Let's let's pray. Of your people, you know the. The difficulty when I pray you would help, please. Or by your spirit, please help by your word, please help. In Jesus name. OK. Well, you all have been given a heads up beforehand what we're going to be looking at tonight, and that is the area of sexual assault, sexual abuse in the Christian. And just thinking about the fact that we even have to talk about something like this is all the evidence that you need, that there's something wrong with our world. Something is utterly broken, and not broken like a clock that needs adjustment, not broken like a toy that needs some glue, but broken like a crystal glass thrown down from the top of the Empire State Building. Things are completely shattered, and this is everyone's problem. It doesn't mean everyone has suffered this, But this issue is widespread. And right now, the news is filled with the scandals that are coming out from the Catholic Church. I mean, literally infested with stories, thousands of boys who have been assaulted by their priests. You think of the countless men who are in, coming out of prison, boys who have come out of group home, the untold numbers of young men who are abused, their fathers, uncles, brothers, cousins, priests, pastors, youth directors, coaches, babysitters, neighbors. That's just talking about men. You think of children, children are without question targeted and there are massive, powerful forces entire networks that are set up. In fact, just a month ago, a raid was carried out. Twenty three hundred arrests across the U.S. suspected of child trafficking. And then just this month, one hundred and twenty three missing children were rescued from a child trafficking ring in Michigan. Think about that. After 2,300 people were arrested, you would think, OK, the problem is getting better. And after that great victory, 123 kids were still missing and needed to be rescued. And that's just the widespread national organized things that has nothing to say about all of the children that cry out behind closed doors. and in back rooms from unsuspecting relatives. This is happening in schools. This is happening with teachers. This is happening with coaches. Other kids are doing it to kids. It's everywhere. It's not an exaggeration to say that this is happening all around us. And on top of all that, men and children, we know that the most targeted of all demographics are women. These are our mothers, our sisters, nieces, aunts. This is not an American problem. These assaults are happening all over the world. This is not a young people problem. I don't know if you all are aware, but nursing homes are reporting that these things are happening to the elderly. The point I'm trying to make is that this is an epidemic. And right now, I know, I know that the current climate is really politically charged, social activists and feminists and protests and all that, and people are talking about the Me Too hashtags. But this is still a very real issue, and it's being made into simply a talking point. But this is what we have to remember. After all the legal points are covered, after all the arrests are made, After all the trafficking raids are busted and completed, when the smoke clears from the lawsuits and people are brought to trial, after all the confrontations and all the lies and all the conversations are had, there are still people who are left to pick up the broken pieces of their lives. People who have the stains and the scars and the memories of what has happened to them. There's still that little girl who lays up at night trembling, wondering, is my door going to open? There's still that guy who's trying to prove to everybody that he's so tough because he doesn't want anyone to know about the secret that he's holding. And he's trying to prove his masculinity through all manner of extremes. There are marriages that are struggling because of one or more parties have suffered and now intimacy is unbearable. People don't want to be touched. People can't stand to be alone. People cry for no reason at all. They're trying to figure out what's going on with them. And after all the points are made on social media and all the arguments are heard by both sides, and this is up for debate in the political realm, people turned it into jokes on late night monologues and all that. We have to remember that we are dealing with real people who have real devastation Souls that are in utter despair. And their shame and their guilt and their sorrow isn't going away. And to many of them, hope seems unreachable. Some of them try to pretend like it just didn't happen. And that doesn't work. Some try to block the memories from their mind. Some try to blame themselves for what took place, hoping that if they take some type of responsibility for it, then they'll feel better. Brothers and sisters, that's not the way to deal with these things. Our Bibles deal with this issue, and so we must as well. So I want you to turn with me to 2 Samuel chapter 13, and it's staggering. It's staggering how closely this account looks like others. If you know anybody who has suffered assault, if you yourself have. If you've heard the stories, if you read the books, it's amazing how much what we're about to read mirrors what so many have gone through. Second, Samuel 13. So let's read this together. Now Absalom, David's son had a beautiful sister whose name was Tamar. And after a time, Amnon, David's son, loved her. And Amnon was so tormented that he made himself ill because of his sister Tamar, for she was a virgin. And it seemed impossible to Amnon to do anything to her. But Amnon had a friend whose name was Jonadab, the son of Shimea, David's brother. And Jonadab was a very crafty man. And he said to him, oh, son of the king, why are you so haggard morning after morning? Will you not tell me? Amnon said to him, I love Tamar, my brother Absalom's sister. Jonadab said to him, lie down on your bed and pretend to be ill. And when your father comes to see you and say to him, let my sister Tamar come and give me bread to eat and prepare the food in my sight that I may see it and eat it from her hand. So Amnon laid down and pretended to be ill. And when the king came to see him, Amnon said to the king, please let my sister Tamar come and make a couple of cakes in my sight that I may eat from her hand. Then David sent home Tamar saying, go to your brother Amnon's house and prepare food for him. So Tamar went to her brother Amnon's house when he was lying down and she took dough and kneaded it and made cakes in his sight and baked the cakes. And she took the pan and emptied it out before him, but he refused to eat. And Amnon said, send out everyone from me. So everyone went out from him. Then Amnon said to Tamar, bring the food into the chamber that I may eat from your hand. And Tamar took the cakes she had made and brought them into the chamber of Amnon, her brother. And when she brought them near to him to eat, he took hold of her and said to her, come, lie with me, my sister. We're going to continue to go through, but I wanted to give you a feel of what we're dealing with here. And the first thing we see are the characters. Who are these people in this account? I mean, you see there's the abuser, Amnon. This is David's son. He has a friend, Jonadab, and we have the victim, Tamar. And we notice that Tamar and Amnon are related. Half sibling, but related. And here's a lie. This is a lie, this is a myth that Most of these type of assaults happen from strangers. That's not true. In fact, roughly about 80% of these assaults happen from relatives, friends, and acquaintances. We also see the plan. There's a strategy to abuse. We see Amnon, he's sad. He wants his sister in a sinful way. And he has this friend, Jonadab, who's crafty, who's clever, who's able to come up with a plan in order to get her. These assaults always have a plan. They always have a strategy. And what is the strategy? What was the strategy here? It was to gain trust. It was to gain confidence. It looked innocent. Pretend to be ill. Have David command that it be done. Get her alone with him. Bring her in the bedroom. All of this was a plot and a scheme trying to use trust, trying to use confidence in order to get what he wanted. And if you're familiar with any of the accounts in our world, in our day, in our time, Think of the same way these things happen. Somebody's babysitting. How did they get into the place to babysit? They gain trust. A crafty, sneaky plot. Always the sweat. There's always a plan. There's always a strategy. Sleepovers. Mentorships. Oh yeah, I really want to pour into your son. I really want to pour into your daughter. I see that there's no man in the house, so let me spend time with the children. It's always the same thing. There's a plan. There's a plot. There's a scheme. And it's using trust. It's using confidence. It's using innocence in order to gain access. Religious activities. How often has the church been used in order to do these things? There's always a plan. So we see the people, we see the plan, and then there's a moment of realization. There's a moment when it goes from this is an innocent activity to something is going terribly wrong. Look at verse 11. But when she brought them near to him, to eat, he took hold of her and said to her, come lie with me, my sister. There it is. You notice even there how he made it sound sweet. My sister. My sister. Using terms of affection, using terms of relation, trying to attract, trying to come lie with me. He didn't say, let me violate you, let me attack you. Let me assault you. No, he used words that seem sweet, that seem innocent. And is this not the norm? How often have the words love been used to gain access? If you love me, then you would. We're just playing a game. Innocent, sweet. This is just gonna be our little secret just between you and me. It's the same pattern. There's a realization that things are not what. She thought it was. When you see he wants something that is evil. But still trying to use very kind, very soft, very manipulative language to get it well. Look at her response. First of all, she answered him. No, my brother. I want you to notice she says many things and each one is packed, filled with meaning. No, my brother, do not violate me for such a thing is not done in Israel. Do not do this outrageous thing. As for me, where could I carry my shame? And as for you, you would be as one of the outrageous fools in Israel. Now, therefore, please speak to the king for he will not withhold me from you. The first thing she says, No. Simply no. No, my brother. She didn't want to do this. She didn't desire this in any way, shape or form. And there are many who have said no. No. My brother, the commentators would say she used brother to remind him of What this relationship is. This is unnatural. This is wrong. Let me remind you of what you're doing here. No, my brother. To say no would have been enough. Do not violate me. Don't do this to me. I mean, that's that's meaningful. This will be a violation of me as a person. This is not merely an action that is done and can be forgotten about. This is not like eating a meal or going on a journey. This would be a violation of me as a person. Do not violate me. I am a soul. Do not violate me. For such a thing is not done in all Israel. Do not do this outrageous thing. Now, we know that there are many sins that can and are committed, and all of them are vile, all of them are hell worthy, all of them are disgusting and evil, but we know that the scripture talks about weightier crimes. Jesus said, he who delivers me over, it has the greater sin. There are greater sins than others, and even in the law, we know this to be a fact simply because of the punishment. Certain sins called you to be unclean for a season. Certain sins caused you to be outcasted, to be put outside the camp, and other sins caused you to be put to death. She says such a thing is not done in all Israel. She was not just saying words here. She was actually quoting scripture. She was quoting from Genesis 34-7. Well, what does Genesis 34-7 say? In order to get the context, we actually have to read one through seven. She was quoting from an account in the life of someone named Dinah. Dinah was Jacob's daughter. Here's Genesis 34, starting with verse one. Now Dinah, the daughter of Leah, we know Jacob was married to Leah, was one of his wives, whom she had born to Jacob, went out to see the women of the land. And when Shechem, the son of Hamor the Hivite, the prince of the land, saw her, he seized her and lay with her and humiliated her. And his soul was drawn to Dinah, the daughter of Jacob. He loved the young woman and spoke tenderly to her. He rapes her, and then he speaks tenderly to her. So Shechem spoke to his father, Hamor, saying, get this girl from my wife. Now, Jacob heard that he had defiled his daughter, Dinah, but his sons were with his livestock in the field. So Jacob held his peace until they came. And Hamor, the father of Shechem, went out to Jacob to speak with him. The sons of Jacob had come in from the field as soon as they heard of it. And the men were indignant and very angry. And here's the quote. because he had done an outrageous thing in Israel by lying with Jacob's daughter. For such a thing must not be done. What was Tamar doing? She was quoting the word of God to remind her brother of what God says about this. About what happened to the godless men, and by the way, the men who did this, they were all killed by Jacob's sons. She's trying to bring to his mind the consequences of men who have done this in the past. Remember what happened to Dinah's abusers. She sought to sway him with scripture. She sought to move his lusts with the sword of the spirit. She sought to bring his mind to eternity, to a holy God who's gonna judge such a thing, who's watching this, who is present and seeing the whole thing unfold. And it breaks my heart to know that there are some who have been abused. professing Christians, believers in God. And you can read the accounts. These victims, they seek to quote scripture to these people, to remind them of their position, to remind them of the words of Christ, of the cross, of judgment, of hell, of salvation, of the blood of Jesus, trying to remind the person who would say, I'm a follower of Christ and what the word of God said. This is exactly what Tamar sought to do. Yet too often these precious pleadings go unanswered. Then she says something else. It's really heartbreaking. As for me, where could I carry my shame? Where could I carry my shame? If you do this to me, where can I take my shame? Shame comes from these things. She understood that the type of shame that would come from this is not the normal shame. Someone may be ashamed because they were exposed in a lie or they were harassed or, you know, you think of the men who were put to shame and they're, clothing was cut and they had to travel back naked. And David said, let your beard grow back and let your time pass because of the shame. Well, that was a small thing compared to what she was facing. She knew that this type of shame that was going to be thrust upon her if her brother did this thing to her was a shame that she couldn't take to anyone. It would remain on her. She would be seen as an outcast. And she's pleading on her own behalf, please. You would make me a wretched woman with no hope if you do this. There would be no place for me to go, no person for me to take it to. No one could remove this shame. And I know, as you know, there are men and women, boys and girls, even in the church of the Lord Jesus Christ, who are carrying shame. It lays upon shoulders. It feels like a mountain. It's crushing. It's an all-consuming shame that touches every aspect of life. She keeps going and as for you, you would be as one of the outrageous fools in Israel. You can see her just reaching for anything that she could think of to try to sway this man. Don't do this. Please don't do this. No, you're my brother. No, this is not done in Israel. No, we are the people of God. No, this would cause me to have shame that cannot be taken away. No, you would be seen as one of the outrageous fools in Israel. Trying to even speak to this man's own self thoughts, since he only cares about himself to even put her in such a place. You would be seen as an outrageous fool. But what is a fool? The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, the beginning of wisdom, the beginning of understanding. And to walk through this world without the fear of the Lord is to walk through this world without knowledge, without wisdom, without understanding. It is to be the fool of all fools. The fool has said in his heart, there is no God. Corrupt are they and they do abominable wickedness. She would be a fool who walks through this world as though there is no God. Do not do this. And then she says something that may seem strange. Please speak to the king, for he will not withhold me from you. Some take this to mean that she was literally saying, listen, I'll be your wife, just don't assault me. But I believe with the others that she's just trying to get out of there. She's trying to find any way possible to make this man let her go. She's cornered, she's alone, she's in a room, and this man is sick with lust. Well, all of her arguments went unheard. Verse 14, but he would not listen to her. Oh, how many have not been listened to. And being stronger than she, he violated her and lay with her. This is in our Bibles. Why is this in our Bible? God, has left nothing unaddressed. Here is the crime. Now, he sinned against her before he ever put a hand on her. But here's the act. And for some, this is exactly what they went through. Literally. Being stronger, he forced her. For others, there was no touching at all. But the idea is the same. He forced her. He violated her. Why? He being stronger than she. That's the idea. She was unable to stop this. She was violated against her will. against her consent, against her desires, she didn't want this to happen. And the only reason it did, the only reason this happened is because he was stronger than her. If she had her way, this would not have been done. This is the case with those who are suffering now. because of these things. It's the same testimony. Whatever happened did not happen because you wanted this to happen, not because you desired this to happen, not because you asked for this to happen, not because you consented, not because you deserved it. The only reason Whoever violated you did so is because they were stronger than you. And someone can be stronger than you in a myriad of ways. They can be stronger than you with their muscles. They can be stronger than you with influence, stronger than you with authority. They could be stronger than you in age and wealth. and Bible knowledge, stronger with words, with manipulation. The idea is they have the ability to control you, to make you do something that you don't want to do. And this is what happened here. And this is what happens all over the world. They say every two minutes in America, somebody stronger than someone else is violating them. Well, we read on. Then Amnon hated her with very great hatred so that the hatred with which he hated her was greater than the love with which he had loved her. And Amnon said to her, get up, go. This is just insult to injury. When there was lust in his veins, she was his sister. Come lie with me. Come into the bedroom so that I may eat from your hands. Very, very sweet, very kind, all of it, very manipulative, all of it, very deceptive, but his words were kind. Why? Because he was filled with lust. But once his lust was gratified, listen to how he talks. Get up, go. Look at verse 17. And he called the young man who served him and said, put this woman out of my presence and bolt the door after her. Put this woman out of my presence. Get up. Go. Again, there is nothing new under the sun. When When the abuser is filled with lust, they will say anything, do anything, pretend to be anything to get what they want. But once they violated you, their true face is seen. And it's ugly and it's vile and it's cruel. Look at what she says. But she said to him, no, my brother, for this wrong and sending me away is greater than the other that you did to me. How so? Because remember, in order for him to throw her out in her condition, it would be to publicly expose what had just happened to her. He had violated her in secret and now he's going to put her to open shame and everyone would know. The evidence would be there. Well, this happens nowadays, doesn't it? People are assaulted, the crime is recorded and it's shared on the internet. People are assaulted and then they're forced to share the gruesome details as they seek to get justice. And then they're called a liar and nothing is done. is to add the insult to the injury. It's not enough that you did this, but now you're gonna publicly expose me and the shame would be compounded on top of the shame. Now, verse 18, she was wearing a long robe with sleeves for thus were the virgin daughters of the king dressed. So his servant put her out and bolted the door after her. And Tamar put ashes on her head and tore the long robe that she wore. And she laid her hand on her head and went away crying aloud as she went. And can you hear, can you see her? Her innocence is gone. She wore the garments of the virgin daughters of the king. And now her purity has been stolen from her. She was so joyful and glad to come in the house and cook and serve. And now all of that joy and gladness has been replaced with wailing and mourning. Ashes on her head. She tears her garment. This is the sign that people do after someone dies. What did Job do after he lost All he had in his children, all 10 of them were killed on the same day, ashes and tearing of his garments. This is what she does. Crying aloud as she went, just wailing, screaming. This is not a little, whimper or a little weep. This is not just tears rolling down her face. She is screaming at the top of her lungs because her innocence has been stolen. I mean, did you see her there? Her sorrow, her confusion, what just happened? Instantly, her whole life has been turned upside down. Why did he do this to me? She's shedding tears for what he did, tears for who he was. This is my brother. And as she looked in front of her, all she sees is the shame. All she sees is the guilt. All she sees is the sorrow. All she sees is darkness. Is this my fault? Did I bring this on myself? Was this something I did? Could I have prevented this? When people go through this, there's usually at least one hope. At least I have a community. At least I have a family. I can go and tell my father. I can go and tell my brothers. I can go and tell somebody I trust, and they will hear me, and they'll protect me, or they'll comfort me, or they will avenge me. They'll call the police. There'll be justice. And that's what she did. She went to those she trusted. But what happened? Verse 20, and her brother Absalom said to her, has Amnon your brother been with you? Now hold your peace, my sister. He is your brother. Do not take this to heart. Hold your peace. Don't talk about this. He's your brother. Look, if you do this, if you expose this, you're gonna bring shame on the whole family. Don't take this to heart. He's your brother. Hold your peace. Shh. Just be quiet about this. Don't make a big deal. You don't wanna bring shame on this family. Come on. This is the King's family. David's our father. You just need to just Bury this. How many, how many have been told this same thing? Just be quiet. Don't tell anybody. Either they're told outright, don't say anything about this. They're told that by their abuser. And then they go to their family. They go to someone in authority. They go to the police. They go to somebody to try to get help. And they're told, just be quiet about this. Or they're not literally told, be quiet. But they're given some response that says, just shut up about this. You did this. You're just as guilty. You know how you dress. You know you were leading him on. Well, what about King David? I mean, that's her brother. At least she has her daddy, right? I mean, her daddy will protect her. So Tamar lived a desolate woman in her brother Absalom's house. When King David heard of all these things, he was very angry. That's good. But that's it. But Absalom spoke to Amnon neither good nor bad for Absalom hated Amnon because he had violated his sister Tamar. Why don't we hear anything else about David? David was angry. This happened to his daughter, but that's it. He did nothing else. And how did she end her life as a desolate woman alone to carry her own shame, no one to defend her cause, no one who seemed to care about her. She lived in her brother's house, undefended, unprotected, bearing the weight of all of her shame. And David, her father, was angry, but he did not let his anger move him to a single action, not even a conversation. Not even a confrontation, nothing at all. The law required death for this. But he did not bring justice on Tamar's behalf. Who cares about Tamar? Well, many people we know, You know, I know, have been through this exact same process. This is not foreign to many people. The deception, the tricks, the gaining of the trust only to use that trust for violation, assault, the force, the sorrow, the grief, the shame, the looking for help of being turned away. Perhaps, you know, somebody or you yourself have been told you just need to be quiet about this. Well, I just want to speak for those who are dealing with this, or if there's someone you love who has dealt with this, there's There is hope. Some of the things that people deal with is self-blame. Maybe you're blaming yourself. Maybe you say things like, I did this. Maybe if I was just more modest, maybe if I wasn't such a social butterfly, Maybe I'm just too flirtatious. Maybe I led them on. Maybe I shouldn't have been alone with this person. I did this to myself. Or maybe you feel like you're someone who deserves these things because you're just unworthy of anything but this type of treatment. You see yourself as nothing. You're trash. And so how do you treat trash? What do you do with that which is worthless? Well, from this account and on behalf of the whole of scripture, may I say this is not your fault. And you're not to blame. The fact of the matter is, if any of this was done to you, you were sinned against. You were violated. You were mistreated. You were taken advantage of. And God is not pleased with what happened to you. He's angry at what happened. In addition to self-blame, sometimes this becomes your self-identity. People identify themselves by this pain. They see their lives from the beginning of the assault and everything else in their life is seen through the lens of the assault. They identify themselves by these events. Or the feeling is that I have no identity because it's been stripped away from me because these things have been done to me. But again, the Bible, Mankind created in the image of God. I mean, you know what this means? Amazing that God made us so that when people look at us, they see what God is like. There is no higher honor in all the world. So when you love someone, when you treat someone with love, people are supposed to See that and say, wow, God loves when you forgive someone. People are supposed to look at that and say, wow, God forgives. Mankind was created not to be violated and assaulted. Your identity is not to be abused. That's not how God defines you. He made you in his image to be a broadcaster of his glory and his worth and his honor. And that is a dignifying thing. That is an amazing honor. There's self blame, there's self identity, and then there's also self destruction. Many people, because these things are done to them, they go and they do destructive things to themselves. Eating disorders, sexuality, alcohol abuse, drug abuse, violence, lashing out, all manner of things as a result of these things taking place, trying to numb the pain, trying to silence the guilt, trying to punish themselves because they feel like I am responsible for this, so let me hurt myself. Some people are so numb, they can't feel anything, so they harm themselves to try to feel something because they feel nothing. because of these types of things. And many others that we have not time enough to deal with now, but let me go back to Tamar's question. As for me, where could I carry my shame? She couldn't carry it to Amnon. She couldn't bring it to Absalom. And tragically, even David was unable to help her with this shame. But Tamar and anyone else and everyone else who has suffered sexual assault in any capacity, for all who have been violated, for all who have been carrying the shame of this, There is a place for you to bring all of your shame, and that is the cross of the Lord Jesus Christ. Matthew 11, verse 28. Come to me. There it is. Tamar is asking the question. Where can I take my shame? Where can I carry my shame? And Jesus says, come to me. Don't go to Amnon. Don't go to Absalom. Don't go to David. Come to me, Jesus says. And he says that to you and anyone else you know who has suffered these things, all who labor and are heavy laden. The shame the weight, the guilt, the sorrow, the grief, all the sins you have committed, perhaps because of these things, as a response to these things, or if you are the one who did these things, Jesus says, come to me and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me for I am gentle and lowly in heart and you will find rest for your souls. It's said that Tamar went out crying aloud. She was in her brother's house, desolate. That's not rest. That's not comfort. That's not joy. That's not help. But Christ, he brings rest to all who are weary and heavy laden, all who are wandering, all who are searching, all who are crying out, all who are in grief and pain, all who are under such distress. Jesus says, come to me. He knows what was done to you. He knows what you've done in response. And he says, come. Isaiah 53. Isaiah 53. Verse one, who has believed what he has heard from us and to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed? For he grew up before him like a young plant and like a root out of dry ground. He had no form or majesty that we should look at him and no beauty that we should desire him. Jesus Christ, the perfect and most beautiful one, came to this earth intentionally for the very reason of rescuing people who have suffered these types of things and many others. He was despised. and rejected by men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. Those who have suffered these things know what it is to be despised. Tamar was despised, hated by the very one who assaulted her. Rejected by men. We have a sympathetic high priest. He knows what it is to be rejected. He knows what it is to be despised. Oh, so many people who've gone through, they've looked for acceptance here and there. And what do they find is rejection and despising. But the Lord Jesus Christ came and was despised and rejected. And he was a man of sorrows. He knows sorrow. He knows sorrow more than the worst victim of assault and acquainted with grief. He knows grief, he knows sorrow. You can come to him in your sorrow and in your grief and in your shame. And as from one whom men hide their faces, he was despised. We were already told he was despised. Why tell us again? This is how much he was despised and we assumed him not. Surely he has borne our griefs. and carried our sorrows. Do you have grief? Do you have sorrow? Do you know somebody that does? Christ Jesus came to bear the sorrow of sexual assault. He came to bear the grief of being violated. He knows And you can come to him. Yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God and afflicted that he was pierced for our transgressions, both the rapist and the rate. He was pierced for the sins of all. He was crushed for our iniquities. Upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace. And with his wounds, we are healed. You can come to Christ. The scripture says. He despised the shame. Meaning he didn't let the shame get in the way and think of what Jesus went through. They humiliated him. They mocked him, they laughed at him, they stripped him naked. They violently beat him. They made a joke of his humiliation. And as he suffered, publicly exposed to everyone who walked by. Jesus knows what it is to suffer. He knows what it is to have the sorrow. He knows what it is to feel the shame and he will take your shame from you and bear it upon his own shoulders that you might become the very righteousness of God. You might see yourself as dirty. You might see yourself as unworthy. You might see yourself as filthy. You might see yourself in a myriad of other things, but you can come to the good shepherd. You can come to the door. You can come to the lamb who takes away the sin of the world. You can come to the one who rescues. You could come to the one who said, come to me. And people may make light of what you've gone through because you didn't have as much as Tamar went through. But know this about our God. He doesn't make light of a single sin. And men may say, that's not enough to take it to court. That's not enough to open a case. That's not enough to make a big deal of it. Why are you making so big a deal of it? It's only this somebody might say, but if you have been violated in any way, know that our God does not look at it as a small thing for even a look of lust for man, or a woman looks at you in a way that makes you feel violated, God says, that is worthy of the wrath of my holy vengeance. Others may laugh at what you weep about, but God never does. So we here have the story of Tamar who asked the question, where can I carry my shame? And for the Christians, continue to bring your shame and anything that you're dealing with about this to the only one who bears shame and gives healing to the worst scar. And for anyone who has suffered such things and does not know Christ, you can't heal yourself of this. You can't fix yourself of this. There's only one who you can take your shame to, who can actually do something about it. There's only one who can forgive you, only one who can save you, only one who can give true justice to those who violated you, only one who can wash you. And you may have torn your virgin robes and say, no way I can get that back. But there is one who can clothe you in the very robes of perfect righteousness. And that is Jesus Christ. And he will cleanse you. And he is not intimidated regardless of how foul and filthy, how dark your life has been. He is very much aware and he still wants you. Amen. Let's pray. Father, I know I could never do justice to such a thing. And Lord, this is undoubtedly going to be a process for those who have suffered such violations as Tamar and Dinah, of that concubine and judges, and the many others who have suffered without their story being recorded. Lord, I know that you are the only one who can bring healing to such pain. You're the only one who can give comfort to those who are in it right now. And Father, I pray you would indeed comfort your people by the gospel by the power of your Holy Spirit, by the promises of Jesus Christ, by his shed blood, by the only one who is truly a sympathetic high priest who knows what it means to be well acquainted with grief and bearing sorrow and shame and can wash away the darkest stain I pray, Lord, that you would help and those who have been searching far and wide, trying to numb the pain, trying to go in to and fro, looking for a place to carry their shame. I pray that they would find rest in Christ alone. And I pray, Lord, that as the church. We would help. And for those who are unrepentant and have violated Those who were made in your image, Lord. Woe unto them. For you are an avenger on the wrongdoer. In Jesus name, amen. You're dismissed.