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Speaker: We are still looking at
questions Jesus asked, and we are

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still in the Gospel of Matthew.

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We're gonna be in Matthew 20 Matthew
chapter 20, and, uh, this question's fun.

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Jesus asks some people,
"What do you want?"

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So, um, this'll be a fun question.

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So Matthew 20

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is where we're gonna be, all right?

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Now, uh, I don't know if you've been
to a lot of weddings, but I went to a

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wedding recently and, um, I was thinking
about it because w- weddings at…

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I don't know if you've…

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how much you know about, about weddings.

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I actually had never been to a
wedding until I was in college.

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Um, so I didn't know
anything about weddings.

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But when I went to a wedding for the
first time, it made me realize how

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much stuff happens at weddings, right?

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And then when you're in a wedding,
you realize there's even more

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stuff that happens at weddings.

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And what I learned about weddings is
that there's some people really look

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forward to all the wedding stuff.

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They look forward to the photos, and
they look forward to the pictures and

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how it's gonna look and the, and the
table, and the, how, what everyone's

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gonna wear, and all that stuff.

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Some people get really excited
about all that, and that's mostly, I

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think, this half of the room, right?

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I think this half of the room,
you guys are really excited.

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You guys probably already, already
have, like, your color scheme

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picked out and, and you know what
you want your groomsmen to wear.

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I'm sure you've got all of
that figured out already.

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Um, no but s- some people care so much
about what happens at their wedding.

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There's even, like, a term, right,
called a, the term is bridezilla.

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I don't know if you've
heard about that before.

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But about when a, a bride is…

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She's just freaking out about
everything, and she's like a

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control freak, micromanaging.

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Everything has to be perfect.

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It's her big day, right?

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And, um, what happens to some
people is, uh, and I don't think

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they, they mean to do this.

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I don't think they're trying to do this.

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But it almost feels like they're
making the wedding more important than

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the marriage, if that makes sense.

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And they care so much about it
that it's like e- everything has

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to be, has to be perfect, right?

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Everything has to be great.

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But I want you to imagine that you
were in a relationship with someone,

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and you get engaged to them, and
you start planning your wedding.

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And you start having this sinking
feeling that they just wanna get married

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so we can have a really cool wedding.

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They, they're really, the only reason
they wanna get married is so that they

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can experience this really awesome event.

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They just wanna have a really cool
wedding cake, and they wanna invite all

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their friends, and they wanna do all
the fun dances, and they wanna have a

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big party, and they wanna look all nice.

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And they're really just…

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The whole reason they've proposed to me,
the whole reason they've dated this whole

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time is just so we can have a wedding.

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That would stink, right?

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That would be horrible.

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Um, and really, what you'd
feel like, right, is, "Oh, this

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person's just using me," right?

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They, they, they're really just using me
to get something from me And that is the

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situation that we're gonna see in one
of these verses, is we're gonna see some

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people that really, they just want to use
Jesus to, to get something from Jesus.

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And then the other people, in verse 32,
what we're gonna see is those people

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approach Jesus a little differently.

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But Jesus asked them
both the same question.

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He says, "What do you want?

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What do you want?

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What do you want me to do for you?"

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And maybe you've never thought about this,
but how would you answer that question?

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If Jesus asked you, "What do you want?"

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What do you want Jesus to do for you?

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What do you want from God?

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What would you say?

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That's the question that Jesus is
asking us tonight in Matthew 20.

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What do you want?

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So turn in your Bibles to Matthew 20, and
what we're gonna see here is that, and y-

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maybe these words are kinda unfamiliar to
you, but Jesus is not a means to an end.

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Uh, I was explaining this a little earlier
to someone else, but, um, Jesus is not

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a pathway to get what you want, right?

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Jesus is not your means to
get what you really want.

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Maybe it's heaven.

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Maybe it's comfort.

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Maybe it's security.

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Maybe it's purpose or meaning, right?

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Maybe it's a happy family.

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Maybe it's you want people to
stop bothering you so much.

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Maybe you want an easy life, right?

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Jesus isn't what you use to get
those things Jesus is not a means to

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your bigger goals than Jesus, right?

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Just like if you were
dating someone, right?

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You wouldn't wanna be the
means to their wedding, right?

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You wouldn't want to be, "Oh, well,
the only reason they dated me was just

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so they could have this cool wedding."

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You'd, well, you'd want them to, to
date you so they could have you, right?

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Same thing with Jesus.

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We don't wanna, we don't wanna
approach God and say, "Well, we

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just want God so we can get all
His cool stuff from God," right?

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We just, we don't want Him to be
our pathway to more stuff, right?

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We just want God to be
what we really want.

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So that's what we're gonna
see here in Matthew 20.

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Okay, so, uh, verse 20
is where we're starting.

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So there's this mom, and
she comes up to Jesus.

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So verse 20, I'll put it
on the screen for you, too.

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The mother of the sons of
Zebedee, this is James and John.

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So James and John, their dad's name
is Zebedee, if you're looking for

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baby names, which you shouldn't be.

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Uh, that's on there, right?

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The mother of the sons of Zebedee came
up to Him with her sons, and kneeling

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before Him, she asked Jesus for something.

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And so what's funny is, uh, these
sons, it's really what they want.

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They're sending their mom to ask for
them, which kind of a lame move, right?

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You're, you're a grown-up, and
you're like, "Hey, Mom, can you ask

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Jesus a question for us," right?

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Not a good start, but
she's being respectful.

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She says, "All right.

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I'm coming before you."

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Jesus says, "What do you want?"

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And she said to Him, "Here's
what I want from you, Jesus.

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I want you to say that these two sons of
mine are to sit, one at your right hand

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and one at your left in your kingdom."

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Now, for you, you're
probably like, "So what?"

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right?

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I don't care about sitting
next to Jesus, right?

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I wanna sit across from Jesus
so I can look at Him, right?

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Maybe that's…

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The whole point of this, right, your
right hand, your left, these are, like,

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the most important positions, right?

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This is, like, the best
spot, best seat in the house.

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So when Jesus, the Messiah, right,
the king, when He sets up his

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kingdom, she's saying, "I want my
two sons, James and John, to be the

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most important people in heaven."

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That's what she wants,
and that's what they want.

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So James and John, and
we'll just call her Mrs.

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Zebedee, right?

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She says, "Hey, I want you to
make my sons really important.

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I want you to make my sons really
popular, really famous, really

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cool, really respected," right?

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"I want you to make my sons important."

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They're asking selfishly, right?

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Because you, you'll see this later,
um, if you keep reading, that

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other disciples get mad at them.

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They're like, "Wait, what?"

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Like, "Why do you get to call
dibs on that and we didn't?"

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Right?

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So, so this is like a, this
is a very selfish move, right?

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This is, this is kinda like,
um, you know, they're, there's

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cutting in line, right, for, for
getting important stuff from Jesus.

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And so what they're after here
is they're, they're after this

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special recognition, right?

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And status of wow, you know, people
get to say, "You're, you're the guy

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that's at Jesus' right hand," right?

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"You're so cool."

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I don't know if you … Have you
ever had, like, a really popular

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friend, or like a really … Like,
my older brother at school was, was

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pretty cool, um, relatively speaking.

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But I was, like, proud that it was like,
"Yeah, that I'm, I'm Luca's brother."

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It was like, "Oh yeah,
you're Luca's brother.

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That's cool."

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Right?

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People some- for some
reason respected me more.

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And then after they got to know
me, they lost their respect for me.

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But initially, it was cool, right?

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It was like, "Oh, you,
you're Luca's brother.

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That's great.

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That's awesome," right?

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They wanna be like, "Yeah,
you're at Jesus' right hand."

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Like, "You're that guy," right?

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"We know you 'cause you're import-
Jesus thinks you're important,

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and so we think you're important."

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Right?

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They wanna be that person.

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And maybe that's not what you want
from Jesus, but I'm sure that there's,

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there's things that you want from Jesus.

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I'm sure there's things that,
that you're thinking, "Man, I wish

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Jesus would give me this," right?

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Or maybe there's things that you're
mad at God about because God isn't

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giving that to you right now.

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You're like, "Why?

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If God is so good, why
wouldn't he give me this?"

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Or, "Why wouldn't he fix this?"

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Or, "Why wouldn't he do this?"

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Or, "Why did he do things this way?"

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Right, there's things that
you might want from Jesus.

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And what I'm challenging you
with tonight is, are those things

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more important to you than Jesus?

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Are you just trying to use
Jesus to get those things?

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Or do you actually care more about
Jesus than what you can get from him?

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Right, 'cause what, what these people
are, are asking for is they're asking

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for, right, the sons of Zebedee, James
and John, they're asking for something

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from Jesus for themselves, right?

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And, and we see that a little
bit in the next couple verses.

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All right, we saw, "What do you want?"

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She said to him, right, "We wanna,
we wanna be important," right?

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"We wanna be respected.

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We wanna be cool."

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And he's like, "Well, you don't know
what you're asking for because if you're

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gonna be great in Jesus' eyes, you're
gonna have to follow his path," which

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he talked about a couple weeks ago.

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"Deny yourself, take up
your cross, and follow me."

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And this whole section in chapter
20 is about how the people who are

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great in God's kingdom are usually the
people that are the lowest on Earth.

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Right?

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God's kingdom doesn't work
the way we think it works.

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The people that the world think is cool
are, are not really the people think…

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That God thinks is cool.

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Right?

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That, that's what this
whole chapter is, is about.

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And they say, "We're able."

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They're like, "We got this."

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Right?

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So they're very high opinion
of themselves, right?

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They've got a really high
opinion of themselves.

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They think they've got
it all together, right?

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But what I want you to see here
is that they're at this point

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following Jesus, it seems like,
to get what they want out of it.

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They have expectations
for following Jesus.

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Right?

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They're, they're saying, "Following
Jesus means we should be respected.

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We should be popular.

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We should be cool.

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We should be important.

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We should be impressive."

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And maybe for you, you have
expectations for what you think

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following Jesus should be like.

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And maybe you signed up to follow
Jesus not because you wanted to

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follow Jesus, but because you wanted
the benefits of following Jesus.

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Right?

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'Cause there were some people that
wanted, in this time period, they

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wanted to follow Jesus 'cause they
thought Jesus would help them out.

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Right?

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They thought Jesus would, would be
the king, and he would take out the

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Romans and, and fix all their problems.

234
00:10:55,145 --> 00:10:58,755
And so they thought, "Oh, well, if
we sign up to follow Jesus, we're

235
00:10:58,755 --> 00:10:59,835
gonna get in on some of that."

236
00:11:00,165 --> 00:11:00,415
Right?

237
00:11:00,415 --> 00:11:03,195
And maybe for you, right, you're not
hoping that you get to follow Jesus so

238
00:11:03,225 --> 00:11:04,675
you get to be important in the world.

239
00:11:04,955 --> 00:11:08,065
Maybe you wanted to follow Jesus because
you thought it would fix your life.

240
00:11:08,935 --> 00:11:09,005
Right?

241
00:11:09,105 --> 00:11:11,615
You thought maybe, "Oh, well, if
I follow Jesus, then I'm not gonna

242
00:11:11,625 --> 00:11:12,875
have as many problems anymore."

243
00:11:13,355 --> 00:11:13,435
Right?

244
00:11:13,475 --> 00:11:18,065
Maybe, "If I follow Jesus, I won't be
as anxious anymore," or, "If I follow

245
00:11:18,065 --> 00:11:22,625
Jesus, I won't have to deal with these bad
thoughts anymore," or, "If I follow Jesus,

246
00:11:22,645 --> 00:11:24,635
then my family life is gonna be better."

247
00:11:25,725 --> 00:11:29,105
Which those things could
happen, but I don't want that

248
00:11:29,125 --> 00:11:30,475
to be why you follow Jesus.

249
00:11:31,165 --> 00:11:31,315
Right?

250
00:11:31,315 --> 00:11:32,815
I want you to follow Jesus
because you love Jesus

251
00:11:35,081 --> 00:11:37,991
I don't want you to follow Jesus because
of the side effects of following Jesus

252
00:11:41,215 --> 00:11:41,575
So

253
00:11:44,743 --> 00:11:47,733
Maybe you're following
Jesus to get what you want.

254
00:11:48,393 --> 00:11:49,263
And I just want you to think about that.

255
00:11:49,263 --> 00:11:50,633
What do I want from Jesus?

256
00:11:51,223 --> 00:11:52,573
What am I expecting from Jesus?

257
00:11:53,143 --> 00:11:55,973
What do I get mad when
God doesn't give it to me?

258
00:11:56,053 --> 00:11:56,783
What do I get mad about?

259
00:11:58,023 --> 00:12:00,123
Because maybe that's
really what I want from God

260
00:12:02,601 --> 00:12:04,211
Maybe you want Jesus to
make your life better.

261
00:12:04,211 --> 00:12:05,098
You make, you wanna make…

262
00:12:05,098 --> 00:12:08,361
You want Jesus to make your life
easier, 'cause maybe you're, you're

263
00:12:08,381 --> 00:12:13,851
following Jesus so you can get comfort
or peace, relief from anxiety, right?

264
00:12:13,881 --> 00:12:16,791
Maybe that's what you
want from following Jesus.

265
00:12:17,541 --> 00:12:18,971
Maybe you want security.

266
00:12:19,091 --> 00:12:20,021
Maybe it's physical security.

267
00:12:20,021 --> 00:12:21,251
Maybe it's emotional security.

268
00:12:21,571 --> 00:12:22,681
You wanna, you wanna have…

269
00:12:23,631 --> 00:12:26,171
You want, you don't wanna feel like
you're, you're drowning or spiraling

270
00:12:26,171 --> 00:12:28,811
anymore, and that's why you follow Jesus.

271
00:12:30,731 --> 00:12:33,231
Which again, Jesus can do that, right?

272
00:12:33,231 --> 00:12:35,621
He s- he says, "I can give
you rest," Matthew 11.

273
00:12:36,511 --> 00:12:43,821
But don't make security or peace or
comfort more important than Jesus.

274
00:12:44,681 --> 00:12:47,521
Or maybe it's meaning or purpose, right?

275
00:12:47,521 --> 00:12:50,361
Y- you just, you wanted something
to live for, and that's why

276
00:12:50,361 --> 00:12:51,281
you decided to follow Jesus.

277
00:12:51,491 --> 00:12:54,341
Or maybe your friends were following
Jesus, and so you followed Jesus so you

278
00:12:54,341 --> 00:12:55,931
could be part of the community, right?

279
00:12:55,941 --> 00:12:57,021
You wanted good friends.

280
00:12:57,031 --> 00:12:59,371
You wanted to be part of
something bigger than yourself.

281
00:12:59,421 --> 00:13:02,631
You wanted friends who wouldn't lie
about you or gossip about you, and then

282
00:13:02,641 --> 00:13:03,821
your church friends were like that.

283
00:13:03,821 --> 00:13:05,651
And so you said, "Oh, I, I
wanna be with these people."

284
00:13:06,721 --> 00:13:08,871
But if your church friends weren't
there, would you still do it?

285
00:13:10,141 --> 00:13:13,321
If, if, if you go off to college and
you don't have anyone else that you

286
00:13:13,321 --> 00:13:15,571
know at your church, are you s- are
you still gonna be following Jesus?

287
00:13:16,211 --> 00:13:18,411
Or do you just follow him because
your friends are doing it?

288
00:13:20,991 --> 00:13:27,611
Or maybe y- you're following Jesus because
you want Jesus to affirm you and, but not

289
00:13:27,611 --> 00:13:30,061
really, like, impose on your life, right?

290
00:13:30,071 --> 00:13:33,701
You want Jesus to be, like, kind of the
fence that goes around your yard, but

291
00:13:33,701 --> 00:13:37,141
you don't want Jesus to be the sidewalk
that goes through your yard, right?

292
00:13:37,351 --> 00:13:39,921
You want Jesus to keep all the stuff out
of your yard, but you don't want Jesus

293
00:13:39,931 --> 00:13:41,721
to interfere with your yard, right?

294
00:13:41,981 --> 00:13:45,141
And maybe that's why you
follow Jesus, is because you're

295
00:13:45,141 --> 00:13:46,631
like, "Well, I, I like Jesus.

296
00:13:46,631 --> 00:13:47,451
I like what he says.

297
00:13:47,451 --> 00:13:48,171
I like religion.

298
00:13:48,171 --> 00:13:52,501
I like having someone to pray to when
I'm sad and tired and, and, and hurt,

299
00:13:52,881 --> 00:13:55,961
but I don't like when Jesus tells me,
'Take up your cross and follow me.'

300
00:13:55,981 --> 00:13:58,621
I don't like when he says, 'Love
your neighbor as yourself,'

301
00:13:58,621 --> 00:13:59,551
or, 'Love your enemies.'

302
00:13:59,551 --> 00:14:01,001
I don't like that part
of following Jesus."

303
00:14:02,331 --> 00:14:07,941
So maybe you wanted to follow Jesus
just so he could f- affirm you and

304
00:14:07,941 --> 00:14:10,811
support you, but then when Jesus steps
on your toes, you're like, "Oh, wait.

305
00:14:11,331 --> 00:14:12,411
That's not what I signed up for."

306
00:14:14,191 --> 00:14:14,601
So think about it.

307
00:14:14,601 --> 00:14:17,221
What do I want from following Jesus?

308
00:14:18,761 --> 00:14:21,601
Maybe you just want Jesus
to get you to heaven, right?

309
00:14:21,601 --> 00:14:23,601
Maybe you signed up to follow
Jesus 'cause hell is scary

310
00:14:23,611 --> 00:14:24,441
and you don't wanna go there.

311
00:14:26,411 --> 00:14:29,721
Again, that's-- It's like
dating someone because you

312
00:14:29,721 --> 00:14:30,721
don't like being single, right?

313
00:14:31,351 --> 00:14:32,251
We said that before.

314
00:14:33,831 --> 00:14:36,221
But that's not a good
reason to follow Jesus.

315
00:14:38,527 --> 00:14:41,917
'Cause ultimately, there's a lot
more to following Jesus than, "Oh,

316
00:14:41,917 --> 00:14:42,747
cool, I don't have to go to hell."

317
00:14:43,517 --> 00:14:43,807
Right?

318
00:14:45,137 --> 00:14:47,477
So maybe you really just want
heaven, you don't want Jesus.

319
00:14:48,787 --> 00:14:50,907
I, I remember Pastor BJ
asked it this way one time.

320
00:14:50,907 --> 00:14:53,347
He said, "If you got to heaven and Jesus
wasn't there, would you be disappointed?"

321
00:14:54,667 --> 00:14:54,837
Right?

322
00:14:54,837 --> 00:14:59,427
If you had perfect health,
perfect friends, everything you

323
00:14:59,427 --> 00:15:04,077
wanted, but no Jesus, would you
be like, "Yeah, I'll still do it"?

324
00:15:06,217 --> 00:15:10,217
Maybe then you're really following
Jesus to get what you want, and

325
00:15:10,217 --> 00:15:11,787
you're not really following Jesus.

326
00:15:12,197 --> 00:15:18,117
Right, and the whole point, uh, of
this is that Jesus is not about you.

327
00:15:19,807 --> 00:15:21,457
Jesus doesn't exist for you.

328
00:15:21,767 --> 00:15:23,107
You exist for Jesus.

329
00:15:24,157 --> 00:15:27,637
That's kind of the, the reorienting
thought you might need is, oh,

330
00:15:27,757 --> 00:15:32,187
following Jesus isn't for me to get
stuff, like, benefits from it, right?

331
00:15:32,187 --> 00:15:36,437
Following Jesus isn't, "Oh, well,
Jesus now is, is all about me,

332
00:15:36,437 --> 00:15:38,487
and he's supporting me, and he
l- he lives to make me happy.

333
00:15:38,487 --> 00:15:40,207
He does all this stuff for, for me."

334
00:15:43,135 --> 00:15:46,205
Following Jesus is actually
you following Jesus, right?

335
00:15:46,205 --> 00:15:52,335
It's not Jesus supporting you and, and
doing all this stuff for you, right?

336
00:15:56,095 --> 00:16:00,825
So all that's to say is there's a lot
of bad reasons to follow Jesus, right?

337
00:16:00,935 --> 00:16:04,005
And there's even good reasons to
follow Jesus, but don't let those

338
00:16:04,005 --> 00:16:06,385
good reasons become more important
than the main reason, right?

339
00:16:06,385 --> 00:16:11,205
Jesus is not a, a way for you to
get what you really want, and that's

340
00:16:11,205 --> 00:16:13,945
really what I want to warn you against.

341
00:16:13,945 --> 00:16:18,045
And so the second half of this
passage, we see Jesus ask different

342
00:16:18,045 --> 00:16:19,715
people the same question, okay?

343
00:16:19,825 --> 00:16:26,985
So back in our passage in, in Matthew
20, down in verse 29, Jesus talks

344
00:16:26,985 --> 00:16:28,215
to some different people, okay?

345
00:16:28,215 --> 00:16:31,265
In verse 29, Jesus and his
disciples, they leave Jericho,

346
00:16:31,655 --> 00:16:33,505
and a big crowd's following him.

347
00:16:33,935 --> 00:16:35,315
And look, behold, right?

348
00:16:35,315 --> 00:16:36,345
There's two blind men.

349
00:16:36,415 --> 00:16:39,245
They're sitting by the road, and
they heard that Jesus was passing

350
00:16:39,245 --> 00:16:44,245
by, and so they cry out, "Lord,
have mercy on us, Son of David."

351
00:16:45,405 --> 00:16:46,405
And the crowd rebuked them.

352
00:16:46,455 --> 00:16:48,085
So the crowd's like, "Guys, stop.

353
00:16:48,445 --> 00:16:50,205
You're, you're being embarrassing," right?

354
00:16:50,205 --> 00:16:51,245
"Why are you yelling at Jesus?

355
00:16:51,245 --> 00:16:51,795
Stop doing that."

356
00:16:52,245 --> 00:16:55,165
And they told them to be silent, but they
cried out all the more, the blind people.

357
00:16:55,165 --> 00:16:58,065
They said, "Lord, have
mercy on us, Son of David."

358
00:16:59,315 --> 00:17:00,385
And then Jesus stops.

359
00:17:01,245 --> 00:17:03,735
He calls to them and he says, "What
do you want me to do for you?"

360
00:17:04,655 --> 00:17:07,214
Same question, different people.

361
00:17:07,275 --> 00:17:10,214
Now, what I want you to notice
about these people here is that-

362
00:17:12,383 --> 00:17:14,242
They have something in common with Mrs.

363
00:17:14,242 --> 00:17:15,262
Zebedee, right?

364
00:17:16,153 --> 00:17:17,522
They want something from Jesus.

365
00:17:19,383 --> 00:17:21,143
But I, I want you to see
something a little different

366
00:17:23,474 --> 00:17:23,935
Mrs.

367
00:17:23,984 --> 00:17:29,205
Zebedee and her sons, right, James and
John, they, they asked because they

368
00:17:29,205 --> 00:17:31,395
wanted to make themselves great, right?

369
00:17:31,405 --> 00:17:33,905
They ask 'cause they
want important positions.

370
00:17:34,065 --> 00:17:36,495
They wanna sit at the right and
they wanna sit at the left, right?

371
00:17:36,775 --> 00:17:38,965
They're asking to make themselves great

372
00:17:41,119 --> 00:17:47,189
These blind men are asking
because they think Jesus is great.

373
00:17:48,309 --> 00:17:49,089
See the difference there?

374
00:17:49,839 --> 00:17:52,109
They're not asking to
make themselves great.

375
00:17:52,409 --> 00:17:56,549
Their, the reason they're asking
is because they think Jesus

376
00:17:56,559 --> 00:17:58,279
is great enough to help them

377
00:18:00,735 --> 00:18:07,755
So even though both people think Jesus
can do really awesome things, right?

378
00:18:07,965 --> 00:18:12,215
The, the sons of Zebedee, James and
John, they think Jesus really is gonna

379
00:18:12,215 --> 00:18:17,245
rule the world, and we wanna ride
along with him to, to importance.

380
00:18:18,465 --> 00:18:22,015
So they both think Jesus can do
great things, and that's what's

381
00:18:22,015 --> 00:18:23,155
so subtle about this, right?

382
00:18:23,345 --> 00:18:29,115
Is if, if maybe you really do believe
the right things about Jesus, maybe

383
00:18:29,115 --> 00:18:32,515
you really do think Jesus is God,
and the Bible is true and all this

384
00:18:32,515 --> 00:18:37,565
stuff, but you see that and you
wanna take advantage of it for you.

385
00:18:38,905 --> 00:18:39,495
Does that make sense?

386
00:18:40,465 --> 00:18:43,005
Because, so maybe you believe
the right things about Jesus.

387
00:18:43,785 --> 00:18:46,355
"Oh yeah, Jesus really
did raise from the dead.

388
00:18:46,355 --> 00:18:48,605
Jesus really can help me with my anxiety.

389
00:18:48,725 --> 00:18:54,445
Jesus really can give me a, a new
health and, and a new body and, and

390
00:18:54,545 --> 00:18:55,905
raise me from the dead one day."

391
00:18:56,385 --> 00:18:59,215
Maybe you really do believe those
things, but you see that and you say,

392
00:18:59,255 --> 00:19:03,045
"I'm gonna make myself great from that.

393
00:19:03,415 --> 00:19:06,455
I'm gonna capitalize on
that and, and do it for me."

394
00:19:07,805 --> 00:19:09,245
That's what Mrs.

395
00:19:09,245 --> 00:19:10,595
Zebedee and her sons did.

396
00:19:12,035 --> 00:19:15,875
What these blind men are doing is
they s- they believe the same thing.

397
00:19:15,885 --> 00:19:16,875
Son of David, right?

398
00:19:16,875 --> 00:19:17,495
He's the Messiah.

399
00:19:17,515 --> 00:19:18,185
He's the king.

400
00:19:18,265 --> 00:19:20,945
He's the one who's gonna fulfill
all these Old Testament promises,

401
00:19:20,945 --> 00:19:23,395
and he's the one the whole Old
Testament's about, and it, it's…

402
00:19:23,615 --> 00:19:24,255
He's great.

403
00:19:25,845 --> 00:19:31,125
But they're not asking to capitalize
and make the most for them.

404
00:19:31,935 --> 00:19:33,585
They're asking because they believe it

405
00:19:35,679 --> 00:19:37,929
They're saying, "Have mercy on us," right?

406
00:19:38,099 --> 00:19:39,559
"You don't have to do this for us.

407
00:19:39,579 --> 00:19:41,769
We're not entitled to greatness from you.

408
00:19:43,319 --> 00:19:48,899
We're just here if you
want to heal us," right?

409
00:19:48,909 --> 00:19:50,169
"Have mercy on us."

410
00:19:51,899 --> 00:19:56,029
So they believe similar things,
but they're asking because they

411
00:19:56,029 --> 00:20:01,669
think he's great, not because
they also want to be great, right?

412
00:20:01,679 --> 00:20:07,739
If, if you're entering into following
Jesus because you want a lot out of it,

413
00:20:08,489 --> 00:20:13,139
and that's your primary goal, that's
the type of person that, that Jesus

414
00:20:13,139 --> 00:20:14,879
is, is warning against in this chapter.

415
00:20:16,699 --> 00:20:19,469
If, if you're really following
Jesus so you could build your

416
00:20:19,469 --> 00:20:23,329
kingdom, that's the type of person
Jesus is saying, "Yeah, you're not

417
00:20:23,329 --> 00:20:25,299
really following me the right way."

418
00:20:26,079 --> 00:20:28,579
These people, they're asking,
they're calling out to Jesus because

419
00:20:28,579 --> 00:20:30,759
they think he's great, right?

420
00:20:30,769 --> 00:20:33,659
He's the star of this show, not them.

421
00:20:35,509 --> 00:20:37,919
So Jesus, he calls out to them, he says,
"What do you want me to do for you?"

422
00:20:39,829 --> 00:20:43,879
And then they said to him,
"Lord, let our eyes be opened."

423
00:20:44,689 --> 00:20:47,209
And Jesus in pity touched their
eyes, and immediately they recovered

424
00:20:47,209 --> 00:20:48,549
their sight and followed him.

425
00:20:50,409 --> 00:20:51,229
So they get what they want.

426
00:20:52,709 --> 00:20:53,819
They got what they wanted from Jesus.

427
00:20:53,839 --> 00:20:55,779
They, they, they got their sight.

428
00:20:56,019 --> 00:20:57,319
But what do they do after
they get what they want?

429
00:20:58,489 --> 00:20:59,029
They follow him.

430
00:21:00,309 --> 00:21:02,659
They don't say, "Great, you gave
me what you want, now I'm gonna

431
00:21:02,669 --> 00:21:03,869
walk away and do my own thing."

432
00:21:06,055 --> 00:21:06,225
Right?

433
00:21:06,225 --> 00:21:08,295
They don't say, "Well, Jesus,
yeah, you got me my good friends.

434
00:21:08,305 --> 00:21:09,155
You fixed my life.

435
00:21:09,545 --> 00:21:09,875
Great.

436
00:21:09,985 --> 00:21:10,515
I'm good.

437
00:21:10,625 --> 00:21:12,515
I'm gonna do my own thing now."

438
00:21:14,145 --> 00:21:17,895
They, they understand that, oh,
this is really just a side effect

439
00:21:20,511 --> 00:21:23,901
This is the best part,
is I get to follow Jesus

440
00:21:30,623 --> 00:21:34,413
So in this situation,
they get what they want.

441
00:21:35,883 --> 00:21:38,983
But who's the star of this show?

442
00:21:40,683 --> 00:21:42,413
Jesus is, right?

443
00:21:42,793 --> 00:21:47,863
What they, what they want is just
a platform for Jesus to be great.

444
00:21:49,393 --> 00:21:49,913
You see that?

445
00:21:50,063 --> 00:21:54,923
What they want is just a way for
Jesus to show how great he is.

446
00:21:56,803 --> 00:22:02,143
It's not a way for them to
make a lot out of who they are.

447
00:22:03,953 --> 00:22:06,313
So it's okay to get what
you want from Jesus.

448
00:22:07,243 --> 00:22:09,283
Maybe you do want security from Jesus.

449
00:22:09,533 --> 00:22:13,183
You do want the emotional security
of, man, I get to be loved by God,

450
00:22:13,183 --> 00:22:16,663
and his love is faithful, it never
changes, and I always can, can

451
00:22:16,663 --> 00:22:19,163
rely on the fact that God loves me

452
00:22:21,405 --> 00:22:23,525
And you feel safe and secure in that love.

453
00:22:23,685 --> 00:22:24,355
That's awesome.

454
00:22:26,315 --> 00:22:28,595
But the whole point of that
is that's a platform for you

455
00:22:28,595 --> 00:22:29,755
to say, "Isn't Jesus great?

456
00:22:30,155 --> 00:22:31,055
Look at how he loves me."

457
00:22:32,565 --> 00:22:34,545
It's not for you to say, "Great,
look at all the love I got.

458
00:22:35,525 --> 00:22:36,295
I'm so lovable.

459
00:22:36,295 --> 00:22:37,045
I'm so awesome."

460
00:22:37,845 --> 00:22:39,245
That's s- so you see what I mean?

461
00:22:39,635 --> 00:22:44,315
You can still get you what you want
from Jesus, but who's that really about?

462
00:22:46,045 --> 00:22:47,105
They got what they want

463
00:22:49,151 --> 00:22:50,891
But it makes Jesus look good.

464
00:22:52,291 --> 00:22:56,381
Whereas the other people, what they wanted
from Jesus was to make them look good.

465
00:22:58,221 --> 00:22:58,411
Right?

466
00:22:58,411 --> 00:23:01,641
So maybe you're following Jesus and you're
doing a lot of good Christian things.

467
00:23:02,421 --> 00:23:04,301
You're reading your Bible,
you're praying, you're serving at

468
00:23:04,301 --> 00:23:05,831
church, you're sharing the gospel.

469
00:23:05,921 --> 00:23:09,331
You're, you're doing a lot
of good Christian things, but

470
00:23:09,741 --> 00:23:11,251
who's the star of that show?

471
00:23:12,381 --> 00:23:15,341
Are you doing the good Christian
things to impress your parents, to

472
00:23:15,341 --> 00:23:19,281
impress your, your classmates, your,
your friends, to look good at church?

473
00:23:20,301 --> 00:23:23,021
Or are you doing the good Christian things
because you're saying, "God is great"?

474
00:23:28,063 --> 00:23:30,063
So it's okay to get what you
want from following Jesus.

475
00:23:31,643 --> 00:23:35,513
But what- getting what you want
is supposed to be a platform or a

476
00:23:35,513 --> 00:23:39,953
sign or a billboard to say, "Jesus
is great, and look what he did."

477
00:23:41,933 --> 00:23:46,593
So even maybe when you share
your testimony, maybe you

478
00:23:46,593 --> 00:23:47,783
should think about it that way.

479
00:23:48,803 --> 00:23:50,323
Well, look at all the
stuff God did in my life.

480
00:23:51,373 --> 00:23:53,763
Look what he did, right?

481
00:23:53,943 --> 00:23:57,173
Rather than just, "Oh, well, yeah, look
at all the stuff God did in my life.

482
00:23:57,453 --> 00:23:59,163
Wow, I'm like, I'm so awesome now."

483
00:24:00,263 --> 00:24:00,363
Right?

484
00:24:00,363 --> 00:24:01,763
That's a horrible testimony about God.

485
00:24:01,773 --> 00:24:02,923
That's a great testimony about you.

486
00:24:04,263 --> 00:24:07,263
That's not a good testimony about God

487
00:24:10,751 --> 00:24:14,761
So when God gives you help, right?

488
00:24:14,761 --> 00:24:17,191
When God gives you stuff,
when God fixes your problems,

489
00:24:17,191 --> 00:24:18,341
when God benefits you, right?

490
00:24:18,341 --> 00:24:21,761
When, when you're anxious about something
and you pray and you trust God and you're,

491
00:24:21,761 --> 00:24:25,981
and, and you say, "Man, God is sovereign
and, and he's in control and he loves me,"

492
00:24:25,981 --> 00:24:27,961
and so you're not anxious anymore, right?

493
00:24:30,801 --> 00:24:33,681
The celebration is not just,
"Oh, I'm not anxious anymore."

494
00:24:34,921 --> 00:24:35,161
Right?

495
00:24:35,161 --> 00:24:39,591
The celebration is, "God is trustworthy
and He's faithful and He loves me

496
00:24:41,855 --> 00:24:43,725
That's what the highlight is.

497
00:24:44,195 --> 00:24:46,145
The highlight isn't God fixed my problem.

498
00:24:46,285 --> 00:24:49,075
The highlight is God
fixed my problem, right?

499
00:24:51,263 --> 00:24:52,843
And that works with anything else, right?

500
00:24:52,843 --> 00:24:56,153
When, when your friendships
are, are good, right?

501
00:24:56,153 --> 00:24:58,553
Because your friendships with,
with Christians, and they love…

502
00:24:58,613 --> 00:25:01,383
You, you love each other, and you're
committed to each other, and, and

503
00:25:01,383 --> 00:25:03,763
you have each other's back, and you
don't gossip about each other, and,

504
00:25:04,083 --> 00:25:07,373
and you hold each other accountable,
and you encourage each other, right?

505
00:25:08,293 --> 00:25:11,693
The, the s- the highlight
of that relationship is not,

506
00:25:11,713 --> 00:25:13,073
"Wow, we're such great friends.

507
00:25:13,073 --> 00:25:13,953
Isn't this awesome?

508
00:25:14,523 --> 00:25:15,713
This is so good for me."

509
00:25:16,873 --> 00:25:20,133
The highlight of that relationship is,
is look what God does with relationships.

510
00:25:20,493 --> 00:25:24,433
He takes two sinful people, and he can
help them love each other really well.

511
00:25:25,943 --> 00:25:28,753
That's the highlight of the
relationship is, is look what God did.

512
00:25:29,773 --> 00:25:33,713
And so when you get what you
want from God, make sure you're

513
00:25:33,713 --> 00:25:35,863
looking at it that way, right?

514
00:25:35,873 --> 00:25:41,403
Jesus gave me what I wanted, yeah,
and that's why He's so great, right?

515
00:25:41,403 --> 00:25:47,623
What you got is really just to help
you point to who gave it to you

516
00:25:49,951 --> 00:25:52,751
That's really what all
of God's gifts are for

517
00:25:54,951 --> 00:26:02,091
I heard one person, the way they described
it, they said, um, God's gifts are kinda

518
00:26:02,091 --> 00:26:06,711
like sun rays, and the point is for…

519
00:26:06,721 --> 00:26:09,171
Like, so you know if you've ever
been in, like, a dark room with,

520
00:26:09,171 --> 00:26:12,231
like, a tiny window, and you can
see, like, the light coming down?

521
00:26:13,051 --> 00:26:14,611
The whole point is for you to…

522
00:26:14,691 --> 00:26:16,541
Like, that's, like, that's
the good gift, right?

523
00:26:16,541 --> 00:26:21,411
You got a, you got a good friendship, or
God changed your, your heart, or God fixed

524
00:26:21,411 --> 00:26:23,081
your relationships or, or whatever, right?

525
00:26:23,081 --> 00:26:26,551
And then that's a good gift, and
you take your eye and you trace

526
00:26:26,551 --> 00:26:31,181
it back up to the window where
the light's coming from, right?

527
00:26:31,181 --> 00:26:36,001
So when you have good things in your life,
when God gives you what you want, you,

528
00:26:36,031 --> 00:26:37,851
what you, you do is you don't say, "Wow."

529
00:26:37,851 --> 00:26:39,921
You don't look at the spot on the
floor where the light is and say,

530
00:26:39,921 --> 00:26:40,871
"Wow, that's so cool," right?

531
00:26:41,201 --> 00:26:43,951
You, you trace your eye, you follow
the beam, and you look up at the

532
00:26:43,951 --> 00:26:46,231
window and you say, "Wow, look at that.

533
00:26:46,251 --> 00:26:46,891
Look at God.

534
00:26:47,341 --> 00:26:47,981
Look what He did."

535
00:26:49,461 --> 00:26:50,301
And that's what we wanna do.

536
00:26:51,471 --> 00:26:58,831
So the whole point, right, of this sermon,
I, I was joking with Kelly at the office

537
00:26:58,851 --> 00:27:01,451
'cause I said the sermon was pointless
'cause there's no blanks on the worksheet.

538
00:27:01,611 --> 00:27:03,611
But there's really one point, right?

539
00:27:03,731 --> 00:27:05,751
Is Jesus is not a means to an end.

540
00:27:06,391 --> 00:27:06,551
Right?

541
00:27:06,731 --> 00:27:09,601
Jesus is not a pathway to
get you what you really want

542
00:27:11,709 --> 00:27:15,819
Jesus giving you what you want
is an opportunity for you to

543
00:27:15,819 --> 00:27:18,069
say, "Look how great Jesus is."

544
00:27:20,223 --> 00:27:25,923
You probably know the story in
Luke 15 of the prodigal son, right?

545
00:27:26,573 --> 00:27:30,043
He wants his inheritance.

546
00:27:30,043 --> 00:27:35,103
He wants to go live however he wants to
live and do his thing, and so he basically

547
00:27:35,113 --> 00:27:36,413
says, "Dad, I wish you were dead.

548
00:27:37,013 --> 00:27:38,093
Give me my money now.

549
00:27:38,413 --> 00:27:39,593
I don't really want you to be alive.

550
00:27:39,593 --> 00:27:41,673
I just want your stuff,
so give me my stuff."

551
00:27:41,673 --> 00:27:43,553
And he goes and he wastes
all his money, right?

552
00:27:43,553 --> 00:27:45,053
He spends it all, right?

553
00:27:45,053 --> 00:27:49,723
He proverbially, you know, goes to,
goes to Vegas and blows all his money,

554
00:27:50,043 --> 00:27:54,713
and then he doesn't have anything left,
and he's, like, eating with the pigs,

555
00:27:55,303 --> 00:27:57,433
and he's eating the pigs' food, right?

556
00:27:57,843 --> 00:27:59,043
And then he's like, "You know what?

557
00:27:59,083 --> 00:27:59,903
This is horrible.

558
00:28:00,073 --> 00:28:01,103
I've wasted everything.

559
00:28:01,233 --> 00:28:02,183
I've thrown my life away."

560
00:28:02,523 --> 00:28:04,093
And he comes back, right?

561
00:28:04,393 --> 00:28:06,493
And when he comes back, I don't know
if you remember this, when he comes

562
00:28:06,493 --> 00:28:10,773
back to his father, he says, "I'm
not worthy to be called your son."

563
00:28:12,363 --> 00:28:12,673
Right?

564
00:28:13,223 --> 00:28:21,613
And he doesn't really care about
all this stuff anymore, right?

565
00:28:21,613 --> 00:28:24,383
When he comes back, he's not like, "Oh,
wow, look, I get to live in this awesome

566
00:28:24,383 --> 00:28:28,513
house, and I get to have, you know, I get
to have my, my brother back," which he

567
00:28:28,513 --> 00:28:30,663
probably didn't like his brother very much
'cause his brother was kind of a loser,

568
00:28:31,273 --> 00:28:34,543
um, which tr- his brother's, like, kind
of the point of the parable actually,

569
00:28:34,683 --> 00:28:36,643
but that's a whole 'nother story.

570
00:28:36,793 --> 00:28:41,233
But, um, he's not like, "Oh, wow,
look at this yard," and, "Oh, look

571
00:28:41,233 --> 00:28:42,683
at this bed I get to sleep in.

572
00:28:42,683 --> 00:28:44,253
Look at this great food," right?

573
00:28:44,253 --> 00:28:49,583
What he's most excited about
is his, is his dad, right?

574
00:28:51,163 --> 00:28:52,033
And he, he, he…

575
00:28:52,043 --> 00:28:55,143
Basically, what he's saying is, is,
"I don't want your stuff anymore.

576
00:28:55,143 --> 00:28:55,843
I want you

577
00:28:57,991 --> 00:29:00,851
And that's what I want
you to say about God.

578
00:29:02,461 --> 00:29:02,611
Right?

579
00:29:02,611 --> 00:29:03,491
That's what I want you to say about God.

580
00:29:03,491 --> 00:29:06,531
I, I don't want you to say, "Well,
look at all of God's cool stuff."

581
00:29:07,861 --> 00:29:09,751
I want you to say, "I want Jesus."

582
00:29:10,861 --> 00:29:14,601
And if I get his stuff, great,
and he has a lot of great

583
00:29:14,741 --> 00:29:16,501
stuff that he gives you, right?

584
00:29:17,521 --> 00:29:18,701
But the stuff's not the point.

585
00:29:19,881 --> 00:29:20,671
Jesus is the point.

586
00:29:21,781 --> 00:29:24,511
Well, let's pray, and we can talk
about that more in small groups.

587
00:29:29,823 --> 00:29:35,433
Father in heaven, we are grateful that
you, like the father in Jesus' parable

588
00:29:35,493 --> 00:29:39,013
about the prodigal son, that you welcome

589
00:29:41,043 --> 00:29:48,963
anyone who comes back to you
with humble, repentant faith.

590
00:29:50,573 --> 00:29:57,083
And so I pray for anyone in this room
who feels like they're too far away

591
00:29:57,083 --> 00:30:01,743
from you, they've sinned too much, and
maybe they have been living their whole

592
00:30:01,743 --> 00:30:03,893
life wanting your stuff instead of you.

593
00:30:05,433 --> 00:30:08,463
I pray for anyone who feels like
that, who feels like you wouldn't

594
00:30:08,463 --> 00:30:09,693
welcome them, you wouldn't love them.

595
00:30:09,693 --> 00:30:14,823
I pray that they would do what these
blind men in our chapter today did.

596
00:30:14,923 --> 00:30:17,463
They would cry out to you
and say, "Have mercy on us."

597
00:30:17,523 --> 00:30:22,933
And I pray that you, just like Jesus,
would look on them with compassion

598
00:30:24,073 --> 00:30:26,843
and turn to them and forgive them.

599
00:30:28,293 --> 00:30:33,293
And, um, I pray for those of us
who have already had that amazing--

600
00:30:34,543 --> 00:30:39,773
experienced that amazing love, that
we would remember that when you do

601
00:30:39,783 --> 00:30:44,853
give us what we want, that it wouldn't
become a distraction from who you are,

602
00:30:44,913 --> 00:30:46,123
but it would highlight who you are.

603
00:30:46,683 --> 00:30:49,753
It would highlight how good you are,
how loving you are, how faithful

604
00:30:49,753 --> 00:30:53,873
you are, how big you are, how

605
00:30:56,071 --> 00:31:00,851
righteous you are, and I pray that
you protect us from being distracted

606
00:31:00,851 --> 00:31:04,161
by all the amazing things you do,
and that instead we would use all the

607
00:31:04,161 --> 00:31:08,021
amazing things you do in our lives
and in the lives of others to turn

608
00:31:08,021 --> 00:31:09,761
attention back to you and who you are.

609
00:31:10,551 --> 00:31:11,561
We pray this all in Jesus' name.

610
00:31:12,441 --> 00:31:12,641
Amen