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6 · Sarcastically exposes the error of labeling the disciples naive for believing Christ's kingdom would manifest on earth as in heaven — this is exactly what Jesus taught them to expect

There are plenty who would say that this question is rooted in a naivete, but to put it sarcastically, how dare these people think that Christ's kingdom would come and his will would be done on earth as it is in heaven. They're not naive for thinking that. Jesus has communicated that very thing to them over and over again. The kingdom has come. The kingdom will make a practical, tangible difference.

7 · Diagnoses relegating God's work to the purely spiritual as dead religion

When we relegate all things of God to the spiritual and it doesn't have any practical effect on us, well, that's called dead religion, right? The kingdom of God is is coming, has come, and will produce tangible effects. And the disciples' question about whether it would be now or later, and the terms of that kingdom coming, are actually not naive. They mean that they— it implies that they are rooted deeper into Christ's understanding of the kingdom than many of us.

8 · Calls the congregation to adopt the disciples' posture of expecting the kingdom to manifest tangibly in every domain of life — job, marriage, parenting, budget — rather than remaining safely abstract

In other words, I think it would be appropriate for us— and I'll talk about how we process being wrong about this— it would be appropriate for us to always be looking out into the world asking, How can your kingdom come into this moment? How can your kingdom manifest, be tangible, produce outcomes in this moment? How can the truth of the gospel affect this real world, my real life, my real job, my marriage, my parenting, and my budget? That's, that's more like what the disciples are asking right now. And I would say that many times we fail to ask that.

9 · Signals a shift into deeper exposition, setting up the Old Testament context that shapes the disciples' question

But let me give you a little bit more of a reason why I don't think the disciples' question was entirely dumb. I think there were definitely some misguided expectations we'll deal with, but let me give you a bit of background here.

10 · Rereads Acts 1:4-5 to highlight Jesus' promise of Spirit baptism, setting up the emotional and theological weight this language would carry for the disciples

Jesus had just said in John— sorry, in Acts chapter 1, verse 4, while staying with them, and he ordered them not to depart from Jerusalem but to wait for the promise of the Father, which he said, you heard from me For John baptized with water, but ye will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now. If you want to just turn me down a little bit more, I'll just talk louder. I can get a lot of feedback. He says to them, for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit many days from now.

11 · Traces the disciples' emotional and theological context when hearing 'baptized with the Spirit

Now that seems in a sense to be a bit of a, okay, all right, wait, wait, and this will happen. What you need to remember is that in this moment, this moment, this saying is just deep with emotional quality for the disciples. First of all, just recognize that water has a special emotional quality to it that we don't necessarily think of. If you're living in an arid environment in particular, just the use of the word water evokes a different kind of feeling than what we would have. In the scriptures, great water, a great amount of water, is a sign of judgment or chaos or even death. A small amount of water is a sign of life, right? So just even the use of the word water, the use of the word baptism as a reference to the Holy Spirit, there's a different feeling in their ears, in their hearts, than you and I would have. But there's also a bit of nostalgia happening here. We can't forget that some of these disciples started their kingdom journey under John the Baptist. In Belleville terms, John the Baptist was their OG, their original gangster. He was their first rabbi. Jesus is their second rabbi. But John— many of these people experienced baptism with John at the Jordan. And so now Jesus is bringing back memories and connections to this previous, this first installation of their seeking the kingdom. Jesus is bringing them back to this moment. And of course, we know that moment doesn't end especially well. Their beloved John the Baptist was beheaded by whom? A king named Herod, a puppet of the Roman state, right? A false leader. Now think of the poetic justice they must be feeling in this moment. The political symmetry is enticing. The idea being that King Jesus has just risen from the grave, putting to shame all of the authorities who tried to kill him. And now it's possible that the cousin of John might rise up and take over the Herod throne. Right? This whole idea that King Jesus, the cousin of John, has come to possibly, they think, right? To take this throne, to restore the Kingdom of Israel. So there's a lot going on here. But additionally, they know their Old Testaments better than we do. This is something we must always remember. They know their Old Testaments better than we do. And when Jesus begins talking about being baptized with the Spirit, that is such a very specific piece of imagery they would have gone back to Ezekiel 36. And I'm going to walk you through Ezekiel 36. Ezekiel 37, you probably know because that's the passage where Ezekiel prophesies over the valley of dry bones and death is brought into life. It's a picture of regeneration. But Ezekiel 36 is explaining how we got there, how we get there. The very beginning of that chapter says to Ezekiel, 'Prophesy over Israel, prophesy over Israel.' And it says in verse 2, I'm just going to summarize the chapter. It says in verse 2, because your enemies have said, aha— preached about this a number of, maybe a couple months ago— because your enemies have said, aha, because they have treated you with contempt, I will treat your enemies with contempt, but I will treat you with kindness. Your branches will shoot forth and you will yield fruit. Verse 9, He says declaratively, for behold, I am for you, and I will turn to you. Verse 11, I will multiply people on you, and I will do more good to you than ever before. Verse 15, and I will not let you hear anymore the reproach of the nations, and you shall no longer bear the disgrace of the peoples and no longer cause your nation to stumble, declares the Lord. Verses 16 through 23 or so, God repeats a familiar refrain: I will do this for my name's sake. Repeatedly, I will do this for my name's sake. And then in verse 25, he says this: I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean from all your uncleanness. From all your idols I will cleanse you, and I will give you a new heart. A new spirit I will put within you, and And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. Verse 27: And I will put my Spirit within you and cause you to walk in my statutes and be careful to obey my rules. You shall dwell in the land that I gave your fathers, and you shall be my people, and I will be your God. Now, just real quickly, in verse 35, this idea of restoration becomes more magnified. Verse 35 of Ezekiel 36 says, 'And they will say, 'This land that was desolate has become like the Garden of Eden, and the waste and desolate and ruined cities are now fortified and inhabited.' Then the nations that are left all around you shall know that I am the Lord. I have rebuilt the ruined places and have replanted that which was desolate. I am the Lord.' I have spoken, I will do it.

12 · Directly asserts that Jesus' baptism-with-Spirit language is Ezekiel 36 language, and Ezekiel 36 is about kingdom restoration — therefore the disciples' question is theologically grounded, not naive

When Jesus begins to use the imagery of baptism connected to the Holy Spirit, we're going right back to this idea of I will sprinkle water on you, I will make you clean, I will give you a new heart, I will put my Spirit within you. That's all language rooted in Ezekiel 36, which is a passage about the restoration of of the kingdom. If you were them, you would have seen it that way, as a restoration of the kingdom.

13 · Pivots from defending the disciples' question to acknowledging their definitions need correction

We're going to find as we progress through this message that terms like restoration and kingdom have different definitions than what they thought they had, and that God's carrying around these definitions from all time, and we're just kind of realizing them, we're seeing them. God's progressively revealing those things to us through Scripture.

14 · Summarizes the thesis: the disciples were right at the core but wrong in details

So let's just say this. The disciples were actually not that far off, but they were wrong at a number of levels, and I want to talk about that for a minute. I want to talk about the idea of being zealous for truth, being biased toward action, and some of the things you might expect if you chose to be biased toward action.

15 · Articulates the core pastoral principle: once you commit to expecting tangible kingdom fruit, you will make errors, but these are superior to the errors of those who never act

The kingdom is supposed to bear tangible fruit. The gospel is supposed to change the world. Once you decide that, you are going to start making mistakes, but they will be mistakes of action rather than mistakes of inaction.

16 · Repeats the claim with prophetic edge: those who act will be criticized by the passive, who pride themselves on being reasonable but are actually just inactive

Let me say this again: the kingdom is supposed to bear tangible fruit. The gospel is supposed to change the world. Once you decide that, you will, by someone still on their couch, be called rash unsophisticated. All sorts of people will have things to criticize you for because you're actually doing something. You're actually trying. So all the cool kids can sit on the bench and point out all of your errors. All of those who take pride mostly in being reasonably passive— emphasis on passive, though they emphasize reasonable— have now fodder with which to disagree about your actions.

17 · Reinforces the bias-toward-action theme with a quotation from Moody, establishing historical precedent for the pastor's position

And as I said last week, the famous quote from— I believe it was Moody— said, 'I like the way I'm doing it wrong better than the way you're not doing it at all.'

18 · Summarizes the disciples' core correctness despite detail errors, then introduces Proverbs 14:4 as the governing metaphor: a clean stable with no ox produces no crops; a strong ox makes a mess but produces abundance

The truth is, is the disciples are wrong about much of their expectations related to the kingdom, but they are right at the central core in a way that we often are not. They expected the kingdom to come. They expected it to change their world. They expected the gospel to bear tangible fruit, not only in their spiritual lives, not only in their devotionals, but also in their houses of Congress, on their maps, and in their laws. They expected the kingdom to bear tangible fruit. Were they right about all of the details? They were wrong about most of the details. And it would still be better to have a bias toward action than to sit on the bench like the cool kids criticizing those who do. Proverbs 14:4 says that where there are no oxen, the manger is clean, but abundant crops come by the strength of the ox. Where there are no oxen, the manger is clean. But abundant crops come by the strength of the ox. This is a good Father's Day verse. Here's the deal: you can have a clean stable, or you can have a strong ox. If you have a clean stable, it will stay clean because you won't have abundant crops. If you have a strong ox, you will have a dirty stable, but you will have abundant crops.

19 · Qualifies the bias-toward-action posture: it must coexist with patience, humility, and submission

We want to cultivate nurture a culture with a bias toward action without throwing away the importance of patience and humility and submission. We do want to rescue and redeem ambition because that is a fruit of the gospel.

20 · Extends the ox metaphor: even the ox's mess turns into fertilizer

A strong ox will make a mess, and we will be upset at this stupid ox for making a mess. What we will find though is that the strong ox brings abundant crops and that some of his mess winds up being fertilizer too. We're just dealing, we're just walking in this kind of passive stage right now as a people where there's so much aversion to risk, so much fear of suffering, so much fear of pain and discomfort, so much bias against action.

21 · Argues that refinement requires making mistakes, not avoiding them

Yes, the disciples needed to be refined. Refinement happens by being wrong, by making choices and screwing up and being humbled. Refinement doesn't happen sitting on the sidelines with a strong case of FOMO— fear of missing out, for the non-cool kids in the room.

22 · Names the cultural bias against choosing, doing, progressing, and marching as contrary to kingdom values

This bias against choosing, against doing, against progressing, against— dare I say it— marching is not, is not what the kingdom is meant to produce.

23 · Concludes the ox metaphor with a doxological turn: Jesus specializes in loving strong oxen — those who make messes through action rather than maintaining clean stables through inaction

So yes, they were wrong, but they were wrong in a way that needed to be refined. And Jesus specializes in loving strong ox.

24 · Pivots from defending the disciples' core correctness to examining the specifics of their error, maintaining structural balance between affirmation and correction

The disciples were on one hand right at a level in which we are not often right. But let's talk for a moment now about in which ways they were wrong.

25 · Diagnoses the first dimension of the disciples' error: their vision of the kingdom was geographically too small

You could simply say this: their vision of the kingdom was too small, right? Their vision of the kingdom was too small. Verse 6, Acts chapter 1, if you want to look back at it again: 'Will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?' They had a scope and a sequencing, right? They had— this is, again, it's a good thing they had a scope and a sequence. They actually expected a thing to happen in a specific amount of time. As it turns out, their scope was way off, right? Their vision was too small in many respects. Back in Genesis chapter 12, verse, you know, verse 1 through 3 or 4, God does something very interesting. He covenantalizes— I don't think that's an actual word— he covenantalizes the creation mandate. So we've been talking about the creation mandate as we've been discussing the kingship of Jesus. The creation mandate to rule and subdue the earth, to be fruitful and multiply, essentially to fill the world with worshipers. In Genesis 12, God approaches Abraham. He chooses a man, he chooses a person, and says, through you, this creation mandate will proceed. He covenantalizes the creation mandate. He says all nations will be blessed through you, Abraham, my chosen one. And I don't think that the Jews ever really comprehended their role on the global stage as it relates to being called to be a nation of priests, right? But that's the idea. That's what God did to Abraham. God turned the creation mandate into covenant and said, you will be the one. Through you, I will bless all my people. So the kingdom vision of Christ is way bigger than a geographic piece of land called Israel.

26 · Introduces the paradox of Israel's identity: not all biological Israel is true Israel, and many non-biological descendants are Abraham's children

The kingdom is way bigger than the disciples understood. This is going to sound confusing, but let it. Let it just kind of rake across your brain. It takes about half of the book of Acts for the disciples to realize that not all Israel is Israel. And that a lot of non-Israel is Israel, and that not all of Abraham's children are Abraham's children, and a lot of non-Abraham's children are actually Abraham's children.

27 · Clarifies that the shift from biological to spiritual transmission of the covenant is not a late innovation but the unfolding of God's eternal plan

It took them a long time to see that shift, which wasn't really a shift. It was the unfolding of God's plan all along, that the shift would be away from a biological transmission of the creation mandate. Creation mandate being rule and subdue, be fruitful and multiply. What does it mean to be fruitful and multiply? Well, it has always meant, at least we thought it did, have babies and raise them, right? Nothing has negated that, but what's come into being is the importance, the centrality indeed, of a spiritual transmission of the covenant where you must be born again.

28 · Articulates the epochal shift Christ brings: loyalty formerly defined by biological blood is now defined by Christ's blood; covenant transmission shifts from biological birth to spiritual birth

For most of history, blood has been the tying factor, right? The locust of loyalty has been blood relationship. Who I'm related to is who I am loyal to. Christ came, and now our relation is through his blood, and the covenant is passed through his blood, which is through being born again, being born of the Spirit.

29 · Summarizes the disciples' error in three contrasts: biology vs

So in some ways, the disciples are still thinking biologically when they should be thinking about evangelism. They're still thinking race, right, when they should be thinking about regeneration. They're still thinking geography when they should be thinking global. Like, they're still thinking a piece of land, they should be thinking globally. In many ways, they're thinking too small.

30 · Provides the corrected definitions: Israel = all elect in Christ for all time; kingdom = the whole earth ruled by the sons of God; restore = Eden on steroids

The truth is, is that their definition of kingdom, their definition of restoration, their definition of Israel, they're all too small. They're all too limited. And as they will progress through the experience of God kindly giving them faith and peace all the way through Acts 10, where Peter's totally just confronted with this idea, God progressively helps them to see that the word Israel actually refers to all those who were elect in Christ for all time, and that the word kingdom is properly defined by the whole earth ruled and subdued by the sons of God, and that the word restore is basically referring to the idea of Eden on steroids.

31 · Establishes that progressive revelation enlarges meaning rather than diminishing it

These words have to mean something, and over time they mean more. Not less. And the apostles, the disciples, they're coming to terms with that.

32 · Explains how the disciples' small scope produces a mistaken 'when' expectation

Now they ask, 'Will you at this time do all of this?' And if it's this limited kind of little thing where God's restoring a particular country, then the answer is, 'Oh, that could happen any second.' Because their scope is too small, their sequencing, their ordering is too small, too immediate. But once they realize that God intends to redeem the whole earth, And once they realize that all peoples are called to obey and believe in Jesus, and that the Gentiles must be brought in, and that they are sheep not in this fold, then the 'when' question takes care of itself.

33 · Provides the simple answer to the 'when' question: when the final person is saved

The 'when' question is simply this. The 'when' question is answered simply this: when the final person is saved. That's the 'when.' And Jesus rightly says in response to that question in verse 6, He rightly says in verse 7, That's not for you. That's above your pay grade. The timeline is just way beyond. You don't even understand what the word kingdom means yet. We're not going to have a conversation about the winds. That's not for you. That's under my Father. That's his authority.

34 · Alerts the congregation that the sermon is pivoting to its central application moment

Now, all of that's lead up to this very important point. So grab your attention span and bring it back.

35 · Introduces the paradox: the disciples' vision was also too big in another dimension

Because not only was this idea of the kingdom too small, but in other ways it was too big. And everything I'm going to say here can be addressed to both genders, all two of them. But I want to specifically speak to the men in the church this morning, as I began to speak to them last week.

36 · Explains the 'too big' dimension: the disciples think at the historical, corporate level, but Jesus redirects them to the personal level by shifting from corporate language ('restore Israel') to personal pronouns ('you will receive power')

In many respects, the disciples' vision of the kingdom is too big. You say, well, how can that be? You just said it was too small. Listen, they're thinking at a historical level. They're expecting the gospel to change history, and it will. But Jesus, what does he do? He begins to— he takes all of the corporate language, will you at this time restore Israel, all the corporate language in the question, and he reintroduces the personal pronoun. And he says, it's not for you, but you will stay in Jerusalem, and you will receive power from on high, and you will be my witnesses.

37 · The core theological move: Jesus changes history by changing hearts one at a time

So in some respects, they're thinking at a historical level, and he's saying, yes, I'm going to change the world, but I'm going to do it by changing you. I'm going to restore the kingdom, but I will do so by restoring my court, by restoring those who will rule, by restoring, in this case, these men. If you've ever noticed, history just tends to repeat itself, which doesn't fit at all with the kind of eschatology I embrace, which is optimistic and progressive. Like, why does history keep repeating itself? Well, to the extent that history does repeat itself, it does because our hearts are the same. The hearts of mankind are broken and fallen and cursed in futility. And because the heart is broken and fallen and cursed in futility, everything repeats itself in a cycle of futility. But what if Jesus started making new hearts? What if that's the whole point? What if the plan for Jesus to change history is to redeem humanity one heart at a time? And if the whole idea is that he is restoring men and women back into the relationship for which they were always designed, back into an environment for which they were always designed— I'm not saying this is an exhaustive list, But I will tell you that a fully functioning human being created as God intended him to live must have 3 things. He must have a high purpose. He must have a harmonious people. And he must have a holy presence. He must have those 3 things. And I'm using 'a,' but it's really 'the' in all 3, right? It's not just any high purpose. It's not just any holy presence. But you must have these 3 things. This is— God created man in the original operating system with which he was equipped to have these three things as contingent upon being fully alive. That was the original human condition. So a high purpose, which was the command to rule and subdue the earth. A harmonious people to walk in fellowship with other human beings. And a holy presence, God actively present in creation actively present in creation, His manifest presence in creation, walking in the garden in the cool of the day. Now, there are moments of relief in scriptures, moments of shalom, where you see these three things happening, right? Eden is an obvious example. The Garden City at the end of time is another obvious example. But Acts 2:42-48 is another example. Let me read that to you here. And I want you to listen for these three things: harmonious people, holy presence, and high purpose. Verse 42, they devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers. And awe came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were being done through the apostles. And all who believed were together and had all things in common. And they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all as any had need. And day by day, attending the temple together and breaking bread in their homes, They received their food with glad and generous hearts, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved. Right? These three things are present when we see people, especially alive in the scriptures. These three things are part of that experience, are a big part of that experience. And when we see things especially bleak, hopeless, dark, broken, these three things are especially removed.

38 · Applies the three-things framework personally: the congregation's joy and aliveness correlate directly to the presence or absence of high purpose, harmonious people, and holy presence in their lived experience

Friends, this is true in your life too and in my life. When these things are in abundance in my life, in my actual experience, I'm experiencing a level of joy and aliveness that I don't experience when these things are not a part of my conscious experience.

39 · Redirects from subjective experience to Christ's objective work

But I don't want to mostly talk about our conscious experience. I want to talk about what Christ is doing because The apostles are asking, will You restore the Kingdom? And Jesus' answer is, I will restore you.

40 · Expounds Acts 1:7-8 as Jesus' promise to restore the three things: high purpose (witnesses to the ends of the earth), harmonious people (implied in the unified mission), and holy presence (the Holy Spirit coming upon them)

I will bring these three things back into your life. I will restore these things and you will become fully alive. He said in verse 7, Acts 1, 'It is not for you to know the times or seasons that the Father has fixed by His own authority, but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you.' And you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and all Judea and Samaria and to the ends of the earth.

41 · Identifies the high purpose as the Great Commission, which is the creation mandate given back by the new Adam (Christ) and refined into making disciples through evangelism

Their high purpose, right? The high purpose is restored. They're being given the creation mandate back from the new and perfect Adam. They're being given this mandate, and now it's the Great Commission, which is the further elevation and refinement of the Great Commandment, or the creation mandate. It's the go into all the world, be fruitful, multiply, and By telling people about Jesus, making disciples.

42 · Identifies the harmonious people: the disciples are a small, unified band (likely referencing John 17, not Acts 17) — not in perfect harmony, but relating differently because of Christ's work

They're a small band because of Christ's prayer in Acts 17. They're a small band of unified, harmonious people. Is it perfect harmony? Absolutely not. But you do see this idea of a people relating to one another differently than they did before.

43 · Qualifies the restoration language: the restoration is not a return to Eden but an advance beyond it

Now, I want to be clear. I'm not talking about a one-to-one return to Eden. That's not God's plan. The end of God's plan will look better than the beginning of God's plan. God's not trying to undo a mistake He made thousands of years ago. This is all going the way He wants it to go.

44 · Clarifies the eschatological order: God makes individual humans fully alive first, and these redeemed humans are the firstfruits of a fully restored creation

So I'm not talking about a one-to-one return to Eden, but what I am saying is that God is making human beings fully alive. And those human beings, as they become fully alive, will be the firstfruits of a creation made fully alive. Will be the firstfruits of a world fully restored.

45 · Traces the typological innovations in the new covenant iteration: conversion replaces procreation, spiritual birth replaces biological, dying to self replaces dominion, the curse becomes redemptive instrument

The fulfillment of their purpose turns out to be— there's all these little innovations in this iteration. I think like a programmer sometimes. This is the iteration, this is the improvements. The fulfillment of their purpose turns out to be more about conversion than procreation. The family of God turns out not to be mostly biological, but rather those who are born of the Spirit. The ruling and subduing turns out to happen through dying to self. The curse becomes an instrument in the Redeemer's hands. So you have this pivot where it's the blood, sweat, and tears of Adam tilling the soil to bring about food, giving way to the blood, sweat, and tears of the apostles tilling the earth with the Word of God. The experience of Eve bearing and raising children, the painful experience of Eve bearing and raising children become the experience of the church and making disciples as we help one another grow up. Paul's ministry as an evangelist, as an apostle to the nations, it was a very paternal and maternal ministry. He was a parent to these churches. So this shift begins to show up, this development rather.

46 · Elevates the third element — holy presence — as the most significant loss in the Fall and the most significant restoration in redemption

But the biggest innovation of all has to do with the way God's presence is involved. The biggest painful, I mean, it's not even close, the biggest tragedy of the fall was losing fellowship with God. Losing enjoyment of God's presence.

47 · Expounds Acts 1:8 as the answer to how God's presence relates to His people from this point forward: the indwelling Holy Spirit empowers witness, restoring the holy presence element

So as Jesus is restoring these people and bringing them back with the high purpose, putting them back with the harmonious people, the most important thing is the holy presence. How does that fit into this category? That's what Jesus says. He says, as the kingdom is being brought in, as I restore you, the essential piece has to do with how my presence will relate to my people. From this point forward. And so he says, verse 8, but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and all Judea and Samaria and to the ends of the earth.

48 · Synthesizes the three elements into a doxological climax: the gospel's intention is to make you fully alive by restoring high purpose, harmonious people, and holy presence, moving you from pessimism to optimism, defense to offense, passivity to activity

Man, it would be the intent— the intention of the gospel, the intention of this time, the intention of what Jesus has done is to make you fully alive. Alive, to bring you back to the high purpose, to connect you into the harmonious people, and to put inside of you his holy presence. That's what he's doing. He's bringing you back to the sunrise. He's bringing you back to the optimism and not the pessimism. He's bringing you back to playing offense and not defense. He's giving you the power you need to be active and not passive. You're supposed to be the head of creation, not the tail, and redemption in the gospel makes that possible.

49 · Defines harmonious community: not avoidance of difficult conversations but grace-covered engagement with hard things

You were created to live in authentic community. You were supposed to be known and to know. You're created to live in harmony. By the way, not harmony that means we don't talk about hard things. That's not harmony, that's Cold War. That's right, harmony meaning we do talk about hard things and grace covers it all.

50 · Previews the coming sermon series on the Holy Spirit and applies the high purpose to the congregation: you are supposed to be a disciple making disciples, and the Spirit makes this possible

In the coming weeks, as we begin to discuss the ministry of the Holy Spirit, you will see how the empowering of the Holy Spirit indwelt in us makes it possible to live in harmonious community and to fulfill that higher purpose that God's given each one of you. Which is to make disciples. You are supposed to be a disciple making disciples. You are supposed to be made as more of a disciple as you make disciples.

51 · Provides the mechanism: Christ empowers obedience and the fully alive life through the indwelling Holy Spirit

How does all this happen? Christ empowers you through the indwelling of the Holy Spirit.

52 · Signals the shift into direct, concrete application of the sermon's theological claims

Now let's just make some basic applications here.

53 · Applies the central claim evangelistically and pastorally: you cannot have the three elements — high purpose, harmonious people, holy presence — without Christ

You are not fully alive without these three things. You are not fully alive without these three things, and you cannot have these three things without Christ. This is why Jesus came. This is why Jesus lived, died, was raised, ascended, and rules right now. He is restoring. He is redeeming humanity.

54 · Diagnoses counterfeit purpose: video games, careers, lawns, pornography — all artificial ruling and subduing substitutes for the true higher purpose of disciple-making

You are not alive without these three things. If you had enough self-awareness, you would see how in all sorts of ways you are just like every other human being moving through this life trying to counterfeit purpose. We love to pick on people who play video games and it is an easy target, pun intended. But video games for men, especially men who don't see it, are artificial ruling and subduing. It's an artificial environment in which you're building stuff and tearing stuff down. You're artificially being active, right? But men, many of you have artificial ruling and subduing all over the place. Like, your career is an artificial ruling and subduing, you know. You know, your lawn is an artificial ruling and subduing. We know deep down we are built for this higher purpose, and we manufacture fake substitutes of this higher purpose. Right now, I just want to ask, is there a counterfeit ruling and subduing that's happening in your life that's keeping you from embracing the higher purpose of being a disciple-making disciple? Is there a hobby? Is there a job? Is there anything? What's the fake version of this? Because you want this. It's happening somewhere. This is what pornography is. It's an artificial ruling and subduing. It's an artificial fruitfulness.

55 · Diagnoses counterfeit community: fear of being known produces the posture of the cool kids on the bench criticizing those pursuing authentic community

Secondly, if you don't have harmonious community, you're not fully alive. And my goodness, most people are really afraid to know and be fully known and will often decide to choose instead to be the cool kids on the bench criticizing those who are actually trying to engage in a deeper community.

56 · Contrasts counterfeit community in the world (alcohol-lubricated superficiality) and in the church ('How you doing?' 'Good'), then diagnoses criticism of imperfect but genuine community attempts as the passive criticizing the active

In the world, we see this as a lubrication with plenty of alcohol and banal conversation and a fake kind of community. In the church, often I think we see it as, 'How you doing?' 'Good.' 'How you doing?' 'Good.' 'See you next week.' And simultaneous to that, a reaction, a criticism of legitimate community as it's appearing in our church, because it's not entirely right, it's not entirely square. There's excess, there's problems. And so the passive one on the bench criticizes the active one on the field.

57 · Applies the third element evangelistically: you are not alive without the indwelling Spirit, which comes through faith in Jesus — not merely for forgiveness but as your way of life and hope in death

Most importantly, you're not alive unless you have received power from on high, and you receive power from on high when you place your faith in Jesus. And you trust in His righteousness, not only, not only as a get-out-of-free-hell pass, but also as your way of life, your hope for life and for death.

58 · Personal story: a woman who wandered into the church was told by the pastor's wife not to assume the congregation was inherently different from her — their togetherness is Christ's work, not natural righteousness

You know, a number of months ago we had someone wander in. This has happened obviously a lot in our ministry in a more urban context before this, but even here we had someone wander in need help. And they were in a really tough situation, a woman. And somehow she wound up being next. I think she talked to my wife first. My wife, it was very interesting, she said to this woman, this young 20-something girl, do not look around and think that all these people have everything figured out and that you can never be one of these people. She's like, don't let that be the excuse that keeps you from asking deeper questions. She's like, every— I used to be— she said, I used to be you. My childhood was your childhood. These people that you see that look like they have their stuff together, they actually do have more together than you do. You're right. But that is because of Christ, and that is because of his redeeming and restoring their hearts and bringing them fully alive, beginning to be fully alive with this purpose and with this community and with the presence of God.

59 · Addresses the lie that the fully alive life is for naturally outgoing or risky people, or for extroverts rather than introverts

So don't look at these people and think that there's just two kinds of people in the world: the happy shiny people and then the people like me. My, that's such a lie you hear so often. And it even shows up, it could even be here right now. Do not think, do not think that this life, this fully alive life, is somehow reserved for people with a naturally higher tolerance for risk or intimacy. Do not think that this fully alive life is mostly available to extroverts and not to introverts. Friends, that's not it at all. What's happening here is the empowerment of Christ's commands

60 · Introduces the lie that the gospel lowers God's expectations — a setup for the corrective claim that follows

This little lie about the Gospel is that when the Gospel came, the expectations of God were dropped. Right? When the Gospel came, God's expectations were dropped. So that what we hear often is, is like, 'Well, the Law's gone.'

61 · Corrects the lie: the gospel elevates God's expectations, not lowers them

But what you see when Jesus comes is an elevation of God's expectations. Not an articulation of an elevated expectation.

62 · Illustrates the elevated expectation with Jesus' teaching on lust in the Sermon on the Mount — the law forbade adultery, but Jesus says lust is adultery

So, for instance, related to lust. There's a standard before Jesus that we all think we know, and then Jesus says, 'If you've looked at a woman with lust, you've committed adultery.'

63 · Illustrates the elevated expectation with Jesus' teaching on murder in the Sermon on the Mount — the law forbade murder, but Jesus says hatred is murder

Murder. We think we know what murder is. Jesus comes and says, 'If you've hated your brother in your heart, you've committed murder.'

64 · Illustrates the elevated expectation with generosity — the tithe was 10%, but the New Testament expectation is total surrender

Generosity takes on a whole new shape. It's 10% in the Old Testament, it becomes everything in the New Testament.

65 · Illustrates the elevated expectation with love of enemies — a New Testament command that goes beyond Old Testament neighbor-love

Jesus says you must love your enemies.

66 · Synthesizes the elevated-expectation argument: the good news is not lower expectations but empowered obedience through the Spirit

The elevation, the law, the expectations of God, they're elevated under the gospel. That's not the— the good news of the gospel is not that God expects less out of you because of Jesus. The good news of the gospel is that His expectations are now empowered through the Spirit of God.

67 · Applies the empowerment claim: you can live fully alive, press into difficult things, attempt to walk on water, because Christ has made it possible

And you can actually be alive. And you can actually be with God. And you can move through life as a man fully alive, pressing into difficult things, attempting to walk on water, because He who came as our representative has made it possible. He is concerned with empowerment. He does not simply issue the command to go and do X, Y, and Z, to go and be this and that. He says, go and do this stuff, but first you will be empowered.

68 · Declares to believers: if you are in Christ, you have been given everything needed for the fully alive life — the Spirit dwells in you, and the fully alive state is yours in Christ

Friends, if you're in Christ, you've been given all that you need for life and godliness. You've been given every blessing in the spiritual, in the heavenly places. You have the Spirit. You have the Spirit of God dwelling inside of you. And this fully alive state is given to you in Christ Jesus.

69 · Addresses unbelievers directly: do not leave thinking Christians are naturally more righteous

If you're here today and you're just— that's not you, you're not in Christ, this is just the kind of half of what I'm saying, this doesn't even make any sense, let me just make it simple for you. Do not leave this place thinking there is a group of people who are somehow more religious or more righteous. You must leave this place asking one simple question. That guy, that big loud guy said that God can do this in me, and that's the only way it ever gets done. And I have to decide whether that's true or not.

70 · Closing prayer synthesizes the sermon's major themes: partaking of the divine nature, comprehending the riches of the inheritance, helping the resigned and the passive critics, restoring the meaning of kingdom and zeal, removing fear and replacing it with the spirit of adoption

Let's pray. Gracious God, Creator of all things, Lord Jesus, King of Kings, firstborn among many brothers, we thank you for the opportunity to be partakers of the divine nature. We thank you for choosing in Christ, those who would be born again. Thank you for restoring hearts and making history through that work. Lord Jesus, please give us faith to comprehend the depth, the height, the riches of our inheritance in Christ Jesus. Help us to know that which surpasses knowledge. Help us, Lord, to by faith be strengthened to understand what you've made true, and let us walk in it, Lord. God, I thank you so much for the diversity of people here today, and I don't know where everybody's at spiritually. Is there people here, Lord, that are defeated and just honestly they're very kind of just resigned, fatalistic, and they cloak some of that in some fancy theology, but they're really just kind of done expecting big things from you? God, your word says that we're supposed to admonish the idle, to encourage the discouraged and to help the weak. Lord, I don't know how to do all that, but would you help those people who are resigned and discouraged just to even see that they've just, just settled? Lord, if there's anyone here who's just kind of naturally prone to judgment, and maybe you would just through your Spirit help them to see that they have a pretty strong tendency to criticize those in the field while sitting on the bench, that you would give them faith to see that you want them to come out and play too, and that they're not going to do very good either, but your grace abounds. Would you give us the, the real meaning of the word kingdom, the real meaning of the word restore, Would you move beyond all of our racial and other tribal connections and help us to see that we are one in Christ and that you are forming a new people who's supposed to be zealous for good works? God, would you change the connotation of the word zeal in some hearts this morning? There are some who have really, without realizing it, began to see— begin to hear zealous and zeal as bad things. Would you remove, Lord, the fear, the spirit of fear this morning in some, and replace it with the spirit of— help them to see they don't have the spirit of fear, they have a spirit of adoption by which they cry out, 'Abba, Father.' May your Spirit work as we progress in this book so that we could experience this life you've made possible. We love you, Lord. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.