed to Jesus Christ in the Old Testament.

[00:33:50] And in the New Testament, he came, he died, and he rose again for us.

[00:33:54] So we have that hope and we can remember that even though we are fallen.

[00:33:59] Great.

[00:33:59] Okay.

[00:34:00] I'm going to let you guys in on a secret.

[00:34:02] Beyond, you guys just hurting my feelings over and over.

[00:34:05] I just want you to know that, of course, you know what the name of this module is, right?

[00:34:11] Christ-centered preaching.

[00:34:12] So those of you who might be picking up what we're putting down, is that my message was meant to be bad.

[00:34:18] Okay.

[00:34:19] So I was intentionally trying to preach a message which I don't think anybody should preach in a church.

[00:34:26] And I hope that you figured that out.

[00:34:29] But I also hope that you felt something in there that I was preaching a message which probably has been preached in some churches, right?

[00:34:37] And so what we're saying is there's not just multiple ways to approach any text, but there's some ways that are good to approach a text and some ways that are not good.

[00:34:46] So that's what I want to talk to you about today.

[00:34:48] We talked about, you know, what does it mean to faithfully teach the Bible in a way that is theologically correct and in a way that our listeners actually need?

[00:34:59] And so that's what we'll be talking about now in our Christ-centered preaching module.

[00:35:03] How does it differ from non-Christ-centered preaching?

[00:35:07] Earlier this morning, Dr. Jim Wilson talked to us about expository preaching and what it is.

[00:35:13] And in this module, we're going to go a little further, and we're going to say this.

[00:35:17] In order for a message to be truly expository, we would say that it must also be Christ-centered or gospel-centered.

[00:35:26] So what do we mean by that?

[00:35:27] Well, as Jim explained earlier, the point of an expository message, expository preaching, is to expose the meaning of the text.

[00:35:37] But listen, the Bible, as we look at it, it's not just a collection of random stories which all give us some different insights into God.

[00:35:47] Now, the Bible itself is, as Josh pointed out, a story about God.

[00:35:53] And I would go so far as to put it into this statement.

[00:35:56] The Bible is a book about Jesus, specifically.

[00:35:59] The Bible is a book about Jesus from Genesis all the way to Revelation.

[00:36:04] And that's not just my opinion, but actually it's something that Jesus himself taught.

[00:36:08] And I'll show you that in a minute.

[00:36:09] But since the Bible is a book about Jesus, what that means is that in order for us to accurately and faithfully teach every individual passage in the Bible,

[00:36:19] we need to show how those passages ultimately point to Jesus and the salvation that he brings.

[00:36:28] So here's the thesis statement, which can be found in your workbooks, but we'll put it up here on the screen for you.

[00:36:35] Faithful Bible teaching consistently shows Jesus to be the true hero.

[00:36:41] Faithful Bible teaching consistently shows Jesus to be the true hero.

[00:36:46] In the Gospel of John, chapter 5, verse 39, Jesus said this to his opponents.

[00:36:51] The Bible reading and yet self-righteous Pharisees, Jesus told them this.

[00:36:57] You search the scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life.

[00:37:03] But these are they which testify of me.

[00:37:06] What Jesus was telling the Pharisees that day was that they had been reading the scriptures,

[00:37:11] but they had been reading them incorrectly.

[00:37:13] And therefore, they had been coming to the wrong conclusions about the Bible because they had failed to realize one key thing.

[00:37:22] Although they knew what the scriptures said, they had failed to realize what the scriptures were all about.

[00:37:28] You see, the scriptures, Jesus said, they all testify of him.

[00:37:32] Like a witness in a courtroom who points her finger at someone and says, it was him.

[00:37:37] In the same way, Jesus says, the scriptures do that about me.

[00:37:41] They point their finger at me and they talk about me.

[00:37:45] Later on in Luke chapter 24, we read this, that on the day of his resurrection,

[00:37:50] as Jesus was on the road to Emmaus, he met with some of his disciples.

[00:37:55] And it says there in Luke 24 that he opened their minds to understand the scriptures.

[00:38:09] Later on that same night, Jesus met with his other disciples and he said to them,

[00:38:15] these are my words which I spoke to you while I was still with you,

[00:38:18] that everything written about me in the law of Moses and the prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled.

[00:38:25] When Jesus opened the minds of his disciples to understand the scriptures,

[00:38:30] he took them on a journey through the Bible,

[00:38:33] explaining to them how each and every part of it pointed to him.

[00:38:37] Every story, every symbol, it all foreshadowed him and what he would do to save us.

[00:38:43] In the book of Acts chapter 8, Philip the evangelist is led by the Holy Spirit into the desert,

[00:38:50] into a road in the middle of the desert.

[00:38:52] And as Philip is standing there, an Ethiopian official is coming down the road in his chariot

[00:38:57] on his way back to Ethiopia from Jerusalem.

[00:39:00] And Philip, he approaches this man's chariot and he hears that this man is reading aloud

[00:39:06] from the book of the prophet Isaiah, specifically from Isaiah chapter 53.

[00:39:11] And this man, he tells Philip that he does not understand the things that he's reading.

[00:39:17] And then it says,

[00:39:18] Then Philip opened his mouth, and beginning with that very scripture,

[00:39:24] he told him the good news about Jesus.

[00:39:27] And notice what it says.

[00:39:28] Beginning with that very scripture, the one the man was reading,

[00:39:32] he told him the good news about Jesus.

[00:39:34] Now let me ask you a question.

[00:39:35] What if that man had been reading a different chapter from that same scroll?

[00:39:41] What if instead of reading Isaiah 53, that man had been reading Isaiah chapter 35,

[00:39:47] which is about God judging the nations of the world?

[00:39:50] What if he had been reading from Isaiah chapter 36,

[00:39:53] which talks about a guy named Sennacherib invading Judah?

[00:39:57] Do you think Philip would have said,

[00:39:59] Well, darn, man, if only you had been reading a different passage,

[00:40:02] I could have told you the good news about Jesus.

[00:40:05] Or just wait till you get to chapter 53.

[00:40:08] Maybe I'll ride with you till you get there.

[00:40:10] Then I can tell you the good news about Jesus.

[00:40:12] Or maybe you would have said,

[00:40:14] Well, I guess I'm just going to have to tell you all about Sennacherib

[00:40:17] and send you on your way, right?

[00:40:19] No, of course, Philip would not have done that.

[00:40:22] The fact is, no matter what passage this man had been reading from that day,

[00:40:26] Philip would have started with that very passage

[00:40:28] and told that man the good news about Jesus.

[00:40:31] And doing so is actually the most faithful way to teach the scriptures

[00:40:37] since all the scriptures ultimately serve to testify of and talk about Jesus.

[00:40:43] So if all we do when we preach is use a text from the Bible

[00:40:48] to give people moral instructions or inspirational thoughts,

[00:40:54] then we haven't fully taught them that passage

[00:40:57] because we haven't yet shown them how that passage points to Jesus

[00:41:02] and the salvation that he provides.

[00:41:04] Charles Spurgeon, he tells a story about a young preacher

[00:41:08] who, as he was preaching one day in his church,

[00:41:11] he noticed in the congregation an older preacher.

[00:41:15] And so after the sermon, the younger preacher went up to the older preacher

[00:41:18] and approached him and asked him,

[00:41:19] What did you think of my sermon?

[00:41:21] And the older preacher told him,

[00:41:23] Well, son, it was a very poor sermon.

[00:41:27] And the young preacher said,

[00:41:29] Well, how could you say that?

[00:41:30] Why do you think it was a poor sermon?

[00:41:32] And the older preacher said,

[00:41:33] Because there was no Christ in the sermon.

[00:41:36] And the younger preacher responded.

[00:41:38] He said, Hang on.

[00:41:39] But there was no Christ in the text.

[00:41:42] We are to teach the text, not just to preach Christ.

[00:41:45] And the older preacher responded.

[00:41:48] He said, Don't you know, young man,

[00:41:50] that in every town and in every village in England,

[00:41:54] wherever it may be,

[00:41:55] there is always a road which leads to London.

[00:41:59] And the young man said, Well, yeah.

[00:42:00] And he said, Ah.

[00:42:02] Well, in the same way, from every text in Scripture,

[00:42:05] there is a road from that text

[00:42:07] which leads to the metropolis of the Scriptures,

[00:42:10] which is Christ.

[00:42:11] And my dear brother,

[00:42:13] your business is that when you get to a text

[00:42:16] to ask that question,

[00:42:18] Now, where is the road that leads to Christ out of this text?

[00:42:22] And then when you preach the sermon,

[00:42:24] he says, Make sure that when you are done

[00:42:26] going up and down the high street of the text,

[00:42:28] the main street,

[00:42:29] that you then lead your people down the road from that text,

[00:42:33] which leads to the great metropolis to Christ.

[00:42:36] And he said, I have never found a text

[00:42:38] which does not have a road to Christ in it.

[00:42:40] But if I ever find one,

[00:42:42] I will jump over hedge and bush

[00:42:43] in order to make a way to get to my master.

[00:42:47] For a sermon can do no good

[00:42:48] unless it has the savor of Christ in it.

[00:42:52] Now, that idea of the main street

[00:42:54] and the road out of town that leads to the metropolis,

[00:42:57] that's a great metaphor for preaching

[00:42:59] because it explains how to properly handle

[00:43:02] any given text in order to preach

[00:43:04] the whole counsel of God's Word.

[00:43:07] Every town has a main street.

[00:43:09] In the same way,

[00:43:10] every text has a main point.

[00:43:13] And it's very important

[00:43:14] that you travel the whole of the main street.

[00:43:17] Don't rush the main street.

[00:43:19] Don't skip past the main street

[00:43:21] just to get on the road that leads to the metropolis.

[00:43:24] You know, some people in their rush to get to Jesus,

[00:43:27] they'll skip over really teaching the text itself.

[00:43:31] And that's not what we're advocating for at all.

[00:43:33] We're saying this,

[00:43:34] teach the text.

[00:43:36] Don't stray too far from the main street of the text.

[00:43:39] It's okay to peek down some side streets,

[00:43:42] some alleys, if you will,

[00:43:43] to pop into some shops and see some interesting things.

[00:43:47] But listen,

[00:43:48] don't spend all your time on tangents,

[00:43:50] which aren't the main point of the text.

[00:43:52] But then,

[00:43:53] once you've explored the main point of the text,

[00:43:56] make sure to lead your people down the road from the text,

[00:44:00] which leads to Jesus.

[00:44:01] Show them how the text ultimately points to

[00:44:04] and is fulfilled by Jesus.

[00:44:06] The Bible is a book about Jesus.

[00:44:09] So therefore,

[00:44:10] when we read the Old Testament,

[00:44:12] we should expect to see certain things.

[00:44:14] For example,

[00:44:15] we should expect to see predictive passages,

[00:44:18] which talk about the coming Messiah.

[00:44:21] We should expect to see Christophanies,

[00:44:23] or appearances of Jesus in the Old Testament

[00:44:26] before he was born as a baby in Bethlehem.

[00:44:29] When we see institutions and offices,

[00:44:32] like those of the prophet and the priest and the king,

[00:44:36] we see how those foreshadow who the Messiah will be

[00:44:40] and what he will do when he comes.

[00:44:42] We also see laws and rituals in the Old Testament,

[00:44:45] which point to God's perfection and our imperfection,

[00:44:49] which show us our need for a savior

[00:44:50] and help us see our inability to save ourselves.

[00:44:54] As we read the Old Testament,

[00:44:55] we're also going to see acts of rescue and deliverance,

[00:44:59] which point to and foreshadow God's rescue of us in Jesus.

[00:45:04] That was like what Josh pointed out there in Jonah.

[00:45:08] And it's the job and duty,

[00:45:10] and by the way,

[00:45:11] also the privilege of the Bible teacher

[00:45:13] to look for those things which point to Jesus,

[00:45:17] to highlight them,

[00:45:18] to proclaim them to our listeners,

[00:45:20] to declare the good news

[00:45:22] of what God has done for us in Jesus Christ.

[00:45:25] On page 47 of your booklets,

[00:45:28] you can go ahead and turn there

[00:45:29] and thumb through it if you'd like,

[00:45:30] but there you'll find a bit more

[00:45:33] on different ways that different passages

[00:45:35] in the Bible point to Jesus.

[00:45:38] So for example,

[00:45:39] sometimes there are types and foreshadowings.

[00:45:42] Sometimes there are contrasts,

[00:45:44] like when the failure of a bad king

[00:45:46] can help point us to the true king

[00:45:49] that we have who is going to come.

[00:45:52] So faithful Bible teaching

[00:45:54] consistently shows Jesus to be the true hero.

[00:45:57] And our goal in doing this

[00:45:59] is to show people that Jesus is the true hero

[00:46:02] of every passage in the Bible.

[00:46:05] Now listen,

[00:46:06] we are not trying to make Jesus

[00:46:08] the hero of every passage in the Bible.

[00:46:11] This is not about twisting the scriptures.

[00:46:14] It is not about imposing new meaning

[00:46:17] upon the passage to make it about Jesus.

[00:46:20] No, our goal is to show

[00:46:21] what is already there,

[00:46:23] showing how each and every passage

[00:46:25] ultimately serves to point to Jesus

[00:46:27] and the salvation that he brings.

[00:46:29] Listen, in churches all over the world,

[00:46:32] there are sermons being preached

[00:46:34] which could easily be preached

[00:46:37] in a faithful Jewish synagogue

[00:46:39] without causing any uproar whatsoever.

[00:46:43] And by the way,

[00:46:44] that is a good test of your sermon.

[00:46:46] You can call it the synagogue test.

[00:46:48] If you could preach your message

[00:46:50] about the Old Testament

[00:46:52] in a Jewish synagogue

[00:46:53] and not get chased out of that place

[00:46:56] and chased down the street

[00:46:58] because you proclaim the messianic hope in Jesus,

[00:47:01] then your message might be good,

[00:47:03] might be true,

[00:47:04] but it is not complete.

[00:47:06] Now you might say,

[00:47:07] hang on,

[00:47:08] for example,

[00:47:09] I could say to you

[00:47:10] about the sermon that I just preached.

[00:47:11] I could say my sermon

[00:47:13] would pass the synagogue test

[00:47:14] because I talked about Jesus

[00:47:17] and I said really nice things about him.

[00:47:19] Okay, but listen,

[00:47:20] could that sermon be preached in a mosque?

[00:47:23] Could it be preached in a Mormon temple?

[00:47:25] Because those people also talk about Jesus,

[00:47:28] but they talk about him as an example

[00:47:30] for good moral living.

[00:47:32] They extol him as a wise man

[00:47:34] and a good teacher.

[00:47:35] But friends,

[00:47:36] isn't Jesus more than that?

[00:47:38] It isn't Jesus not just another good example,

[00:47:42] but we need to show people

[00:47:43] why Jesus is the one and only risen Savior.

[00:47:46] We have the opportunity to proclaim him as such.

[00:47:49] So may we do that

[00:47:51] every time we open the scriptures.

[00:47:53] May we preach genuinely Christian messages

[00:47:56] every time we open the scriptures

[00:47:59] and speak about them.

[00:48:01] But listen,

[00:48:01] I want you to understand one more thing.

[00:48:03] This is not only an Old Testament hermeneutic.

[00:48:07] In other words,

[00:48:08] this doesn't only apply

[00:48:09] to how we read and preach the Old Testament.

[00:48:12] We want to preach the whole Bible,

[00:48:15] both testaments,

[00:48:16] in a way that is distinctively Christian,

[00:48:18] in a way that shows Jesus

[00:48:20] to be the true hero of every passage.

[00:48:23] It is possible to teach passages

[00:48:26] which are about Jesus,

[00:48:27] for example,

[00:48:28] passages from the gospels,

[00:48:29] in a way that is actually not

[00:48:32] Christ-centered or gospel-centered.

[00:48:34] You see,

[00:48:35] if rather than proclaiming Jesus

[00:48:37] as the risen victorious Savior,

[00:48:40] if we merely make him out

[00:48:41] to be a sidekick

[00:48:42] who helps us

[00:48:44] to try harder

[00:48:45] and do better,

[00:48:46] and we are the hero of the story,

[00:48:49] we have failed to preach

[00:48:50] that text accurately,

[00:48:51] even if we're talking about

[00:48:52] New Testament texts

[00:48:54] about Jesus.

[00:48:56] At the end of the day,

[00:48:57] there are really only

[00:48:58] two kinds of messages.

[00:49:00] There are Christ-centered messages,

[00:49:01] and there are man-centered messages.

[00:49:04] And if you preach Christ

[00:49:06] in a,

[00:49:07] well, let's put it this way.

[00:49:08] If you preach

[00:49:09] in a Christ-centered way,

[00:49:10] then in every message,

[00:49:12] no matter what text

[00:49:13] you're preaching from,

[00:49:14] you will be preaching the gospel.

[00:49:16] I used to think

[00:49:17] that the only people

[00:49:18] who needed to hear the gospel

[00:49:20] were people

[00:49:21] who did not yet believe,

[00:49:23] who had not yet put

[00:49:24] their faith in Jesus.

[00:49:25] But that is simply not true.

[00:49:27] In fact,

[00:49:27] if you look at the New Testament,

[00:49:29] if you look at the epistles,

[00:49:31] for example,

[00:49:32] here's what you'll notice.

[00:49:33] The New Testament writers,

[00:49:35] they are constantly pointing

[00:49:36] to the gospel

[00:49:38] as the motivation

[00:49:39] for Christian living,

[00:49:41] as the means

[00:49:42] by which we are transformed

[00:49:44] into the image of Christ.

[00:49:46] So Paul, for example,

[00:49:46] he doesn't say,

[00:49:47] husbands, love your wives

[00:49:49] because it's the right thing to do.

[00:49:51] He doesn't say,

[00:49:52] be generous

[00:49:53] because God says

[00:49:54] that you have to be.

[00:49:56] No, he says,

[00:49:57] he points to the gospel

[00:49:58] as the model

[00:50:00] and the motivation.

[00:50:01] He says,

[00:50:01] husbands, love your wives

[00:50:03] as Christ loved the church

[00:50:04] and gave himself up for her.

[00:50:06] He says,

[00:50:06] be generous

[00:50:07] because he who was rich

[00:50:09] for your sake

[00:50:10] became poor

[00:50:11] so that through him

[00:50:12] you might receive

[00:50:13] the riches of God.

[00:50:14] It isn't only non-Christians

[00:50:17] who need to hear the gospel,

[00:50:18] but it is Christians

[00:50:19] who need to hear the gospel

[00:50:21] over and over and over again

[00:50:23] because the gospel message

[00:50:24] isn't just the way

[00:50:26] that you become a Christian,

[00:50:27] it's also the motivation

[00:50:28] by which you grow

[00:50:30] as a Christian.

[00:50:31] I'll give you one final illustration

[00:50:33] to show you the difference

[00:50:34] between these two approaches

[00:50:36] to interpreting the text.

[00:50:38] The story of David and Goliath

[00:50:40] from 1 Samuel chapter 17.

[00:50:42] In this story,

[00:50:43] David,

[00:50:44] he goes to his brothers

[00:50:45] who are on the front lines,

[00:50:47] he goes to bring them some food.

[00:50:48] He gets there,

[00:50:50] he hears about the giant Goliath

[00:50:52] who's been blaspheming God,

[00:50:54] he hears that King Saul

[00:50:55] has promised a reward

[00:50:56] to anyone who can fight Goliath

[00:50:59] and kill him.

[00:51:00] So David agrees to fight Goliath,

[00:51:02] he tells King Saul,

[00:51:03] and then what does Saul do?

[00:51:05] Saul tries to put his armor

[00:51:06] onto David,

[00:51:08] but that armor doesn't fit.

[00:51:09] So David,

[00:51:10] he takes his sling

[00:51:11] and he goes,

[00:51:12] he kills Goliath

[00:51:14] at risk of his own life,

[00:51:15] and he tells Goliath

[00:51:17] before he kills him,

[00:51:17] he says,

[00:51:18] I'm gonna defeat you,

[00:51:19] and then he slings a rock,

[00:51:20] kills Goliath,

[00:51:21] Israel is delivered,

[00:51:22] and it's a good day.

[00:51:24] So what's the application of this?

[00:51:25] Well,

[00:51:26] here are some common interpretations

[00:51:27] and applications.

[00:51:29] One goes like this,

[00:51:31] David was successful

[00:51:32] because he was faithful.

[00:51:34] Therefore,

[00:51:35] if you want to be successful,

[00:51:37] the key to success

[00:51:38] is faithfulness.

[00:51:40] So be faithful

[00:51:41] in the little things

[00:51:42] and you will be successful.

[00:51:44] Here's another one,

[00:51:45] David trusted God,

[00:51:47] and you too

[00:51:48] can face

[00:51:49] the giant problems

[00:51:50] in your life,

[00:51:51] and you can have victory

[00:51:52] over those problems

[00:51:53] if you will trust in God

[00:51:55] like David trusted in God.

[00:51:57] Here's another one,

[00:51:58] my personal favorite.

[00:51:59] David didn't put on

[00:52:01] Saul's armor

[00:52:02] because God made you special

[00:52:04] and he loves you

[00:52:04] just the way you are,

[00:52:06] and you'll never succeed

[00:52:07] if you try to be something

[00:52:08] that you're not.

[00:52:09] So you be you

[00:52:10] and God will give you victory.

[00:52:12] Now think about this.

[00:52:14] What is the common theme

[00:52:15] in all of those applications?

[00:52:19] You.

[00:52:20] You are, right?

[00:52:21] Who's the hero

[00:52:22] in that story?

[00:52:23] You.

[00:52:24] And what's God's role

[00:52:25] in that story?

[00:52:27] Yeah, he's like your sidekick

[00:52:29] who gives you a boost, right?

[00:52:30] He helps you out.

[00:52:31] So God's role,

[00:52:33] he's a supporting character

[00:52:34] in that model

[00:52:36] who assists the hero,

[00:52:39] which is you,

[00:52:40] to accomplish your goals

[00:52:41] if you will simply

[00:52:43] follow these principles.

[00:52:44] Now listen,

[00:52:46] here's why it's tricky

[00:52:47] because there is some degree

[00:52:48] of truth in all of those things.

[00:52:51] Is it good to trust in God?

[00:52:53] Of course it is.

[00:52:54] Should you be faithful?

[00:52:56] Absolutely.

[00:52:57] Can God help you overcome

[00:52:59] giant problems you're facing?

[00:53:01] Of course that's true.

[00:53:03] But you know what's lacking

[00:53:04] in those messages?

[00:53:06] Tell me.

[00:53:07] What do you think's lacking

[00:53:08] in those messages?

[00:53:10] Jesus?

[00:53:11] Well, he's in there somewhere, right?

[00:53:12] Maybe.

[00:53:13] But you know what's lacking

[00:53:14] in those?

[00:53:15] It's the gospel.

[00:53:17] There's nothing in those messages

[00:53:19] which would lead you to worship.

[00:53:22] Do you notice that?

[00:53:23] There's nothing in those messages

[00:53:24] which points to Jesus

[00:53:26] or would cause you to worship.

[00:53:28] Could those messages

[00:53:29] be preached in a synagogue?

[00:53:31] Absolutely.

[00:53:32] They wouldn't cause

[00:53:33] any uproar whatsoever.

[00:53:34] You wouldn't get chased

[00:53:35] out of there.

[00:53:36] Everyone would shake your hand

[00:53:37] afterwards and say thank you.

[00:53:38] Because there's nothing

[00:53:39] uniquely Christian

[00:53:40] about those messages.

[00:53:42] In fact,

[00:53:43] those messages,

[00:53:43] you know what they do?

[00:53:44] They inspire you

[00:53:45] to view God

[00:53:46] as useful

[00:53:48] rather than

[00:53:49] to see God

[00:53:50] as beautiful.

[00:53:52] When Jesus

[00:53:53] took his disciples

[00:53:54] through the scriptures

[00:53:56] on the eve

[00:53:57] or on the night

[00:53:58] when he was

[00:53:59] resurrected,

[00:54:00] when he explained

[00:54:02] to them

[00:54:02] how everything

[00:54:03] that was written

[00:54:03] in the Old Testament

[00:54:05] spoke of him,

[00:54:07] what do you think

[00:54:07] he said about David

[00:54:08] and Goliath?

[00:54:09] Do you think he said,

[00:54:10] and this story, guys,

[00:54:11] is about how God

[00:54:12] can help you

[00:54:13] overcome the big

[00:54:14] challenges in your life

[00:54:15] if you be you?

[00:54:17] No, no.

[00:54:18] Of course,

[00:54:19] he told them

[00:54:19] how that story

[00:54:20] was about

[00:54:20] ultimately pointing

[00:54:21] to him.

[00:54:22] Well, how is that so?

[00:54:24] Well, let me just

[00:54:24] run you through it

[00:54:25] real quick, perhaps.

[00:54:26] Perhaps it went

[00:54:27] something like this.

[00:54:28] He probably would have

[00:54:29] talked to them

[00:54:29] a little bit

[00:54:30] about the nation

[00:54:30] of Israel,

[00:54:31] the origin

[00:54:32] of the nation

[00:54:33] of Israel,

[00:54:33] the promises

[00:54:34] that God made

[00:54:35] to this nation

[00:54:36] about the Savior

[00:54:37] which he would

[00:54:39] bring about

[00:54:39] through them.

[00:54:40] And now,

[00:54:41] in this scenario,

[00:54:42] in this story,

[00:54:43] this true event

[00:54:44] that took place,

[00:54:45] Israel as a nation

[00:54:46] was at risk

[00:54:47] of extermination

[00:54:48] because of something

[00:54:49] called representative

[00:54:50] warfare

[00:54:51] in which Goliath

[00:54:52] was challenging

[00:54:53] the people of Israel

[00:54:54] and whichever side's

[00:54:56] champion won the battle,

[00:54:57] their entire nation

[00:54:59] would be victorious

[00:55:00] and the other nation

[00:55:01] would be wiped out.

[00:55:03] So the people

[00:55:04] of Israel, right,

[00:55:05] they need a champion

[00:55:06] who can fight for them

[00:55:07] against this great enemy

[00:55:08] and what's at stake

[00:55:10] is not just their lives

[00:55:11] but the destiny

[00:55:12] of their souls

[00:55:13] and by the way,

[00:55:14] our souls as well.

[00:55:16] And sadly,

[00:55:17] no champion can be found

[00:55:18] who can defeat

[00:55:19] this great enemy

[00:55:20] that they're facing.

[00:55:21] They're doomed.

[00:55:22] It's tragic.

[00:55:23] It's a hopeless situation.

[00:55:24] They needed a champion

[00:55:26] who could fight for them

[00:55:27] and save them

[00:55:28] and yet when David came,

[00:55:31] how was he received?

[00:55:32] The people he came to

[00:55:34] did not receive him

[00:55:36] but they in fact mocked him

[00:55:37] because he didn't fit

[00:55:38] their expectations

[00:55:39] of what a savior

[00:55:40] should be like

[00:55:41] or would be like

[00:55:42] and how a savior

[00:55:43] was going to fight for them

[00:55:45] to give them victory

[00:55:46] and yet David goes out,

[00:55:48] he fights the battle,

[00:55:49] he defeats the giant

[00:55:50] and because he's victorious,

[00:55:53] everyone who is on his side

[00:55:55] is victorious as a result

[00:55:57] even though they didn't do anything.

[00:55:59] They didn't contribute

[00:56:00] to the victory

[00:56:01] yet they are counted

[00:56:02] as victors

[00:56:03] and they get the spoils

[00:56:05] of his victory.

[00:56:07] Friends, in the same way,

[00:56:08] Jesus, the son of David,

[00:56:10] the one who had David's blood

[00:56:12] flowing through his veins,

[00:56:14] he was sent by God

[00:56:15] to be the champion

[00:56:16] that we needed

[00:56:17] and because he was victorious

[00:56:19] over the true enemies

[00:56:20] of sin, Satan, and death,

[00:56:23] we who are in his camp,

[00:56:25] though we did nothing to earn it,

[00:56:27] we are now counted

[00:56:28] as victors in him.

[00:56:29] He defeated the enemy

[00:56:31] not at risk of his life

[00:56:33] but at the cost of his life

[00:56:35] and as a result of his victory,

[00:56:37] we no longer need to fear

[00:56:39] the enemies that arise

[00:56:40] in our lives

[00:56:41] because he has already defeated

[00:56:42] the greatest enemies.

[00:56:44] Do you see the difference

[00:56:46] between those two approaches?

[00:56:47] The first says,

[00:56:49] here's what you need to do

[00:56:50] and you need to do it more

[00:56:52] and you need to do it better.

[00:56:53] The second one says,

[00:56:55] here is what the Savior

[00:56:57] has done for you.

[00:56:58] Here's how great

[00:56:59] the love of God is.

[00:57:00] Here is how he has met

[00:57:02] your greatest need.

[00:57:03] Look how trustworthy

[00:57:04] and faithful

[00:57:05] and great he is.

[00:57:07] He's the hero,

[00:57:08] not me.

[00:57:09] And that kind of message,

[00:57:11] it drives us to worship.

[00:57:13] The first approach

[00:57:14] causes you to focus

[00:57:15] on yourself

[00:57:16] and what you need to do.

[00:57:17] The second approach

[00:57:19] causes you to focus

[00:57:19] on Jesus

[00:57:21] and what he's done for you.

[00:57:22] The first approach

[00:57:23] leads to either guilt

[00:57:24] or pride.

[00:57:26] Guilt if you're not succeeding

[00:57:28] and pride if you are.

[00:57:30] The second approach

[00:57:32] always leads to

[00:57:33] humility

[00:57:34] and appreciation

[00:57:35] because of what God

[00:57:37] has done for you

[00:57:38] in Christ.

[00:57:39] And the second message

[00:57:40] also speaks

[00:57:41] both to Christians

[00:57:42] and non-Christians.

[00:57:45] You don't have to choose

[00:57:46] whether this is a time

[00:57:47] for you to speak

[00:57:48] to Christians

[00:57:48] or to non-Christians

[00:57:49] because as you preach Jesus,

[00:57:51] you're speaking to both.

[00:57:53] Showing how this text

[00:57:55] points to Jesus

[00:57:56] and His saving work

[00:57:57] not only reflects

[00:57:58] the true nature

[00:57:59] of Scripture,

[00:58:00] but it leads us

[00:58:01] to want to worship Him more.

[00:58:03] So Christ-centered preaching,

[00:58:05] it's not only faithful

[00:58:06] to the Scriptures,

[00:58:07] it is what you

[00:58:08] and your listeners need

[00:58:10] in order to grow

[00:58:11] in the grace

[00:58:12] and knowledge

[00:58:13] of Jesus Christ.

[00:58:16] All right.

[00:58:17] Well, thanks for listening

[00:58:18] all the way to the end.

[00:58:19] I love that module.

[00:58:21] Maybe the careful listeners

[00:58:22] to the show

[00:58:23] have noticed

[00:58:24] that every six months or so

[00:58:27] we release kind of

[00:58:28] a new version

[00:58:29] of that same episode.

[00:58:31] Myself and Nick

[00:58:32] kind of go back and forth

[00:58:34] teaching the same content

[00:58:36] in person

[00:58:36] at our various training events.

[00:58:38] It's core.

[00:58:39] It's central.

[00:58:40] And perish the thought

[00:58:42] that we would just

[00:58:44] say something once

[00:58:45] and then never mention it again.

[00:58:47] Since it's so important to us,

[00:58:48] we want to keep playing it

[00:58:50] again and again

[00:58:52] and again.

[00:58:53] Well, next Tuesday, though,

[00:58:56] it's not going to be

[00:58:56] the same episode

[00:58:57] all over again.

[00:58:58] Next Tuesday

[00:58:59] is a great conversation

[00:59:01] that I had

[00:59:01] with Danny Zaharyanski.

[00:59:03] He is a pastor

[00:59:05] in his home nation

[00:59:07] of Serbia.

[00:59:08] We've done some ministry

[00:59:10] together

[00:59:10] in the beginning

[00:59:12] of 2024

[00:59:13] and I'd like you

[00:59:15] to get a chance

[00:59:15] to get to know him

[00:59:16] a little better

[00:59:17] and learn from

[00:59:19] his insights.

[00:59:20] So that's next Tuesday

[00:59:21] and I hope

[00:59:23] that this conversation

[00:59:24] and all that we do

[00:59:25] at Expositors Collective

[00:59:26] helps you to grow

[00:59:27] in your personal study

[00:59:28] and public proclamation

[00:59:30] of God's word.

[00:59:32] This podcast

[00:59:33] is a part of CGN Media,

[00:59:34] a podcast network

[00:59:35] that points to Christ.

[00:59:36] We are supported

[00:59:37] by listeners like you.

[00:59:38] To help us create

[00:59:39] more great shows,

[00:59:40] visit cgnmedia.org

[00:59:42] slash support.

[00:59:43] Thank you.

[00:59:44] Thank you.