Let's turn to Matthew chapter 20. I love this parable. I mean the parables of Christ are obviously When God's telling a story listen, right? I mean, there's obviously some great truths and there's a lot of great parables some of which that we I think have Shown so much attention to they've almost lost their power because you know the story of the Good Samaritan Oh, I've heard that but if you really considered how powerful a truth is the story of the Good Samaritan. I mean, remember that basically Christ was speaking to someone about what is love, what does it mean to be a good neighbor, and the story was, be the Samaritan. That is what I'm looking for from Christians. So Christians, oh, we've heard the story of the Good Samaritan our whole life. Yeah, but how many of us are actually living it? How many of us are living the story of taking advantage of the opportunities of people who are hurting around us and going out of our way to assist them? Oh, sure, you know, we offer Bible studies and we offer church services and worship services. No, that wasn't the story of the Good Samaritan. It was not a church service that he had with a guy who was on the side of the road who was living a life of discouragement. No, it's a story of a man who was physically physically dying and was taken from a point of death to a point of physical life. Christians have lost sight of what is the heart of God, and that is the kindness and love shown to people in ways not just spiritual. Obviously, I get that, you know, you show love to someone, they go to hell. You know, what really did it good, you know, what good did it do them in eternity? I understand that concept. But if you want to show someone Christ, if you want to bring them to the point where they want to be saved, the best way is not to scare the socks out of them by talking about hell. I believe that that can be done. I believe people do get saved through messages of fear and trepidation, through anxiety of, I just don't want to go to hell. So they get saved. I understand that is a method. But if you recognize that's not the method Christ used. Did Christ speak on hell? Yes, most definitely he did. But Christ wasn't constantly condemning people saying, you know, get saved or you'll go to hell, get saved or you go to hell. He was showing them love. He was offering them healing. He was feeding them. He was trying to draw them to salvation through love, not through fear. Fear isn't a real response to what is hell, but I just believe that Christians have lost sight of the truth behind a lot of parables and have just kind of taken them for granted. Now, this one I love, and I'll tell you why when we're done. So we're in Matthew 20, verse 1, When he agreed with the laborers for a penny a day, he sent them into his vineyard." Now, you know this story, right? Starting to, you know, ring some bells and bring to memory what you were taught when you were younger. The man keeps going back throughout the day to bring more laborers to his vineyard. And you notice in verse 2, he agrees to a penny. But then in verse 4, when he brings more laborers in, at the third hour, he said unto them, "'Go ye also into the vineyard, and whatsoever is right I will give you.' And they went their way." So the remaining groups that he gathers together and brings to the vineyard, he does not determine with them an amount of money that they will receive when they are done with the work. He just basically says, well, if you're not working now, you're not going to get a job probably today. You'll just waste a day. So better to come work for me and get whatever I give you rather than just sit here doing nothing. So the story ends. Let's go ahead and move on to verse number 10. But when the first came, they supposed they should have received more. And they likewise received every man a penny. So in verse nine, we're told that when the 11th hour was done, the day is finished. the owner of the vineyard begins paying out. So he pays out, it seems, from the last, those who just arrived, to the first, at least the group of those who said, hey, we'll work for you. Whatever you decide is fine with us. In my mind's eye, I picture that he just had that whole group. And he said, all right, guys, those of you that came at some point later in the day, I told you I would pay you whatever I seemed right. Here's a penny for each of you. And then he kind of sends them off. So then those who had contracted with the owner of the vineyard, verse 10 tells us that they expected more than they were told they would receive. Why? Because others received the same amount, having worked less in the day. When they received it, they murmured against the good man of the house, saying, these last have wrought but one hour. And now has made them equal unto us, which have borne the burden and heat of the day. But he answered one of them and said, friend, I do thee no wrong. Dist thou now agree with me for a penny? Take that as thine and go thy way. I will give unto this last, even as unto thee. Is it not lawful for me to do what I will with mine own? Is thine I evil, because I'm good? So the last shall be first, the first shall be last. For many be called, but few chosen. I love this parable because I am convinced this parable is talking about the eternal blessing of heaven. I believe that Christ is telling us an illustration. He says at the beginning of this chapter, he says that the kingdom of heaven is likened to a man. So we know he's referring to the kingdom of heaven. Now maybe you're defining the kingdom of heaven different than me. I'm defining the kingdom of heaven as in the reward we receive because we're saved. And that ultimately is heaven itself. So when you are saved, you are guaranteed heaven. It does not matter at what point in life you are saved. You're saved at five years old, 15 years old, 50 years old, 95 years old. It doesn't matter. We all receive heaven. Now, are there rewards in heaven that vary based on what you did in this life? That we know from other passages of scripture. We know that some will receive particular crowns that others will not. There is a crown, a reward for those who died a martyr's death. There's a crown, a reward for those who endured through their Christian life, not giving up throughout the Christian life. There is a crown, a reward for those, it seems, who have accomplished certain things in this life. And we also find that God says he's going to take those accomplishments that we have done, put them through the fire. And he says wood, hay and stubble will be burnt up, but the precious jewels will come through the fire. And it seems to me that there is going to be a reward received for the amount of precious jewels that make it through the fire, you might say. But ultimately, the greatest reward is heaven for me. Not just for me, but heaven for those who I love, that they would be with me in heaven. That is the greatest reward. I can't imagine anything else that I would receive in heaven that would be more valuable than the fact that I am already in heaven. I can't imagine any recognition, any statement that would be more valuable to me than the fact that I'm in heaven as it is. And so I think this parable is talking about heaven itself. It can't be talking about the various rewards we receive because of the work we do in this life. I think it's talking about the promise of salvation to those who get saved. And it does not matter when you got saved, everyone gets to go to heaven. I love the mercy of God in that manner. I love that someone who's on their deathbed can still repent, accept Christ as their Savior, and go to the same heaven that I'm going to. That doesn't bring me jealousy. That doesn't bring me bitterness. It brings me joy to know that. Years ago, I had a different church. I was down in Virginia. There was a family that I knew, and it was the father of the parents and the grandfather of the teenager that was in my youth group. This teenager loved her grandfather very, very much, and she knew that he was not saved because they had been witnessing to him for some time. He was on his deathbed. He had only a few days left. He was at a point where he could no longer talk. He was not able to communicate, aside from his eyes and squeezing his hand. But that was it. There was no ability for him to speak. The teenager came to me and said, my grandfather is dying. He does not have much longer. He is not saved. I know he's not. We've offered the gospel to him. He has rejected it over and over again. She said, will you go and talk with him? I'm thinking, what conversation am I supposed to have with this man? He's not able to talk to me. But I loved the family, and I said, sure, I will go and do my best. So I went and met with the man. He happened to be, when I arrived, no one else was there. The nurses weren't there. The family was at his side most of the time. They were exhausted. They had gone out, I think, to eat or do something. I walk in the room. No one's there. I just sat down with the guy. I started talking to him. I introduced myself. He doesn't know me. He can't talk. So it was a one-way conversation. I started talking to myself. I explained who I was. I explained that his granddaughter had asked me to come visit him. And then I told him why. I said, your granddaughter is concerned that you will not be going to heaven when you die. And I would like to tell you how you can go to heaven when you die. Again, the man could not speak. As far as his eye movement, it seemed like he was not even fully capable of, you know, moving his eyes at the point that I met him, and he actually died the very next day. I think it was the morning after I spoke with him. So he was really close to death. I gave him the gospel. And I said, I know you can't speak, but is there any way you'd like to communicate that you understand and have accepted Christ as your Savior? I was holding his hand, and he squeezed my hand. Now, I'm not saying that the man got saved. I don't know that he got saved. All I know is I gave the gospel. I asked the man if he understood, believed, and accepted in any way he would like to show that he understood, and the man squeezed my hand. That was all I got. I told the family the story that I just told you, and I didn't say, hey, your grandfather got saved. I led him to the Lord, because I don't know that. I just relayed to them what I told you. He died the next day, and the family was comforted knowing he heard the gospel at least one more time, comforted knowing he was at least able to respond, not knowing what the hand squeezing meant, knowing that he was able to respond after hearing the gospel. I don't know any godly Christian that would feel anything other than joy with that knowledge that someone in that condition still has a chance to be saved literally the day before they die. Yet this parable is giving us a story of people who have that very problem. They're upset that they go to the same heaven as someone who accepts Christ on their deathbed. Now, what is it that would cause someone to come to that point emotionally and spiritually where they would say, it's not fair that you also get to go to heaven when I've been saved my whole life. When I've been serving God my whole life, it's not fair that you go to the same heaven. What I think is going on is their definition of fair is not biblical. I tell the teenagers in my Bible class all the time, you should be glad that God's not fair. If God was fair, we would all be in trouble. So this idea that it's not fair that someone gets to go to heaven before the day before they die, well, neither is it that we go to heaven at all. Well, it's not fair that they get the same thing that I get. Well, it's not fair that you get anything at all. And that's basically the statement that Christ is making. You say, look, it's mine to give as I want. It's not a matter of fairness. It's a matter of graciousness. If I choose to be gracious, if I choose to be merciful, if I choose to be good, is it not mine to do with as I choose? Verse 14, is thine I'm evil because I'm good. If I choose to be good, who are you to say that it's wrong? Now, I do believe this parable is talking about heaven, but I also want to apply it on a daily level to us. If God chooses to be good and bless your fellow Christians, is God evil because he doesn't bless you in the same way? If God chooses to be good and those people that you go to church with, those people that you are related to, those people that you know, are given by God something you want and do not have. Is God evil because God chose to be good to them and not to you in the same way? Of course not. You could ask your questions of why do they get it and why don't I get it. We should be asking the question of why do I get anything at all? God is good even when he doesn't give. God's goodness is not defined by what He gives. God's goodness is defined by who He is. Who He is to us, not what He gives to us. Otherwise, we're just spoiled children. I only love my parents when they give me good things. I only like my parents when they do things that I like. I'm only nice to my parents when they are nice to me. We're just spoiled kids otherwise. You see, I am a good parent to my children, not because of what I give them, but because of who I am to them. How I love them. How I display that love through a relationship, through a connection, through the protection, through the presence that I have with them, that I am around them, that I am in their life. That is why I'm a good parent to my children. Not because I buy them toys at Christmas. That's not what makes me a good parent. We as Christians have got to get over this idea that God's goodness is attached to God's blessings in our lives. No, it's not. God's blessings are not deserved. God's blessings are not earned. God's blessings are not given fairly. And praise the Lord for that. Praise the Lord His blessings are not fair. Otherwise, we wouldn't get any. This side of heaven or the other side of heaven, we wouldn't get any. So this parable is a great reminder to us, and I love this reminder, that anything we have is purely out of the mercy of God. It is easy for me to share what I've got, to give back what I've got, because I recognize just how little I deserve it to begin with. Verse 16. An unusual verse, in my opinion, to attach to the application that I just gave, that I believe this parable is giving. I do see the connection. I just would not have thought it to be close enough connection to mention here. But let's look at it. Verse 16. Obviously, I don't know everything, and God has his own reasons. I'm just stating what I think, and it is odd to me, but let's talk about it. Verse 16. So the last shall be first, and the first last. All right, that I get. So just because you think you deserve more doesn't mean you will get more. Just because you believe you've earned your way to the front of the line doesn't mean you're going to be at the front of the line. And ultimately, what is it that these workers are struggling with? Pride. They're thinking of themselves rather than saying, wow, that master sure is generous to the other workers. They're thinking, I deserve more. When you think of yourself as deserving more that's that's pride. So he's you know he's talked about pride before and humbling ourselves and that makes sense. But look at this last one for many be called but few be chosen. So, called to what and chosen for what? Well, I think we're talking about, of course, the Kingdom of Heaven, talking about salvation and what is given through salvation. So if many be called, what does that mean? Called by God to what? Well, it's, in my opinion, only one of two things, called to salvation or called to service. God is calling people to one of two things. So which one are we referring to here? You could say, well, we're talking about servants serving the master or serving the good men of the house, serving the owner of the vineyard. So it must be a call to service. I get how that could be the case. But then you know what? We're talking about the kingdom of heaven. And so could it not also be a call to salvation? and that those who have come and labored in the vineyard are representative of Christians, yes, who are laboring, but Christians who are Christians. Because, again, we're talking about the kingdom of heaven. And if it's a call to salvation, what does that mean fewer chosen? I've mentioned multiple times throughout Bible studies that there is a belief system, Reformed theology, Calvinism, that is, that is beliefs that God chooses who gets saved and who doesn't get saved. that God makes that decision not us. And if God decides for you to get saved you will get saved and if God decides you won't get saved then you won't get saved. So that verse would definitely be a verse used by those in Reformed theology and that verse pretty much sums up in a way and defines their theology that not everyone gets saved and only those who are chosen get saved. So I can see why they think that and I can see it especially attached to this passage and that's what I said it seems odd to me that it's here. But, if many be called, who's doing the calling? God is. A Reformed theologian believes that if God calls you, well, I guess they'd say if God chooses you. Let me make sure I'm saying the right thing. They would claim if God chooses you, then you can't refuse. You will get saved if you are chosen. My question then is, why would God call you and not choose you? Is he just playing with you like a cat and a mouse? I know that Reformed theologians often use this verse. I'm not sure that I remember how they explain this verse. I don't know what explanation there would be for God's calling you, but God hasn't chosen you. Because the books that I've read, the stuff that I've read from Reformed theology is only those who are chosen get saved and God's not going to call you if he's not going to choose you. So if this is referring to salvation, what does it mean? And if it's not Reformed theology, and I'm not sure how it could be because it seems to contradict itself if it is, then what exactly is going on? I believe that all are called. That is my foundation for my soteriology, my theology regarding salvation. That God calls all to salvation. If Christ is lifted up, all will be drawn to him. It is not God's will that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever, whoever believes in him should be saved. Right? So I, I personally believe from multiple passages of Scripture, God calls all. Which falls in line with the first part of this little phrase, many be called. I believe all are called. I believe that many is referring to all. So then, if all are called, why don't all get saved? Because there is a requirement to be saved. Just because God calls you doesn't mean you are saved. God calls all the son of God. Jesus has been lifted up. All are drawn to him. The heavens declare his glory. God desires all to be saved. I believe all are called. All have the chance to be saved. God does not hinder any from having the opportunity to be saved. That is my strong belief. So then what is the requirement for salvation? For by grace he is saved through faith. Faith is a requirement. Those who refuse faith in Christ are rejected by Christ. Christ says, if you deny me in this life, I'll deny you in the next before my Father. So if you do not put forth the requirement of faith, then Christ rejects you. Christ doesn't choose you. Here's how I picture it. God calls all. And then as you stand before him, he says, OK, now that you're here, in a metaphorical sense, spiritual sense, now that you're here, now that you've been introduced to the fact that you need a savior, whether it's through creation, wow, there must be a bigger being out there than me. I can't imagine that there isn't a God when I see creation. Whether you were brought to that point through creation, whether you're brought to that point through literally someone giving you the gospel, or someone talking about God in general, when you're brought to that point of being called by God, what is your response? And now, as you stand spiritually before Christ, if you say, I reject Christ, Christ says, well, then I don't choose you either. I reject Christ, then I deny you as well. I reject Christ, depart from me, you workers of iniquity. I accept Christ, ah, I choose you. I have faith in Christ, enter in, well done, thou good and faithful servant. The choosing and rejecting of Christ, defined for us in other parts of scripture, is based on our faith in Christ. If we accept him in this life, if we confess him in this life, he says, I will confess you. It is a cause and effect. I will confess you, I will accept you, I will bring you in to heaven if you accept me and confess me now. My choosing of you is based on your faith in me, your confessing of me. But if you reject me, if you deny me, if you call me the Antichrist, if you say that I'm full of the devil, then I reject you as well. I do not choose you. But I don't believe that choosing or rejecting is done before we're even born. I don't believe that choosing or rejecting is done at the moment of our birth. I believe that choosing and rejecting is actually a lifetime. We have an entire life, however long that is. to come to that moment and say, I accept or reject that there is a God, His name is Christ, Jesus, and He did die for me. Because you can't be saved believing in a God, you have to be saved, salvation is only through Christ, the Messiah. He is the way, the truth, and the life. And so God is giving us an entire life to come to that point of confessing in faith or rejection and denial. That is how I define verse 16. That is my theology personally when it comes to salvation. And so I am not Arminian. Arminian is the belief that man has extreme free will and that our free will actually controls God in the sense that God can't make future plans. God can't give real prophecies because the free will of man is unknown even to God because man can do basically whatever he wants at any time. It's a pretty extreme theology, in my opinion, Arminian. It takes the free will of man way farther in the sense of that God can't control the free will of man. That's essentially my understanding of Arminian. Whereas, Reformed theology, Calvinism, is the belief that man basically doesn't have free will, at least as it is to salvation, man doesn't have free will. That man can't accept or reject Christ outside of Christ choosing them. A Calvinist may say, oh yeah, you can accept or reject Christ, but only if Christ allows you to accept or reject Him. So if Christ chooses you, then you will accept Him. If He doesn't choose you, then you won't accept Him. But that still eliminates the free will of man. Your response is only due to what God allows you to do. Now, there are some Calvinists who take the elimination of man's free will to the extreme, on the other side of Arminianism, to the point of everything you do is determined by God. You can't decide anything for yourself, like the choices you make, the things you do throughout the day, that is decided by God and predestined by God. Well, that's a dangerous theology because, of course, if you're sinning because God predestined you to sin and decides for you to sin, then who's really at fault? I mean, can you really blame yourself if you're being forced to sin because you have no free will? I mean, that's a problem for me. Big problem for me. So unfortunately, I've never met an Armenian. I'm not saying they're out there. I've never talked to someone that says, oh yeah, I'm an Armenian. I'm sure they're out there. I've never talked to one. It is interesting to me that many of the Calvinists I've spoken to, they assume if you're not Calvinist, you are Armenian. And that's funny, because I've never talked to one who claims to be Armenian. Because Arminian is an extreme theology. You don't have to be extreme when it comes to the free will of man just because you're not Reformed theology. Just because you're not a Calvinist. I don't believe you have to be. I'm not put in that box. I have actually found that a lot of Calvinists claim to be one, two, or three-point Calvinists. I'm not going to go much deeper into that. There's basically five main belief systems, five tenets, five pillars of belief when it comes to Calvinism. And a lot of them say, well, I'm one or two or three of them. I'm not all five of them. A five-point Calvinist is one who holds to all five. Two of the main leaders of Calvinism, R.C. Sproul, who is now dead, he died a few years ago, and John MacArthur, who is still alive, he's a well-known preacher in California, very smart man, knows his Bible very, very well. These men are major leaders in the Reformed theology. Now, they're kind of, again, one's dead, one's getting old, they're maybe not as popular as they were 20 years ago, because younger guys are moving up, but they're still pretty well-known guys. Both of them, on more than one occasion, have stated, If you're not a five-point Calvinist, you're not a Calvinist. They've said that. They've said that at conferences. They've said it on the radio. They've written it in books. Both of them have. These major leaders of Calvinism have stated, either all five or you're none. Now, most, if not, well, most of the Calvinists I've talked to are not all five. They're part. So even they have recognized, well, I don't need to be extreme five-point. I don't need to be extreme Armenian. I would say the same thing, except I would say I'm not any point Calvinist. I'm not any of the five. When you look at the five points of Calvinism, one of them, I'll just give you an idea, has the idea of eternal security in the sense of you can't lose your salvation. It's called the Perseverance of the Saints, P. And the Perseverance of the Saints teaches you can't lose your salvation. So when I've talked to a Calvinist, I've said, I'm not a Calvinist, any point Calvinist. They say, oh, you're Arminian. No, I'm not Arminian. Well, I'm confused then, because do you believe you can lose your salvation? I say, no, no. Once you're saved, you're always saved. Oh, you're a one-point Calvinist at least. No, I'm not a one-point Calvinist. If you believe you can lose your salvation, you're Arminian. If you believe you can't lose your salvation, you believe in the P, the tulip of Calvinism, and therefore you are a one-point Calvinist at least. And I said no, because perseverance of the saints claims the reason you can't lose your salvation is due to you persevering. that you sticking it through to the end, you serving God, you making Christ the Lord of your life, it's basically lordship salvation. Perseverance of the saints is lordship salvation. If you make Christ the Lord of your life, then you are one of the chosen, you are saved, and you won't go to hell. So if you ask a Calvinist, well then, what about someone who claims to be saved, then they stop going to church, live a reprobate lifestyle, become a drunk, and live in immorality. What about them? Oh, well, they were never saved. We thought they might have been, but they didn't persevere. Therefore, they weren't saved. They never lost their salvation. They never had it to begin with. That's lordship salvation. Now, I don't want to speak for every Calvinist. That wouldn't be fair to Calvinists for me to speak for every one of them. I'm just telling you what has been my experience in the many conversations I've had. That is literally what they say to me. What I'm just, I'm repeating what has been told to me. And I say, so that's Lord Sip's salvation. I say, so you believe, I literally had this conversation with someone months ago. I said, so that's the Lord Sip's salvation. That's what you believe. And they said, well, yeah, what's wrong with Lord Sip's salvation? And I said, well, that's the only—we don't need to go any further than that. I don't believe in Lordship Salvation. So, well, they're confused. They're thinking, if you believe in eternal security, then you have to believe in Lordship Salvation. That's the only way to believe in eternal security. At least this one person I was talking to, and I said, that's not true. There are other Scripture texts that talk about what is eternal security, and why we're saved, and the fact that the Holy Spirit seals us to the day of redemption, and it's not our works that keep us saved, it's the work of Christ on the cross that keeps us saved. And I explain that we weren't saved by works and we're not going to stay saved by works. And I explain that the works we do are purely out of our love for the God who already saved us, not to be saved by that God. And I explain that as a Christian, making Christ the Lord of our life is a choice of discipleship, not a choice of salvation. And they're not the same thing. But for the Calvinist I've talked to, it's the same thing. And that is the P in TULIP. Perseverance of the saints is not only once saved, always saved, but once saved, always saved because you persevere. That's how it's been explained to me. And I say, I don't believe that. I'm not a Calvinist. Not because I don't believe in eternal security, but because I don't believe in the definition of eternal security as presented in P under TULIP. TULIP is the acronym given to the five beliefs of Calvinism. That was a lot of information for just half a verse. The reason I wanted to give it to you is because it is a growing belief system in a lot of churches. It is growing amongst especially younger pastors my age and younger. There are older men that are Calvinists who perform theology, but it is spreading like wildfire. My age, I'm 39, and younger. Why? I believe that Calvinism offers something that is very attractive to young men and women, and that is answers. Calvinism gives you answers. Now, in my opinion, the answers aren't all scriptural. Which is why I'm not a Calvinist. But they are answers. And a lot of people are hurting so much, and a lot of people are so confused, and a lot of people are so perplexed at the chaos of this world. They just want answers. And they're happy to get them. Especially if the answers can be given in a way that seems logical, that seems scriptural. It's attractive, I get that. I'm not saying I don't believe God doesn't give us answers. I just don't believe God gives us as many answers as Calvinism claims God does. I believe that God gives us a lot of answers. But I believe God leaves a lot of things unknown to us. He allows us to live with a lot of unknowns. First and foremost, the Trinity. Think about the Trinity. How many crazy cults and unbiblical religions have come out of a misinterpretation of the Trinity? And Mormons being one of them. Do you guys know what the Mormons believe about the Trinity? They believe Jesus is the created Son of God, brother to the devil. These religions, these cults, they believe in some crazy stuff, and the foundation for their crazy beliefs, you can nail a lot of them down to starting from their belief about the Trinity, the weird things they believe about the Trinity. There's a danger, I believe, for a Christian in trying to completely grasp every aspect of the Trinity. Why is the danger there? Because the Bible doesn't give us enough information to have a full understanding of the Trinity. God chose not to do that. In fact, there seems to be scripture texts in the Bible that by themselves you wouldn't even know there was a Trinity. And then other texts that give the idea that a Trinity is basically three different gods. But we do know there is only one God. We know that. The Bible states that. The Lord your God is one God. I know that to be true. The Bible makes it clear in that statement. How can that be possible that the Lord your God is one God with God the Father, God's the Son, God the Holy Spirit? I cannot in my limited mind fathom the logic or possibility of God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit being one God. And I'm okay with that. I'm okay with that unknown. I assume I will have a better understanding of the Trinity when I get to heaven. I may be wrong. I'm okay with that. I know enough about God, his character, his love, his sacrifice, his power, his authority, his sovereignty. I know enough about God to not worry about the parts I don't know about God. And that's how healthy relationships work. Someone who needs to know every single thing, every single thing about you to trust you or be your friend, that's just not possible. It doesn't work that way. You're asking too much. You'll never be friends with anyone. There has to come a point where I know enough about you that the things I don't know about you don't bother me. Now, if you reveal something to me that bothers me, we'll talk about that. but I'm not gonna worry about what I don't know when I know enough. And there is no one I know better than God. I know God better than I know any person because God is so very clear to me about who he is. Not just in his word, but in the conversations that we have through prayer and the experiences that I've had in God's blessing in my life, I know God well. I don't worry about the Trinity and the parts that I don't understand. I'm not saying Calvinism offers you the answer of the Trinity. I haven't seen anything. I've read a lot. I haven't seen anything from them that answers any more questions about the Trinity than what I already have. So I'm not saying, I guess, that Calvinism offers the answers for everything, but they offer a lot of answers. And there's a lot of people looking for answers. They're not comfortable with the unknowns. And I think that is a danger. Because when you're looking for answers and are willing to accept an answer just because it's an answer, even though it's not in Scripture, of course, in my opinion, that's a danger. Now, of course, I can argue with Calvinists all day long about what is in Scripture and what is not in Scripture, and that is basically what it comes down to. I believe Calvinists serve the same God. I believe they love the same God. I believe they are saved in the same way. They accept Christ as their Savior. I don't deny that fact. We are gonna disagree on what answers Calvinism supposedly gives, whether they're in Scripture or not. That's what we're gonna disagree on. But I'll tell you my biggest issue with Reformed theology, and then I'll move on. My biggest issue with Reformed theology is the manner in which Christ's character is presented. Christ is presented as a God who chooses who goes to hell and who goes to heaven. Now, if that was true, well, then that's true. You just got to accept that fact about God if that is true. But to mischaracterize God, to me, is a pretty big deal. Not to mischaracterize God in any way, right? To say that Jesus is so concerned about your emotional comfort that you might not be offended, that he's okay with whatever choice you make and just loves you and doesn't seek to assist you in walking away from sin, but loves you and enables you in your sin, that's mischaracterizing Christ. And to me, that's a pretty big deal. A lot of churches that do that. A lot of Christians have been doing that for some time, mischaracterizing Christ. So if Christ does not choose who goes to heaven and hell, if Christ does not make that choice against the will of the one accepting or rejecting him, to state otherwise is a mischaracterization of Christ. That is a big deal. And that is my biggest problem with Reformed theology. We can debate and discuss predestination and eternal security and lordship salvation. Those things, you know what, we can look in the Bible, we can have different opinions, and whatever. If you're saved, you're saved, that's what really matters. But to mischaracterize the God that I love, that bothers me. And Calvinists aren't the only ones that do that. I just stated, others do it on the other side. Obviously, Calvinists believe I also mischaracterize Christ. They believe that I'm portraying Christ in a way that he is not by stating that Christ calls us, but only chooses us based off of our rejection or acceptance of him. They would say, well, that's a mischaracterization of Christ. That's not who he is. That's not how he works. So we both believe that the other is mischaracterizing Christ. So which one of us is right? We will find out when we get to heaven. I am obviously very confident in my personal belief system regarding the character of Christ and the Word of God. But I gotta tell ya, I have met many Calvinists and they are just as confident as I am. So, you have to make the decision in Scripture what truth seems to be closer to the character of Christ. If you can't come to a conclusion based off of the verses that I've given over the years that I've been here, because I often speak on Calvinism, especially Wednesday nights, when it comes up, I'll often speak on it for a good 20, 30 minutes like I did tonight. Only rarely have I done like a whole night or a series on Reformed theology. I did do that like six years ago. I taught a series on Reformed theology. Only one time have I done that. Most of the time, it's just mentioned briefly in the text of the evening. I believe that if you can't come to a conclusion of what these verses are stating, because here's the truth. Those who believe in Reformed theology have their verses. I have a response to them. I have my verses. They have a response to mine. If you're gonna go based off of what is my response to their verses, what are their response to my verses, like, you're gonna go in circles because we both have responses to the verses that we both use. I think you should do that. That's still valuable to hear both sides and hear the responses and for some that may clear up. But if it does not, I think you're in a safe place coming down to what is the character of God? Is the God, not the God that I believe, not the God that I created, when you look at the God of the Bible, does his character reflect a God? that would force someone to hell against their will to reject him? Would you look at God's character reflected in a way that he forces someone to heaven against their will to accept him? I don't see that God in the Bible. Obviously, hundreds of thousands and millions disagree and see that God of the Bible. I don't, and I'm not sure how they could. We'll end it there, I'm sure, and I'd love to hear, remember I told you guys I wanted to start giving you things to think about, so if I haven't given you something to think about tonight, I don't know what I need to do. So we're gonna end in about five minutes, and we'll have a conversation with those in this room about your thoughts, because I do wanna hear your thoughts. And I have made it very clear that in our church, our theology is not Reformed theology. That doesn't mean we don't have people in our church who are prone to consider it, who are prone to lean towards it. I know that we do, I know that. but it's not gonna be a theology that will be taught at our church from the pulpit or in the Bible studies. But I'm not gonna control every theological belief of every believer in our church. That would be chaos. That'd be ridiculous. I'm not gonna do that. Having said that, I do believe very strongly about this and have not made any secret otherwise. So anyone who's been in this church long enough is not surprised to hear what I've already said tonight. Jesus Christ talking to these who would get saved. He is reminding us that his mercy is for all, not just for those who started young and worked hard. I love that character about Christ. In verse 17 and 19, Jesus going up to Jerusalem took the 12 disciples apart in the way and said unto them, behold, we go up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man shall be betrayed unto the chief priests and unto the scribes, and they shall condemn him to what? Death, and shall deliver him to the Gentiles to what? Mock, scourge, crucify him. That word crucify means you're gonna be killed. And the third day he shall rise again. Why are the apostles so confused about the events that are literally about to happen? They're on their way to Jerusalem. Christ is saying this is going to happen and it's going to happen when we get there. Why are they shocked when it happens as he describes it when they get there? Because it's not just children who are listening but aren't listening. It's not just children who are hearing, but not accepting. Adults do it, too. Spiritual leaders do it, too. You know what I find we're really good at as adults? We've learned how to look someone in the eye, keep our mouth shut, and consider our response before they're done talking. We are really good at that. We've realized that to start talking, cut someone off, you lose the argument. They're going to hate you. They're not going to talk to you anymore. You're going to lose the friendship. You learn. You've got to show some basic level of respect and hear them out. But you're not really hearing them. You're already thinking about your response. And they're not even halfway done yet. You're not hearing them. And then you're shocked with their response to your response because you weren't hearing their first answer. You respond and say, well, that's not what I said. Oh, it's not? What did you say? I guess I wasn't listening to you. Christ is being as clear as he possibly can. And we find all 12, well, maybe not all 12, Judas maybe wasn't as surprised. 11 of the 12 were completely shocked at the events that were about to take place in Jerusalem. They should not have been. And they would not have been if they were just listening and not just hearing. Why are we so shocked? about the chaos in this world? You wouldn't be if you were listening and not just hearing. Why are we so shocked that life is so painful? If you were listening to the Bible, you'd know that it would be. Why are we so shocked that serving Christ and being a faithful Christian has its extreme hardships? If you were listening, you would have known that already. Why are we so shocked that people we love die? If you were listening, you'd know death is a part of life. And why it is a part of life. Why are we so shocked that the world hates truth? Hates the Bible's definition, strong definition of morality. Why are we so shocked that the world hates anything to do with Christ, even his name? If you were listening, you wouldn't be shocked. Here's the problem with being shocked. When you are shocked, you often fail to make the right choice. Because shock leads to fight or flight, and neither one of them is the right response for a Christian. Running, not good. Fighting, you're probably fighting the wrong person for the wrong thing. Living a life of constant shock as a believer is one sure way to live in constant discouragement and probably destruction. When you're constantly shocked about what's going on around you, constantly shocked about what's happening to you, your family, your friends, your church. When you live in constant shock, you're gonna get PTSD. And those with PTSD usually look to mask it with something else and try to run from what's causing it. And if you're not listening to God, and you're living in constant shock of what's happening in your life as a believer, you are more prone to run from God. And run with PTSD. And a lot of young Christians, that's exactly what's happening. They are literally running from God, His church, and they've got spiritual PTSD. They literally get anxious when they think about church or worship services, when they think about the Bible or God, because they didn't listen to the truth, and their experiences just shocked them over and over and over again. Now, some rightly so, because Christians were just not Christian towards them. I get that. But a lot of them, they didn't expect the Christian life to be so hard. It was, it shocked them, they ran. I'll end with this. Christ gave a parable about that, right? The sower and the seeds. And he said, one seed fell into the rocky ground and the roots didn't go deep. And when the sun beat upon it and the hardship came, it could not sustain and it died without bearing fruit. Those who don't go deep, those who don't listen, run. And that's exactly what we see the apostles doing. In their state of shock in Jerusalem, as Christ is arrested, they run. Initially, they all run. One comes back, John, and then eventually Peter follows. The rest we don't see that entire night as Christ is being judged and crucified. It seems that there might have been others at the crucifixion of Christ. We know John was there. We know Mary, his mother, and others were there. We're not really given a list of all the apostles that were or were not there. They were too busy running in shock. They could have avoided all of that heartache, all of that regret. They could have avoided that moment of abandoning Christ when he needed them the most. They could have avoided it if they were just listening. What is God telling you? And what are you hearing but not listening to? Join us next Wednesday as we continue our series on the life of Christ. Thank you so much for being with us tonight.