IF JESUS HAD BEEN JUST
ONE MORE PERSON PILING
ANOTHER SET OF DEMANDS... AND REQUIREMENTS AND MORALS...
MORAL RULES ON TOP OF US, HE WOULD NEVER HAVE HAD
THE IMPACT HE HAD. WHAT IS AT STAKE ULTIMATELY
IS TWO THINGS: WHAT IS
REAL AND WHAT IS GOOD? ANNOUNCER: WHY IT MAKES SENSE
TO DOUBT OR BELIEVE, ON THIS DAY OF DISCOVERY. MART DE HAAN: TODAY, VISITORS
TO ISRAEL'S GOLAN HEIGHTS... HAVE COME HERE TO SEE HOW
LIFE WAS LIVED 2,000 YEARS AGO. CONSTRUCTED OF VOLCANIC ROCK, THIS IS A RESTORATION
OF AN ANCIENT JEWISH
VILLAGE CALLED KATZRIN. THE CENTRAL STRUCTURE
WAS THE SYNAGOGUE, SURROUNDED BY CLOSELY
CONNECTED BUILDINGS. WITHOUT MODERN CONVENIENCES, LIFE IN THIS COMMUNITY
WAS LIVED MUCH AS OTHERS HAD
LIVED FOR THOUSANDS OF YEARS. IT WAS IN THESE PRIMITIVE
AND CHALLENGING TIMES, INCLUDING THE ROMAN OCCUPATION OF THE FIRST CENTURY, THAT A TEACHER BY THE NAME OF
JESUS SAID THAT HE HAD COME TO GIVE LIFE A WHOLE NEW MEANING. THIS IS A RESTORATION
OF AN ANCIENT JEWISH
HOME HERE IN THE GALILEE, AND WE'RE IN THE KITCHEN.
TAKE A LOOK AROUND. IT'S A REMINDER OF HOW DIFFERENT
LIFE AND TIMES ARE TODAY COMPARED TO THE PAST. HERE YOU HAVE YOUR OVEN. I'VE BEEN LOOKING FOR
THE REFRIGERATOR AND I DON'T
EVEN FIND RUNNING WATER. THESE POTS ARE A REMINDER
OF HOW DIFFICULT LIFE
COULD BE IN THE PAST, EVEN TO GET SOMETHING AS
SIMPLE AS... AS WATER. YOU KNOW, THE BIBLE
TELLS A STORY ABOUT A
WOMAN WHO TOOK A POT, MAYBE SOMETHING LIKE THIS,
AND WENT TO GET WATER, AND AT THE WELL IN THE
MIDDLE OF THE DAY, SHE MET
A MAN, A MAN NAMED JESUS. AS THE BIBLE DESCRIBES
THE CONVERSATION, IT FIRST SAYS THAT JESUS
ASKED THE WOMAN FOR A DRINK. LATER HE SAYS TO THE WOMAN, "IF
YOU HAD ASKED ME FOR A DRINK, "I WOULD HAVE GIVEN YOU
LIVING WATER AND YOU NEVER
WOULD HAVE THIRSTED AGAIN." NOW, THINK ABOUT
WHAT JESUS SAID. THAT'S THE KIND OF STATEMENT
THAT HAS CAUSED PEOPLE OVER THE
CENTURIES TO DOUBT HIM AND TO... TO RAISE ALL KINDS
OF QUESTIONS OF WHAT KIND
OF A PERSON IS THIS... THAT WOULD MAKE
SUCH AN OUTRAGEOUS
PROMISE TO THIS WOMAN? WHAT COULD JESUS
HAVE MEANT WHEN HE TALKED
ABOUT A LIVING WATER... THAT WOULD SATISFY
A PERSON'S THIRST FOREVER? HIS OFFER MUST HAVE
BEEN AS HARD TO BELIEVE
THEN AS IT IS NOW. BUT THE QUESTIONS
ARE IMPORTANT. TO THIS DAY,
LIFE ITSELF, AS COMMON
AND AS COMPLEX AS IT IS, CAUSES THE WISEST AMONG US
TO ASK SOME OF THE MOST
BASIC OF QUESTIONS. WHAT IS AT STAKE
ULTIMATELY IS TWO THINGS: WHAT IS REAL
AND WHAT IS GOOD? THOSE ARE THE TWO
BASIC QUESTIONS, AND THE REALITY QUESTION,
AGAIN, IS NOT A SOPHISTICATED
METAPHYSICAL THING. IT'S THE QUESTION,
WHAT CAN I COUNT ON? OR WHAT
WILL I RUN INTO IF I'M WRONG? MART: SO WHAT WAS JESUS
SAYING ABOUT LIFE? WHAT DID HE MEAN WHEN HE SAID
SO MANY THINGS THAT SOUNDED
TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE? WHAT WAS HE CLAIMING
TO OFFER WHEN HE SAID: ON ANOTHER OCCASION HE SAID, AND ON ANOTHER OCCASION, HOW DO WE EVEN BEGIN TO
WEIGH PROMISES LIKE THIS... THAT INCLUDE A LIFE THAT
BEGINS NOW AND LASTS FOREVER? WHAT IF WE FEEL THAT IT'S
BEYOND OUR ABILITY TO KNOW? AND AFTER ALL,
JESUS LIVED A LONG TIME AGO. AT THE VERY MINIMUM,
WHAT JESUS SAID AND
CLAIMED NEEDS TO BE TESTED. IT NEEDS TO BE TESTED
ALONG WITH ALL OF
THE OTHER OPTIONS... FOR FINDING OUR WAY
IN THIS LIFE, TO SEE WHAT IS REAL
AND WHAT IS GOOD. WHAT WILL I RUN INTO
IF I'M WRONG? THAT'S NOT A
BAD DEFINITION OF REALITY. IT'S WHAT YOU RUN INTO
WHEN YOU'RE WRONG. AND WHAT IS REAL,
WHAT I CAN COUNT ON IN MY LIFE
DETERMINES THEN WHAT IS GOOD, BECAUSE WHAT IS
GOOD OR DESIRABLE, THE
THING I SHOULD PURSUE, THERE ARE DIFFERENT WAYS OF
PUTTING THE SAME QUESTION, DEPENDS UPON WHAT IS REAL. IF THERE IS A GOD
OR IF THERE IS NO GOD, IF THE WORLD IS PURELY
PHYSICAL AND I'M JUST MY BRAIN, THAT MAKES A HUGE DIFFERENCE IN
RELATIONSHIP TO THE QUESTION OF, WHEN AM I WELL OFF
AND WHEN AM I NOT WELL OFF? IF I'M JUST MY BRAIN,
PERHAPS SOME VERSION OF... SENSUAL GRATIFICATION AND SUCCESS MIGHT BE MY GOOD. IF I AM A SPIRITUAL BEING
WITH AN ETERNAL DESTINY, THAT
CHANGES THE QUESTION DEEPLY. ALL THE GREAT THINKERS FROM
PLATO ON HAVE UNDERSTOOD
THOSE TWO QUESTIONS, WHAT IS REAL AND WHAT
IS GOOD, ARE TIED TOGETHER. THEY CAN'T BE
ANSWERED SEPARATELY. I LOVE SOCRATES, BUT JESUS
ASKED BETTER QUESTIONS
THAN SOCRATES DID. AND I LOVE PLATO, BUT JESUS GAVE BETTER ANSWERS THAN PLATO DID. AND HE GAVE BETTER ANSWERS
TO THE VERY QUESTIONS... THAT BOTH SOCRATES
AND PLATO WERE ASKING. AND HE DIDN'T JUST GIVE
THESE ANSWERS IN WORDS. HE GAVE THEM IN A
THREE-DIMENSIONAL LIFE. WHAT IS TRUTH IS
A REALLY DIFFICULT QUESTION, AND IT'S GONNA BE
ANSWERED IN SENTENCES THAT
CAN BE EITHER TRUE OR FALSE. BUT IT ALSO HAS TO BE LIVED OUT
IN A LIFE WORTH LIVING, AND JESUS DID BOTH THINGS. HE BOTH SPOKE IN PLACES
LIKE HIS FAMOUS SERMON THAT
HE GAVE ON A MOUNTAINTOP, WHERE HE TALKED ABOUT WHAT
IT MEANT TO BE REALLY HAPPY, WHAT IT MEAN TO REALLY
CHANGE ONESELF AND CHANGE
THE WORLD FOR THE BETTER, FOR JUSTICE, FOR LOVE.
HE ALSO LIVED OUT THAT LIFE. HE WAS WILLING TO
SACRIFICE. HE WAS WILLING
TO LOVE HIS ENEMIES. HE WAS WILLING TO
TURN THE OTHER CHEEK. HE WAS WILLING TO BE STRONG
WHEN EVERYBODY ELSE RAN AWAY. SO THERE ARE LOTS OF
PHILOSOPHERS OUT THERE, MANY OF WHOM ARE MUCH,
MUCH SMARTER THAN I AM, BUT THERE AREN'T A LOT OF
PHILOSOPHERS OUT THERE, I CAN'T THINK OF ANY,
SMARTER THAN JESUS. JESUS WAS, I THINK,
THE SMARTEST MAN WHO EVER LIVED. BUT WHAT SEPARATES JESUS
FROM ALL THE OTHER SMART
PEOPLE WHO EVER LIVED... WAS THAT HE FULLY LIVED
OUT EVERYTHING HE SAID. HE WAS COMMITTED TO HIS OWN
BELIEFS TO THE POINT OF DEATH, AND IT DIDN'T END THERE.
IT ENDED IN LIFE. MART: BUT WHAT DOES IT MEAN
TO SAY THAT THE DEATH OF
JESUS ENDS IN LIFE? AND IF IT'S A CLAIM
THAT REQUIRES US TO
BELIEVE IN MIRACLES, HOW DO WE EVEN BEGIN
TO WEIGH SUCH CLAIMS? THE DIFFERENCE IS, IN HIS
CASE HE FULFILLED HIS PROMISE
IN RISING FROM THE DEAD. CHRISTIANS BELIEVE,
AND THERE'S A LOT OF
EVIDENCE THAT HE DID. MART: IT'S NO
SECRET THAT FOLLOWERS
OF CHRIST BELIEVE THAT, ACCORDING TO
THE BIBLICAL RECORD, THERE ARE COMPELLING
AND CONVERGING LINES OF
EVIDENCE FOR A RESURRECTION... THAT GIVES CREDIBILITY
TO WHAT JESUS SAID ABOUT LIFE. BUT WHAT IF...
WHAT IF SOMEONE ISN'T READY
TO ACCEPT THE BIBLE AS FACT? EVEN THEN,
BIBLICAL SCHOLARS, WHETHER
THEY BELIEVE IN GOD OR NOT, TEND TO RECOGNIZE
AT LEAST FOUR FACTS RELATED
TO JESUS' RESURRECTION. FIRST, JESUS WAS CRUCIFIED
BY ROMAN AUTHORITIES. SECOND, THE DISCIPLES
HAD EXPERIENCES... THAT THEY BELIEVED INVOLVED
APPEARANCES OF THE RISEN JESUS, AND ALL OF THEM BUT ONE
ACTUALLY DIED AS MARTYRS... FOR BELIEVING THAT THEY
HAD SEEN JEUS ALIVE
AFTER HIS DEATH. THIRD, PAUL THE APOSTLE
STARTED OUT AS A SKEPTIC, AND AS A PERSECUTOR OF
THE FOLLOWERS OF JESUS. AND THEN SUDDENLY
HE CONVERTED, BELIEVING THAT
HE HAD SEEN JESUS ALIVE. AND FOURTH, JAMES,
JESUS' HALF BROTHER, CHANGED HIS MIND ABOUT JESUS
FROM ONE OF UNBELIEF... TO WORSHIPPING HIS BROTHER
AS THE MESSIAH OF ISRAEL. ANOTHER SIGNIFICANT
FACTOR FOR THE MIRACLE... THAT WOULD GIVE MEANING TO
WHAT JESUS SAID ABOUT LIFE
IS THE EVIDENCE OF A TOMB... THAT WITNESSES SAY THEY FOUND EMPTY AFTER THREE DAYS, AND THE FACT THAT THE BODY
OF JESUS HAS NEVER BEEN FOUND. BUT IF WE ACCEPT THIS
AS EVIDENCE THAT THE
RESURRECTION IS TRUE, WHAT THEN DOES THAT
TELL US ABOUT WHAT
JESUS SAID ABOUT LIFE? MOST RELIGIONS SAY YOU WORK
YOUR WAY UP TO SALVATION, OR YOU EARN IT OR
YOU DO SOMETHING WHERE
YOU FIX YOURSELF. CHRISTIANITY IS UNIQUE AND
JESUS' MESSAGE WAS UNIQUE... IN SAYING THE ONLY WAY TO GET
FIXED IS TO COME THROUGH HIM. MART: ACCORDING TO THE GOSPEL
OF JOHN, JESUS PREDICTED THAT
IT WAS THROUGH DEATH... THAT HE WOULD OFFER LIFE
TO ALL WHO BELIEVE IN HIM. THE GOSPEL OF JOHN ALSO
TELLS THE STORY OF A WOMAN
WITH A TROUBLED PAST... WHO ENDED UP BELIEVING WHAT JESUS SAID TO HER ABOUT LIFE. ACCORDING TO THIS ACCOUNT,
JESUS MET HER NEAR THE MODERN
PALESTINIAN TOWN OF NABLUS, IN THE BIBLICAL REGION
OF SAMARIA, AT JACOB'S WELL, A WELL DUG BY THE ONE OF THE
FOUNDING FATHERS OF JUDAISM. IN MANY WAYS THIS WOMAN
MIGHT HAVE SEEMED LIKE
AN UNLIKELY FOLLOWER. SHE WAS A MEMBER OF A SAMARITAN
COMMUNITY THAT HAD ISSUES WITH
THEIR JEWISH NEIGHBORS. IN ADDITION, SHE HAD
BEEN MARRIED FIVE TIMES, AND WAS NOW LIVING WITH A MAN WHO WAS NOT HER HUSBAND. JESUS BROKE TRADITION BY
ASKING THIS WOMAN FOR
A DRINK OF WATER. AND THEN HE DIRECTED
THE CONVERSATION,
MAKING A CURIOUS OFFER, AN OFFER THAT SOUNDED
TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE. HE MAKES AN EFFORT TO TOUCH
THOSE WHO MANY HAVE REJECTED, BECAUSE THEY'RE PERCEIVED
TO BE SINNERS OR EVIL, AND HE TRIES TO GET THEM
TO BASICALLY RECONSIDER... AND RE-ENCOUNTER GOD,
IF I CAN SAY IT THAT WAY. SEE, MOST RELIGION,
THIS IS TRUE OF THE
MODERN WORLD, AS WELL, SAYS WE CAN FIX OURSELVES. BUT WHAT JESUS SAYS
THAT'S UNIQUE IS... THE ONLY WAY TO GET FIXED
IS TO LET GOD FIX YOU AND
TO LET GOD DO IT HIS WAY, AND THAT YOU NEED SOMETHING
YOU CANNOT GIVE YOURSELF. YOU NEED TO ASK GOD FOR SOMETHING ONLY HE CAN GIVE YOU, AND YOU NEED TO HAVE THE
HUMILITY TO BE ABLE TO DO THAT. THE WATER'S CLEAR. YOU CAN
SEE THE ROCKS SO PLAINLY, AND YET WHEN YOU...
YOU LOOK UP TO THE HORIZON, THE FOGGY CONDITIONS HAVE
MADE IT DIFFICULT TO SEE
THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN... WHERE THE WATER ENDS
AND THE SKY BEGINS. THIS IS THE REGION OF
THE SEA OF GALILEE THAT, ACCORDING TO THE NEW
TESTAMENT, JESUS AND HIS
DISCIPLES KNEW SO WELL. IT'S ALSO THE REGION
IN WHICH JESUS MADE PROMISES, PROMISES OF A GIFT OF LIFE,
OF EVERLASTING LIFE, THAT DOWN THROUGH
THE YEARS HAVE RAISED ALL
KINDS OF QUESTIONS AND DOUBTS, NOT ONLY AMONG HIS FOLLOWERS,
BUT AMONG THOSE WHO... WHO
HAVEN'T BELIEVED IN HIM. AND THE MEN AND WOMEN
THAT WE'RE... WE'RE
HEARING FROM TODAY... HAVE GIVEN A BETTER PART
OF THEIR LIVES TO WEIGHING
SOME OF THOSE ISSUES, OF THINKING ABOUT WHAT THE GIFT
OF LIFE WAS THAT JESUS PROMISED, AND THE KINDS OF QUESTIONS THAT
SO MANY HAVE ASKED ABOUT THAT. NOW, IF YOU ASK WHY
IT IS THAT THE DISCIPLES
DREW... DREW AROUND JESUS, I THINK IT IS BECAUSE
THEY SENSED THAT THERE
WAS SOMETHING VERY TRUE... ABOUT WHAT JESUS WAS
SAYING ABOUT THEIR NEED. A PERSON WHO RESPONDS
TO CHRIST HAS... COMES TO A SENSE
OF APPRECIATION THAT WHAT
GOD OFFERS AS A GIFT... IS SOMETHING THAT THEY
CANNOT GENERATE FOR THEMSELVES, AND THAT JESUS DOES THINGS
THAT A HUMAN BEING CANNOT DO. SOMEONE HAS SAID THIS,
THAT... AS A MATTER OF FACT, I BELIEVE IT WAS KIND OF
COMING OUT OF ARISTOTLE
BUT ECHOED BY C. S. LEWIS, THAT IF YOU LIVE YOUR LIFE
AGAINST THE GRAIN OF CREATION, YOU'RE BOUND TO GET A SPLINTER. OR AS ANOTHER CONTEMPORARY
PHILOSOPHER SAYS, REALITY IS WHAT YOU BUMP INTO
WHEN YOU DO SOMETHING WRONG. AND THEREFORE
THAT GRAIN OF CREATION, OR THAT WHICH YOU BUMP INTO
WHEN YOU DO SOMETHING WRONG, WELL, THAT'S JUST
THE WAY THE WORLD IS. THAT'S THAT NATURAL LAW AND IT
REALLY PUTS YOU IN JEOPARDY... WHEN YOU AREN'T AWARE OF WHAT
IT IS AND YOU DON'T ALIGN YOUR
LIFE IN ACCORDANCE WITH IT. MATTER OF FACT,
FOOLISHNESS IS PERHAPS
BEST... BEST DEFINED... AS LIVING IN A WAY CONTRARY
TO THAT NATURAL LAW. WISDOM IS BEST DEFINED
IN LIVING IN HARMONY WITH IT. IF THE VIEW THAT JESUS
HAD ABOUT THE WORLD, WHICH I'M GOING TO CALL
THE CHRISTIAN WORLDVIEW,
IS REALLY TRUE, THEN EVEN PEOPLE WHO DENY IT
HAVE TO LIVE IN THAT WORLD. SO IF THEY DENY THIS VIEW,
THERE IS GOING TO BE A
CONTRADICTION IN THEIR LIFE... BETWEEN THE WAY THEY VIEW
THE WORLD AND THE WAY
THE WORLD ACTUALLY IS. FRANCIS SCHAEFFER CALLED
THIS THE POINT OF TENSION,
THAT IS THE... THE IMPACT POINT BETWEEN
THE WRONG BELIEFS AND THE
WAY THE WORLD REALLY IS. ANOTHER PERSON PUT IT,
REALITY IS WHAT WOUNDS YOU WHEN
YOU DON'T TAKE IT SERIOUSLY. OKAY, SAME CONCEPT HERE. SO, GREAT EXAMPLE
FROM MY OWN LIFE: GROWING UP IN THE FIFTIES
AND THEN IN THE SIXTIES... IN THE COUNTER-CULTURE MOVEMENT
IN THE UNIVERSITY, I WAS A STRONG MORAL RELATIVIST. OKAY, THAT'S A VIEW THAT
THERE IS NO RIGHT OR
WRONG, OBJECTIVELY. PEOPLE HAVE OPINIONS
BUT IT'S JUST THEIR VIEW, AND SO PEOPLE
CAN HAVE OPPOSING VIEWS,
JUST LIKE FLAVORS OF ICE CREAM. OKAY, IT'S JUST LIKE THAT. YET AT THE SAME TIME THAT I WAS
PROMOTING MORAL RELATIVISM, I WAS MARCHING AGAINST
THE WAR IN VIETNAM. WHY WAS I MARCHING
AGAINST THE WAR? BECAUSE I THOUGHT
THE WAR WAS EVIL. WAIT A MINUTE. HOW CAN... HOW CAN IT BE THE CASE
THAT THERE ARE NO MORALS
THAT ARE OBJECTIVE, YET THE WAR WAS
OBJECTIVELY EVIL? WELL, THE ANSWER IS:
IT CAN'T BE THE CASE.
THAT'S A CONTRADICTION. THAT WAS MY POINT OF...
OF... POINT OF TENSION. WHEN YOU LOOK
AND COMPARE CHRISTIANITY
WITH OTHER WORLDVIEWS, YOU SEE CHRISTIANITY
MAKES SENSE BECAUSE IT SPEAKS. IT GIVES... IT MAKES
RATIONAL SENSE WHEN IT TALKS
ABOUT THE REALITIES OF LIFE, SUFFERING, EVIL, SIN,
DEATH, LIFE, SALVATION. COMPARE THESE IDEAS
WITH OTHER WORLDVIEWS, AND LOOK AND SEE IF THERE'S
INDEED AN INTELLECTUAL BASIS
FOR THE CHRISTIAN FAITH. MART: THOUGH JESUS NEVER
TRAVELED FAR FROM HOME
AND NEVER WROTE A BOOK, PEOPLE AROUND THE WORLD
CONTINUE TO BELIEVE WHAT
HE SAID ABOUT LIFE, AND TO ACCEPT THE GIFT
OF LIFE THAT HE OFFERS. I GOT AN E-MAIL NOT LONG AGO
FROM SOMEBODY WHO SAID, "YOU KNOW, I'M AN ATHEIST.
I DON'T BELIEVE IN GOD. BUT
I ADMIRE JESUS, YOU KNOW." HE CALLED HIM THE WANDERING
NEAR-EASTERN SAGE. "I HAVE GREAT RESPECT FOR
THE WANDERING NEAR-EASTERN SAGE,
AND I RESPECT WHAT YOU DO." AND I WROTE BACK AND I SAID, "YOU KNOW, IF JESUS WAS JUST
A WANDERING NEAR-EASTERN SAGE... "WHO GAVE US MORE ETHICAL
RULES, THEN HE WOULD NEVER
HAVE HAD THE IMPACT HE HAD. "WE'VE HAD PLENTY OF SAGES
TELLING US HOW TO LIVE. "WE'VE HAD PLENTY OF
HOLY MEN GIVING US MORE RULES,
MORE RITUALS, MORE DEMANDS, "TELLING US
HOW TO LIVE THE GOOD LIFE.
WE'VE HAD PLENTY OF THAT." MART: THE IMPACT OF JESUS'
TEACHING AND REPORTED
RESURRECTION... DID IN FACT CHANGE THE WORLD. THE ROMAN EMPIRE ABANDONED
THE WORSHIP OF ITS MANY GODS, AND MANY CLAIMED JESUS
AS THE ONLY SON OF GOD. THE CALENDAR CHANGED,
MARKING A NEW AGE... WHERE JESUS' PROMISE
OF LIFE GAVE HOPE FOR
PEACE NOW AND FOREVER. BUT WHY DID JESUS HAVE
SUCH A LASTING IMPACT? WE ALL KNOW WHAT WE
NEED TO DO TO BE GOOD. IF JESUS HAD BEEN
JUST ONE MORE PERSON PILING
ANOTHER SET OF DEMANDS, AND REQUIREMENTS AND MORALS...
MORAL RULES ON TOP OF US, HE WOULD NEVER HAVE HAD
THE IMPACT HE HAD. THE REASON JESUS HAD
THE IMPACT HE HAD IS THAT... HE SAID MORAL RULES ARE
NOT THE WAY TO GET SAVED. MORAL RULES ARE NOT
THE SOLUTION TO OUR LIVES. THE SOLUTION TO OUR LIVES
IS THAT JESUS AS, YOU KNOW,
GOD HIMSELF CAME DOWN, BECAME A HUMAN BEING AND
SUFFERED THE PUNISHMENT
THAT WAS DUE TO US... BECAUSE WE BREAK THESE
MORAL RULES ALL THE TIME. IN OTHER WORDS, JESUS WAS
SAYING, "I'VE DONE SOMETHING
TO RECONCILE YOU TO GOD." MART: IN ONE OF THE MOST
WELL-KNOWN VERSES OF THE BIBLE, JESUS EXPLAINED HIS MISSION
ON BEHALF OF GOD. AND ONLY IN CHRISTIANITY
DOES GOD ACTUALLY COME DOWN. EVERYWHERE ELSE
YOU ARE REACHING UP. THAT GOES BACK TO
DESPERATELY SEEKING AND... SOMETHING, AND THINKING
THAT YOU CAN DO IT YOURSELF. FOR SOME REASON,
A LOT OF PEOPLE WANT
TO TRY TO DO IT THEMSELVES, BUT ONLY IN CHRISTIANITY
DOES GOD REACH DOWN FOR US,
WHICH IS ENORMOUS. AND HE DIDN'T JUST REACH
DOWN. HE CAME DOWN IN
THE LORD JESUS CHRIST. SEE, EVERY RELIGION
BASICALLY SAYS THERE'S...
THERE'S SOME KIND OF A PROBLEM. THERE'S A GAP BETWEEN US
AND THE DIVINE. THERE'S A... WE NEED TO BE
ENLIGHTENED. THERE... THERE'S
SOME PROBLEM THAT WE FACE. AND THEY ALL GIVE YOU A
SET OF RULES ON HOW TO...
HOW TO FIX IT, RIGHT? YOU KNOW, YOU NEED TO
DO THIS KIND OF MEDITATION. YOU NEED TO HAVE
THIS SPECIAL DIET. YOU NEED TO FOLLOW THESE RULES.
YOU NEED TO DO THESE RITUALS. YOU NEED TO DO, YOU NEED TO DO, YOU NEED TO DO. THEY'RE ALL TELLING YOU
WHAT YOU NEED TO DO. THEY'RE ALL
PILING RESPONSIBILITIES,
NEW TASKS ON TOP OF YOU. CHRISTIANITY'S
THE ONLY RELIGION THAT
TELLS YOU WHAT GOD HAS DONE... TO CROSS THE GAP
TO REPAIR THE RELATIONSHIP,
TO FIX THE PROBLEM. IT'S THE ONLY RELIGION WHERE GOD
TOOK ON HIMSELF THE TASK OF
COMING AND FIXING IT FOR US, SO THAT WE DON'T HAVE TO BE
THE ONES WHO... WHO, YOU KNOW,
SOLVE THE PROBLEM. IT'S NOT UP TO US.
IT'S NOT ANYTHING WE DO. IT'S WHAT GOD HAS DONE.
THAT'S WHAT'S UNIQUE
ABOUT CHRISTIANITY. AND THAT'S WHAT'S
UNIQUE ABOUT JESUS. IF HE WERE JUST ONE MORE
WANDERING SAGE, WHY BELIEVE?
WHY PAY ANY ATTENTION? WE ALL KIND OF KNOW THE
GOLDEN RULE AND WE ALL
KNOW WE DON'T KEEP IT. WE ALL KNOW WE ALL HAVE OUR
SENSE OF INADEQUACY AND GUILT,
INFERIORITY, FAILURE, AND SO ON. WE KNOW WE DON'T DO WHAT
WE SHOULD DO. WE GOT PLENTY
OF PEOPLE TELLING US THAT. WE DON'T NEED THAT. WHAT WAS
UNIQUE ABOUT CHRISTIANITY IS IT
WAS NOT ONE MORE SET OF RULES, IT WAS A SOLUTION. IT WAS...
IT'S NOT UP TO WHAT YOU DO,
IT'S WHAT GOD HAS DONE FOR YOU. ONE OF THE SURPRISES I THINK
PEOPLE WILL FIND WHEN THEY
READ JESUS THROUGH... IS THAT THERE REALLY
TURNS OUT TO BE ONLY A
MODEST EMPHASIS ON THE POOR, OR EVEN ON LOVING ONE ANOTHER. THEY'RE IN THERE.
THEY'RE IMPORTANT BUT THEY'RE
NOT THE CENTRAL FEATURE. JESUS DIDN'T SAY,
"I CAME TO HELP THE POOR." HE SAID, "I CAME TO SEEK AND
TO SAVE THAT WHICH WAS LOST, "TO GIVE MY LIFE A RANSOM
FOR MANY, TO CALL SINNERS
TO REPENTANCE." NOW, WHEN SINNERS
PROPERLY REPENT, THEY
DO CARE FOR THE POOR. THAT'S PART OF THE ETHIC, BUT
IT WASN'T THE REASON HE CAME. MOST PEOPLE,
IF THEY HEAR ABOUT JESUS,
KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT THE CHURCH, THEY KNOW JESUS DIED
FOR OUR SINS, BUT THAT'S
ACTUALLY HALF THE MESSAGE. THE OTHER HALF OF THE MESSAGE
IS HE CAME TO GIVE LIFE. HE CAME TO GIVE LIFE ABUNDANTLY
AND THAT LIFE IS, IN PART,
AN EMPOWERMENT THAT COMES... THROUGH THE GIFT THAT JESUS GIVES OF FELLOWSHIP WITH HIM, IN WHICH GOD PROVIDES
AN ENABLEMENT THAT WE
DON'T HAVE WITHOUT HIM. MART: ACCORDING TO
THE GOSPEL OF JOHN, JESUS PROMISED
TO SEND THE HOLY SPIRIT... TO MAKE POSSIBLE THE KIND
OF LIFE THAT HE WAS OFFERING. NOW, THEOLOGICALLY
WE TALK ABOUT THIS IN TERMS
OF THE GIFT OF THE HOLY SPIRIT, AND MOST PEOPLE GO, "HOLY
SPIRIT? WHAT IN THE WORLD
WOULD THAT BE?" BUT LET ME PUT IT
IN DIFFERENT TERMS. HE'S TALKING ABOUT
AN ENABLEMENT THAT GOD
GIVES THAT COMES FROM GOD, THAT ENABLES THE CREATURE TO RECONNECT TO THE CREATOR, AND THROUGH HIS SPIRIT
HE ENABLES AND EMPOWERS THAT POSSIBILITY AS... AS HAPPENING. THIS COMES ON TOP OF WHAT MOST
PEOPLE ASSOCIATE WITH JESUS, WHICH IS HIS DEATH FOR SIN. SO IS WHAT JESUS SAID
ABOUT THE GIFT OF LIFE
JUST TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE? WELL, THE STORY OF THE...
THE PEOPLE OF THIS LAND... SAYS THAT THERE
WILL ALWAYS BE SOME WHO
WILL FIND REASON TO DOUBT. THERE'D BE OTHERS WHO...
WHO SAID THAT THEY FOUND
REASON TO TRUST HIM. SOME WILL SAY IT'S...
IT'S JUST A MATTER OF FAITH, BUT OTHERS, LIKE THOSE WE'VE
HEARD FROM TODAY, WILL SAY YES,
IT'S A MATTER OF FAITH, BUT THEY BELIEVE
THAT THERE'S PLENTY
OF REASON FOR ALL OF US... TO GIVE CAREFUL CONSIDERATION
TO THE PROMISE THAT JESUS MADE. SO IF LIFE MATTERS, AND IF WHAT JESUS SAID ABOUT LIFE IS TRUE, THEN THE DECISION IS NOW
OURS TO ACCEPT OR REJECT A
LIFE THAT IS REAL AND GOOD, A LIFE THAT
CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE
FOR US NOW AND FOREVER.
