1 00:00:00,560 --> 00:00:02,697 He shall do according to all that 2 00:00:02,697 --> 00:00:05,140 proceeds out of his mouth. If a woman 3 00:00:05,140 --> 00:00:07,887 vows A vow to the Lord, and binds herself 4 00:00:07,887 --> 00:00:10,024 by a pledge, while within her father's 5 00:00:10,024 --> 00:00:12,162 house, and her youth, and her father 6 00:00:12,162 --> 00:00:14,909 hears of her vow and of her pledge by 7 00:00:14,909 --> 00:00:17,046 which she has bound herself, and says 8 00:00:17,046 --> 00:00:19,489 nothing to her, then all her vows shall 9 00:00:19,489 --> 00:00:21,955 stand, and every pledge. By which she has 10 00:00:21,955 --> 00:00:23,110 bound herself shall stand. 11 00:00:24,700 --> 00:00:27,623 But if her father opposes her on the day 12 00:00:27,623 --> 00:00:30,546 that he hears of it, no vow of hers, 13 00:00:30,546 --> 00:00:33,144 no pledge by which she has bound herself, 14 00:00:33,144 --> 00:00:35,417 shall stand, and the Lord will forgive 15 00:00:35,417 --> 00:00:37,690 her because her father opposed her, if 16 00:00:37,690 --> 00:00:39,963 she marries a husband while under her 17 00:00:39,963 --> 00:00:42,237 vows, or any thoughtless utterance of her 18 00:00:42,237 --> 00:00:45,081 lips by which she has bound herself. And 19 00:00:45,081 --> 00:00:47,405 her husband hears of it, and says nothing 20 00:00:47,405 --> 00:00:50,020 to her. On the day that he hears, then 21 00:00:50,020 --> 00:00:52,345 her vows shall stand, and her pledges by 22 00:00:52,345 --> 00:00:54,379 which she has bound herself shall stand. 23 00:00:54,379 --> 00:00:56,994 But if on the day that her husband comes 24 00:00:56,994 --> 00:00:59,609 to hear of it, he opposes her, then he 25 00:00:59,609 --> 00:01:02,224 makes void her vow that was on her, and 26 00:01:02,224 --> 00:01:04,258 the thoughtless utterance of her lips by 27 00:01:04,258 --> 00:01:06,477 which she has bound. Yourself and the 28 00:01:06,477 --> 00:01:09,436 Lord will forgive her. But any vow of a 29 00:01:09,436 --> 00:01:11,739 widow, or of a divorced woman, anything 30 00:01:11,739 --> 00:01:14,041 by which she has bound herself, shall 31 00:01:14,041 --> 00:01:16,672 stand against her. And if she vowed in 32 00:01:16,672 --> 00:01:18,974 her husband's house, or bound herself by 33 00:01:18,974 --> 00:01:21,605 a pledge with an oath, and her husband 34 00:01:21,605 --> 00:01:24,565 heard of it, and said nothing to her, and 35 00:01:24,565 --> 00:01:27,187 did not oppose her. Then all her vows 36 00:01:27,187 --> 00:01:29,229 shall stand, and every pledge by which 37 00:01:29,229 --> 00:01:32,049 she has bound herself shall stand. But 38 00:01:32,049 --> 00:01:34,680 if her husband makes them null and void 39 00:01:34,680 --> 00:01:37,310 on the day that he hears them, then 40 00:01:37,310 --> 00:01:39,283 whatever proceeds out of her lips 41 00:01:39,283 --> 00:01:41,256 concerning her vows, or concerning her 42 00:01:41,256 --> 00:01:43,558 pledge of herself, shall not stand. Her 43 00:01:43,558 --> 00:01:46,189 husband has made them void, and the Lord 44 00:01:46,189 --> 00:01:48,819 will forgive her. Any vow and any binding 45 00:01:48,819 --> 00:01:51,121 oath to afflict herself, her husband may 46 00:01:51,121 --> 00:01:53,571 establish. Or her husband may make void. 47 00:01:53,571 --> 00:01:56,092 But if her husband says nothing to her 48 00:01:56,092 --> 00:01:57,983 from day-to-day, then he establishes all 49 00:01:57,983 --> 00:02:00,819 her vows or all her pledges that are upon 50 00:02:00,819 --> 00:02:03,025 her. He has established them because he 51 00:02:03,025 --> 00:02:05,862 said nothing to her on the day that he 52 00:02:05,862 --> 00:02:08,698 heard of them. But if he makes them null 53 00:02:08,698 --> 00:02:11,535 and void after he has heard of them, then 54 00:02:11,535 --> 00:02:13,837 he shall bear. Your iniquity. These are 55 00:02:13,837 --> 00:02:15,721 the statutes that the Lord commanded 56 00:02:15,721 --> 00:02:18,549 Moses about a man and his wife, and about 57 00:02:18,549 --> 00:02:21,062 a father and his daughter, while she is 58 00:02:21,062 --> 00:02:23,261 in her youth within her father's house. 59 00:02:23,261 --> 00:02:25,460 This is the word of the Lord. 60 00:02:39,430 --> 00:02:42,341 Recently I went to two 61 00:02:42,341 --> 00:02:45,253 events presentations that I found 62 00:02:45,253 --> 00:02:48,164 very interesting or relevant to 63 00:02:48,164 --> 00:02:51,075 my discourse this morning. The 64 00:02:51,075 --> 00:02:53,818 first was. A lecture by 65 00:02:53,818 --> 00:02:56,453 Eve Ensler at the Russian Tea 66 00:02:56,453 --> 00:02:59,088 Room. It's really nice there. This 67 00:02:59,088 --> 00:03:01,724 was a lecture that she was 68 00:03:01,724 --> 00:03:04,359 being given. Eve Ensler, who is 69 00:03:04,359 --> 00:03:06,995 the author of an original originator 70 00:03:06,995 --> 00:03:09,630 of the Vagina dot Vagina Monologues. 71 00:03:10,580 --> 00:03:13,156 And that has been a phenomenal success 72 00:03:13,156 --> 00:03:15,731 around the world. And Ensler has built 73 00:03:15,731 --> 00:03:17,939 upon that success. And actually she's 74 00:03:17,939 --> 00:03:20,515 she's gotten a kind of privileged access 75 00:03:20,515 --> 00:03:23,459 to the world scene. And what she's done 76 00:03:23,459 --> 00:03:26,402 is she's gone around, tried to seek out 77 00:03:26,402 --> 00:03:29,346 and tried to address areas where it's a 78 00:03:29,346 --> 00:03:31,864 severe problem of. Violence against women 79 00:03:31,864 --> 00:03:34,512 and against girls. And it's, it's 80 00:03:34,512 --> 00:03:37,160 inspiring listening to her, but it's 81 00:03:37,160 --> 00:03:39,807 also heartbreaking. You realize how big 82 00:03:39,807 --> 00:03:42,455 a problem this this continues to 83 00:03:42,455 --> 00:03:45,103 be in the world, you know, 84 00:03:45,103 --> 00:03:47,751 especially in third world countries where 85 00:03:47,751 --> 00:03:50,399 there's, you know, kind of routine 86 00:03:50,399 --> 00:03:53,050 mutilation. And and cutting of women. 87 00:03:54,550 --> 00:03:57,264 The UN According to the UN, 88 00:03:57,264 --> 00:03:59,977 1/3 of the women on the 89 00:03:59,977 --> 00:04:02,691 planet at some time in their 90 00:04:02,691 --> 00:04:05,404 life will be physically or sexually 91 00:04:05,404 --> 00:04:08,118 abused. So these are difficult facts 92 00:04:08,118 --> 00:04:11,024 and. And what she's 93 00:04:11,024 --> 00:04:13,972 done, Antler has tried to address them 94 00:04:13,972 --> 00:04:16,499 in very different creative ways going 95 00:04:16,499 --> 00:04:19,228 around. What I found 96 00:04:19,228 --> 00:04:21,175 particularly interesting while I was 97 00:04:21,175 --> 00:04:23,901 listening to her was that at one 98 00:04:23,901 --> 00:04:26,481 point. She was bemoaning 99 00:04:26,481 --> 00:04:29,471 how she had gone to one place 100 00:04:29,471 --> 00:04:32,460 that had a real movement there of 101 00:04:32,460 --> 00:04:35,023 liberating women and empowering them, and 102 00:04:35,023 --> 00:04:38,013 that was a number of decades ago. 103 00:04:38,013 --> 00:04:41,002 Then she came back and she was 104 00:04:41,002 --> 00:04:43,992 in the area and addressing women and 105 00:04:43,992 --> 00:04:46,710 she was finding that. The problems and 106 00:04:46,710 --> 00:04:48,740 the feelings were there all over again. 107 00:04:50,320 --> 00:04:52,511 So she was distraught about this and she 108 00:04:52,511 --> 00:04:54,701 was asking, why are we back here? We've 109 00:04:54,701 --> 00:04:56,892 kind of liberated these women. Why are we 110 00:04:56,892 --> 00:04:59,356 now back in the same place having to deal 111 00:04:59,356 --> 00:05:01,547 with these issues again? What is it going 112 00:05:01,547 --> 00:05:03,190 to take to really help women? 113 00:05:04,790 --> 00:05:07,496 And then she said this is a kind of 114 00:05:07,496 --> 00:05:09,601 answer that she came up with and 115 00:05:09,601 --> 00:05:11,705 struggling with this, she said, you know, 116 00:05:11,705 --> 00:05:13,810 the abuse isn't going to stop. The 117 00:05:13,810 --> 00:05:15,915 problems aren't going to really stop. The 118 00:05:15,915 --> 00:05:18,019 demeaning of women, it's not going to 119 00:05:18,019 --> 00:05:20,625 stop. Until men come 120 00:05:20,625 --> 00:05:22,240 to treasure women. 121 00:05:23,910 --> 00:05:26,874 And she was saying, you know, the way she 122 00:05:26,874 --> 00:05:29,179 says and their private parts, but she 123 00:05:29,179 --> 00:05:32,143 said it, men have to be involved in this 124 00:05:32,143 --> 00:05:34,119 solution of treasuring women. And that 125 00:05:34,119 --> 00:05:36,095 really started me wondering about that 126 00:05:36,095 --> 00:05:38,071 answer and started wondering, you know, 127 00:05:38,071 --> 00:05:40,377 if you take the approach, it seems 128 00:05:40,377 --> 00:05:42,682 logical if they're, you know, some group 129 00:05:42,682 --> 00:05:45,380 is being hurt. That you empower 130 00:05:45,380 --> 00:05:48,113 them through various means in 131 00:05:48,113 --> 00:05:50,300 solidarity with other women. 132 00:05:51,640 --> 00:05:54,121 Is that going to? Is that going to be 133 00:05:54,121 --> 00:05:56,050 really addressing the problem in a way? 134 00:05:57,510 --> 00:06:00,197 That that makes it, that solves it. 135 00:06:00,197 --> 00:06:02,885 And or is it really a solution 136 00:06:02,885 --> 00:06:05,188 that needs to be involving the 137 00:06:05,188 --> 00:06:07,492 relationship between men and women? And 138 00:06:07,492 --> 00:06:10,179 how is it, I was thinking, how 139 00:06:10,179 --> 00:06:12,867 is it that men become people who 140 00:06:12,867 --> 00:06:15,554 treasure the women around them? Well, the 141 00:06:15,554 --> 00:06:18,159 Bible has a solution. The Bible actually 142 00:06:18,159 --> 00:06:20,821 directs people in in a way to address 143 00:06:20,821 --> 00:06:23,151 this problem. And actually the next two 144 00:06:23,151 --> 00:06:25,814 weeks we're going to be looking at this 145 00:06:25,814 --> 00:06:28,144 issue and how the Bible elevates women. 146 00:06:28,144 --> 00:06:30,806 But the approach that the Bible has to 147 00:06:30,806 --> 00:06:32,138 elevating women might seem 148 00:06:32,138 --> 00:06:34,467 counterintuitive to us as we're going to 149 00:06:34,467 --> 00:06:37,130 look at it today in the household and. 150 00:06:37,200 --> 00:06:39,900 Next week in the covenant community and 151 00:06:39,900 --> 00:06:42,601 at large to see what the Bible 152 00:06:42,601 --> 00:06:45,301 says about it. But it's very natural 153 00:06:45,301 --> 00:06:48,001 actually, as we read through the Bible, 154 00:06:48,001 --> 00:06:49,930 as we go through it. 155 00:06:51,390 --> 00:06:54,016 The way that we do in this church, going 156 00:06:54,016 --> 00:06:56,351 through the Book of Numbers say it's very 157 00:06:56,351 --> 00:06:58,394 natural to to to talk about women's 158 00:06:58,394 --> 00:07:00,436 issues because the Bible talks so much 159 00:07:00,436 --> 00:07:01,020 about women. 160 00:07:05,420 --> 00:07:07,575 But before I actually get into the 161 00:07:07,575 --> 00:07:10,039 passage, I'm going to have to try to 162 00:07:10,039 --> 00:07:11,886 address something that is difficult for 163 00:07:11,886 --> 00:07:14,770 many of us. These days. 164 00:07:15,470 --> 00:07:18,361 And that is for for you to be open 165 00:07:18,361 --> 00:07:21,253 to the wisdom of God. That I think is 166 00:07:21,253 --> 00:07:23,823 in this passage for us. The first thing 167 00:07:23,823 --> 00:07:26,714 you have to do is be open to the 168 00:07:26,714 --> 00:07:28,641 reality of gender, that gender is 169 00:07:28,641 --> 00:07:31,211 something that's real and given to us by 170 00:07:31,211 --> 00:07:33,460 God for a reason, for our relationships. 171 00:07:35,020 --> 00:07:37,211 And that's, that's hard, you know, 172 00:07:37,211 --> 00:07:39,768 especially in our context these days, in 173 00:07:39,768 --> 00:07:41,959 our cultural context, gender is not 174 00:07:41,959 --> 00:07:44,150 something that's acknowledged. Or if it 175 00:07:44,150 --> 00:07:47,072 is, it's supposed to be something to get 176 00:07:47,072 --> 00:07:49,994 past. It's something to bear with and to 177 00:07:49,994 --> 00:07:52,550 try to, you know, it's a burden. 178 00:07:55,660 --> 00:07:58,575 So how do we understand this? Well, 179 00:07:58,575 --> 00:08:01,490 the other The other event that I 180 00:08:01,490 --> 00:08:04,405 went to recently that I found fascinating 181 00:08:04,405 --> 00:08:07,320 was a panel discussion at the NYU 182 00:08:07,320 --> 00:08:10,235 Fells Library and Bob's Library. It was 183 00:08:10,235 --> 00:08:13,150 a panel discussion put on by the. 184 00:08:13,260 --> 00:08:15,420 NYU Food Studies program. 185 00:08:16,460 --> 00:08:19,365 And it was called post gender food 186 00:08:19,365 --> 00:08:22,342 writing. Post gender food, right? 187 00:08:22,342 --> 00:08:24,957 It was a panel discussion on this. Now I 188 00:08:24,957 --> 00:08:27,281 don't have a lot of interest in food 189 00:08:27,281 --> 00:08:29,605 writing myself, but I have a lot of 190 00:08:29,605 --> 00:08:31,929 interest in how people are trying to get 191 00:08:31,929 --> 00:08:34,871 past gender. So I went to see 192 00:08:34,871 --> 00:08:37,140 as it was very crowded and I found the 193 00:08:37,140 --> 00:08:38,905 reason they were having the panel is 194 00:08:38,905 --> 00:08:40,418 because of the experience of the 195 00:08:40,418 --> 00:08:43,383 panelists. One of the panelists was 196 00:08:43,383 --> 00:08:45,879 Adam Rappaport, whose editor in chief of 197 00:08:45,879 --> 00:08:48,019 Bon Appetit magazine, and he recently 198 00:08:48,019 --> 00:08:50,872 came there, used to be at GQ, but 199 00:08:50,872 --> 00:08:53,368 he was there because he was surprised 200 00:08:53,368 --> 00:08:56,221 when he came to Bon Appetit to head 201 00:08:56,221 --> 00:08:59,074 that up. He was very surprised to find 202 00:08:59,074 --> 00:09:01,570 that the vast majority of the readership. 203 00:09:01,640 --> 00:09:04,180 As women, he didn't know this, but it 204 00:09:04,180 --> 00:09:06,403 turns out that's the case with Bon 205 00:09:06,403 --> 00:09:09,285 Appetit. So he was there kind of kind 206 00:09:09,285 --> 00:09:11,140 of wondering about this, wanting to think 207 00:09:11,140 --> 00:09:13,754 about this and talk about this. Also, 208 00:09:13,754 --> 00:09:16,663 there was Lauren Shockey, who was a food 209 00:09:16,663 --> 00:09:19,572 critic for the Village Voice, and she was 210 00:09:19,572 --> 00:09:21,754 there because she had recently gone 211 00:09:21,754 --> 00:09:24,299 through the NYU Food Studies program and 212 00:09:24,299 --> 00:09:27,208 she noticed when she was in the program 213 00:09:27,208 --> 00:09:30,117 that 95% of the people in the food 214 00:09:30,117 --> 00:09:32,663 studies program were women, 95%. So she 215 00:09:32,663 --> 00:09:35,397 was there. And you know what? What is 216 00:09:35,397 --> 00:09:37,599 this about? Then you had Lisa McLaughlin 217 00:09:37,599 --> 00:09:39,486 there. Lisa McLaughlin, who's the chief 218 00:09:39,486 --> 00:09:42,317 editor of the Food Republic, who is is an 219 00:09:42,317 --> 00:09:44,205 online magazine talking about food. But 220 00:09:44,205 --> 00:09:46,721 what she sees in this is a marketing 221 00:09:46,721 --> 00:09:48,294 opportunity. McLaughlin was there saying, 222 00:09:48,294 --> 00:09:50,810 well, you know, if it's mostly women who 223 00:09:50,810 --> 00:09:53,326 are kind of thinking about food and and 224 00:09:53,326 --> 00:09:55,705 engaging the media. How food, there's a 225 00:09:55,705 --> 00:09:58,436 market there for men. How do we tap 226 00:09:58,436 --> 00:10:00,825 into the men's market? So Food Republic 227 00:10:00,825 --> 00:10:03,555 is this new thing that they do or 228 00:10:03,555 --> 00:10:05,945 she says it's, it's about food without 229 00:10:05,945 --> 00:10:08,334 cupcakes. And so they talk about, you 230 00:10:08,334 --> 00:10:10,382 know, dressing venison or something. I 231 00:10:10,382 --> 00:10:13,112 don't know if she's trying to get that 232 00:10:13,112 --> 00:10:16,051 market. That's why she was there. Now, 233 00:10:16,051 --> 00:10:18,937 you know, friends, I'm not going to give 234 00:10:18,937 --> 00:10:21,822 you a comment on this. I, I don't 235 00:10:21,822 --> 00:10:24,708 know what this means. I, I don't, I'm 236 00:10:24,708 --> 00:10:27,594 not interested in what it means. I have 237 00:10:27,594 --> 00:10:30,119 no idea why women are more represented, 238 00:10:30,119 --> 00:10:32,283 overrepresented here in the food writing 239 00:10:32,283 --> 00:10:34,809 industry or the food, you know, about 240 00:10:34,809 --> 00:10:37,565 food industry. I've I 241 00:10:37,565 --> 00:10:40,346 have no idea why. I mean, men 242 00:10:40,346 --> 00:10:43,128 eat as much as women do, right? 243 00:10:43,128 --> 00:10:46,030 More right, probably. So 244 00:10:46,030 --> 00:10:49,003 I have no idea. The reason why I, I'm 245 00:10:49,003 --> 00:10:50,985 bringing this up actually is because 246 00:10:50,985 --> 00:10:52,967 another panelist, Mitchell Davis, who is 247 00:10:52,967 --> 00:10:55,280 the vice president of the James Beard 248 00:10:55,280 --> 00:10:57,592 Foundation, he was also there. And what 249 00:10:57,592 --> 00:11:00,565 made me, I was sitting there in the back, 250 00:11:00,565 --> 00:11:03,208 what made me sit bolt upright and, and 251 00:11:03,208 --> 00:11:06,196 turn my head and suddenly I was. Was 252 00:11:06,196 --> 00:11:09,113 riveted is because at a certain 253 00:11:09,113 --> 00:11:11,544 point Mitchell Davis stops the 254 00:11:11,544 --> 00:11:14,325 conversation. And he says, 255 00:11:14,325 --> 00:11:17,229 wait a second, He says, I don't 256 00:11:17,229 --> 00:11:20,133 know what we mean by this phrase, 257 00:11:20,133 --> 00:11:23,038 post gender, he said, I can't even 258 00:11:23,038 --> 00:11:25,942 imagine what the world would be like 259 00:11:25,942 --> 00:11:28,846 without gender. I could. I can't imagine 260 00:11:28,846 --> 00:11:31,750 what a post gender world would be 261 00:11:31,750 --> 00:11:34,619 like. And he said. This is this is 262 00:11:34,619 --> 00:11:36,559 amazing because this is James Beard. If 263 00:11:36,559 --> 00:11:39,053 you know, this is not the guy who would 264 00:11:39,053 --> 00:11:40,993 say something like this. And he said 265 00:11:40,993 --> 00:11:42,933 actually and thinking about it, I'm not 266 00:11:42,933 --> 00:11:45,150 sure we even want a post gender world. 267 00:11:46,840 --> 00:11:49,586 And I was so surprised I 268 00:11:49,586 --> 00:11:52,332 almost fell off my chair because 269 00:11:52,332 --> 00:11:55,067 why?Because that is a 270 00:11:55,067 --> 00:11:57,757 first time that I've ever heard, I 271 00:11:57,757 --> 00:12:00,447 think, since childhood, in a public forum 272 00:12:00,447 --> 00:12:03,240 in New York. A statement 273 00:12:03,240 --> 00:12:06,000 that perhaps gender is something that's 274 00:12:06,000 --> 00:12:08,902 real. For decades I haven't 275 00:12:08,902 --> 00:12:10,620 heard anything like, not only is it 276 00:12:10,620 --> 00:12:12,092 something that's real, but it might 277 00:12:12,092 --> 00:12:13,810 actually even be something good for us. 278 00:12:15,810 --> 00:12:18,595 And I was, I almost fell off my chair 279 00:12:18,595 --> 00:12:21,380 at this point. I was so happy because I 280 00:12:21,380 --> 00:12:23,856 thought, and the reason why I was happy, 281 00:12:23,856 --> 00:12:26,022 I thought this is happy because this 282 00:12:26,022 --> 00:12:27,260 might represent a thaw. 283 00:12:28,980 --> 00:12:31,484 This might represent a thaw in the gender 284 00:12:31,484 --> 00:12:33,362 freeze that's been refrigerating now for 285 00:12:33,362 --> 00:12:35,865 decades. And if it's the case, if people 286 00:12:35,865 --> 00:12:38,682 are at a place where the same man, Gee, 287 00:12:38,682 --> 00:12:40,873 maybe this is there's something to this 288 00:12:40,873 --> 00:12:43,064 gender that's it's not just a social 289 00:12:43,064 --> 00:12:45,567 construct that we can do away with by 290 00:12:45,567 --> 00:12:47,132 more education. Maybe there's something 291 00:12:47,132 --> 00:12:50,074 to this if that's the case. I was 292 00:12:50,074 --> 00:12:52,574 happy because it means that going forward 293 00:12:52,574 --> 00:12:55,431 in the future, this culture is going to 294 00:12:55,431 --> 00:12:58,287 provide less of an obstacle to you in 295 00:12:58,287 --> 00:13:00,073 receiving the Bible's wisdom about 296 00:13:00,073 --> 00:13:03,067 relationships. That's 297 00:13:03,067 --> 00:13:05,360 what I was thinking, but in order to 298 00:13:05,360 --> 00:13:07,653 enter into what the Bible says, the first 299 00:13:07,653 --> 00:13:09,947 thing you have to kind of accept, open 300 00:13:09,947 --> 00:13:12,875 yourself up to at least. Is that 301 00:13:12,875 --> 00:13:15,585 gender is real. And it's not just 302 00:13:15,585 --> 00:13:18,296 real, it's a real gift to us. 303 00:13:18,296 --> 00:13:21,007 It's something that God gave us and 304 00:13:21,007 --> 00:13:23,330 made in us for a purpose. 305 00:13:26,080 --> 00:13:28,390 If you can do that, come along with me. 306 00:13:28,390 --> 00:13:30,187 Let's look at the passage now, the 307 00:13:30,187 --> 00:13:31,470 number, the Book of Numbers. 308 00:13:33,210 --> 00:13:35,631 Is about constituting an army. It's all 309 00:13:35,631 --> 00:13:38,399 about making up an army to go and 310 00:13:38,399 --> 00:13:40,820 take over and possess the promised land. 311 00:13:41,780 --> 00:13:43,995 But even though it's all about making up 312 00:13:43,995 --> 00:13:46,210 an army, God seems to care very much 313 00:13:46,210 --> 00:13:48,148 about this army's home life, right? Verse 314 00:13:48,148 --> 00:13:50,086 16, For some reason we're getting this 315 00:13:50,086 --> 00:13:52,301 statute about a man and his wife, a 316 00:13:52,301 --> 00:13:54,239 father and his daughter. In other words, 317 00:13:54,239 --> 00:13:55,623 it's about relationships in the 318 00:13:55,623 --> 00:13:58,582 household. There's a funny way to run 319 00:13:58,582 --> 00:14:01,482 a war, isn't it?But 320 00:14:01,482 --> 00:14:03,790 this is no ordinary war. 321 00:14:05,400 --> 00:14:07,732 And the, the, the substance of the vow, 322 00:14:07,732 --> 00:14:10,064 the substance of the law is about vows, 323 00:14:10,064 --> 00:14:12,396 right? It's about the words that come out 324 00:14:12,396 --> 00:14:14,728 of our mouth. And, and just to simplify 325 00:14:14,728 --> 00:14:16,769 it, we could say what they're talking 326 00:14:16,769 --> 00:14:18,809 about here is matters of import about 327 00:14:18,809 --> 00:14:20,850 which we speak. His vows generally took 328 00:14:20,850 --> 00:14:23,182 the form of a sacrifice. And there are 329 00:14:23,182 --> 00:14:24,931 different kinds, generally you could say 330 00:14:24,931 --> 00:14:27,103 making a commitment to do something. To 331 00:14:27,103 --> 00:14:29,503 abstain from something, it's hard to know 332 00:14:29,503 --> 00:14:31,560 what. What's in view here, specifically 333 00:14:31,560 --> 00:14:34,303 what kind of bows. Because verse 8, in 334 00:14:34,303 --> 00:14:37,046 some places it seems like it's a bad 335 00:14:37,046 --> 00:14:39,790 vow, a rash promise. In other places it 336 00:14:39,790 --> 00:14:42,533 seems like it's about a self denial or 337 00:14:42,533 --> 00:14:44,933 affliction. Verse 13, maybe a good valve, 338 00:14:44,933 --> 00:14:46,990 maybe a Nazarite valve. Because women. 339 00:14:47,240 --> 00:14:49,625 We're also Nazarites, but what kind of 340 00:14:49,625 --> 00:14:52,350 vow it is maybe be beside the point. 341 00:14:52,350 --> 00:14:54,394 It's something. It's matters of import. 342 00:14:54,394 --> 00:14:57,119 It's about keeping our word on matters of 343 00:14:57,119 --> 00:14:59,814 import. But this 344 00:14:59,814 --> 00:15:02,619 is the this is the substance of the law. 345 00:15:02,619 --> 00:15:04,802 But through that substance of the law, 346 00:15:04,802 --> 00:15:06,360 we're taught something about gender. 347 00:15:06,360 --> 00:15:08,231 Because there's a contrast, isn't there? 348 00:15:08,231 --> 00:15:10,413 There's a contrast between verse 2 and 349 00:15:10,413 --> 00:15:13,117 verses 3 through 5. A 350 00:15:13,117 --> 00:15:16,049 man's vow, if he makes it, stands even 351 00:15:16,049 --> 00:15:18,981 if he lives in his father's house, he 352 00:15:18,981 --> 00:15:21,914 has to keep it. A woman's vow can 353 00:15:21,914 --> 00:15:24,479 be rescinded by her father or, if 354 00:15:24,479 --> 00:15:27,045 married, by her husband, and that applies 355 00:15:27,045 --> 00:15:29,611 even to vows being made before marriage, 356 00:15:29,611 --> 00:15:32,543 verses 6 through 8, as well as during 357 00:15:32,543 --> 00:15:34,528 marriage. Verses 10 through 12. All 358 00:15:34,528 --> 00:15:36,988 right. So that's the, the basic, that is 359 00:15:36,988 --> 00:15:39,449 what the law is saying. If you're, if 360 00:15:39,449 --> 00:15:41,294 your mind wandered during the reading, 361 00:15:41,294 --> 00:15:43,447 that's what's going on in the law. 362 00:15:43,447 --> 00:15:45,292 There's some authority here that's being 363 00:15:45,292 --> 00:15:48,137 expressed. And what was this law going 364 00:15:48,137 --> 00:15:50,931 to do? It was going to one. It was going 365 00:15:50,931 --> 00:15:53,166 to train two different ways. It was going 366 00:15:53,166 --> 00:15:55,681 to train a young man to measure his words 367 00:15:55,681 --> 00:15:58,518 carefully. On the other hand, I 368 00:15:58,518 --> 00:16:00,447 would train a young woman to acknowledge 369 00:16:00,447 --> 00:16:02,100 a masculine authority in her life. 370 00:16:03,480 --> 00:16:06,123 One is being trained to speak 371 00:16:06,123 --> 00:16:08,325 less, measure words carefully, others 372 00:16:08,325 --> 00:16:10,968 being invited to speak freely but 373 00:16:10,968 --> 00:16:13,170 given safeguards on that speech. 374 00:16:14,140 --> 00:16:16,400 We're in either case, words are serious. 375 00:16:17,570 --> 00:16:20,289 Might be good news to guys who don't 376 00:16:20,289 --> 00:16:23,007 want to talk much. Limit your words. It's 377 00:16:23,007 --> 00:16:25,386 saying to you, you said, ohh, yeah, 378 00:16:25,386 --> 00:16:28,105 that's great. I could get into that. But 379 00:16:28,105 --> 00:16:30,484 whether you talk much or not, there's 380 00:16:30,484 --> 00:16:32,523 something that's being said about the 381 00:16:32,523 --> 00:16:34,902 importance of our words and keeping to 382 00:16:34,902 --> 00:16:37,621 our words. Now here it is, though we 383 00:16:37,621 --> 00:16:40,411 see an asymmetry. That's being introduced 384 00:16:40,411 --> 00:16:42,981 in in the responsibilities of men and 385 00:16:42,981 --> 00:16:45,183 women to each other in family 386 00:16:45,183 --> 00:16:47,800 relationships. It's, it's, it's, 387 00:16:47,800 --> 00:16:50,420 it's simply an asymmetry that's there, 388 00:16:50,420 --> 00:16:53,040 that's being taught. And the reason 389 00:16:53,040 --> 00:16:55,660 why this is difficult because I, 390 00:16:55,660 --> 00:16:58,280 well, I just think many of 391 00:16:58,280 --> 00:17:00,900 us might find that patently offensive. 392 00:17:02,400 --> 00:17:04,846 I mean, you might feel that it's 393 00:17:04,846 --> 00:17:06,943 demeaning to even have a difference 394 00:17:06,943 --> 00:17:09,040 there, to even make a difference. 395 00:17:09,870 --> 00:17:12,025 For a woman to be distinguished from a 396 00:17:12,025 --> 00:17:14,719 man in this way, a man who also has a 397 00:17:14,719 --> 00:17:16,875 father and a spouse, but he has, he 398 00:17:16,875 --> 00:17:18,761 doesn't have the same constraint laid on 399 00:17:18,761 --> 00:17:21,681 him. So that's 400 00:17:21,681 --> 00:17:23,336 the difficulty. We have to understand 401 00:17:23,336 --> 00:17:25,541 this morning and and see if we're looking 402 00:17:25,541 --> 00:17:26,920 at it the right way. 403 00:17:28,470 --> 00:17:30,615 I'm not here this morning to apologize 404 00:17:30,615 --> 00:17:31,840 for the Bible's teaching. 405 00:17:33,540 --> 00:17:36,369 I'm here to try to show you that that 406 00:17:36,369 --> 00:17:38,570 teaching is something that's good for us. 407 00:17:39,670 --> 00:17:42,113 How this passage is really teaching both 408 00:17:42,113 --> 00:17:44,206 men and women something very important 409 00:17:44,206 --> 00:17:46,998 about how to live together in a way 410 00:17:46,998 --> 00:17:49,440 that goes with the reality of gender. 411 00:17:51,920 --> 00:17:54,742 And let me do that by first pointing 412 00:17:54,742 --> 00:17:57,563 out to you what is being, what is 413 00:17:57,563 --> 00:17:59,680 being expressed in verse 11. There's 414 00:17:59,680 --> 00:18:02,148 something very important for us to get, 415 00:18:02,148 --> 00:18:04,970 and that is that a woman is expected. 416 00:18:05,780 --> 00:18:08,450 To be making vows and speaking 417 00:18:08,450 --> 00:18:09,340 important pledges. 418 00:18:11,620 --> 00:18:14,128 The scripts or the law itself is 419 00:18:14,128 --> 00:18:16,994 expecting vow making women to be out and 420 00:18:16,994 --> 00:18:17,710 at large. 421 00:18:19,680 --> 00:18:22,383 You see that phrase in verse 11. All 422 00:18:22,383 --> 00:18:24,410 her vows, every pledge shall stand. 423 00:18:25,240 --> 00:18:27,173 There's a woman should be out there and 424 00:18:27,173 --> 00:18:29,998 they should be talking. And 425 00:18:29,998 --> 00:18:31,947 they should be making promises. This is 426 00:18:31,947 --> 00:18:34,452 this is part of the women. What what goes 427 00:18:34,452 --> 00:18:37,307 on. You see, it would have been 428 00:18:37,307 --> 00:18:39,298 very simple if God really wanted to 429 00:18:39,298 --> 00:18:41,574 demean women if that was what he was 430 00:18:41,574 --> 00:18:43,850 after here, or somehow put women in their 431 00:18:43,850 --> 00:18:45,841 place. It would be very simple. Friends, 432 00:18:45,841 --> 00:18:48,117 just make a law that says women can't 433 00:18:48,117 --> 00:18:48,970 make a vow. 434 00:18:51,630 --> 00:18:53,688 Then there would be no need for these 435 00:18:53,688 --> 00:18:55,231 various statutes, right? Just tell the 436 00:18:55,231 --> 00:18:57,960 women to shut up. Now 437 00:18:57,960 --> 00:19:00,657 that would be demeaning. But God 438 00:19:00,657 --> 00:19:03,642 is after something else. You 439 00:19:03,642 --> 00:19:06,561 see, what the law does not say is pay no 440 00:19:06,561 --> 00:19:09,353 attention to the woman's words. She's 441 00:19:09,353 --> 00:19:12,218 just a woman. Can't 442 00:19:12,218 --> 00:19:15,085 take what she says seriously. Now 443 00:19:15,085 --> 00:19:17,835 that is not the law, nor is it any, nor 444 00:19:17,835 --> 00:19:20,035 do you find it anywhere in the attitude 445 00:19:20,035 --> 00:19:22,698 of the Bible. Of the 446 00:19:22,698 --> 00:19:24,910 whole Bible, which should be staggering 447 00:19:24,910 --> 00:19:27,860 to us when we think about the length 448 00:19:27,860 --> 00:19:30,810 of time over which the Bible was written 449 00:19:30,810 --> 00:19:33,023 and the various cultural contexts in 450 00:19:33,023 --> 00:19:35,235 which the biblical writers wrote should 451 00:19:35,235 --> 00:19:38,169 be staggering to us. That you 452 00:19:38,169 --> 00:19:40,020 never find that attitude in the Bible. 453 00:19:41,020 --> 00:19:43,985 Now the women should be talking to 454 00:19:43,985 --> 00:19:46,950 woman's words matter very much, be taken 455 00:19:46,950 --> 00:19:49,491 seriously. God wants her apparently out 456 00:19:49,491 --> 00:19:52,033 there making vows, issuing promises. And 457 00:19:52,033 --> 00:19:54,998 what we're getting here, first of all, 458 00:19:54,998 --> 00:19:57,116 is the underlying equality that's 459 00:19:57,116 --> 00:19:59,938 expressed in the word. Of 460 00:19:59,938 --> 00:20:02,653 women and men that genders don't rate 461 00:20:02,653 --> 00:20:05,367 people one over the other. The different 462 00:20:05,367 --> 00:20:07,694 callings that are being described in 463 00:20:07,694 --> 00:20:10,332 close relationships. Don't change your 464 00:20:10,332 --> 00:20:11,984 ontological equality before God. Both 465 00:20:11,984 --> 00:20:14,629 from the very beginning made in the image 466 00:20:14,629 --> 00:20:17,554 of God. Something 467 00:20:17,554 --> 00:20:20,281 that's implied in here, stressed in 468 00:20:20,281 --> 00:20:23,196 other places. But nonetheless, 469 00:20:23,196 --> 00:20:25,795 God gives these different kind of 470 00:20:25,795 --> 00:20:27,961 responsibilities, different ways to lean 471 00:20:27,961 --> 00:20:29,260 in a relationship. 472 00:20:30,980 --> 00:20:33,880 How come he does that?Well, I 473 00:20:33,880 --> 00:20:36,805 want to tell you why into kind of two 474 00:20:36,805 --> 00:20:39,787 parts. And this is always the way we 475 00:20:39,787 --> 00:20:41,840 need to talk about gender. This is the 476 00:20:41,840 --> 00:20:44,150 way that the Bible does it. The first way 477 00:20:44,150 --> 00:20:46,717 is I want to, I want to explain what this 478 00:20:46,717 --> 00:20:49,610 law does for the woman. By what it's 479 00:20:49,610 --> 00:20:52,503 teaching the man. And then I want to 480 00:20:52,503 --> 00:20:54,147 talk about what it does for the man by 481 00:20:54,147 --> 00:20:56,644 what it's teaching the woman. OK, first 482 00:20:56,644 --> 00:20:59,271 of all, what does it do for the woman? 483 00:20:59,271 --> 00:21:01,606 Well, what? What is this law trying to 484 00:21:01,606 --> 00:21:02,190 do, really? 485 00:21:04,940 --> 00:21:07,573 Let let me ask you this. Here's a 486 00:21:07,573 --> 00:21:09,547 question. Why doesn't why doesn't the 487 00:21:09,547 --> 00:21:12,180 chapter and the law end at verse 12? 488 00:21:13,020 --> 00:21:15,888 You'll notice by verse 12 kind of all 489 00:21:15,888 --> 00:21:18,039 the informations out there, basically the 490 00:21:18,039 --> 00:21:20,548 laws been given is not really anything 491 00:21:20,548 --> 00:21:23,415 that's added in terms of you know, new, 492 00:21:23,415 --> 00:21:26,283 you know, new, new case or anything but 493 00:21:26,283 --> 00:21:27,000 verse 12. 494 00:21:29,200 --> 00:21:31,322 Though the law has been clearly explained 495 00:21:31,322 --> 00:21:34,051 and yet it goes on. What do you see 496 00:21:34,051 --> 00:21:36,173 happening in verses 13 through 14? What 497 00:21:36,173 --> 00:21:38,902 do you? What do you? Why do you think 498 00:21:38,902 --> 00:21:41,327 it makes this? The author makes this deal 499 00:21:41,327 --> 00:21:43,450 about hearing making a decision in the 500 00:21:43,450 --> 00:21:46,178 same day. See if he hears he doesn't do 501 00:21:46,178 --> 00:21:48,301 anything, no matter how much the vow 502 00:21:48,301 --> 00:21:51,260 costs, he pays. If he doesn't say 503 00:21:51,260 --> 00:21:53,960 anything and deal with it as it occurs, 504 00:21:53,960 --> 00:21:55,310 he bears the cost. 505 00:21:56,700 --> 00:21:59,433 Do you see what it's doing? Verse 506 00:21:59,433 --> 00:22:02,166 14 especially is fanning the flame of 507 00:22:02,166 --> 00:22:04,118 responsibility on issues that are 508 00:22:04,118 --> 00:22:05,680 important to the wife. 509 00:22:07,590 --> 00:22:10,587 In other words, friends. This 510 00:22:10,587 --> 00:22:13,576 law is designed to get the men 511 00:22:13,576 --> 00:22:16,172 to engage. To 512 00:22:16,172 --> 00:22:19,063 force him to be responsive in 513 00:22:19,063 --> 00:22:21,954 the marriage to issues of import 514 00:22:21,954 --> 00:22:23,400 in the wife. 515 00:22:24,610 --> 00:22:27,550 And putting him in charge does exactly 516 00:22:27,550 --> 00:22:30,333 that. So 517 00:22:30,333 --> 00:22:32,833 you see, this law is not irrelevant to 518 00:22:32,833 --> 00:22:35,645 us. It is so wise in terms of what 519 00:22:35,645 --> 00:22:37,520 we actually deal with in marriage. 520 00:22:38,630 --> 00:22:41,389 Because it is addressing you see the 521 00:22:41,389 --> 00:22:44,148 usual sin that happens at home all 522 00:22:44,148 --> 00:22:46,907 the time, every day, day after day, 523 00:22:46,907 --> 00:22:49,666 as women try to talk to their 524 00:22:49,666 --> 00:22:52,564 men. And, and what do 525 00:22:52,564 --> 00:22:55,192 they get? What kind of response do they, 526 00:22:55,192 --> 00:22:57,820 I'm not talking about the first couple of 527 00:22:57,820 --> 00:22:59,792 years of marriage. I'm talking about 528 00:22:59,792 --> 00:23:02,420 after that. What is the response that the 529 00:23:02,420 --> 00:23:05,048 women get? They are trying to get a 530 00:23:05,048 --> 00:23:07,019 response and it's usually through the 531 00:23:07,019 --> 00:23:08,990 newspaper or around the computer screen. 532 00:23:10,090 --> 00:23:12,565 Or in the middle of the video game. 533 00:23:12,565 --> 00:23:15,039 Right? And what is the response that they 534 00:23:15,039 --> 00:23:17,204 get? Ohh, sure honey, whatever you say. 535 00:23:17,204 --> 00:23:19,060 Just fine, fine, whatever you say. 536 00:23:20,240 --> 00:23:22,518 Or, you know, with a daughter asking for 537 00:23:22,518 --> 00:23:24,227 a response. You know, honey, Absolutely. 538 00:23:24,227 --> 00:23:26,790 Yeah. Just get out of my line of sight. 539 00:23:28,550 --> 00:23:29,620 Boom boom. 540 00:23:33,440 --> 00:23:36,085 Now listen, maybe you're a man here 541 00:23:36,085 --> 00:23:38,729 and this never happens to you. Maybe 542 00:23:38,729 --> 00:23:41,392 you are eminently interruptible. And 543 00:23:41,392 --> 00:23:43,745 you're always attentive to matters of 544 00:23:43,745 --> 00:23:46,490 import in the women in your life. 545 00:23:48,620 --> 00:23:50,638 And if that's you, I have one thing to 546 00:23:50,638 --> 00:23:53,600 say to you. God bless you, God 547 00:23:53,600 --> 00:23:56,460 bless you. You can stand up and leave. 548 00:23:59,270 --> 00:24:01,864 Really kind of good. I 549 00:24:01,864 --> 00:24:03,420 I bless you. 550 00:24:05,570 --> 00:24:08,342 But for the other 99% of us, 551 00:24:08,342 --> 00:24:11,114 this happens every day. This is the 552 00:24:11,114 --> 00:24:14,040 issue. All the time you 553 00:24:14,040 --> 00:24:16,700 husband, you father, you tune out that 554 00:24:16,700 --> 00:24:19,580 voice. Where you learn to engage it 555 00:24:19,580 --> 00:24:21,700 on a superficial level so that it stops. 556 00:24:25,010 --> 00:24:28,002 God is saying no, you cannot live 557 00:24:28,002 --> 00:24:30,994 with a woman that way. You must 558 00:24:30,994 --> 00:24:33,985 listen to her at the time you 559 00:24:33,985 --> 00:24:34,840 must engage. 560 00:24:36,850 --> 00:24:38,813 So you see, God's command, what he's 561 00:24:38,813 --> 00:24:41,336 doing is laying on a on the husband, a 562 00:24:41,336 --> 00:24:43,019 responsibility that he may not be 563 00:24:43,019 --> 00:24:44,140 inclined to take on. 564 00:24:45,680 --> 00:24:48,512 You want her to just get along without 565 00:24:48,512 --> 00:24:50,991 you, don't you? Be independent, make your 566 00:24:50,991 --> 00:24:53,115 own decisions without the hindrance of 567 00:24:53,115 --> 00:24:55,947 you having to to listen and engage and 568 00:24:55,947 --> 00:24:58,426 decide. That is until you need something. 569 00:24:58,426 --> 00:25:00,550 Until you want something from her. 570 00:25:02,030 --> 00:25:04,136 And God is saying, no, it's not the way 571 00:25:04,136 --> 00:25:06,008 that you could do it. That's why he, 572 00:25:06,008 --> 00:25:07,646 that's why the husband has given us 573 00:25:07,646 --> 00:25:10,554 authority. If you don't understand 574 00:25:10,554 --> 00:25:13,185 that, it's your job, not hers. Your 575 00:25:13,185 --> 00:25:15,440 job given to you by God. 576 00:25:16,160 --> 00:25:18,720 You will be less inclined to do it. 577 00:25:20,470 --> 00:25:23,145 Because it you're really not 578 00:25:23,145 --> 00:25:25,948 needed. But 579 00:25:25,948 --> 00:25:28,451 instead you have a command from God. 580 00:25:28,451 --> 00:25:30,954 These these husbands had a command from 581 00:25:30,954 --> 00:25:33,457 God saying you are needed. Actually this 582 00:25:33,457 --> 00:25:34,530 is your job. 583 00:25:36,890 --> 00:25:39,562 You know, I, I remember some talk about 584 00:25:39,562 --> 00:25:41,900 Apple's perfect application. I was a few 585 00:25:41,900 --> 00:25:44,572 years ago, my wife and I were having 586 00:25:44,572 --> 00:25:47,244 a garage sale and we were did all 587 00:25:47,244 --> 00:25:49,916 this work, especially her to, to bring up 588 00:25:49,916 --> 00:25:52,588 this bring all these things out on the 589 00:25:52,588 --> 00:25:55,260 lawn, you know, and price them. It was 590 00:25:55,260 --> 00:25:57,899 a lot of work getting. All of this 591 00:25:57,899 --> 00:25:59,949 together and then during the garage sale, 592 00:25:59,949 --> 00:26:01,999 you know, people were coming by and 593 00:26:01,999 --> 00:26:04,634 during the garage sale I had to go out 594 00:26:04,634 --> 00:26:07,270 and get something. I went out and I came 595 00:26:07,270 --> 00:26:09,906 back and when I come back, my wife had 596 00:26:09,906 --> 00:26:12,541 this man had come up and had kind of 597 00:26:12,541 --> 00:26:13,420 talked her into. 598 00:26:15,290 --> 00:26:17,998 Paying him to cut off the limbs of of 599 00:26:17,998 --> 00:26:20,404 the trees above our garage. And you know, 600 00:26:20,404 --> 00:26:22,510 they, they were getting kind of shaggy. 601 00:26:22,510 --> 00:26:25,218 So he said, I'll, I'll get up there. I'll 602 00:26:25,218 --> 00:26:27,925 cut them off. I have this tool. And which 603 00:26:27,925 --> 00:26:30,633 was, which was OK, except that it was an 604 00:26:30,633 --> 00:26:32,738 exorbitant amount of money that she had 605 00:26:32,738 --> 00:26:35,486 agreed to. It was really wasn't 606 00:26:35,486 --> 00:26:38,118 worth it for that and she didn't wasn't 607 00:26:38,118 --> 00:26:41,078 quite aware of that and I was I came 608 00:26:41,078 --> 00:26:44,039 back and I found out about this sort of 609 00:26:44,039 --> 00:26:46,342 about is perfect application as fast as 610 00:26:46,342 --> 00:26:49,302 you know that at that point for me to 611 00:26:49,302 --> 00:26:52,138 cherish her. Would be to be 612 00:26:52,138 --> 00:26:54,459 able to step in and say to the guy, well, 613 00:26:54,459 --> 00:26:56,548 you know what? Well, we can't quite do it 614 00:26:56,548 --> 00:26:58,636 this way. But you know, I know this is 615 00:26:58,636 --> 00:27:00,725 what my wife said, but look, we need to 616 00:27:00,725 --> 00:27:02,349 work something out. We can't pay you 617 00:27:02,349 --> 00:27:03,974 this. So, you know, either he hadn't 618 00:27:03,974 --> 00:27:05,366 quite, you know, started, he just 619 00:27:05,366 --> 00:27:07,455 started. I said, we'll just do part of it 620 00:27:07,455 --> 00:27:09,544 or or you know, take a different price or 621 00:27:09,544 --> 00:27:11,400 something like that and I didn't do it. 622 00:27:11,470 --> 00:27:14,417 Because I was afraid. I was afraid 623 00:27:14,417 --> 00:27:17,129 of how I'd looked at him. So 624 00:27:17,129 --> 00:27:19,150 I did nothing and consequently just about 625 00:27:19,150 --> 00:27:21,748 all the money that we got in the garage 626 00:27:21,748 --> 00:27:23,480 sale went into this guy's pocket. 627 00:27:27,450 --> 00:27:30,374 And I look back at it like it's funny, I 628 00:27:30,374 --> 00:27:32,129 can't read this passage actually without 629 00:27:32,129 --> 00:27:34,176 looking back at this and and just 630 00:27:34,176 --> 00:27:35,931 expressed just feeling regret about it 631 00:27:35,931 --> 00:27:37,685 because realizing there that at that 632 00:27:37,685 --> 00:27:39,440 point I didn't cherish my wife. 633 00:27:40,770 --> 00:27:42,840 And I needed this law to teach me. 634 00:27:44,440 --> 00:27:47,183 You know what this law does? It, it, it 635 00:27:47,183 --> 00:27:49,011 trains guys in responsibility. It, it 636 00:27:49,011 --> 00:27:50,839 actually trains them out of decisiveness 637 00:27:50,839 --> 00:27:52,972 to take this principle, because some of 638 00:27:52,972 --> 00:27:55,410 us guys, we can't make up our minds. 639 00:27:56,240 --> 00:27:58,935 You know, but what we're needed in the 640 00:27:58,935 --> 00:28:01,293 household is we need the the household 641 00:28:01,293 --> 00:28:03,989 needs us to make up our minds. The 642 00:28:03,989 --> 00:28:06,684 women in our lives need us to be 643 00:28:06,684 --> 00:28:08,368 decisive, to learn decisiveness, You 644 00:28:08,368 --> 00:28:10,389 know, not that there isn't deliberation 645 00:28:10,389 --> 00:28:13,309 at times, but. A husband, a 646 00:28:13,309 --> 00:28:15,796 father, has to be able to make a decision 647 00:28:15,796 --> 00:28:17,730 when there are matters of import, when 648 00:28:17,730 --> 00:28:19,388 it's important, when it's difficult and 649 00:28:19,388 --> 00:28:22,185 when he might be wrong. Has to 650 00:28:22,185 --> 00:28:24,405 be able to make a decision. That's what 651 00:28:24,405 --> 00:28:27,358 they need. So 652 00:28:27,358 --> 00:28:30,004 for us reading it today, what I 653 00:28:30,004 --> 00:28:32,650 would say for you as men to 654 00:28:32,650 --> 00:28:35,296 read this, make changes in your life 655 00:28:35,296 --> 00:28:38,171 to do this. For the 656 00:28:38,171 --> 00:28:40,937 women who are in your life, if you 657 00:28:40,937 --> 00:28:43,357 have trouble being interrupted, set up a 658 00:28:43,357 --> 00:28:44,740 regular time for her. 659 00:28:46,290 --> 00:28:48,887 Set up a regular time. I was talking with 660 00:28:48,887 --> 00:28:51,485 a friend of mine and, and he was saying, 661 00:28:51,485 --> 00:28:53,505 you know, well, my wife when everything, 662 00:28:53,505 --> 00:28:55,814 when she has something on her mind or 663 00:28:55,814 --> 00:28:57,545 something comes up, everything has to 664 00:28:57,545 --> 00:29:00,142 stop. And, and it, you know, cause a lot 665 00:29:00,142 --> 00:29:01,874 of stress because everything has stopped 666 00:29:01,874 --> 00:29:04,183 at that moment. I said, well, you know, 667 00:29:04,183 --> 00:29:06,780 maybe it would help if you set up a 668 00:29:06,780 --> 00:29:09,201 regular time so that she would know. At 669 00:29:09,201 --> 00:29:11,368 this time, her issues are going to be 670 00:29:11,368 --> 00:29:12,993 addressed, you know, then you wouldn't 671 00:29:12,993 --> 00:29:15,160 just everything else to grind to a halt 672 00:29:15,160 --> 00:29:17,326 at that time. He said, well, no, that 673 00:29:17,326 --> 00:29:19,222 wouldn't work. That's just the way that 674 00:29:19,222 --> 00:29:21,389 she is, you know, because of all this 675 00:29:21,389 --> 00:29:23,014 stress, you know, that's the difference 676 00:29:23,014 --> 00:29:25,863 between my wife and your wife and. You 677 00:29:25,863 --> 00:29:28,414 know, I have a lot of respect for my 678 00:29:28,414 --> 00:29:30,398 friend, but with all with all due 679 00:29:30,398 --> 00:29:32,666 respect, I disagree with him about a lot 680 00:29:32,666 --> 00:29:34,933 of things. I respect about his life. But 681 00:29:34,933 --> 00:29:37,623 in this I think that. Actually 682 00:29:37,623 --> 00:29:40,447 making a motion. To 683 00:29:40,447 --> 00:29:43,386 set this up as a way of cherishing 684 00:29:43,386 --> 00:29:45,590 that does something to a woman. 685 00:29:47,190 --> 00:29:49,582 In other words, what this what this law 686 00:29:49,582 --> 00:29:52,272 is urging us to do, what it's trying to 687 00:29:52,272 --> 00:29:54,663 convey is just how cherished a wife is 688 00:29:54,663 --> 00:29:57,612 supposed to be. And this 689 00:29:57,612 --> 00:29:59,898 cherishing does something. It shows her 690 00:29:59,898 --> 00:30:00,660 her value. 691 00:30:03,310 --> 00:30:06,259 Paying attention to her on matters of 692 00:30:06,259 --> 00:30:09,208 import for her, her vows, it does 693 00:30:09,208 --> 00:30:12,156 something inside of her. It makes her 694 00:30:12,156 --> 00:30:15,105 a woman who becomes confident in her 695 00:30:15,105 --> 00:30:18,054 words, really does. It makes her a 696 00:30:18,054 --> 00:30:20,160 woman who better trusts God. 697 00:30:23,310 --> 00:30:26,051 And I wish, I wish I 698 00:30:26,051 --> 00:30:28,792 could convey this better, but when 699 00:30:28,792 --> 00:30:31,534 when you are attentive to her, 700 00:30:31,534 --> 00:30:34,275 your attentiveness validates her and her 701 00:30:34,275 --> 00:30:37,016 goals to a depth that that 702 00:30:37,016 --> 00:30:39,300 not even Oprah can reach. 703 00:30:41,180 --> 00:30:44,054 Or or or a dozen women's magazines that 704 00:30:44,054 --> 00:30:45,850 are trying to empower her. 705 00:30:47,460 --> 00:30:49,930 You want to see a truly empowered woman? 706 00:30:51,450 --> 00:30:54,444 It's not an independent woman. It's 707 00:30:54,444 --> 00:30:57,198 a woman whose men in her life are 708 00:30:57,198 --> 00:30:58,230 attentive to her. 709 00:31:01,460 --> 00:31:03,220 That is what this law does to her. 710 00:31:04,310 --> 00:31:07,128 That is what actually empowers us and 711 00:31:07,128 --> 00:31:09,544 empowers her. It's when those these 712 00:31:09,544 --> 00:31:11,557 things are happening in her 713 00:31:11,557 --> 00:31:14,364 relationships. So 714 00:31:14,364 --> 00:31:16,245 in taking responsibility to be attentive, 715 00:31:16,245 --> 00:31:18,440 you make your woman a real woman. 716 00:31:21,510 --> 00:31:24,381 Well, that's what the law is teaching a 717 00:31:24,381 --> 00:31:27,127 man. Now 718 00:31:27,127 --> 00:31:29,885 the other side What is the law doing for 719 00:31:29,885 --> 00:31:32,336 a man by what it's teaching a woman? 720 00:31:32,336 --> 00:31:34,788 What? What would you? How should you read 721 00:31:34,788 --> 00:31:36,320 this as a woman today? 722 00:31:38,360 --> 00:31:40,765 Well, I would say the most important 723 00:31:40,765 --> 00:31:43,513 thing to do in reading this law as 724 00:31:43,513 --> 00:31:45,230 a woman is to say. 725 00:31:46,350 --> 00:31:49,213 Use your father. Use 726 00:31:49,213 --> 00:31:52,199 your husband. Think of them as God's 727 00:31:52,199 --> 00:31:54,987 gift to you. To check your 728 00:31:54,987 --> 00:31:56,720 decisions, your words of import, you 729 00:31:56,720 --> 00:31:58,165 know, we're always looking, running 730 00:31:58,165 --> 00:32:00,414 around, looking for guidance. Well, 731 00:32:00,414 --> 00:32:02,538 there's someone in most of your lives 732 00:32:02,538 --> 00:32:04,966 whom God says through laws like this he 733 00:32:04,966 --> 00:32:06,180 would like to use. 734 00:32:07,640 --> 00:32:08,570 For guidance. 735 00:32:12,120 --> 00:32:15,008 Talk a lot. Make a lot of commitments if 736 00:32:15,008 --> 00:32:17,729 that's your inclination. And bring 737 00:32:17,729 --> 00:32:19,757 him those things of import and require 738 00:32:19,757 --> 00:32:21,785 his input. You could ask those questions 739 00:32:21,785 --> 00:32:24,682 of him. Did I say the right thing or did 740 00:32:24,682 --> 00:32:26,420 I promise something I shouldn't have? 741 00:32:28,200 --> 00:32:30,450 You know, my wife and I, we don't talk 742 00:32:30,450 --> 00:32:31,950 about this thing about authority or 743 00:32:31,950 --> 00:32:33,700 submission. We don't talk about it at 744 00:32:33,700 --> 00:32:36,642 all. But it goes on a lot. It 745 00:32:36,642 --> 00:32:39,381 goes on, sort of implied. It goes on 746 00:32:39,381 --> 00:32:41,776 all the time, largely because she has 747 00:32:41,776 --> 00:32:43,830 made the decision to use me. 748 00:32:44,950 --> 00:32:47,402 And you know what else she's done is 749 00:32:47,402 --> 00:32:49,240 she's created high expectations for me. 750 00:32:50,870 --> 00:32:52,889 And that's the other thing you should 751 00:32:52,889 --> 00:32:54,908 understand as a woman reading this law. 752 00:32:54,908 --> 00:32:56,926 You should have high expectations for the 753 00:32:56,926 --> 00:32:59,913 men in your life. That 754 00:32:59,913 --> 00:33:02,803 means if you are single. And you're 755 00:33:02,803 --> 00:33:05,095 looking around for a guy, You want to 756 00:33:05,095 --> 00:33:07,961 look for a man who can lead in this way, 757 00:33:07,961 --> 00:33:10,253 who can lead you, who would be actually 758 00:33:10,253 --> 00:33:11,972 trustworthy with this kind of a 759 00:33:11,972 --> 00:33:13,692 responsibility, or at least someone in 760 00:33:13,692 --> 00:33:15,984 whom you see that potential. You at least 761 00:33:15,984 --> 00:33:18,766 see the potential there. If it's 762 00:33:18,766 --> 00:33:20,362 not there, you should look for someone 763 00:33:20,362 --> 00:33:20,590 else. 764 00:33:23,320 --> 00:33:26,243 If you are married and if you have a 765 00:33:26,243 --> 00:33:28,842 guy, a father or a husband, don't don't 766 00:33:28,842 --> 00:33:31,116 have lower expectations for him than what 767 00:33:31,116 --> 00:33:32,090 this passage says. 768 00:33:33,390 --> 00:33:35,740 Because those expectations. 769 00:33:37,100 --> 00:33:38,810 Make your husband a man. 770 00:33:40,740 --> 00:33:42,907 This is hard sometimes, especially it's 771 00:33:42,907 --> 00:33:45,435 hard especially for single women to get 772 00:33:45,435 --> 00:33:47,602 about the dynamic, especially if their 773 00:33:47,602 --> 00:33:50,131 relationship with their dad is not so 774 00:33:50,131 --> 00:33:52,659 great. They don't see this dynamic at 775 00:33:52,659 --> 00:33:55,529 all. But this is 776 00:33:55,529 --> 00:33:57,806 it, friends. Your expectations of your 777 00:33:57,806 --> 00:34:00,463 husband go a long way to making 778 00:34:00,463 --> 00:34:02,740 him who he needs to be. 779 00:34:05,650 --> 00:34:07,952 Because it does something in him, these 780 00:34:07,952 --> 00:34:09,924 actions, these vow submitting women, it 781 00:34:09,924 --> 00:34:11,897 does something to the guys. You 782 00:34:11,897 --> 00:34:13,870 understand. Do you understand what you're 783 00:34:13,870 --> 00:34:16,171 giving him when you give him this 784 00:34:16,171 --> 00:34:19,036 prerogative?You're 785 00:34:19,036 --> 00:34:21,174 making him somebody who can handle 786 00:34:21,174 --> 00:34:23,934 authority. Because you can't 787 00:34:23,934 --> 00:34:26,579 make a person who handles authority well 788 00:34:26,579 --> 00:34:28,090 without handing him authority. 789 00:34:30,760 --> 00:34:31,740 Doesn't happen. 790 00:34:34,110 --> 00:34:36,290 That he can't learn to shoot unless you 791 00:34:36,290 --> 00:34:37,380 hand him the gun. 792 00:34:39,270 --> 00:34:41,316 Well, maybe that's not such a great 793 00:34:41,316 --> 00:34:44,063 metaphor here. Well, actually it is 794 00:34:44,063 --> 00:34:45,957 a good metaphor. Why? Because it's 795 00:34:45,957 --> 00:34:48,167 dangerous. It's dangerous for you to do 796 00:34:48,167 --> 00:34:50,693 this. I know that it makes you vulnerable 797 00:34:50,693 --> 00:34:53,477 to do this. That's absolutely true. The 798 00:34:53,477 --> 00:34:55,991 danger is like Andy and a gun. And you 799 00:34:55,991 --> 00:34:58,225 know what? God knows that too. God knows 800 00:34:58,225 --> 00:35:00,460 it too, that you put yourself in a 801 00:35:00,460 --> 00:35:02,415 vulnerable place. In fact, that's why he, 802 00:35:02,415 --> 00:35:04,928 I think that's why he enforces it by the 803 00:35:04,928 --> 00:35:06,883 leadership. In verse one, you notice that 804 00:35:06,883 --> 00:35:08,559 it's addressed to the leaders. Actually, 805 00:35:08,559 --> 00:35:10,514 this law is addressed to the leaders 806 00:35:10,514 --> 00:35:13,004 rather than the people at large. I think 807 00:35:13,004 --> 00:35:15,901 that's a small detail, but in fact it's 808 00:35:15,901 --> 00:35:18,798 rare to find. I don't know if there's 809 00:35:18,798 --> 00:35:21,695 another place, but it's very rare to find 810 00:35:21,695 --> 00:35:24,230 a law addressed to the leaders rather 811 00:35:24,230 --> 00:35:26,040 than to the people altogether. 812 00:35:28,160 --> 00:35:30,793 But this one is, I think, expected 813 00:35:30,793 --> 00:35:33,426 to be overseen by the leadership in 814 00:35:33,426 --> 00:35:34,930 the in their community. 815 00:35:38,920 --> 00:35:40,766 You know, it's not ultimate authority 816 00:35:40,766 --> 00:35:43,228 that this is talking about. It's not an 817 00:35:43,228 --> 00:35:45,382 ultimate authority that a wife hands a 818 00:35:45,382 --> 00:35:45,690 husband. 819 00:35:48,530 --> 00:35:51,347 God must have that place for her. The 820 00:35:51,347 --> 00:35:53,812 only place of ultimate authority for for 821 00:35:53,812 --> 00:35:55,220 a woman is God. 822 00:35:58,780 --> 00:36:00,920 And she has to assert that at times. 823 00:36:01,820 --> 00:36:04,365 But this is a circumscribed authority for 824 00:36:04,365 --> 00:36:06,910 his advancement as a man. That's what 825 00:36:06,910 --> 00:36:09,671 she's giving him. If you have 826 00:36:09,671 --> 00:36:12,309 a man in your life, this is how to read 827 00:36:12,309 --> 00:36:14,419 this flaws of woman care enough about him 828 00:36:14,419 --> 00:36:15,210 to advance him. 829 00:36:17,740 --> 00:36:19,862 So friends, these are my thoughts and 830 00:36:19,862 --> 00:36:22,590 This is why I said this law is good. 831 00:36:24,200 --> 00:36:26,592 You know, I would, I would not be 832 00:36:26,592 --> 00:36:28,385 advocating this kind of asymmetry in 833 00:36:28,385 --> 00:36:31,076 roles in a family if I didn't think that 834 00:36:31,076 --> 00:36:33,766 it was good for a woman. I have a 835 00:36:33,766 --> 00:36:35,859 daughter, you know, I have a daughter 836 00:36:35,859 --> 00:36:38,250 myself, and I don't want her demeaned. I 837 00:36:38,250 --> 00:36:40,941 don't want her to be any less than who 838 00:36:40,941 --> 00:36:43,033 she is. I don't want her personality 839 00:36:43,033 --> 00:36:45,466 squelched or lost. I don't want that for 840 00:36:45,466 --> 00:36:47,043 my daughter. I don't want that for my 841 00:36:47,043 --> 00:36:48,817 wife. I don't. I don't want that for any 842 00:36:48,817 --> 00:36:50,000 of the women in this church. 843 00:36:52,080 --> 00:36:54,767 So I if I had not become utterly 844 00:36:54,767 --> 00:36:57,454 convinced over the years of how good this 845 00:36:57,454 --> 00:37:00,141 is for women and men to pay attention 846 00:37:00,141 --> 00:37:02,828 to passages such as these, I wouldn't be 847 00:37:02,828 --> 00:37:03,500 preaching it. 848 00:37:06,520 --> 00:37:09,088 It's good for math, good for women, good 849 00:37:09,088 --> 00:37:09,730 for marriages. 850 00:37:12,520 --> 00:37:15,348 Is this all there is to a marriage? No. 851 00:37:15,348 --> 00:37:18,176 But is it a lot of what there is? 852 00:37:18,176 --> 00:37:21,118 Well. I'll tell you 853 00:37:21,118 --> 00:37:22,973 this, fulfilling this law does wonders 854 00:37:22,973 --> 00:37:25,895 for a marriage. Teaching a 855 00:37:25,895 --> 00:37:28,258 man to engage and take responsibility for 856 00:37:28,258 --> 00:37:30,620 his woman. Teaching a woman to advance 857 00:37:30,620 --> 00:37:33,320 her man. It you know what it does, 858 00:37:33,320 --> 00:37:36,020 it ends up compelling both of them to 859 00:37:36,020 --> 00:37:38,657 deal with real issues. And 860 00:37:38,657 --> 00:37:40,282 it consequently deepens their 861 00:37:40,282 --> 00:37:42,315 relationship. It makes the relationship 862 00:37:42,315 --> 00:37:45,160 about the real issues in their lives. 863 00:37:46,890 --> 00:37:49,206 So you see what God is really after in 864 00:37:49,206 --> 00:37:51,563 this law. Is 865 00:37:51,563 --> 00:37:54,210 intimacy real intimacy? 866 00:37:55,740 --> 00:37:58,437 I mean real anticipate. You look at 867 00:37:58,437 --> 00:38:01,135 verse 15, You know this. If he 868 00:38:01,135 --> 00:38:03,832 doesn't speak up, then verse 14, then 869 00:38:03,832 --> 00:38:06,529 he shall bear her iniquity. He shall 870 00:38:06,529 --> 00:38:09,227 bear her iniquity. If you don't engage, 871 00:38:09,227 --> 00:38:11,539 the problems that your wife promises 872 00:38:11,539 --> 00:38:13,080 cause are your fault. 873 00:38:15,610 --> 00:38:17,763 You know you're supposed to engage them 874 00:38:17,763 --> 00:38:19,300 before the bill comes due. 875 00:38:20,520 --> 00:38:22,275 And then you're not supposed to explode. 876 00:38:22,275 --> 00:38:24,030 Ohh how come this is going on? 877 00:38:26,650 --> 00:38:28,821 But do you see what that's saying? It's 878 00:38:28,821 --> 00:38:30,721 your fault. You shall bear her iniquity. 879 00:38:30,721 --> 00:38:33,654 You say. Well, man, that's not fair. But 880 00:38:33,654 --> 00:38:35,526 that's how God wants you to think about 881 00:38:35,526 --> 00:38:38,134 this. He wants above all 882 00:38:38,134 --> 00:38:40,114 in your marriages, intimacy. True 883 00:38:40,114 --> 00:38:43,082 intimacy. And we 884 00:38:43,082 --> 00:38:45,407 seek to go in the other direction. We 885 00:38:45,407 --> 00:38:48,204 seek kind of independence. Do not want 886 00:38:48,204 --> 00:38:50,857 to bother, but God says no, that is not 887 00:38:50,857 --> 00:38:52,626 the level of relationships in the 888 00:38:52,626 --> 00:38:54,100 households of my holy army. 889 00:38:56,760 --> 00:38:59,562 The people in my holy army are 890 00:38:59,562 --> 00:39:02,364 going to engage with one another and 891 00:39:02,364 --> 00:39:05,166 to be for one another, and leaning 892 00:39:05,166 --> 00:39:07,967 into your genders does exactly that. It 893 00:39:07,967 --> 00:39:10,369 makes sure that important matters become 894 00:39:10,369 --> 00:39:11,970 fuel for the relationship. 895 00:39:13,320 --> 00:39:15,737 And it doesn't happen unless you feel 896 00:39:15,737 --> 00:39:17,464 these responsibilities, unless you lean 897 00:39:17,464 --> 00:39:19,190 into the into the genders. 898 00:39:20,700 --> 00:39:22,721 So looking at what women need, looking at 899 00:39:22,721 --> 00:39:24,490 what men need, looking at what marriages 900 00:39:24,490 --> 00:39:27,017 need, I have to say this law is good. It 901 00:39:27,017 --> 00:39:28,280 is good. It is wise. 902 00:39:29,740 --> 00:39:32,393 And you know, I wouldn't need to preach 903 00:39:32,393 --> 00:39:34,715 it if I were surrounded by healthy, 904 00:39:34,715 --> 00:39:37,037 functioning marriages in our in our land. 905 00:39:37,037 --> 00:39:39,358 But you know what I see happening? 906 00:39:39,358 --> 00:39:41,680 Instead, I see the abolition of gender 907 00:39:41,680 --> 00:39:43,670 has taken its toll on marriages. 908 00:39:44,780 --> 00:39:47,580 The dynamic of modern marriages 909 00:39:47,580 --> 00:39:49,820 which pushes individual independence. 910 00:39:50,640 --> 00:39:52,520 It's actually breaks up the marriage. 911 00:39:53,430 --> 00:39:55,300 It degrades the marriage. 912 00:39:56,810 --> 00:39:59,124 What this law does instead is it doesn't. 913 00:39:59,124 --> 00:40:01,438 It does nothing less than demand. This is 914 00:40:01,438 --> 00:40:03,173 what it's really doing. It's demanding 915 00:40:03,173 --> 00:40:04,330 intimacy in your marriage. 916 00:40:06,020 --> 00:40:08,070 And it's showing you how to get there. 917 00:40:11,420 --> 00:40:14,415 The law is good. The law 918 00:40:14,415 --> 00:40:17,327 is good. So 919 00:40:17,327 --> 00:40:20,085 let me, I guess, bring us to a conclusion 920 00:40:20,085 --> 00:40:22,844 here. As long as we're on verse 15, He 921 00:40:22,844 --> 00:40:25,710 shall bear her iniquity. Let's 922 00:40:25,710 --> 00:40:28,300 look at that closely and what it's 923 00:40:28,300 --> 00:40:31,230 saying. He's so 924 00:40:31,230 --> 00:40:34,170 bear her. The Hebrew word of 925 00:40:34,170 --> 00:40:36,620 Noah means crime or punishment. 926 00:40:37,550 --> 00:40:40,359 So you see what he's bearing. It's as 927 00:40:40,359 --> 00:40:43,168 if he's taken over her vow and he's 928 00:40:43,168 --> 00:40:45,993 violated it. And then punishment 929 00:40:45,993 --> 00:40:48,332 that would all all otherwise have fallen 930 00:40:48,332 --> 00:40:51,006 on her for breaking the vow he takes 931 00:40:51,006 --> 00:40:53,710 on. So 932 00:40:53,710 --> 00:40:56,160 it's it's bringing up the the possibility 933 00:40:56,160 --> 00:40:58,960 that there are times when a husband takes 934 00:40:58,960 --> 00:41:01,760 on a wife's iniquity, even he is to 935 00:41:01,760 --> 00:41:04,560 be so close to her that he understands 936 00:41:04,560 --> 00:41:07,531 himself to bear her liabilities. He 937 00:41:07,531 --> 00:41:10,237 takes on her student loans as as if they 938 00:41:10,237 --> 00:41:11,740 were his to pay back. 939 00:41:13,020 --> 00:41:15,216 Right. He takes on her, strains with her, 940 00:41:15,216 --> 00:41:17,687 with her parents, as if they were his to 941 00:41:17,687 --> 00:41:18,510 try to address. 942 00:41:20,480 --> 00:41:23,142 He bears with her problems as if they 943 00:41:23,142 --> 00:41:25,967 were his own. Because you know, 944 00:41:25,967 --> 00:41:27,800 that is the meaning of authority. 945 00:41:33,330 --> 00:41:35,882 In other words, friends, he is to be the 946 00:41:35,882 --> 00:41:37,300 imitator of the perfect bridegroom. 947 00:41:38,600 --> 00:41:41,551 He is the the imitator of none other than 948 00:41:41,551 --> 00:41:43,846 Jesus Christ. Because you know what? That 949 00:41:43,846 --> 00:41:46,468 is exactly what Jesus did for His bride, 950 00:41:46,468 --> 00:41:49,091 us. He took on our student loans even 951 00:41:49,091 --> 00:41:50,730 though he didn't have any. 952 00:41:52,110 --> 00:41:53,160 And he paid them. 953 00:41:55,430 --> 00:41:57,573 What a brightener, what a husband. That 954 00:41:57,573 --> 00:41:59,410 is what he did for us. 955 00:42:00,820 --> 00:42:03,154 Christ did this to make us intimate with 956 00:42:03,154 --> 00:42:05,780 Him. He did this out of His great love 957 00:42:05,780 --> 00:42:08,114 for us, to bring us into intimacy with 958 00:42:08,114 --> 00:42:10,739 Him. That's what His goal is for us. And 959 00:42:10,739 --> 00:42:13,073 for those, you know, some of you here, 960 00:42:13,073 --> 00:42:15,115 you might not actually have a husband, 961 00:42:15,115 --> 00:42:17,449 maybe not even have a father at this 962 00:42:17,449 --> 00:42:19,491 point. For if you're in this position, 963 00:42:19,491 --> 00:42:21,925 there is intimacy for you. There is this 964 00:42:21,925 --> 00:42:23,780 same dynamic to operate in your life. 965 00:42:23,780 --> 00:42:25,370 Christ wants to be your husband. 966 00:42:28,140 --> 00:42:30,438 That's what he holds out to you. It's 967 00:42:30,438 --> 00:42:31,300 there for you. 968 00:42:34,650 --> 00:42:36,828 What should be our response, friends, to 969 00:42:36,828 --> 00:42:39,317 this amazing love? Well, we were about to 970 00:42:39,317 --> 00:42:42,117 do it at the table here. In response to 971 00:42:42,117 --> 00:42:44,606 this, what should we do? We should bring 972 00:42:44,606 --> 00:42:47,096 the import of our whole life before him 973 00:42:47,096 --> 00:42:50,038 to lay it down. And submitted 974 00:42:50,038 --> 00:42:52,520 to him really our ultimate authority. 975 00:42:53,420 --> 00:42:55,399 At this table, that's what you're doing 976 00:42:55,399 --> 00:42:57,095 when you come forward. You're bringing 977 00:42:57,095 --> 00:42:59,074 your whole life to Him. You're letting 978 00:42:59,074 --> 00:43:00,770 Him give you his infallible wisdom. 979 00:43:01,640 --> 00:43:03,768 You're knowing his care for you, his 980 00:43:03,768 --> 00:43:06,525 attentiveness to you. That's 981 00:43:06,525 --> 00:43:08,906 what's going on. I invite you to do it 982 00:43:08,906 --> 00:43:11,900 now. Will you 983 00:43:11,900 --> 00:43:12,680 please stand?