Podcasts about edmond dantes

The Political Resurrection of Donald J. Trump: A Modern-Day Count of Monte Cristo In this episode of 'Ideas Have Consequences,' Larry Alex Taunton draws a parallel between the story of Edmond Dantes from 'The Count of Monte Cristo' and the political journey of Donald J. Trump. Taunton discusses Trump's return to the American political stage after significant challenges and opposition, likening it to a modern-day tale of revenge and redemption. He also delves into Trump's experiences, media misconceptions, and his interactions with political adversaries, underscoring the deep and widespread corruption in the political landscape. Tune in for a thought-provoking comparison that frames Trump's journey as one of resilience and determination, akin to the timeless story of Dantes.

[SEGMENT 2-1] Democrats still butt-hurt 1 Democrats hate where they are. And I don't blame them. After all, they ran unopposed in their insanity for the better part of two decades. Obama ushered in the worse America I've ever seen. And the only thing that disrupted the continuation of his dreadful administration was that 4 year gap of Trump. You saw how they reacted, stealing the next election and faking an “insurrection” as part of their cover up But they screwed up royally not verifying that Trump was gone…completely. They rested on their laurels and went even crazier with their truly unbelievable ideas, and Trump revealed I'M NOT DEAD. He is a modern day Edmond Dantes from The Count of Monte Cristo. And with each cabinet appointment, Trump used TCMC as a metaphor, revealing his intentions to expose those who dared exile him for 4 years. Trump plotted, planned, schemed. And he is now back on top. And not by just a little. By a MANDATE And as Leftist soul-search, I'm amazed at how much they suddenly realize their mistakes.  We admitted we were powerless over your addiction—that their lives had become unmanageable.Came to believe that a power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity.Made a decision to turn our will and our lives over to the care of God, as we understood HimMade a searching and fearless moral inventory of ourselves.Admitted to God, to ourselves, and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs.Were entirely ready to have God remove all these defects of character.Humbly asked Him to remove our shortcomings.Made a list of all persons we had harmed, and became willing to make amends to them all.Made direct amends to such people wherever possible, except when to do so would injure them or others.Continued to take personal inventory, and when we were wrong, promptly admitted it.Sought through prayer and meditation to improve our conscious contact with God, praying only for knowledge of His will for us and the power to carry that out.Having had a spiritual awakening as the result of these steps, we tried to carry this message to alcoholics and to practice these principles in all our affairs.[SEGMENT 2-2] Democrats still butt-hurt 2   [X] SB – Carville unleashes on Democrats   Opposition power Justify what you did wrong What you did wasn't worth a crap…   [X] SB – Jon Stewart makes fun of woke Too woke Too far Left Virtue-signaling Step away from woke Social justice issues  [SEGMENT 2-3] More on Trump appointees 1     Whiteness under threat Racially ambiguous children People voted because their lives are too damn expensive Convicted felon I'm not defending it Life's not fair…    [SEGMENT 2-4] More on Trump appointees 2   Can't win GA; proven. his candidates lose Message doesn't translate Harcore 30-35%. No one undecided. Known commodity Math doesn't add up     Trump is obviously not using the Republicans to make his policy picks. No more Scaramuccis, Omarosas, Pences, and so on…                                    Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-kevin-jackson-show--2896352/support.

In the past in the Enchanted Forest, the Evil Queen offers to aid the revenge plot of Edmond Dantes, The Count of Monte Cristo, if he kills Snow and David. When he falls in love with Snow’s handmaiden, he reneges and flees with her to the Land of Untold Stories to save her from poison. […]

Je vous souhaite la bienvenue dans ce nouvel épisode dédié à l'un des films les plus attendus de l'année : Le Comte de Monte-Cristo. Avec un casting 5 étoiles (Pierre Niney en tête d'affiche), un énorme budget et une durée de presque 3h, ce film a de grandes ambitions et promet du beau spectacle ! La promesse est-elle tenue ? C'est ce qu'on va voir dans cette nouvelle critique...Si cet épisode vous a plu, n'hésitez pas à vous abonner et à me suivre sur Instagram : @podcast_cinemateurHébergé par Ausha. Visitez ausha.co/politique-de-confidentialite pour plus d'informations.

Edmond Dantes.  Hamlet. Steve Specht.  Three main characters seeking revenge.  This week Coach Specht and Will Reilly talk about a huge upcoming rematch against rival Moeller in week 2 of the playoffs.

Kapitel 16 - Die SühneVöllig verstört fährt Villefort nach Hause wobei ihm unterwegs einfällt, dass er in moralischer Überhöhung seine Frau zum Tode verurteilt hat obwohl er selbst nicht besser ist. Er rast nach Hause um das Schlimmste zu verhindern, aber es ist zu spät. In seiner Trauer zu Noirtier gehend trifft er dort den Abbé Busoni, der sich als Edmond Dantes zu erkennen gibt. Dieser ist bestürzt als er sieht, das er mit seiner Rache zu weit gegangen ist. Vorgelesen von Rainer Schuppe; aufgenommen und bearbeitet im Coworking Space Rayaworx, Santanyí, Mallorca.

Hello there and welcome to the 88th episode of Film Freakz, the podcast about movies! Each episode is all about a single movie! In this episode we discussed the movie The Count of Monte Cristo from 2002. This podcast features YemmytheFerret (Yemmy), justkalas (Kalas), Taymation Studios (Tay), and GreedyWaffle (Nick). This movie was chosen by Tay because he loves Monte Cristo sandwiches. The classic story of an innocent man wrongly, but deliberately imprisoned and his brilliant strategy for revenge against those who betrayed him. Dashing young sailor Edmond Dantes is a guileless and honest young man whose peaceful life and plans to marry the beautiful Mercedes are abruptly shattered when his best friend Fernand, who wants Mercedes for himself, deceives him. Directed by Kevin Reynolds. Thanks for listening on all platforms! We want YOUR recommendations for the FAN VOTE! Send them in by commenting on the YouTube version, messaging us on our social medias, or sending us an email!

Hola zusammen, Anschnallen, niemand verlässt das Lokal. Pünktlich zu Ostern starte ich hier mit dem 6. und letzten Band des Grafen. Und Ostern passt auch sehr gut das auch viel um Buße, Läuterung, Tod und auch Wiederauferstehung geht. Was genau passiert hört ihr in den nächsten 23 Kapiteln. Das Vorlesen macht mir immer noch viel Spass und ich hoffe, den habt ihr auch oder entspannt einfach auch nur, wenn ihr mir zuhört. Und das immerhin schon ganz 112 Folgen lang. Mir ist der Graf schon ziemlich ans Herz gewachsen, weil ich die Geschichte an sich schon immer sehr mochte, aber bis jetzt nur die verschiedenen Verfilmungen, die sehr sehr frei mit dem Material umgegangen sind, kannte. Da wurden zentrale Figuren einfach mal weggelassen, wie z.B. Baron Danglars in der Verfilmung von 1954 mit Jean Marais. Auch Gerard Depardieu als Edmond Dantes zu sehen, der ja als schwarzhaarig, schlank, mit kleinen Oberlippenbart und aristokratischer Erscheinung beschrieben wird, kann verwirrend sein :-) Meine Lieblings “Verfilmung” ist aber tatsächlich auf YouTube zu finden. Es ist die Folge 322 von Sommers Weltliteratur to go: https://youtu.be/YiFqTZb9UHk. Auch für diejenigen, die sich nochmal den Inhalt der letzten 5 Bände in Erinnerung rufen wollen. Sommer fasst alles wichtige mit Hilfe von PlayMobil Figuren in 11 einhalb Minuten zusammen. Sehr unterhaltsam. Aber bitte nur bis Minute 9 kucken sonst ist Spoilergefahr für Band 6. Wenn euch dieser Lesepodcast gefällt, dann würde ich mich sehr über das eine oder andere Like auf Apple Podcasts, Spotify oder einer der anderen Plattformen sehr freuen. Und jetzt viel Vergnügen in Paris, Marseille, Rom und Monte Christo. U.a. bei einer geplatzten Hochzeit, einer Verfolgungsjagd zu Fuss, einem weiteren Giftmord (oder doch nicht?), einer etwas anderen Gerichtsverhandlung, dem Bankrott eines Bänkers und den ruinösen Verpflegungspreisen in Rom. Vorhang auf. **************** Auf dem Blog zum Podcast https://lies-mal-vor.podcaster.de könnt ihr mir gerne Feedback über die Kommentarfunktion hinterlassen. Oder auf Mastodon direkt an @RayMoz@kopfkino.social bzw. Twitter über @Rayaworx. Viel Vergnügen wünscht, Euer Leseonkel Rainer

Kapitel 15 - Der SelbstmordFernand Mondego, der Graf von Morcerf stürmt zum Grafen von Monte Christo um ihn zu Duell zu fordern. Dieser gibt sich als Edmond Dantes zu erkennen und vernichtet damit Fernand vollkommen. Von seiner Frau, seinem Sohn und seinen Freunden verlassen macht er den letzten Schritt. Vorgelesen von Rainer Schuppe; aufgenommen und bearbeitet im Coworking Space Rayaworx, Santanyí, Mallorca.

Kapitel 14 - Mutter und SohnMercedes und Albert bereiten alles vor um das Haus des Grafen von Morcerf zu verlassen. Keiner von beiden hält es noch länger unter einem Dach mit Fernand aus. Eine unerwartete Zuwendung kommt von Edmond Dantes der in der Vergangenheit schon für seine Mercedes vorgesorgt hatte. Vorgelesen von Rainer Schuppe; aufgenommen und bearbeitet im Coworking Space Rayaworx, Santanyí, Mallorca.

Kapitel 6 - Die Hand GottesDer Graf und Ali tragen den sterbenden Caderousse ins Haus und während Ali den Staatsanwalt und einen Arzt holt kümmert sich der Abbé um ihn. Nachdem sich Caderousse bitter über sein Schicksal und die Abwesenheit eines Gottes beschwert erläutert ihm der Graf wie oft Gott ihm schon eine Chance gab die er immer wieder vergab. Kurz vor dem Tod gibt sich der Abbé als Edmond Dantes zu erkennen und Caderousse stirbt geläutert. Vorgelesen von Rainer Schuppe; aufgenommen und bearbeitet im Coworking Space Rayaworx, Santanyí, Mallorca.

Welcome to the Instant Trivia podcast episode 758, where we ask the best trivia on the Internet. Round 1. Category: "In" Cities 1: This resort city in Austria's Tirol is the northern gateway to the Brenner Pass in the Alps. Innsbruck. 2: This Kansas City suburb was the starting point for the Oregon, Santa Fe and California Trails. Independence. 3: The headquarters for the American Legion is located in this state capital. Indianapolis. 4: This Swiss resort town is so named because it's located between 2 lakes. Interlaken. 5: Some say Macbeth murdered Duncan in a castle near this Scottish city. Inverness. Round 2. Category: Famous Cows 1: Said to have started the Great Chicago Fire. Mrs. O'Leary's cow. 2: Wife of Elmer, she's the Borden cow. Elsie. 3: The emotional state of Carnation Company's cows. contented. 4: 1 of 2 breeds named for a British Channel island on which they were developed. Guernsey (or Jersey). 5: Cow seen in Mickey Mouse cartoons who shares her name with a male Howdy Doody character. Clarabelle. Round 3. Category: Book Sequels? 1: Arthur Dimmesdale returns (difficult, as he died in the first book) in this 19th c. author's "The Chartreuse Number". Hawthorne. 2: Guy Montag is back, and those books are gonna pay in this author's "Celsius 232.78". Ray Bradbury. 3: Natty Bumppo discovers there's "The Penultimate Iroquois" in this man's 1820s sequel. James Fenimore Cooper. 4: Edmond Dantes gets a promotion in this author's 19th c. sequel "The Fresh Prince of Monte Cristo". Alexandre Dumas. 5: Jose Arcadio Buendia is back a-buildin' in this author's 1960s book "25 More Years of Me-Time". Gabriel García Márquez. Round 4. Category: Renaissance Men 1: Unlike his predecessors, Maximilian I of this empire wasn't crowned by the Pope. the Holy Roman Empire. 2: "Being unarmed...causes you to be despised", he wrote in "The Prince". Machiavelli. 3: Pope Leo X was the second son of this "Magnificent" Medici. Lorenzo. 4: 1 of the first reliefs this great artist sculpted was the "Madonna of the Stairs". Michelangelo. 5: This Borgia was accused of murdering his brother Giovanni in 1497. Cesare. Round 5. Category: Words Of The '60s 1: These 2 birds represented conciliatory and aggressive attitudes toward war. Doves and hawks. 2: To talk freely and frankly, or H. Brown's "middle name". rap. 3: Logically enough, it's the single word for a topless bikini. Monokini. 4: Term for those who rode buses to test integration in interstate travel. "Freedom Riders". 5: Precedes "wasted", "down" and "your act together". get. Thanks for listening! Come back tomorrow for more exciting trivia! Special thanks to https://blog.feedspot.com/trivia_podcasts/

Tonight's bedtime story is the continuation of The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas. Serialised from 1844-1846, this story is one of Dumas' most popular works. It is the story of Edmond Dantes who is wrongfully imprisoned, escapes and, exacts revenge on his enemies. In this episode, Mercedes and Edmond are reunited much to the chagrin of his rival, Fernand. Danglars puts a plan in motion to ruin Edmond's life.Interested in more sleepy content or just want to support the show? Join Just Sleep Premium here: https://justsleeppodcast.com/supportAs a Just Sleep Premium member you will receive:Ad-free and Intro-free episodesThe entire audiobook of the Wizard of OzA collection of short fairy tales including Rapunzel and the Frog PrinceThe chance to vote on the next story that you hearThe chance to win readings just for youThe entire back catalogue of the podcast, ad and intro-free (coming soon!)Thanks for your support!Sweet Dreams...Intro Music by the Psychedelic Squirrel Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Inspired by a real-life case of wrongful imprisonment, Alexandre Dumas's The Count of Monte Cristo tells the story of Edmond Dantes. While imprisoned, Dante learns of a great hoard of treasure hidden on the Isle of Monte Cristo and he becomes determined not only to escape, but also to unearth the treasure and use it to plot the destruction of the three men responsible for his incarceration. The GSMC Audiobook Series presents some of the greatest classic novels, audiobooks, and theatrical presentations from a bygone era. Let Golden State Media Concepts take you on a ride through classic audiobooks read by some of the top audiobook performers of all time. This compiled collection of classic audiobooks contains a wide variety of classic Novels. ***PLEASE NOTE*** GSMC Podcast Network presents these shows and audiobooks as historical content and have brought them to you unedited. Remember that times have changed, and some Audiobooks might not reflect the standards of today's politically correct society. The shows do not necessarily reflect the views, standards, or beliefs of Golden State Media Concepts or the GSMC Podcast Network. Our goal is to entertain, educate and give you a glimpse into the past.

Inspired by a real-life case of wrongful imprisonment, Alexandre Dumas's The Count of Monte Cristo tells the story of Edmond Dantes. While imprisoned, Dante learns of a great hoard of treasure hidden on the Isle of Monte Cristo and he becomes determined not only to escape, but also to unearth the treasure and use it to plot the destruction of the three men responsible for his incarceration. The GSMC Audiobook Series presents some of the greatest classic novels, audiobooks, and theatrical presentations from a bygone era. Let Golden State Media Concepts take you on a ride through classic audiobooks read by some of the top audiobook performers of all time. This compiled collection of classic audiobooks contains a wide variety of classic Novels. ***PLEASE NOTE*** GSMC Podcast Network presents these shows and audiobooks as historical content and have brought them to you unedited. Remember that times have changed, and some Audiobooks might not reflect the standards of today's politically correct society. The shows do not necessarily reflect the views, standards, or beliefs of Golden State Media Concepts or the GSMC Podcast Network. Our goal is to entertain, educate and give you a glimpse into the past.

Inspired by a real-life case of wrongful imprisonment, Alexandre Dumas's The Count of Monte Cristo tells the story of Edmond Dantes. While imprisoned, Dante learns of a great hoard of treasure hidden on the Isle of Monte Cristo and he becomes determined not only to escape, but also to unearth the treasure and use it to plot the destruction of the three men responsible for his incarceration. The GSMC Audiobook Series presents some of the greatest classic novels, audiobooks, and theatrical presentations from a bygone era. Let Golden State Media Concepts take you on a ride through classic audiobooks read by some of the top audiobook performers of all time. This compiled collection of classic audiobooks contains a wide variety of classic Novels. ***PLEASE NOTE*** GSMC Podcast Network presents these shows and audiobooks as historical content and have brought them to you unedited. Remember that times have changed, and some Audiobooks might not reflect the standards of today's politically correct society. The shows do not necessarily reflect the views, standards, or beliefs of Golden State Media Concepts or the GSMC Podcast Network. Our goal is to entertain, educate and give you a glimpse into the past.

Inspired by a real-life case of wrongful imprisonment, Alexandre Dumas's The Count of Monte Cristo tells the story of Edmond Dantes. While imprisoned, Dante learns of a great hoard of treasure hidden on the Isle of Monte Cristo and he becomes determined not only to escape, but also to unearth the treasure and use it to plot the destruction of the three men responsible for his incarceration. The GSMC Audiobook Series presents some of the greatest classic novels, audiobooks, and theatrical presentations from a bygone era. Let Golden State Media Concepts take you on a ride through classic audiobooks read by some of the top audiobook performers of all time. This compiled collection of classic audiobooks contains a wide variety of classic Novels. ***PLEASE NOTE*** GSMC Podcast Network presents these shows and audiobooks as historical content and have brought them to you unedited. Remember that times have changed, and some Audiobooks might not reflect the standards of today's politically correct society. The shows do not necessarily reflect the views, standards, or beliefs of Golden State Media Concepts or the GSMC Podcast Network. Our goal is to entertain, educate and give you a glimpse into the past.

Inspired by a real-life case of wrongful imprisonment, Alexandre Dumas's The Count of Monte Cristo tells the story of Edmond Dantes. While imprisoned, Dante learns of a great hoard of treasure hidden on the Isle of Monte Cristo and he becomes determined not only to escape, but also to unearth the treasure and use it to plot the destruction of the three men responsible for his incarceration. The GSMC Audiobook Series presents some of the greatest classic novels, audiobooks, and theatrical presentations from a bygone era. Let Golden State Media Concepts take you on a ride through classic audiobooks read by some of the top audiobook performers of all time. This compiled collection of classic audiobooks contains a wide variety of classic Novels. ***PLEASE NOTE*** GSMC Podcast Network presents these shows and audiobooks as historical content and have brought them to you unedited. Remember that times have changed, and some Audiobooks might not reflect the standards of today's politically correct society. The shows do not necessarily reflect the views, standards, or beliefs of Golden State Media Concepts or the GSMC Podcast Network. Our goal is to entertain, educate and give you a glimpse into the past.

Inspired by a real-life case of wrongful imprisonment, Alexandre Dumas's The Count of Monte Cristo tells the story of Edmond Dantes. While imprisoned, Dante learns of a great hoard of treasure hidden on the Isle of Monte Cristo and he becomes determined not only to escape, but also to unearth the treasure and use it to plot the destruction of the three men responsible for his incarceration. The GSMC Audiobook Series presents some of the greatest classic novels, audiobooks, and theatrical presentations from a bygone era. Let Golden State Media Concepts take you on a ride through classic audiobooks read by some of the top audiobook performers of all time. This compiled collection of classic audiobooks contains a wide variety of classic Novels. ***PLEASE NOTE*** GSMC Podcast Network presents these shows and audiobooks as historical content and have brought them to you unedited. Remember that times have changed, and some Audiobooks might not reflect the standards of today's politically correct society. The shows do not necessarily reflect the views, standards, or beliefs of Golden State Media Concepts or the GSMC Podcast Network. Our goal is to entertain, educate and give you a glimpse into the past.

Inspired by a real-life case of wrongful imprisonment, Alexandre Dumas's The Count of Monte Cristo tells the story of Edmond Dantes. While imprisoned, Dante learns of a great hoard of treasure hidden on the Isle of Monte Cristo and he becomes determined not only to escape, but also to unearth the treasure and use it to plot the destruction of the three men responsible for his incarceration. The GSMC Audiobook Series presents some of the greatest classic novels, audiobooks, and theatrical presentations from a bygone era. Let Golden State Media Concepts take you on a ride through classic audiobooks read by some of the top audiobook performers of all time. This compiled collection of classic audiobooks contains a wide variety of classic Novels. ***PLEASE NOTE*** GSMC Podcast Network presents these shows and audiobooks as historical content and have brought them to you unedited. Remember that times have changed, and some Audiobooks might not reflect the standards of today's politically correct society. The shows do not necessarily reflect the views, standards, or beliefs of Golden State Media Concepts or the GSMC Podcast Network. Our goal is to entertain, educate and give you a glimpse into the past.

Inspired by a real-life case of wrongful imprisonment, Alexandre Dumas's The Count of Monte Cristo tells the story of Edmond Dantes. While imprisoned, Dante learns of a great hoard of treasure hidden on the Isle of Monte Cristo and he becomes determined not only to escape, but also to unearth the treasure and use it to plot the destruction of the three men responsible for his incarceration. The GSMC Audiobook Series presents some of the greatest classic novels, audiobooks, and theatrical presentations from a bygone era. Let Golden State Media Concepts take you on a ride through classic audiobooks read by some of the top audiobook performers of all time. This compiled collection of classic audiobooks contains a wide variety of classic Novels. ***PLEASE NOTE*** GSMC Podcast Network presents these shows and audiobooks as historical content and have brought them to you unedited. Remember that times have changed, and some Audiobooks might not reflect the standards of today's politically correct society. The shows do not necessarily reflect the views, standards, or beliefs of Golden State Media Concepts or the GSMC Podcast Network. Our goal is to entertain, educate and give you a glimpse into the past.

Inspired by a real-life case of wrongful imprisonment, Alexandre Dumas's The Count of Monte Cristo tells the story of Edmond Dantes. While imprisoned, Dante learns of a great hoard of treasure hidden on the Isle of Monte Cristo and he becomes determined not only to escape, but also to unearth the treasure and use it to plot the destruction of the three men responsible for his incarceration. The GSMC Audiobook Series presents some of the greatest classic novels, audiobooks, and theatrical presentations from a bygone era. Let Golden State Media Concepts take you on a ride through classic audiobooks read by some of the top audiobook performers of all time. This compiled collection of classic audiobooks contains a wide variety of classic Novels. ***PLEASE NOTE*** GSMC Podcast Network presents these shows and audiobooks as historical content and have brought them to you unedited. Remember that times have changed, and some Audiobooks might not reflect the standards of today's politically correct society. The shows do not necessarily reflect the views, standards, or beliefs of Golden State Media Concepts or the GSMC Podcast Network. Our goal is to entertain, educate and give you a glimpse into the past.

Inspired by a real-life case of wrongful imprisonment, Alexandre Dumas's The Count of Monte Cristo tells the story of Edmond Dantes. While imprisoned, Dante learns of a great hoard of treasure hidden on the Isle of Monte Cristo and he becomes determined not only to escape, but also to unearth the treasure and use it to plot the destruction of the three men responsible for his incarceration. The GSMC Audiobook Series presents some of the greatest classic novels, audiobooks, and theatrical presentations from a bygone era. Let Golden State Media Concepts take you on a ride through classic audiobooks read by some of the top audiobook performers of all time. This compiled collection of classic audiobooks contains a wide variety of classic Novels. ***PLEASE NOTE*** GSMC Podcast Network presents these shows and audiobooks as historical content and have brought them to you unedited. Remember that times have changed, and some Audiobooks might not reflect the standards of today's politically correct society. The shows do not necessarily reflect the views, standards, or beliefs of Golden State Media Concepts or the GSMC Podcast Network. Our goal is to entertain, educate and give you a glimpse into the past.

Inspired by a real-life case of wrongful imprisonment, Alexandre Dumas's The Count of Monte Cristo tells the story of Edmond Dantes. While imprisoned, Dante learns of a great hoard of treasure hidden on the Isle of Monte Cristo and he becomes determined not only to escape, but also to unearth the treasure and use it to plot the destruction of the three men responsible for his incarceration. The GSMC Audiobook Series presents some of the greatest classic novels, audiobooks, and theatrical presentations from a bygone era. Let Golden State Media Concepts take you on a ride through classic audiobooks read by some of the top audiobook performers of all time. This compiled collection of classic audiobooks contains a wide variety of classic Novels. ***PLEASE NOTE*** GSMC Podcast Network presents these shows and audiobooks as historical content and have brought them to you unedited. Remember that times have changed, and some Audiobooks might not reflect the standards of today's politically correct society. The shows do not necessarily reflect the views, standards, or beliefs of Golden State Media Concepts or the GSMC Podcast Network. Our goal is to entertain, educate and give you a glimpse into the past.

Inspired by a real-life case of wrongful imprisonment, Alexandre Dumas's The Count of Monte Cristo tells the story of Edmond Dantes. While imprisoned, Dante learns of a great hoard of treasure hidden on the Isle of Monte Cristo and he becomes determined not only to escape, but also to unearth the treasure and use it to plot the destruction of the three men responsible for his incarceration. The GSMC Audiobook Series presents some of the greatest classic novels, audiobooks, and theatrical presentations from a bygone era. Let Golden State Media Concepts take you on a ride through classic audiobooks read by some of the top audiobook performers of all time. This compiled collection of classic audiobooks contains a wide variety of classic Novels. ***PLEASE NOTE*** GSMC Podcast Network presents these shows and audiobooks as historical content and have brought them to you unedited. Remember that times have changed, and some Audiobooks might not reflect the standards of today's politically correct society. The shows do not necessarily reflect the views, standards, or beliefs of Golden State Media Concepts or the GSMC Podcast Network. Our goal is to entertain, educate and give you a glimpse into the past.

Inspired by a real-life case of wrongful imprisonment, Alexandre Dumas's The Count of Monte Cristo tells the story of Edmond Dantes. While imprisoned, Dante learns of a great hoard of treasure hidden on the Isle of Monte Cristo and he becomes determined not only to escape, but also to unearth the treasure and use it to plot the destruction of the three men responsible for his incarceration. The GSMC Audiobook Series presents some of the greatest classic novels, audiobooks, and theatrical presentations from a bygone era. Let Golden State Media Concepts take you on a ride through classic audiobooks read by some of the top audiobook performers of all time. This compiled collection of classic audiobooks contains a wide variety of classic Novels. ***PLEASE NOTE*** GSMC Podcast Network presents these shows and audiobooks as historical content and have brought them to you unedited. Remember that times have changed, and some Audiobooks might not reflect the standards of today's politically correct society. The shows do not necessarily reflect the views, standards, or beliefs of Golden State Media Concepts or the GSMC Podcast Network. Our goal is to entertain, educate and give you a glimpse into the past.

Inspired by a real-life case of wrongful imprisonment, Alexandre Dumas's The Count of Monte Cristo tells the story of Edmond Dantes. While imprisoned, Dante learns of a great hoard of treasure hidden on the Isle of Monte Cristo and he becomes determined not only to escape, but also to unearth the treasure and use it to plot the destruction of the three men responsible for his incarceration. The GSMC Audiobook Series presents some of the greatest classic novels, audiobooks, and theatrical presentations from a bygone era. Let Golden State Media Concepts take you on a ride through classic audiobooks read by some of the top audiobook performers of all time. This compiled collection of classic audiobooks contains a wide variety of classic Novels. ***PLEASE NOTE*** GSMC Podcast Network presents these shows and audiobooks as historical content and have brought them to you unedited. Remember that times have changed, and some Audiobooks might not reflect the standards of today's politically correct society. The shows do not necessarily reflect the views, standards, or beliefs of Golden State Media Concepts or the GSMC Podcast Network. Our goal is to entertain, educate and give you a glimpse into the past.

Inspired by a real-life case of wrongful imprisonment, Alexandre Dumas's The Count of Monte Cristo tells the story of Edmond Dantes. While imprisoned, Dante learns of a great hoard of treasure hidden on the Isle of Monte Cristo and he becomes determined not only to escape, but also to unearth the treasure and use it to plot the destruction of the three men responsible for his incarceration. The GSMC Audiobook Series presents some of the greatest classic novels, audiobooks, and theatrical presentations from a bygone era. Let Golden State Media Concepts take you on a ride through classic audiobooks read by some of the top audiobook performers of all time. This compiled collection of classic audiobooks contains a wide variety of classic Novels. ***PLEASE NOTE*** GSMC Podcast Network presents these shows and audiobooks as historical content and have brought them to you unedited. Remember that times have changed, and some Audiobooks might not reflect the standards of today's politically correct society. The shows do not necessarily reflect the views, standards, or beliefs of Golden State Media Concepts or the GSMC Podcast Network. Our goal is to entertain, educate and give you a glimpse into the past.

Inspired by a real-life case of wrongful imprisonment, Alexandre Dumas's The Count of Monte Cristo tells the story of Edmond Dantes. While imprisoned, Dante learns of a great hoard of treasure hidden on the Isle of Monte Cristo and he becomes determined not only to escape, but also to unearth the treasure and use it to plot the destruction of the three men responsible for his incarceration. The GSMC Audiobook Series presents some of the greatest classic novels, audiobooks, and theatrical presentations from a bygone era. Let Golden State Media Concepts take you on a ride through classic audiobooks read by some of the top audiobook performers of all time. This compiled collection of classic audiobooks contains a wide variety of classic Novels. ***PLEASE NOTE*** GSMC Podcast Network presents these shows and audiobooks as historical content and have brought them to you unedited. Remember that times have changed, and some Audiobooks might not reflect the standards of today's politically correct society. The shows do not necessarily reflect the views, standards, or beliefs of Golden State Media Concepts or the GSMC Podcast Network. Our goal is to entertain, educate and give you a glimpse into the past.

Inspired by a real-life case of wrongful imprisonment, Alexandre Dumas's The Count of Monte Cristo tells the story of Edmond Dantes. While imprisoned, Dante learns of a great hoard of treasure hidden on the Isle of Monte Cristo and he becomes determined not only to escape, but also to unearth the treasure and use it to plot the destruction of the three men responsible for his incarceration. The GSMC Audiobook Series presents some of the greatest classic novels, audiobooks, and theatrical presentations from a bygone era. Let Golden State Media Concepts take you on a ride through classic audiobooks read by some of the top audiobook performers of all time. This compiled collection of classic audiobooks contains a wide variety of classic Novels. ***PLEASE NOTE*** GSMC Podcast Network presents these shows and audiobooks as historical content and have brought them to you unedited. Remember that times have changed, and some Audiobooks might not reflect the standards of today's politically correct society. The shows do not necessarily reflect the views, standards, or beliefs of Golden State Media Concepts or the GSMC Podcast Network. Our goal is to entertain, educate and give you a glimpse into the past.

Inspired by a real-life case of wrongful imprisonment, Alexandre Dumas's The Count of Monte Cristo tells the story of Edmond Dantes. While imprisoned, Dante learns of a great hoard of treasure hidden on the Isle of Monte Cristo and he becomes determined not only to escape, but also to unearth the treasure and use it to plot the destruction of the three men responsible for his incarceration. The GSMC Audiobook Series presents some of the greatest classic novels, audiobooks, and theatrical presentations from a bygone era. Let Golden State Media Concepts take you on a ride through classic audiobooks read by some of the top audiobook performers of all time. This compiled collection of classic audiobooks contains a wide variety of classic Novels. ***PLEASE NOTE*** GSMC Podcast Network presents these shows and audiobooks as historical content and have brought them to you unedited. Remember that times have changed, and some Audiobooks might not reflect the standards of today's politically correct society. The shows do not necessarily reflect the views, standards, or beliefs of Golden State Media Concepts or the GSMC Podcast Network. Our goal is to entertain, educate and give you a glimpse into the past.

Inspired by a real-life case of wrongful imprisonment, Alexandre Dumas's The Count of Monte Cristo tells the story of Edmond Dantes. While imprisoned, Dante learns of a great hoard of treasure hidden on the Isle of Monte Cristo and he becomes determined not only to escape, but also to unearth the treasure and use it to plot the destruction of the three men responsible for his incarceration. The GSMC Audiobook Series presents some of the greatest classic novels, audiobooks, and theatrical presentations from a bygone era. Let Golden State Media Concepts take you on a ride through classic audiobooks read by some of the top audiobook performers of all time. This compiled collection of classic audiobooks contains a wide variety of classic Novels. ***PLEASE NOTE*** GSMC Podcast Network presents these shows and audiobooks as historical content and have brought them to you unedited. Remember that times have changed, and some Audiobooks might not reflect the standards of today's politically correct society. The shows do not necessarily reflect the views, standards, or beliefs of Golden State Media Concepts or the GSMC Podcast Network. Our goal is to entertain, educate and give you a glimpse into the past.

Inspired by a real-life case of wrongful imprisonment, Alexandre Dumas's The Count of Monte Cristo tells the story of Edmond Dantes. While imprisoned, Dante learns of a great hoard of treasure hidden on the Isle of Monte Cristo and he becomes determined not only to escape, but also to unearth the treasure and use it to plot the destruction of the three men responsible for his incarceration. The GSMC Audiobook Series presents some of the greatest classic novels, audiobooks, and theatrical presentations from a bygone era. Let Golden State Media Concepts take you on a ride through classic audiobooks read by some of the top audiobook performers of all time. This compiled collection of classic audiobooks contains a wide variety of classic Novels. ***PLEASE NOTE*** GSMC Podcast Network presents these shows and audiobooks as historical content and have brought them to you unedited. Remember that times have changed, and some Audiobooks might not reflect the standards of today's politically correct society. The shows do not necessarily reflect the views, standards, or beliefs of Golden State Media Concepts or the GSMC Podcast Network. Our goal is to entertain, educate and give you a glimpse into the past.

Inspired by a real-life case of wrongful imprisonment, Alexandre Dumas's The Count of Monte Cristo tells the story of Edmond Dantes. While imprisoned, Dante learns of a great hoard of treasure hidden on the Isle of Monte Cristo and he becomes determined not only to escape, but also to unearth the treasure and use it to plot the destruction of the three men responsible for his incarceration. The GSMC Audiobook Series presents some of the greatest classic novels, audiobooks, and theatrical presentations from a bygone era. Let Golden State Media Concepts take you on a ride through classic audiobooks read by some of the top audiobook performers of all time. This compiled collection of classic audiobooks contains a wide variety of classic Novels. ***PLEASE NOTE*** GSMC Podcast Network presents these shows and audiobooks as historical content and have brought them to you unedited. Remember that times have changed, and some Audiobooks might not reflect the standards of today's politically correct society. The shows do not necessarily reflect the views, standards, or beliefs of Golden State Media Concepts or the GSMC Podcast Network. Our goal is to entertain, educate and give you a glimpse into the past.

Inspired by a real-life case of wrongful imprisonment, Alexandre Dumas's The Count of Monte Cristo tells the story of Edmond Dantes. While imprisoned, Dante learns of a great hoard of treasure hidden on the Isle of Monte Cristo and he becomes determined not only to escape, but also to unearth the treasure and use it to plot the destruction of the three men responsible for his incarceration. The GSMC Audiobook Series presents some of the greatest classic novels, audiobooks, and theatrical presentations from a bygone era. Let Golden State Media Concepts take you on a ride through classic audiobooks read by some of the top audiobook performers of all time. This compiled collection of classic audiobooks contains a wide variety of classic Novels. ***PLEASE NOTE*** GSMC Podcast Network presents these shows and audiobooks as historical content and have brought them to you unedited. Remember that times have changed, and some Audiobooks might not reflect the standards of today's politically correct society. The shows do not necessarily reflect the views, standards, or beliefs of Golden State Media Concepts or the GSMC Podcast Network. Our goal is to entertain, educate and give you a glimpse into the past.

Inspired by a real-life case of wrongful imprisonment, Alexandre Dumas's The Count of Monte Cristo tells the story of Edmond Dantes. While imprisoned, Dante learns of a great hoard of treasure hidden on the Isle of Monte Cristo and he becomes determined not only to escape, but also to unearth the treasure and use it to plot the destruction of the three men responsible for his incarceration. The GSMC Audiobook Series presents some of the greatest classic novels, audiobooks, and theatrical presentations from a bygone era. Let Golden State Media Concepts take you on a ride through classic audiobooks read by some of the top audiobook performers of all time. This compiled collection of classic audiobooks contains a wide variety of classic Novels. ***PLEASE NOTE*** GSMC Podcast Network presents these shows and audiobooks as historical content and have brought them to you unedited. Remember that times have changed, and some Audiobooks might not reflect the standards of today's politically correct society. The shows do not necessarily reflect the views, standards, or beliefs of Golden State Media Concepts or the GSMC Podcast Network. Our goal is to entertain, educate and give you a glimpse into the past.

Inspired by a real-life case of wrongful imprisonment, Alexandre Dumas's The Count of Monte Cristo tells the story of Edmond Dantes. While imprisoned, Dante learns of a great hoard of treasure hidden on the Isle of Monte Cristo and he becomes determined not only to escape, but also to unearth the treasure and use it to plot the destruction of the three men responsible for his incarceration. The GSMC Audiobook Series presents some of the greatest classic novels, audiobooks, and theatrical presentations from a bygone era. Let Golden State Media Concepts take you on a ride through classic audiobooks read by some of the top audiobook performers of all time. This compiled collection of classic audiobooks contains a wide variety of classic Novels. ***PLEASE NOTE*** GSMC Podcast Network presents these shows and audiobooks as historical content and have brought them to you unedited. Remember that times have changed, and some Audiobooks might not reflect the standards of today's politically correct society. The shows do not necessarily reflect the views, standards, or beliefs of Golden State Media Concepts or the GSMC Podcast Network. Our goal is to entertain, educate and give you a glimpse into the past.

Inspired by a real-life case of wrongful imprisonment, Alexandre Dumas's The Count of Monte Cristo tells the story of Edmond Dantes. While imprisoned, Dante learns of a great hoard of treasure hidden on the Isle of Monte Cristo and he becomes determined not only to escape, but also to unearth the treasure and use it to plot the destruction of the three men responsible for his incarceration. The GSMC Audiobook Series presents some of the greatest classic novels, audiobooks, and theatrical presentations from a bygone era. Let Golden State Media Concepts take you on a ride through classic audiobooks read by some of the top audiobook performers of all time. This compiled collection of classic audiobooks contains a wide variety of classic Novels. ***PLEASE NOTE*** GSMC Podcast Network presents these shows and audiobooks as historical content and have brought them to you unedited. Remember that times have changed, and some Audiobooks might not reflect the standards of today's politically correct society. The shows do not necessarily reflect the views, standards, or beliefs of Golden State Media Concepts or the GSMC Podcast Network. Our goal is to entertain, educate and give you a glimpse into the past.

Inspired by a real-life case of wrongful imprisonment, Alexandre Dumas's The Count of Monte Cristo tells the story of Edmond Dantes. While imprisoned, Dante learns of a great hoard of treasure hidden on the Isle of Monte Cristo and he becomes determined not only to escape, but also to unearth the treasure and use it to plot the destruction of the three men responsible for his incarceration. The GSMC Audiobook Series presents some of the greatest classic novels, audiobooks, and theatrical presentations from a bygone era. Let Golden State Media Concepts take you on a ride through classic audiobooks read by some of the top audiobook performers of all time. This compiled collection of classic audiobooks contains a wide variety of classic Novels. ***PLEASE NOTE*** GSMC Podcast Network presents these shows and audiobooks as historical content and have brought them to you unedited. Remember that times have changed, and some Audiobooks might not reflect the standards of today's politically correct society. The shows do not necessarily reflect the views, standards, or beliefs of Golden State Media Concepts or the GSMC Podcast Network. Our goal is to entertain, educate and give you a glimpse into the past.

Inspired by a real-life case of wrongful imprisonment, Alexandre Dumas's The Count of Monte Cristo tells the story of Edmond Dantes. While imprisoned, Dante learns of a great hoard of treasure hidden on the Isle of Monte Cristo and he becomes determined not only to escape, but also to unearth the treasure and use it to plot the destruction of the three men responsible for his incarceration. The GSMC Audiobook Series presents some of the greatest classic novels, audiobooks, and theatrical presentations from a bygone era. Let Golden State Media Concepts take you on a ride through classic audiobooks read by some of the top audiobook performers of all time. This compiled collection of classic audiobooks contains a wide variety of classic Novels. ***PLEASE NOTE*** GSMC Podcast Network presents these shows and audiobooks as historical content and have brought them to you unedited. Remember that times have changed, and some Audiobooks might not reflect the standards of today's politically correct society. The shows do not necessarily reflect the views, standards, or beliefs of Golden State Media Concepts or the GSMC Podcast Network. Our goal is to entertain, educate and give you a glimpse into the past.

Inspired by a real-life case of wrongful imprisonment, Alexandre Dumas's The Count of Monte Cristo tells the story of Edmond Dantes. While imprisoned, Dante learns of a great hoard of treasure hidden on the Isle of Monte Cristo and he becomes determined not only to escape, but also to unearth the treasure and use it to plot the destruction of the three men responsible for his incarceration. The GSMC Audiobook Series presents some of the greatest classic novels, audiobooks, and theatrical presentations from a bygone era. Let Golden State Media Concepts take you on a ride through classic audiobooks read by some of the top audiobook performers of all time. This compiled collection of classic audiobooks contains a wide variety of classic Novels. ***PLEASE NOTE*** GSMC Podcast Network presents these shows and audiobooks as historical content and have brought them to you unedited. Remember that times have changed, and some Audiobooks might not reflect the standards of today's politically correct society. The shows do not necessarily reflect the views, standards, or beliefs of Golden State Media Concepts or the GSMC Podcast Network. Our goal is to entertain, educate and give you a glimpse into the past.

Inspired by a real-life case of wrongful imprisonment, Alexandre Dumas's The Count of Monte Cristo tells the story of Edmond Dantes. While imprisoned, Dante learns of a great hoard of treasure hidden on the Isle of Monte Cristo and he becomes determined not only to escape, but also to unearth the treasure and use it to plot the destruction of the three men responsible for his incarceration. The GSMC Audiobook Series presents some of the greatest classic novels, audiobooks, and theatrical presentations from a bygone era. Let Golden State Media Concepts take you on a ride through classic audiobooks read by some of the top audiobook performers of all time. This compiled collection of classic audiobooks contains a wide variety of classic Novels. ***PLEASE NOTE*** GSMC Podcast Network presents these shows and audiobooks as historical content and have brought them to you unedited. Remember that times have changed, and some Audiobooks might not reflect the standards of today's politically correct society. The shows do not necessarily reflect the views, standards, or beliefs of Golden State Media Concepts or the GSMC Podcast Network. Our goal is to entertain, educate and give you a glimpse into the past.

Inspired by a real-life case of wrongful imprisonment, Alexandre Dumas's The Count of Monte Cristo tells the story of Edmond Dantes. While imprisoned, Dante learns of a great hoard of treasure hidden on the Isle of Monte Cristo and he becomes determined not only to escape, but also to unearth the treasure and use it to plot the destruction of the three men responsible for his incarceration. The GSMC Audiobook Series presents some of the greatest classic novels, audiobooks, and theatrical presentations from a bygone era. Let Golden State Media Concepts take you on a ride through classic audiobooks read by some of the top audiobook performers of all time. This compiled collection of classic audiobooks contains a wide variety of classic Novels. ***PLEASE NOTE*** GSMC Podcast Network presents these shows and audiobooks as historical content and have brought them to you unedited. Remember that times have changed, and some Audiobooks might not reflect the standards of today's politically correct society. The shows do not necessarily reflect the views, standards, or beliefs of Golden State Media Concepts or the GSMC Podcast Network. Our goal is to entertain, educate and give you a glimpse into the past.

Inspired by a real-life case of wrongful imprisonment, Alexandre Dumas's The Count of Monte Cristo tells the story of Edmond Dantes. While imprisoned, Dante learns of a great hoard of treasure hidden on the Isle of Monte Cristo and he becomes determined not only to escape, but also to unearth the treasure and use it to plot the destruction of the three men responsible for his incarceration. The GSMC Audiobook Series presents some of the greatest classic novels, audiobooks, and theatrical presentations from a bygone era. Let Golden State Media Concepts take you on a ride through classic audiobooks read by some of the top audiobook performers of all time. This compiled collection of classic audiobooks contains a wide variety of classic Novels. ***PLEASE NOTE*** GSMC Podcast Network presents these shows and audiobooks as historical content and have brought them to you unedited. Remember that times have changed, and some Audiobooks might not reflect the standards of today's politically correct society. The shows do not necessarily reflect the views, standards, or beliefs of Golden State Media Concepts or the GSMC Podcast Network. Our goal is to entertain, educate and give you a glimpse into the past.

Inspired by a real-life case of wrongful imprisonment, Alexandre Dumas's The Count of Monte Cristo tells the story of Edmond Dantes. While imprisoned, Dante learns of a great hoard of treasure hidden on the Isle of Monte Cristo and he becomes determined not only to escape, but also to unearth the treasure and use it to plot the destruction of the three men responsible for his incarceration. The GSMC Audiobook Series presents some of the greatest classic novels, audiobooks, and theatrical presentations from a bygone era. Let Golden State Media Concepts take you on a ride through classic audiobooks read by some of the top audiobook performers of all time. This compiled collection of classic audiobooks contains a wide variety of classic Novels. ***PLEASE NOTE*** GSMC Podcast Network presents these shows and audiobooks as historical content and have brought them to you unedited. Remember that times have changed, and some Audiobooks might not reflect the standards of today's politically correct society. The shows do not necessarily reflect the views, standards, or beliefs of Golden State Media Concepts or the GSMC Podcast Network. Our goal is to entertain, educate and give you a glimpse into the past.

"My name is Edmond Dantes. You've ruined my life. Prepare to die." --The Count of Monte Cristo, basicallyWe're exploring Alexandre Dumas's The Count of Monte Cristo!  We'll summarize, give you  a background breakdown, and discuss some big ideas! Then, of course, we'll get judgy. Will we keep it classic? Or will we trash it? You can find extensive show notes on the Keep It Classic website. And we'd love for you to chat about all things lit with us over on social media at @keepitclassicpod!Along with the requisite Wikipedia look-throughs, we also found information for this episode in the following places:The Black Count by Tom Reisshttps://www.vox.com/culture/21404224/alexandre-dumas-google-doodle-count-of-monte-cristohttps://www.mentalfloss.com/article/64861/15-things-you-might-not-know-about-count-monte-cristohttps://www.npr.org/2012/09/19/161023945/the-black-count-cuts-a-fascinating-figurehttps://bookriot.com/alexandre-dumas/

Inspired by a real-life case of wrongful imprisonment, Alexandre Dumas's The Count of Monte Cristo tells the story of Edmond Dantes. While imprisoned, Dante learns of a great hoard of treasure hidden on the Isle of Monte Cristo and he becomes determined not only to escape, but also to unearth the treasure and use it to plot the destruction of the three men responsible for his incarceration. The GSMC Audiobook Series presents some of the greatest classic novels, audiobooks, and theatrical presentations from a bygone era. Let Golden State Media Concepts take you on a ride through classic audiobooks read by some of the top audiobook performers of all time. This compiled collection of classic audiobooks contains a wide variety of classic Novels. ***PLEASE NOTE*** GSMC Podcast Network presents these shows and audiobooks as historical content and have brought them to you unedited. Remember that times have changed, and some Audiobooks might not reflect the standards of today's politically correct society. The shows do not necessarily reflect the views, standards, or beliefs of Golden State Media Concepts or the GSMC Podcast Network. Our goal is to entertain, educate and give you a glimpse into the past.

Inspired by a real-life case of wrongful imprisonment, Alexandre Dumas's The Count of Monte Cristo tells the story of Edmond Dantes. While imprisoned, Dante learns of a great hoard of treasure hidden on the Isle of Monte Cristo and he becomes determined not only to escape, but also to unearth the treasure and use it to plot the destruction of the three men responsible for his incarceration. The GSMC Audiobook Series presents some of the greatest classic novels, audiobooks, and theatrical presentations from a bygone era. Let Golden State Media Concepts take you on a ride through classic audiobooks read by some of the top audiobook performers of all time. This compiled collection of classic audiobooks contains a wide variety of classic Novels. ***PLEASE NOTE*** GSMC Podcast Network presents these shows and audiobooks as historical content and have brought them to you unedited. Remember that times have changed, and some Audiobooks might not reflect the standards of today's politically correct society. The shows do not necessarily reflect the views, standards, or beliefs of Golden State Media Concepts or the GSMC Podcast Network. Our goal is to entertain, educate and give you a glimpse into the past.

Summary: How do we wrestle with the realities and complexities of our family situations today? How do we properly sort through the blessedness and the brokenness? Is it worth it to dig up all the dirt in order to move forward? How do we identify and interact with our biological families and the world given that Scripture tells us that when we're united to God through Christ we become a member of a new family?Transcript: This media has been made available by Mosaic Boston Church. If you'd like to check out more resources, learn about Mosaic Boston and our neighborhood churches, or donate to this ministry, please visit MosaicBoston.com.Man, it's hard to get up here and preach after Caleb and Pastor Shane pray, basically do a full sermon. Good morning. My name is Andy. I'm one of the pastors here at Mosaic. If you're new to Mosaic, we're thrilled to have you here. In our bulletins, we have a connection card. We want to get to know you. We went to live in community with you and let you know about what we have to offer in terms of community groups, service groups. You can hand those in at our welcome center if you want a special gift.Please join me in prayer. Heavenly Father, we come to you today with various family backgrounds. Lord, some of us come from brokenness. Some of us know blessedness very well. Some of us it's a mixed bag. Lord, we try to make sense of it of ourselves, and sometimes we identify ourselves too much by the brokenness, too much by the blessedness. We stray from clinging to who we are in you. Lord, we pray, please help us to define ourselves by who we are in your family through our faith in Jesus Christ. Lord, help us to know how to face our families with our new identity, face the world with our new identity. Lord, we pray, help us to lean in to you, the true source of love today.Holy Spirit, please be with us as we dealt into some difficult, potentially painful topics for some of us here today. Let your Spirit comfort us. Let your Spirit guide us. Let your spirit keep our gaze on Jesus Christ, on the cross. Lord, we pray this in Jesus' name, amen.Today, we're continuing our series. It's called Tough and Tender: Developing Resilience for Life. Despite our personal preferences to choose a side of Jesus that we like, Jesus was a man who came and told us to love our enemy. If he turns and speaks against us or hits us, he told us to give the other cheek, but he was a man who spoke hard and firm truth. He was not one or the other. He split both sides right in the middle. He walked that narrow path in life.We've been talking on some difficult topics to breed resilience in ourselves as Christians. We're trying to give you all a vision for what it would be like if our society was filled with people just like Jesus, tough and tender. Today, we're making sense of our family origins and we're going to be asking how do we embrace the blessedness and face the brokenness. How do we face what's good in the right way, face what's bad in the right way as well?Why bring this up in this series? Why bring this up at this specific moment in history in Boston? First of all, at Mosaic, family or origin issues are the most common issue that comes up. I was in my residency role the past year, and just time and time again so many people come to me and say, "Andy, you don't know just what it was like in my family."We're a young congregation. A lot of us come from brokenness, and we're at the point where we're learning how to move forward from that with our new identities in Christ. Some of us are even scared that we have just those difficult family members, those influential family members, those shepherds of our past that were not good influences. We're afraid sometimes that we're appearing to be just like them.Some of us come from strong families with a good Christian heritage. As we're getting older, we're realizing that our parents are not perfect. The people that once fulfilled your every need that seemed perfect and indestructible, you realize as you come of age that they're not perfect.Even those of us who come from a strong background, a strong family heritage, a strong faith tradition or denomination, it can be even harder for us to see the brokenness in our situation. Today, we need to ... We all come from families. We all have brokenness that we need to deal with.We don't just need to talk about this because we're a young church. God is the creator of the family. There's a lot of therapeutic approaches, a lot of theories going around about how to help people to reconcile both the good and the bad of their past. The Bible is all about a family. God creates Adam and Eve in the garden, and he lives in perfect communion with then before they sin. They sin in Genesis 3, and for the rest of the book, all 66 books, it's a story about God trying to unite his family. Man sins over and over again. God keeps pursuing them, pursuing them, pursuing them. We need to turn to God to enter into this conversation.Just a lot of the therapeutic strategies out there, they harp on the past. They suggest delving into the past. If you take a look back at your life, you can learn more about yourself, and that can help you move forward. If you can find the deficiencies of your upbringing, you can figure out ways to address them and be stronger going forward. If you can shed the influence of your parents and the morality that they introduced to you, you'll finally be free to be great, the great and accomplished person that you were created to be.These approaches in which looking back, they're particularly attractive to those of us with broken family backgrounds. Since the garden, Adam and Eve, when they sinned, what did they do? God came to them acting as if he didn't know what they did, and he asked Adam and Eve, "Where are you?" They both hid. They're trying to hide the shame of their sin. They both point the finger at each other. They're trying to deflect the blame. The problem with some of these approaches that say look back, look back, look back to move forward is that it appeals to that fallen nature within ourselves to cover up, to point the finger, to blame others.Then on the other side, there's a way of looking back at the good things that's promoted using nostalgia. Andrew Abeyta, a researcher at Rutgers-Camden University published an article in The Journal of Personality and Social Psychology in 2015 about looking back to move forward. It suggest how one can use nostalgia as a psychological resource for promoting relationship goals and overcoming relationship challenges. It's an interesting article, and it seems that relying on nostalgia can be influential in helping us overcome challenges in relationships, and I think that captures a lot of those people who come from good backgrounds.When things in life get difficult, when we face challenges, when relationships break down, especially for the first time, we cling to the past. We go on saying if things could only be the way they were with my family, I would have peace again. If only I had success in this area, I would just have peace and joy. We're like Bruce Springsteen singing Glory Days over and over again, and we just keep trying to relive them. We go on trying to satisfy our lack of satisfaction in our hearts just by just pursuing and feeding our co-dependence, going to relationship to relationship, church community to church community, job to job, finding friends with whom we can pursue squad goals, but we never get ultimate satisfaction. We never grow substantially, and we struggle to engage in relationships and live in the present.Today, I don't want to argue about the dynamics of modern counseling approaches. I don't want to say don't go to counseling. If you are in a desperate situation, come talk to the pastors. Talk to people in your community group. Talk to pastors. We have our prayer team up here after the service as well. If you just during the week have nowhere to go, pursue that care. But I just want to point out these issues, these treatments, they're mainly forces of nursing. They're only treating minor internal issues. It's like putting a new kitchen in a house when the foundation is damaged.In Christianity, it's neither nature or nurture, nursing nor nostalgia that determines a person's direction in life. It's the nativity that makes people new. As fallen sinners, only faith in Jesus can fix our foundation.Today, I want to talk about in order to face the blessedness and brokenness of our earthly family like Jesus, we should embrace a new family identity, face family as a lamb, face family as a lion, face family with God. Obviously, I'm keeping, if you've been with us, with the lion and lamb imagery, but I promise that I won't have 10 sub points in this sermon. I really wanted to, but I want to sit on some of this other stuff today.Where do I get these instructions from? Embrace a new family identity, face family as a lamb, face family as a lion, face family with God. I get this from James 1:1 to 5. Please listen along as I read God's Word. "James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, to the 12 disciples in the Dispersion: Greetings. scattered among the nations: Greetings. Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him."Embrace a new family identity. If any of you know the book of James, as I'm sure many of you do, and just listening to this text, you learn that this is not a book specifically about family. It's not about how to deal with your family brokenness and blessedness. Some of you might be asking, why are we here?What makes this text relevant is who James is talking to. Verse 1, "James, a servant of God," he's speaking to the 12 tribes of the Dispersion. That's he's speaking to the Dispersion. That's language in reference to just the Jews. They were spread throughout the region. He's calling them my brothers. He's writing ... James is the brother of Jesus. He's writing to Jewish brothers, Jewish Christians.Just what's so important to emphasize here is this audience. Like we think we have it bad in Boston. Like we face some intellectual persecution. It's hard to find a Christian date or partner, because there's so few Christians here. Raising a kid here, we think it's difficult, like fighting the squirrels away in the Boston Common. We think like we have it tough, but first century Jewish Christians had it really tough.This is something that a lot of us, it doesn't make sense. Christianity seemed to have taken off at Jerusalem, but you have to remember the Christians of this day, they were mainly in lands occupied by Roman pagan soldiers. These soldiers did not, and the rulers, governors didn't hesitate to rule with an iron fist if they didn't like someone, didn't like a group.But just with that lingering potential persecution, the Jews had to deal with persecution from other Jews. We think of the apostle Paul when he was Saul, just pursuing them jealously. But not just in public, but they faced persecution within their own families. You have to think like for a Jew to leave their family, a cult steeped in tradition, we're talking about people who knew their family heritage. They should state it orally going back hundreds and hundreds years. Like this, becoming a Christian in that day was the ultimate betrayal.We think of a Red Sox fan switching to the Yankees, Barcelona fans switching to Real Madrid, a modern Democrat switching to Republican. I'll stop. Juliet Capulet marrying Romeo Montague. Forgive my French. More seriously, like an orthodox Jew or devout Muslim becoming Christian today. These Jews were people that would've had to scrounge to survive. When they gathered for worship, they would have been on the lookout for zealots. They would have been on the lookout for the Roman authorities.Just scriptural support from this comes from Galatians 2:7 to 10. "On the contrary." This is the apostle Paul talking about some of his early interactions after his conversion. "On the contrary, when they," the church in Jerusalem, "Saw that I had been entrusted with the gospel to the uncircumcised, just as Peter had been entrusted with the gospel to the circumcised, and when James, and Cephas, and John, who seemed to be pillars, perceived the grace that was given to me, they gave the right hand of fellowship to Barnabas and me, that we should go to the Gentiles and they to the circumcised. Only they asked us to remember the poor, the very thing I was eager to do."The poor that Paul's talking about in verse 10, these are Jewish Christians. When you read through the book of Acts and Paul's other writings, you find that you on his missionary journeys traveled across the region towards Europe to collect money, hundreds of miles of travel, and take it back to the Jews in Jerusalem, because in such a heavily populated Jewish area they were the poorest Christians. They were facing really difficult circumstances.Therefore, the book of James, it's not specifically about our earthly family, our biological family, but it's a book written by a pastor with a congregation full of people who had extreme family issues. If they weren't steadfast in their faith, they were always wavering over whether to continue to face the potential persecution and abandonment for the sake of Christ, or they could return to their families where they had heritage, they had peace, they had comfort.This is specific advice, and this begs the question, why would these Jewish Christians leave their families? Why would they risk this persecution and this abandonment? Some of them did choose to leave. Others were kicked out.Obviously, I mean most people are logical. They don't just leave something just because. They typically choose something because it's better than the previous option. Scripture talks about believers in Christ, they have a place in the kingdom of heaven. "The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up. Then in his joy, he goes and tells all that he has and buys the field." These early Jews believed that, Jewish Christians.The early church heeded the words and took these words literally. "And everyone who has left houses, or brothers, or sisters, or father, or mother, or children, or lands for my name's sake will receive 100-fold and will inherit eternal life." They believed that, and following Jesus Christ they had a means of salvation of peace before God, but also an eternal inheritance.They also believed they're joining a new family with access to a father. Romans 8:31, "If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also give him ... how will he not also with him graciously give us all things?" They have a new heavenly Father that will never fail them.Finally, in Ephesians it talks about they're joining this line with all the faithful saints and prophets of old, united by the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. "So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone, in whom the whole structure, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord. In him you also are being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit."These people, these are benefits that the early Jewish Christians just saw and they wanted to ... They took them up. They left for the better option, but they also would have known the scriptures. Just when you read through scripture, again it's about a family.I just want to take you through the brokenness presented in Genesis, and these Jewish Christians, they were the ones, not their families who stayed devout Jews, these were the ones who knew that Jesus was the Messiah. He was just the figure they looked for all along.You think of Adam and Eve. They immediately disobey God in the garden. Their firstborn kills his younger brother. Abraham and Sarah, who received God's promise, because of infertility, Sarah gives Abraham and concubine and then gets mad and jealous when she gets pregnant. Lot, Abraham's nephew, gets drunk. His daughters get him drunk, they seduce him, commit incest.Isaac and Rebekah, Isaac, Abraham's son, they play favorites with their twins, whose sibling rivalry becomes one of the worst in history. That's Jacob and Esau. Esau has no discernment, sells his birthright for a bowl of soul. He marries a Canaanite woman. Jacob, he manipulates Esau to give him his birthright. He shows extreme favoritism to one child, Joseph.Uncle Laban, he deceives Jacob at one point. He makes Jacob work for years and years and years to offer him Rachel, the beautiful daughter, but he gives him Leah. Jacob's daughter Dinah is raped by a pagan, and then her brothers go and kill a whole village. Jacob's oldest son Reuben can't resist his incestuous desires. He sleeps with his father's concubine, the mother of some of his brothers. Ten of Jacob's sons, they plan to kill their brother, but instead they decide to sell him into slavery.Judah, one of Jacob's sons, as a widower he frequents prostitutes. This is the one who's Jesus ... who started the line towards Jesus. This occurs frequently enough that his daughter-in-law Tamar, whom he had dishonored, knew that she'd disguise himself with one. He slept with his daughter-in-law and got her pregnant.That's Genesis, but the list just begins. It's blunder in the Old Testament, blunder after blunder by the priests. Lots of false prophets. King David, a man after God's own heart, commits adultery. Solomon, after David unites the kingdom, he unwisely marries 1,000 women.I'm going, I'm going, but you read the Bible and a lot of Christian traditions talk about the Old Testament figures as heroes, and in many senses they were heroes in the sense that they pointed to Jesus Christ, but it's a whole story of brokenness. For the Jews of Jerusalem, the Jewish Christians of the early days, they would have been starving. They had read the scriptures. They studied them. Jesus was the fulfillment. He was finally that perfect figure, the one who fulfilled the Law, the second Adam that did not sin, the Christ, the Savior to whom all the prophets ... about whom all the prophets spoke of.These Jews, they were standing on a rock. They had a foundation. Were they to dwell on what they left behind? Are we to dwell on what we leave behind? Do we dwell on the good things, the bad things?The apostle Paul just captures the spirit of the mindset that Christians are supposed to take as they go forward. Philippians 3, "But one thing I do, forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to lies ahead. I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. Let those of us who are mature think this way, and if in anything you think otherwise, God will reveal that also to you. Only let us hold true to what we have attained."2 Corinthians 2, "For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified." Colossians 3, "If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ who is your life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory."I hope I'm getting redundant here. This is a little bit in counter to the movement, the tendency not just of our current day, but of our flesh to want to look back to find excuses for our state of trouble, our state of pain, our state of affliction. In Christianity, it's a forward looking mindset.A lot of Christians, they never grow. They come to faith. They love the gospel. It brings joy to their soul and peace to their hearts, but a lot of them are like the lead character of The Count of Monte Cristo, Edmond Dantes, the lead character. He's unjustly framed and thrown into jail, a medieval jail, and he's there for years. He sleeps on a dirt floor, just in isolation for years. After several years, he escapes and he righteously comes upon a great fortune, a buried treasure. He buys himself a great estate with a mansion and he tries to create a new identity as the Count of Monte Cristo. He has everything he ever dreamed of while living in his jail cell, but he can't completely shake his old identity. At one point, his servant discovers that despite his lavish mansion and bedroom, despite the comforts, the count still sleeps on the floor at night.That's a lot like us. We come to faith in Christ. We're privy to God as Father. We're privy to forgiveness. We're privy to the means of sanctification and grace, but we're still sleeping on the floor. We aren't owning our new identity. We're defined by our family background, both good and bad.What did those members of the early church dwell on and meditate on daily to walk forward? What news powered them each day to face the hardship that they faced? They had family wounds lingering. They had temptation to go back to the comforts and the traditions.At the heart of Christianity is a Savior who is both born into both blessedness and brokenness. Jesus was conceived out of marriage in a day and culture when it was socially and religiously preposterous. When he was brought to the temple, his parents gave the payment that was paid by the poorest of the Jewish community. He could have let his circumstances and dishonorable nature and birth define him, but he didn't.Jesus could have swung the other way. He was after all the Son of God. He could have proudly used his prodigious knowledge of the scriptures as a means to build us his title within the community. As the chosen one, the son whom the Father sent, the Son of David, Jesus could have used his powers and authority to garner earthly acclaim. Could have denied the cup and established an earthly kingdom, but he didn't.Jesus had every problem to wallow, every reason to wallow in the brokenness or to cling and bask in the pride stemming from his gifts and calling, but instead was a man whose entire identity was built on who he was in relation to his heavenly Father. When Jesus said, "Into your hands I commit my spirit," he experienced ultimate abandonment, despair, excruciating pain at the hands of his Father. He relinquished ultimate power, pedigree, wealth, acclaim. He offered himself completely to God and his purpose. He knew that his Father had the love and power to redeem such a tragic moment. He's wiling to set aside all vendettas and potential momentary exaltation for our eternal exaltation.We need to follow in the steps of Christ. We need to embrace our new family identity. We cling to our family, this new family identity. If you're not, this is waking up each day grounding yourself saying, "Lord, I am satisfied in you."But how do we interact with our earthly family? Are we to leave them, to break all ties with them? Matthew 19:29, are we to literally leave houses, or brothers, or sisters, or father and mother? We don't take that part literal. In some cases, yes. If they resist us and prevent us from worshiping God, we might have to take those steps, but it's the principle. Trust in God first. Follow God first. Be willing to give all of your life, even the slowest relationships with the people closest to you to follow him.If we are to continue to interact with them, how do we face them? This is point two, face family as sheep. This comes from James 1:1 again. Sorry. My favorite preacher can do like an hour with two words. "James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ." We get this just face family as sheep just by thinking about who James is.James is a man who could have pulled rank. James is the brother, the earthly brother of Jesus. His parents, Jesus' parents were Mary and the Holy Spirit. James's parents were Mary and Joseph. Look what he calls himself here, "James, a servant of God and the Lord Jesus Christ." This word for servant, that's doulos, servant, slave. Like he's saying I'm a slave of God and Jesus Christ, my brother who I grew up with. James in that day, he could have pulled rank. He's the pastor of the church in Jerusalem.Then in verse two, he calls his audience brothers. James has a lamb mentality. Even though Jesus was his earthly brother, James knew that Jesus was the Savior, and that just humbles him.This is the part of the sermon where I really could just give you 10 practical points of how do we face our families as humble lambs, humble sheep, but I think ... and giving you those 10 sub points. But I just want to pause here. I don't want to be too firm, but I just want to ask some pointed questions. Some people come to church week after week for year after year. They're scribbling down the 10 sub points every week. They're at community group. They're giving faithfully, but there's heartache tied to family brokenness that they can ignore for decades.Just thinking about James, a man, a pastor, Jesus' brother, well studied in the scriptures, lots of wisdom, he shows his humility. He doesn't pull rank. He united himself with his congregation. I ask, who in your family could you pull rank on? Who are the people you're pulling rank on? By that I mean with whom do you have the high moral ground? Have you forgiven them? Have you pursued reconciliation?Who in your family has sinned against you? Who's that person that you're avoiding just because the history is too complex? Who are you tempted to blame for the many problems in your life? What are you doing to pursue that person's salvation? What are you doing to pursue that person's sanctification if they are a Christian?Colossians 3 says, "Put on then, as God's chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive."Luke 6:27 to 31. "But I say to you who hear, love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you. To one who strikes you on the cheek, offer the other, and from one who takes away your cloak do not withhold your tunic either. Give to everyone who begs from you, and from one who takes away your goods do not demand them back. And as you wish that others would do to you, do so to them."A lot of Christians love these verses, and like a lot of you who will hear this, shake your head. This sounds great, but there's often that one person or those few people in everyone's life for whom we make an exception to these verses. The wounds, the bitterness that we carry from not pursuing reconciliation, from not forgiving, man, they're obvious to everyone but you.It doesn't have to be a family member. It doesn't have to be. It could be a friend, a schoolmate, a whole race of people. Who do you need to forgive? A lot of people when I counsel, I can sit with people and meet with them regularly for a year, and they try to act like I don't notice, but I can meet with them once a month for a year, I never hear about that estranged mother. I never hear about that estranged father.A lot of those people, you might be thinking, "You don't know my situation. You don't know what I've been through." Like that's ... you're right. I honestly knew I was born into blessing, born into a Christian home, raised in the church. I was trained to thank God for that. Like my compassion, I'm so thankful that I didn't have to deal with some of the trauma, some of the pain, physical and emotional, that a lot of you had. But I don't know it, but the Lord does. Hebrews 4:15 says, "For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin."Forgiveness, faces your family members as a lamb, it doesn't mean trusting the person. It doesn't mean becoming best friends with them. It doesn't mean letting them back in as if nothing ever happened. It doesn't mean that you don't put up boundaries upon reengaging. It certainly doesn't mean that you put up with physical abuse. At Mosaic, we do not support that. If anybody is experiencing that, if anybody is facing that, let us know. Let us know how we can help you do whatever you can to get out of your situation.Forgiveness means committing in your soul to leave a situation in God's hands, to trust that he will ultimately bring justice, and therefore that you won't hold a sin against the person anymore. You commit not to bring the sin up, not to dwell on it in your heart, not to let it fester and stir up bitterness and self pity. Some people who are victims of just traumatic assault and tragedy, you don't take on the burden for the wounds afflicted against you. We all born in the image of Adam are sinners. We have to turn to Christ in faith to deal with our sin, but we don't ... you are not responsible for that sin.Brandt Jean, a young African-American man, made an amazing courtroom statement a few weeks ago to a former white female police officer, Amber Guyger. Amber shot his brother. In the statement, Brandt told her that he forgave her. He wanted her to go to God with her guilt to ask for forgiveness. He told her that the best thing he thinks she could do was to give her life to Christ. He told her that he loved her as a person, told her that he didn't wish that she served time, and he wanted to hug her.That was just an extreme, beautiful example of forgiveness, but we don't have to use his specific language. We don't have to want to hug them. We don't have to wish that people don't serve proper and just legal time or face proper civil punishment. But we're called to be good stewards, not just of our finances as we learned last week, but good stewards of God's love and grace.1 John 3:16 to 18 says, "By this we know love, that he laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers. But if anyone has the world's goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God's love abide in him? Little children, let us not love in word or talk but in deed and truth." James is also famous for saying, "Faith without works is dead." If you know God's love, you're a steward. You share it. You give it to others.What's at stake when we don't cling to our new identity? What's at stake when we don't face our families, family members like sheep? We go back to James and talk about facing family as a lion. "Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing."James tells his brothers to count it joy. That's what's at stake when we're not clinging to our new identity, when we're not facing our family as lambs. We're losing out on joy. Additionally, we're losing out on steadfastness that leads to perfection that leads to completeness that feels like we're lacking nothing, a perfect soul satisfaction.Throughout the book, again it's a book specifically about family, James lists many trying situations as tests, poverty, suffering, sickness. It also lists many good situations as tests of faith. Are you wealthy, healthy, in a new job, in a new city, in a position of authority? He's saying, "Surely you're going to face trials in this life," but we can apply that and say you are going to face trials in your family life.James kind of has a madman's mentality. We don't just ... A lot of people go through that honeymoon phase and you're just shocked when that first trial comes upon us, upon you. But he says count it joy. That trial, especially those within our family, that's a stamp of God's love on your life. We think of this as awful. Like the last thing that I want to do when I see my family is dig up the dirt, bring out the areas where there isn't reconciliation, bring out the areas that have just not been addressed for years.I heard a song on the radio somewhere in the low 90s, where you never know what you're going to get. It was a country song by Uncle Johnny and the Bullfrogs. No, it wasn't actually called that. I heard ... It was on like the scan mode. I heard one line, and it said, "You want the spark, but not the burn." That's a lot of us in relation to our families, and even in our Christian life. We want the good things.When I see my family, like I'm tempted to visit. I just want to visit nice places, eat, drink, turn on the TV, avoid, do all that I can to avoid those difficult conversations, reminisce, and avoid that conversation of, "Mom, dad, are you going to church? Mom, dad, are you pursuing your relationship with God? Siblings, where are you on your faith?" We want the spark. We want the good things, but we don't want the burn. If you do family right, in the church and in your nuclear families, like there should be some burn.That's the benefit of family. By your connection through blood, you have a naturally stronger connection. You can risk hard conversations. You can risk poking and nudging, and they are still tied to you, whether they like it or not. Of course, pursue them in gentleness, love, respect, but take advantage of the fact that your family, whether they disagree with you or not, like they have to stay connected to you. It's just that intimacy that you have just in being fully known yet fully loved that we experience in family that points to the love that's complete and perfect in God.Just in scripture, this 1 Corinthians 7, Paul tells his audience stay where you are in many situations. We need to ... The first instinct is to book it from our families, but we have to take advantage of the roots and connections we have with people. Show them you've changed. How can you convince the people in your life that you've changed through your relationship with Jesus if you're never around them, if you don't even know them beyond a shallow level?This is hard. When you're living far away, like many of us here, whether you're a single or a young couple living away from family, or whether you're parents here living away from your children or parents, it's really hard to do this from a distance, but you need to be creative. Be practical. How can you engage your family members? As a church plant, we really want you to stay, but we need you to invest.Why do we do this with our family? Why do we pursue them with zeal? It's out of response, out of love, out of gratitude for Jesus, for God who continued to pursue us and pursue us, pursue his people over and over again. I went through the Genesis sin trail just to illustrate man's brokenness. God pursues us as a good shepherd seeking that one lost sheep out of the 99.Why do this in our family? James 5:19 says it's good for them. "My brothers, if anyone among you wanders from ..." This is the last words of the book. "If anyone among you wanders from the truth and someone brings him back, let him know that whoever brings back a sinner from his wandering will save his soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins."That family member that hurt you, just that person I asked you to think about or those few people, do you really want them to have eternal separation, eternal condemnation from God? When God pours out his wrath on the world, do you want them to taste that as Jesus once did?Also, why pursue our family with zeal? Why not just sit back and relax with them all the time? It breeds steadfastness, perfection, completeness. You learn it's more blessed to give than to receive. It's more blessed to be a blessing. Your tastes and desires change from things that you like to things that are good and godly. You go from drinking coffee with sugar to drinking black coffee, drinking soda to water. Do you really want full soul satisfaction? Pursue the salvation of those people around you, the people who you are most naturally connected to in this life to bring about salvation, to be used to bring about salvation as your earthly family.It's painful. Count it all joy when you receive kinds of various trials. I hate trials. In my own marriage, I hate when Joyce and I have a disagreement. It's not just an argument. Any form of disagreement I want to avoid, but by God's grace I've learned the benefit. I've learned the joyful part of it. She's often just like spewing truth after truth after truth at me, and I don't want to hear it, but in the back of my mind ... Sometimes I'm spewing out bitterness, saying, "No, no, no." At the back of my mind though, I'm learning to say, "Yes, yes, yes. This is rooting out the impurities of my soul. This is good for me. This is good for our marriage. We are growing here, and I want more of it."I'm calling you to face your family as lions. Facing family as a lamb, that's the heart that we have. Face your family as lions, pursue their salvation with the zeal of the lion going after its prey.Now, face family with God. We're not alone in doing this work. Clinging to your identity in Christ just daily, that's difficult. Pursuing those family members with the heart of a sheep, those people that you don't want to pursue and just being constant in it like a lion, it's tiring, it's confusing, often don't know what you want to do. James 5 gives us some comfort. "If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given to him."James wrote for this people about church problems, but we certainly need to ask God for wisdom in engaging our families. For many of us, we'll find satisfaction with the words that we can pursue God without reproach. He's a Father that's never going to tire of us coming into his presence to ask for wisdom, ask for discernment, ask how to navigate the situation.Why is that the case? Like there's a connection when we do that, when we humble ourselves to the point that we say, "God, I need you. I needed Jesus to go to the cross to die for me, to save me from my sin. I need your help right now in this moment to work out my salvation with fear and trembling. I need your wisdom to deal with this difficult family situation right here." That's a correction. That's a recalibration of who we are before God. That's the position we were originally created to be.Adam, his first relationship was not with Eve. It was before God, having peace with God. Adam walked in the garden, tilled the garden. He named the animals with God. He always needed God to guide him and to be submissive to him. We are creatures. God is the creator. When we're in this position properly, when we see our need for God, we're able to see our family situations properly. Just notice, if any of your lacks nothing at the beginning of the verse, like this is saying God offers us everything. We see family properly.Some of you are expecting too much from your families. Some of you place way too much pressure on your fathers and your mothers, whatever were those primary figures in your life, those shepherds. You want them to fill the ... those old shepherds to fill the role that only the one great and true shepherd could fulfill. Family is designed in this life to not fully satisfy. It's only when we're in relation to God, submitting to him, turning to him, being reliant upon him that we are in our proper place, that we can have full satisfaction, that we can have peace, that we can feel fully secure, that we can see, just understand, make sense of the blessedness that we've tasted, not make idols out of that, and make sense of the brokenness. God, how are you using this brokenness that I've experienced for your glory? It doesn't make sense, but I trust you.To close, I just want to read Isaiah 58:9 to 11. This is the prophet Isaiah. "Then you will call, and the Lord will answer. You will cry for help, and he will say, 'Here am I.' If you do away with the yoke from your midst, the pointing of the finger, and speaking wickedness, and if you give yourself to the hungry and satisfy the desire of the afflicted, then your light will rise in darkness, and your gloom will become like midday. And the Lord will continually guide you, and satisfy your desire in scorched places, and give strength to your bones. And you will be like a watered garden and like a spring of water whose waters do not fail."Do you want that? Just turn to him, position yourself properly before the Lord. You'll know how to make sense of your family situation. Please join me in prayer.Lord, we praise you that we don't have to be people that look back. We don't have to be constantly searching for a new identity. Lord, we have a sure foundation in you. You're a good Father that loves his children, and pursues them, and pursues them, and pursues them even when they sin against him, and yet you still offer eternal riches. Lord, we just pray that we would cling to you, cling to who we are through you, and that would give us a heart to pursue our families, a heart to pursue them with the proper heart of humility, with love, with grace, with gentleness, and also a zeal to be constant in the pursuit.Lord, we pray, help us to find rest, find peace, find completeness, perfection, full soul satisfaction when we pause to turn and gaze upon you and ask you for guidance as we just wait upon the day that you return. We pray this in Jesus' name, amen.

sermon transcript Introduction What a joy I have today to preach on aspects of our heavenly inheritance. In Ephesians 1, the Apostle Paul prayed for the Ephesian Christians, “that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints…” [Ephesians 1:18] Putting it simply, he prayed that they would know how rich they will be in Heaven. There could be no better passage of Scripture than Revelation 22:1-5 to give us a catalog of some of the aspects of our heavenly inheritance. Recently a friend encouraged me to listen to an audio recording of The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexander Dumas. One of my favorite parts is the description of the treasure. It is marvelous. Edmond Dantès had escaped from the prison on Chateau D’If and had followed a treasure map to a hidden grotto where this vast treasure had been hidden in the 1490s. It is divided into three categories. “Three compartments divided the coffer. In the first, blazed piles of golden coin; in the second, were ranged bars of unpolished gold, which possessed nothing attractive save their value; in the third, Edmond grasped handfuls of diamonds, pearls, and rubies, which, as they fell on one another, sounded like hail against glass. After having touched, felt, examined these treasures, Edmond rushed through the caverns like a man seized with frenzy; he leaped on a rock, from whence he could behold the sea. He was alone -- alone with these countless, these unheard-of treasures! was he awake, or was it but a dream? He raced around screaming like a madman at his lavish fortune… Then he fell on his knees, and, clasping his hands convulsively, uttered a prayer intelligible to God alone. He soon became calmer and more happy, for only now did he begin to realize his felicity. He then set himself to work to count his fortune. There were a thousand ingots of gold, each weighing from two to three pounds; then he piled up twenty-five thousand crowns, each worth about eighty francs...; and he saw that the complement was not half empty. And he measured ten double handfuls of pearls, diamonds, and other gems, many of which, mounted by the most famous workmen, were valuable beyond calculation.” Edmond Dantes had to take in his treasure a little at a time. It was way too much for him to understand how wealthy he had become. He had to lift things up one at a time to take them in. That is the sense I have in our passage today. Quick, brief statements, one after another, list treasures of indescribable value. For example, “they will see his face…” A quick phrase but infinite in worth and value. We will lift up each of these treasures one at a time and ponder them. I pray that the eyes of our hearts will be enlightened to realize just how rich we will be in Heaven in our inheritance with the saints. If you are not yet a Christian, my desire is that you would be jealous to be that rich and you would cross over from death to life this very morning as I proclaim the simple truth of the Gospel. All you must do is believe the Gospel and you, too, will be that wealthy. This section in Revelation continues the Apostle John’s description of the New Jerusalem, which he began in Revelation 21:9-11: “One of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues came and said to me, ‘Come, I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb.’ And he carried me away in the Spirit to a mountain great and high, and showed me the Holy City, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God. It shone with the glory of God, and its brilliance was like that of a very precious jewel, like a jasper, clear as crystal.” John then describes the glorious architecture of the brilliant city, the New Jerusalem: its great high wall with twelve gates, each named for one of the Twelve Tribes of Israel, and each with an angel standing at the gates, not to guard it from threats but to welcome all who come; its twelve-fold foundations, each bearing the name of one of the Twelve Apostles of the Lamb; the gates, each made of a spectacular single pearl; the streets, made of something unknown to us, like transparent gold; the foundations of the city wall decorated with twelve different colored gems, giving off every color of the spectrum with marvelous, radiant beauty. The New Jerusalem is incalculably massive in size, effectively the distance from Orlando to Abilene Texas, and up to the border of Canada, and as tall as it is long and broad, an incomprehensible size for a city. It is continually radiant with the glory of God, possessing a glowing translucent quality. The city gates stand open continually, and the wealth of the nations come stream in to beautify the city and make it even more glorious. John mentions the kings of the nations will come into it and bring their glory into it... so this city will be the focus of the New Heavens and New Earth. In some mysterious sense the New Jerusalem represents us, the people of God, the Bride of Christ. But it cannot be only a symbolic representation of the multifaceted diverse beauty of the Church of Jesus Christ, because we will need a place to live forever. We will have actual physical resurrection bodies like Christ’s resurrection body. Christ, “by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body.” [Philippians 3:21] After his resurrection, when he appeared in the upper room, Jesus was trying to prove to his Apostles that they were not seeing a ghost. He said “‘Look at my hands and my feet. It is I myself! Touch me and see; a ghost does not have flesh and bones, as you see I have.’ When he had said this, he showed them his hands and feet.” [Luke 24:39-40] In the same way, we will have bodies. We must have a place to walk, a place to gather, a place to dwell, a place to eat and drink, and that place will be the New Jerusalem. We saw that it is a perfectly pure place, free from all threats, enemies, wickedness. Revelation 21:27 says, “Nothing impure will ever enter it, nor will anyone who does what is shameful or deceitful, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s book of life.” That gives us the context for Revelation 22. The first five verses complete the line by line description of the New Jerusalem, and I can do nothing better, like Edmond Dantès, than to take up one treasure after another to consider the value of each one. We will look at them briefly this morning, but in Christ we will live them eternally. My desire is that our hearts will be filled with joy, peace, happiness and hope based on the Word of God and the ministry of the Spirit. The River of the Water of Life The Angel Showed Me Revelation 22:1-2 says, “Then the angel showed me the River of the Water of Life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb down the middle of the great street of the city.” John is seeing all this in a supernatural vision of the Spirit led by an angelic guide, introduced in Revelation 21:9. The Holy Spirit is giving him a vision that he would have no other way of seeing. The New Jerusalem did not exist when John wrote this and still does not; it is not finished from our perspective, so it is only by vision and by Scripture that we can have an idea of what it is like. John could not have concocted this complex image in his mind. He was not a literary genius coming up with images from his own fervent imagination. The angel had a mission from God to show him a vision of the future; he saw it and wrote it down. The River John sees the river of the Water of Life. It is a powerful image, a sparkling, bubbling, rushing river of water, endlessly flowing, ready to refresh the inhabitants of the New Jerusalem forever. It is flowing clear as crystal, brilliant, radiant, shining with the glory of God like everything else in the city. We once took a trip from Miami, Florida, where my dad was raised, down to the Florida Keys. The road to the Keys is amazing, a flat highway just above the surface of the water. We pulled off for a picnic in a cove along the way. I had never seen water so clear in all my life. I do not know how deep it was, but it was like glass — we could see straight through it — perfectly clear, beautiful water. The river of life is like this — no impurities, no mud, no silt. The river flows down the middle of the great street of the city. That street is depicted as made of transparent gold (Rev. 21:21) The whole plan of the city centers around this street and this river, so they seem to go together. The image is similar to the one seen by Ezekiel the prophet in his vision of a mysterious glorified temple. He describes a river flowing from the mystical spiritual temple. Ezekiel 47:1-5 “The man [an angel] brought me back to the entrance of the temple, and I saw water coming out from under the threshold of the temple toward the east (for the temple faced east)... As the man went eastward with a measuring line in his hand, he measured off a thousand cubits and then led me through water that was ankle-deep. He measured off another thousand cubits and led me through water that was knee-deep. He measured off another thousand and led me through water that was up to the waist. He measured off another thousand, but now it was a river that I could not cross, because the water had risen and was deep enough to swim in — a river that no one could cross.” It gets deeper and wider as it flows further and further away, suggesting an infinite supply of water. In Ezekiel’s image, the river produces vast and diverse life and fruitfulness: Ezekiel 47:6-9 “Then he led me back to the bank of the river. When I arrived there, I saw a great number of trees on each side of the river. He said to me, ‘This water flows toward the eastern region and goes down into the Arabah, where it enters the Sea. When it empties into the Sea, the water there becomes fresh. Swarms of living creatures will live wherever the river flows. There will be large numbers of fish, because this water flows there and makes the salt water fresh; so where the river flows everything will live.’” Hallelujah! Ezekiel 47:12 says, “Fruit trees of all kinds will grow on both banks of the river. Their leaves will not wither, nor will their fruit fail. Every month they will bear, because the water from the sanctuary flows to them. Their fruit will serve for food and their leaves for healing.” There is little doubt that the same Holy Spirit who inspired the prophet Ezekiel to write those words was inspiring the Apostle John to write these words in Revelation. He is giving us a description of the same future heavenly blessedness. We will have a New Jerusalem. The idea of the river of the Water of Life connects with many images in Psalms, of thirsty souls coming to God: Psalm 42:1 says,“As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, O God.” Psalm 46:4 “There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, the holy place where the Most High dwells.” There is a river where God will dwell, and it makes everyone glad. It also is reminiscent of the original Garden of Eden. From the midst of that garden, Genesis 2:10 says, “A river watering the garden flowed from Eden; from there it was separated into four headwaters.” That gives me the sense that Adam and Eve were not meant to stay in that garden but they were meant to move out and fill the earth and subdue it and multiply and explore it. Genesis 2 also talks about aromatic resin and onyx and gold out in the earth — a world waiting to be explored. So also, the river of the Water of Life leads out into the city, the New Jerusalem, and out into the New Earth, inviting its inhabitants to follow it out to explore and discover all that God has done. It also reminds me of the statement Jesus made to the Samaritan woman in John 4. She was trying to understand him and his message. He said “If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked him and he would have given you living water.” [She did not know who he was and was not all that impressed with what she saw.] “Are you greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well and drank from it himself, as did also his sons and his livestock?” [“Are you greater than Jacob?” Yes, infinitely greater than Jacob! And I will tell you how:] “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” This is the consummation of all these images, a source of endless spiritual refreshment through our relationship with God and Christ. It also teaches that the source of our eternal life will forever be God and Christ — there is no independent eternal life in heaven. We will depend on the river of the Water of Life flowing from the throne forever. We will not cut the tie with God and His throne. Our eternal life is dependent on Him, and He is eternally willing for us to continue living. It is a continual choice on His part that we should continue to live in Him. We are made in His image; thus, we are forever dependent on Him. The Source The source of the water is the throne of God. He is a mighty king, seated on His throne, and life flows from His kingly rule. The water is created right from the sovereign power of the King of the Universe. In the same way that He created the universe — ex nihilo, Latin for “out of nothing,” by the word of His power — He continually and infinitely creates this water. It represents God as the source of all life, happiness, joy, and refreshment forever. It also shows the nature of His kingship. Human rulers use their authority to dominate and oppress others, to fleece them and strip them and shred them of life and possessions and dignity. Not God. He uses his dominion to give life and blessing to all his subjects. Those around the throne are not running from it, as rebels, but running to the throne to receive refreshment and to delight in God and His good gifts. This reminds me of a different river that also flowed from the throne of God. In Daniel 7, Daniel the prophet had a vision of four beasts coming up out of the turbulent waters, representing mighty, godless, wicked, satanic empires, one after another. In the middle of that chapter, we see the throne of the Ancient of Days, Almighty God, ruling to judge and bring wrath on these demonic, wicked empires. Daniel 7:9-10 “Almighty God took his seat. His clothing was as white as snow; the hair of his head was white like wool. His throne was flaming with fire, and its wheels were all ablaze. A river of fire was flowing, coming out from before him.” From the same throne comes both a river of fire and the river of the Water of Life. That is Hell and Heaven, both coming from the sovereign power of Almighty God. Both eternal life and eternal death flow from the throne of God, and no one can overturn his will. The Tree of Life Revelation 22:2-3 “On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations.” Garden of Eden, but Better To some degree, in our hearts and minds, it must seem as though this is a return to the Garden of Eden, except this is perfected, infinitely better now. We are not on probation; we are not being tested. Adam and Eve ate from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil and we see the tragic river of wickedness that flowed from that sinful decision on Adam’s part, a flood of miseries of sin, sickness, sorrow, tears and death. After they sinned, Adam and Eve were evicted from the Garden. God the Judge placed a sentinel cherubim with a flaming sword flashing back and forth, “…lest they reach out their hands and take and eat from the Tree of Life and live forever.” But Jesus Christ came and paid the death penalty and removed that sword, that angel. Now we have the right to enter through the gates of the city and eat from the Tree of Life forever. Jesus won us that right; he paid for it with his blood. Position of the Tree: On Each Side of the River of Life The position of the tree is challenging to understand. One tree on both sides of a mighty river? That is a big tree! It is an amazing picture. Ezekiel 47 describes a grove of trees on each side, but John’s image is “the” Tree of Life. The Tree of Life and the river of the Water of Life show different aspects of the same thing. They are two different ways of representing that God intends for us to drink and eat and live forever. It is like the godly man in Psalm 1:3 “… like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither. Whatever he does prospers…” There is continued fruitfulness. The tree bears fruit every month. I have seen a commentary which uses Ezekiel’s image, a grove of trees; another says they all stem from the same root system which shows its gnarly roots in places above ground. Perhaps it is a massively huge single tree that spans the stream, narrow as it flows from the throne, wider as it flows further on. Others make no effort to make sense of it physically, because they do not try to do that with Revelation; for them it is simply a symbolic spiritual image. I think it is a physical tree and though I cannot imagine it, I cannot wait to see it. I do know that the Tree of Life derives its life and fruit from the water flowing from the throne of God. The Leaves of the Tree are for the Healing of the Nations Here is another mystery: “…the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations.” We have already learned in Revelation 21:4 that “There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain…” Death is finished. Why would there be need for healing for the nations? It is like saying the hospitals in the New Jerusalem will be top notch, or the funeral homes will be the best ever seen. That is not the gist of what is being described. Rather, as our lives depend on God, so our vitality, our healthfulness, our power in our resurrection bodies are also dependent on Him. We will derive endless strength and potency from eating from this tree. This is also perhaps why pain is not needed. I do not imagine that we will have any kind of injuries in the New Jerusalem, but if it were possible for one to be clumsy — not likely —, there will be instantaneous healing of the resurrection body from eating of the tree. There is no need for pain, no need for the resurrection brain to know about the injury at all. Just as when Peter cut off Malchus’ ear with his sword and Jesus restored his ear instantly, there will be a continual healthfulness from eating the tree. No More Curse Another benefit of the New Jerusalem is that there will “No longer … be any curse.” [Revelation 22:3] The curse came on Adam and his progeny because he ate the forbidden fruit. Death, the main curse, will be gone forever! God also cursed the ground because of him, saying it would produce thorns and thistles; and his labor was cursed — he would work for his food by the sweat of his brow. In the New Jerusalem, the earth will not be cursed, and we will not be cursed with death. We will work but it will not be in cursed labor — we will have satisfying projects using our amazing resurrection brains and bodies to do amazing things. The Jews were promised blessings as they entered the Promised Land. Deuteronomy 28:3 says, “You will be blessed in the city and blessed in the country.” What a sweet meditation that is in light of the New Jerusalem and the New Earth. Everything we do in the city and in the country will be blessed. “You will be blessed when you come in and blessed when you go out… The Lord will send a blessing on your barns and on everything you put your hand to.” [Deuteronomy 28:6, 8] How marvelous is that! The Throne of God and of the Lamb The Throne of God is the place of the greatest power in the universe Revelation 22:3 speaks of the throne of God and of the Lamb: “The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city.” We saw this in verse 1 as well. The throne of God is the place where he rules, where He reigns over the universe, which at that time will be the New Heaven and New Earth. In the Present Universe, God’s Throne is in Heaven... the Highest Heaven In the present universe, the throne of God is situated in the words of Scripture as infinitely high and lifted up above us. Isaiah tells us that the Almighty says, “I live in a high and holy place.”[Isaiah 57:15] He says in Isaiah 66:1, “This is what the LORD says: "Heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool. Where is the house you will build for me? Where will my resting place be?” Psalm 115:3 says, “Our God is in heaven; he does whatever pleases him.” We have a sense of God’s throne being high and lifted up, and to some degree inaccessible to us. God’s Throne in the Middle of the City But in the New Jerusalem, when she descends out of heaven from God prepared as a bride, the throne of God will be right there in the midst of the people, in the midst of the city, no gap, no separation. God is still infinitely holy — He is Creator, we are creature — but the throne will be accessible. This is what God has always wanted, to be in the midst of and dwell with His people. He would be their God and they would be His people. That will be fulfilled. Our access to the throne will be perfect. We will be able to walk right up to the throne of grace and mercy, because Christ has opened for us eternally a new and living way into the presence of the king. Notice Also the Deity of Christ This also speaks to the deity of Christ. There is one throne, which is called the throne of God and of the Lamb. This is the complex imagery of the deity of Christ, sharing the throne with God the Father. Jesus said in John 10:30, “I and the Father are one.” and we have one throne as God. In Revelation 5:5-6, where John was weeping because no one was found who could take the scroll. “Then one of the elders said to me, ‘Do not weep! See, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Rood of David, has triumphed. He is able to open the scroll and its seven seals.’ Then I saw a Lamb, looking as if it had been slain, standing in the center of the throne.” It is the same image — Jesus, the lamb slain for the sins of the world is standing in the center of the Father’s throne. There is no doubt what that means: Jesus is Almighty God. The Rich Blessings of the Servants of God The Blessings of Perfected Slavery Next, we have the catalog of a series of rich blessings that will come to us as servants of God. Verse 3 says, “The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city, and his servants will serve him.” The throne of God is immediately accessible, but our primary role, according to this Verse, there are other roles, is to serve. The Holman Christian Standard Bible translates it as “slaves”, which is more accurate. His slaves will be ready to do His bidding. The word “serve” indicates a priestly religious verb. His slaves will serve Him in priestly roles. In other places, we are called sons and daughters, and we will share inheritance with Christ. But the image here is one of slavery. God is a mighty king, worthy of our full obedience. In Adam, we joined Satan in rebellion fighting against the King of the Universe. We have been redeemed from all that, and we will be delighted to take the king’s yoke upon us. We will not be fighting the yoke anymore; we will be glad to have a mighty king to rule over us, commanding us. The Greek word used here is the common word for slaves, sometimes translated bondslaves. In Ephesians and Colossians, Paul gives commands related to the master-slave hierarchy. Christian masters are commanded to treat their slaves with respect, because they are under a master too. Some day they will be required to give an account to their own master for how they treated their slaves, who were fellow human beings. Any thoughtful Christian in the 21st century reading those commands will have a question pressing on their minds: Why did Paul not command Christian masters to emancipate their slaves, to set them free? I have covered that topic previously when I preached on those passages in Ephesians and Colossians, if you would like to look up those sermons. In the past couple of centuries, Christian forces were unleashed that fought to make chattel slavery illegal all over the world. In those sermons in Ephesians and Colossians, I referred to Revelation 22:3. One possible answer is that slavery is eternal. In some respects, we will be considered the slaves of God. Peter and Paul and James, in their Epistles, did not mind that at all. They called themselves bondslaves of Christ; they were honored to have that title. But I continued to meditate on the question — why would we do this? Keep in mind that Jesus took that same thing on himself. In Philippians 2, Jesus “who being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be [grasped]; rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of [what?] a servant [SLAVE]. And being found in appearance as a man [or “made in human likeness”; meditate on that phrase — the very nature of a slave implies being human, so in this passage, human equals slave] he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death — even death on a cross!” Jesus is forever seen to be a doulos, a servant. He is also forever seen as the Son of God, and we have the same dual aspect. We are sons and daughters of the living God by adoption, and we are also slaves of the eternal God. Jesus is every bit as much slave as he is God, as seen in Philippians 2. He was not faking it, only acting like a servant while on earth. This is who he really is. He served us by washing our dirty, nasty feet. He served us by taking our dirty nasty sins on his holy self and dying in our place on the cross under the wrath of God. He served us, and he will continue to serve us in Heaven. Luke 12:37 says, “I tell you the truth, he will dress himself to serve, will have them recline at the table and will come and wait on them.” Picture feasting in the New Jerusalem. Your cup is running low, and somebody taps you on the shoulder and wants to refill your cup. It is Jesus, the King of Glory, wanting to fill your cup. There is nothing demeaning about this kind of service — this is a service in Heaven! What is the difference between being a slave and being an employee? I see two key differences: salary and freedom. Slaves do not get paid for their labor, and they are not free to walk away. What about Heaven? I tell you, you will not want to be paid for your service. You are infinitely rich as a member of the Royal Family — you will not need a salary. But in the days of chattel slavery, they were not singing songs in the fields for wages, but for freedom. Freedom to what? To walk away, to escape from a wicked master and to live with autonomy. Meditate on that. You should see that this not anything you will desire in Heaven. Anyone who want to walk away from the Master are free now to do so, living their entire lives away from the Master, the King. They rebel against his kingly rule and receive their condemnation. We who follow Christ embrace the yoke and the kingly rule, and we delight in it forever. We do not desire to go anywhere else, and we will spend eternity serving him. As I said, the word implies religious service, like the work of the priests in the temple. Back then, it was manual labor within an animal sacrificial system. The priests had to keep the fires burning, wrestle bulls onto the altar, kill them, pour out the blood, and more. It was very physical, a hard day’s work. All of that has now been fulfilled. I do not know what worship work we will do in Heaven, but we will enjoy it. We will work at worship forever, with access to the throne. The Blessings of Seeing God’s Face Perhaps the greatest blessing of all comes in Verse 4: “They will see His face.” How can I capture the significance of those words? If you are redeemed, a child of God, some day you will see God’s face. This is the very thing that was forbidden of Moses on the mountain. Moses was having an intense time of a love relationship with his Creator, God the Father. “Moses said, ‘Now show me your glory.’ And the LORD said, ‘I will cause all my goodness to pass in front of you, and I will proclaim my name, the LORD, in your presence. I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.’ [Paul quoted this in Romans 9. We do not deserve to have God show us his glory. It is given by grace.] ‘But,’ he said, ‘you cannot see my face, for no one may see me and live.’ Then the LORD said, ‘There is a place near me where you may stand on a rock. When my glory passes by, I will put you in a cleft in the rock and cover you with my hand until I have passed by. Then I will remove my hand and you will see my back, [The Hebrew is akin to “hind quarters”; I think of it as His trailing glory, like the last part of a comet going by] but my face must not be seen.’” [Exodus 33:18-23] John 1:18 says, “No one has ever seen God’s face at any time.” 1 Timothy 6:16 says that God “alone is immortal and who lives in unapproachable light, whom no one has seen or can see.” In Adam, we were all condemned criminals. Frequently, a judgment by the king on a condemned criminal is not being able to see the king’s face. When Absalom was banished and then allowed to return to Israel, he was not permitted to see the face of the king, his own father, which caused him great anguish. Wicked Haman, who was condemned by King Xerxes, had his face covered as the king gave his decree — he was forbidden to see the face of the king anymore. We are condemned sinners, and as a result of indwelling sin, we are corrupt. Jesus said, “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.” [Matthew 5:8] We are not pure in heart. There is wickedness and corruption in us, so we are not fit to see God’s face. 1 Corinthians 15:50 says, “I declare to you, brothers, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God…” We are not able to see God’s glorious face in our flesh and blood, but some day we will see Him face to face. 1 Corinthians 13:12 says, “Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; [now, we have exegesis, sermon, preaching, imagination, which cast a poor reflection, like in a kind of a dirty mirror] then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.” That vision will be absolutely transformative. “Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when he appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is.” [1 John 3:2] The mystics of the Middle Ages called it “the Beatific Vision,” the vision of blessedness. This is absolute, perfect happiness. You could imagine yourself like a dust speck in a stream of light, floating in an ocean of happiness to see the face of God. I look on God as the source of all beauty and all love and all goodness in the universe. We will finally be able to go to the source to see Him in the face. CS Lewis, in Till We Have Faces, said this: “It was when I was happiest that I longed most...The sweetest thing in all my life has been the longing — to reach the Mountain, to find the place where all the beauty came from — my country, the place where I ought to have been born. Do you think it all meant nothing, all the longing? The longing for home? For indeed it now feels not like going, but like going back.” The Blessings of His Name on our Foreheads Verse 4 says, “…his name will be on their foreheads.” His name sums up His being, and having His name on our foreheads means we will glow with His glory. Moses’ face, after beholding the trailing hindquarters of God, was shining radiantly. God’s glory reflected on Moses’ face faded, as in the Old Covenant, but we will look into the face of God and our whole bodies will glow forever. God will stamp his name on your forehead, saying, “You are mine. I bought you with a price; you are my adopted sons and daughters.” He will claim His absolute ownership. The forehead also gives a sense of the complete transformation of the mind to love and honor the name of God, the Ineffable Name, the unpronounceable, the mysterious name of God. You remember in Judges 13:18 “He replied, ‘Why do you ask my name? It is beyond understanding.’” Somehow we will come closer to comprehending the name of God in Heaven. He will own us and we will be immersed in him. He will be our Father, and we will be his children. The Blessings of Perpetual Daylight Verse 5 says, “There will be no more night. They will not need the light of a lamp or the light of the sun, for the Lord God will give them light.” We saw this in the last chapter; it is repeated here. Night can be a dangerous time — wild animals, predators, criminals, wicked people approaching by stealth to do harm, all depend on the cover of darkness. With some light, night can also be beautiful. It is beautiful in autumn when the harvest moon rises over a field, big and red and orange in October. It is beautiful in spring when the stars are vivid in a cool night in the mountains with the Milky Way and all the starry host visible. It is beautiful in summer with moon shadows dancing everywhere and crickets chirping with the rest of the peaceful energetic chorus, or sailing in a cove on placid waters with the moonlight shimmering on the water. It is beautiful in winter with the trees denuded of their leaves, revealing their stark fingers under a cold, distant silvery moon. As much beauty as nighttime can possess, it will be superseded by God’s display of light coming from His own glory. He will do light beautifully and perfectly there, and we will not miss the night. There will be no light lamplight there — human technology such as the incandescent light bulb from Thomas Edison or the AC grid from Nicola Tesla or the energy footprint will not be needed anymore. God will be pulsating the place with the light of His glory. The Blessings of Our Eternal Reign Finally, in verse 5, “And they will reign for ever and ever.” God will be our King — Jesus will be our King of kings and Lord of lords. We will each reign over a sub-kingdom, but I believe the redeemed will not all have equal positions of authority. Some will have more authority than others. Some of you may disagree, thinking it will be more egalitarian, with no hierarchy. But I think there will be places at Jesus’ right and left in his kingdom. Those who suffered and served the best will receive those places of honor. But however those rulerships go, all the redeemed will rule under Christ forever and ever. Applications Now is the Day of Salvation If you are a non-Christian, you are on the outside of all this looking in. God has given you something called “today.” You do not know that you will have tomorrow. Yesterday is gone; you cannot do anything about what is past. You have today, right now. I have already given you the basic center piece of the Gospel: God sent Jesus to die on the cross under His wrath for sinners like you and me. All you need to do to have a place in this marvelous New Jerusalem is believe in Jesus, trust in him. Repent of your sins, turn away from sin, and believe in Christ. Say to him, Oh Lord Jesus, I want you to be my Savior. Your blood is sufficient for all of my sins. I trust in you. Come to Christ so you can join with all of the redeemed in celebrating this kind of life. Ask for a powerful sense of the glories of Heaven Second, ask the Holy Spirit to work in you a sense of the glories of Heaven. Take this text home and lift out the treasures yourself and look at them one at a time. Purify your heart to get ready to see God face to face Ask God to give you a foretaste of what it will be like to see His face. Worship Him more. Sing to Him Psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs. Speak Psalms to Him. Thank Him for all that He has done for you. Worship him longer. Make yourself happy in His presence every morning, based on these truths, and seek to purify your life from all those things that you will be ashamed of on Judgement Day. Put sin to death by the Spirit. Get yourself ready through holiness, to enjoy as much of Heaven as you possibly can, even while you are still here on earth. All the beauty in this world comes from God Realize that all of the beauty, all of the things that you see that you think are beautiful here in this world, come from the throne of God. Give Him thanks for that beauty. Share the gospel! Finally, share the Gospel. This week, screw up your courage by the power of the Holy Spirit and say something to a lost person about Jesus. Say something to a co-worker, a neighbor, a total stranger. Talk to them about the glories of the place to which we are going, and the even greater glories of the redeeming work of God that will get sinners like us there. Closing Prayer Close with me in prayer. Father, thank you for the joy that we have in meditating on Heaven. Thank you for the beauty of the place where we are going. I pray, O Lord, that you would strengthen each one of us to delight in that beauty and in that glory now by faith. Some day we will see it with our own eyes. Help us, O Lord, to live in open, obvious hope. Help us, O Lord, to live out Gospel joy. Help us to be bold in sharing the words of the Gospel with those who are presently lost. We pray in Jesus’ name. Amen.