The Highest Vista of All [Part 1]

Pastor author and Bible teacher Alan Wright blessing might we forfeit just because we hide ourselves from the very God wants to bless us that Esther Allen right another message of good news that will help you see yourself in a whole new light.

By being excited for you to hear the teaching today.

In the series.

Free yourself from yourself. Fire program I want to make sure you know how to get our special resource right now could be yours for your donation this month to Helen Wright ministries as you listen to today's message go deeper as we send you today's special offer. Contact us at pastoralan.org or call 877-544-4860 that's 877-544-4860. More on that later in the program.

Now let's get started with today's teaching here Allen right as we been learning. Shame is simply put, is a lie. This is you don't measure up, and you need to figure out what's wrong and you need to fix it nor make yourself acceptable. If you ever gonna be really love then you had to be more or do more than you are now and in that gap between what you are now what you think you ought to be in that gap. There is great temptation because there's great anxiety.

It is probably the greatest source of anxiety and all the universe and so as we've learned all about what shame is about how it is like a stronghold. How it can come tumbling down by the power of the gospel and we have seen in some practical ways how it is that we can help other people without shaming them and we have learned also about how it is that the gospel can be proclaimed in a way that does not bring religious shame involved and I want to show you in this in this segment how it is theologically that I have been transformed by the gospel in our next segment will be talking some about about just how an encounter with God can change when I get some personal testimony to share with you but but I want to share with you that that there is a revelation that has changed my life and it is a revelation of what the new covenant actually is, and always known there was an old covenant, and a new covenant under the old covenant was a covenant of Works. The new covenant was called a covenant of grace.

But I always thought of this way in the old covenant, the Lord said to Moses tell the people if they will obey me in the be my treasured people and I will bless them and the people said will do everything that you commanded us to do and I knew that the new covenant wasn't wasn't like the old and that it was about a set of rules like that. And yet, when I became a Christian when I realized is that I felt like I was in a covenant with God and Goddess and I'm I'm saving you by my grace, but your part is to to walk with me faithfully serve me diligently study your Bible, pray and be a good disciple and love me with all your heart and if you keep up your side of the covenant, then you'll be really blessed. I think that's the way that most Christians think about about the new covenant, but if you think of it that way. What really is so different about it from the old covenant. I'm in the old covenant people were keeping the law and God said your my people, and you belong to me. In it, the more you obey, the better will go with you if we come into the new covenant we so it's a covenant of grace. And yet was I the more that I obey you and I stay in your word and I pray I'm a faithful disciple and I give a serve than the better will go with me and I'll be your hobby, you're probably your disciple and I'll keep my end of the covenant what's really so different about that mean we know that Jesus has come in.

We know that is a covenant of grace. But what really makes the new covenant new one talk about when I found out something that for all my Christian life I didn't understand about the new covenant. It changed everything, to tell the story of the new covenant from an old covenant story that's got to be one of my favorites. It's the story of the chef must fit the chef is far is I know is the only old character in the Bible, Old Testament new, whose name means essentially shame the root of the chef. It is shame and to walk through the story of myth of the chef is to lead us into the idea of covenant in a way that will point us to the understanding of the new covenant, and to me when you come to that point of revelation.

It's like well I called the chapter, the highest vista of all because it's like sometimes in a beautiful fall day in North Carolina.

If you could ride up the Blue Ridge Pkwy. and you come to us what's called a scenic overlook and you look out and you see how beautiful is this beautiful site then you know you can travel a little higher and get to a better Vista and to me the new covenant for a Christian.

It's the highest vista of all and so I want to look at him chef to understand the story of much of the chef whose name means shame you have to really look at the story of Jonathan and David because there's a lot more in the Bible about Jonathan and David, then there is about mother but chef and that's the big part of the story of my favorite chef.

If you familiar with King David.

You know that he came into power after King Saul and King Saul was a very jealous really mentally ill king who hated David was threatened by David when David began to have militaries that would have success and be lauded by the people as Saul hated and despised and wanted to kill David so this story begins with Saul, King Saul, the reigning king of Israel despising David because of the threat that David was to the throne, and all the people began to love David. They began to chant great songs about how great David was well through a lot of history here in which David has to run for his life from Saul and David lives honorably. There is an unlikely friendship that emerges between Saul's son Jonathan and David. In fact, they became as close as you could possibly become his two friends could possibly be. The Bible says that they love each other as their own souls. It was a deep knit friendship. It was a spirit thing is a spirit thing. And what happened was when Jonathan recognized that David was going to come to power eventually Jonathan made a covenant with David and this was an amazing arrangement because you had David, who was considered to be the king's enemy in a friendship alliance with the king's son. And so Jonathan is helping David by warning him and giving him information and David for his part in the covenant is going to make a solemn pledge that no matter what happens he'll take care Jonathan's descendents and we pick up reading the story and first Samuel is in first Samuel chapter 20 where I pick up the story at verse 14 and this is this is this is the covenant that they made the first Samuel 2014, Jonathan says to David. If I'm still alive. Show me the steadfast love of the Lord just pause and say that word for steadfast love for my favorite Hebrew words tested it. It is the word for covenantal love. You could translate unfailing kindness, steadfast love, the covenantal love of the Lord was like to just call it the covenantal love of God. It is a love that is rooted in covenant show me that has said of the Lord, that I may not die, and do not cut off your steadfast love tested from my house forever. When the Lord cuts off every one of the enemies of David's from the face of the earth, and Jonathan made a covenant with the house of David saying. May the Lord take vengeance on David's enemies and Jonathan made David swear again by his love for him, for he loved him as he loved his own soul. So a covenant is been made a covenant between Jonathan and David, an unlikely covenant, but as a covenant was Jonathan who is been such a friend to David and is helped spare David's life is now saying to David when you take power which you promised this and are confident that if I'm still living continue show steadfast love to me and never remove your steadfast love never remove kindness from all of my descendents because what Jonathan knew was it was it was customary that if a king was dethroned and in ancient cultures as it still is, in some cultures if the king is removed from the throne, the first thing that the new king does. Often times is to seek out any possible threats to the throne from the previous king's lineage so you're assuming that David when he comes to power.

If you like most king would have all of the king's children and grandsons all of Saul's grandson. The lineage banished or imprisoned or executed. So is making a covenant saying don't kill them, show them love Alan Wright will have more teaching moment from today's important series to be accepted perfectly free to be yourself with no fear of injection rolled her eyes.

Last no more anxious feeling that you feel like the pressure is always on longing for life with no show in paradise before sin came into the world Bible tells us in this relationship notion since the fall of the human heart has been riddled with shame around camp into the temple scene condescend tiny perfect in order to meet others to decide.

Since I'm not a measure at them as well. Right now the road heart is poisoned by Shane and there's only grace of God in Jesus Christ. How we cleaned look for yourself yourself exposes the lies of soul. He leads you into a revolution of God's love that heals your cell discomfort freedom joy as you shall performance-based living. Shame and fear for good life-changing full-length book from Alan Wright for yourself. The gospel is shared when you get Alan Wright Ministries were in the final days of this special offer being made available to you. Call us at 877-544-4860 877-544-4861 come to our website pastor out.org today's teaching. Now you once again is David says yes and they have made this covenant so the covenant was to assure that David would not extinguish the lineage of Saul and Jonathan, and their descendents. A covenant agreement between two in the story continues because what happens is that news does come to my favorite chef who is young child just five years old and to the nanny that keeps my favorite chef is in watching worrying about this day. Knowing and fearing as everybody knew the David was a come to power eventually this day would come. If we read in second Samuel chapter 4 verse four Jonathan, the son of Saul had a son who was crippled in his feet.

He was five years old when the news about Saul and Jonathan came from Jezreel and his nurse took him up and fled and she fled in her haste he fell and became lame in his name was my favorite chef. He was, he was named shame and now he has suffered a great fall because he and his nanny were running in fear of the king. They didn't know and now he's crippled a great fear of the king that he assumes what Harmon a great fall but left him lame great fear and a great fall and immobilized start sounding familiar great fear and a great fall. Even though he didn't know the king and didn't know about the covenant that had been made between David and Jonathan so chef goes into hiding because now the purpose of his life is to just not be found out.

Just like we learned all throughout our study together.

What shame does is it leads you into hiding because you don't want to be found out, for fear of punishment and and this is my favorite chef and he is he is hiding from from the king that he doesn't know had made a covenant with his father to bless the descendents, including the fish. What blessing might we forfeit just because we hide ourselves from the very God wants to bless us the story then continues after David has come to power in second Samuel chapter 9 David has come to the throne, and David has expanded the borders of Israel.

He has secured them and with military prowess. He has shown that he loves the people that he loves God he is beloved by all the people.

David is is the most wonderful king you could ever imagine having and he is so full of gratitude.

You remember he had been running.

He had been running just for his life from King Saul. And now he's being is not only been spared but God is broadly put on the throne of Israel, and he has all things at his hands. His life is full. His heart is full of gratitude is full of worship is full of wonder.

He's full of celebration and so this is what happens at chapter 9 verse one.

David said, is there still anyone left of the house of Saul, that I may show him kindness for Jonathan's sake. He just is saying is there anybody that I couldn't bless I think sometimes people have a image of God is the reason he created the world and created all of us was because he was sitting up in heaven, lonely, and is like you know what am I gonna do appear got up there just twiddling his thumbs in his like I know I need to make some people so I won't be so lonely and and any made you and me and and we came in and kind of saved God from his loneliness.

What a silly idea God was happy all by himself. Father, son and Holy Spirit sublime Trinity. He he made the world because God is so full of wonder and beauty and creativity that he is like a master painter and he was ready to paint his masterpiece he was. He was the sculptor and he was ready to demonstrate the beauty that was within him everything that has been made, including you, being made in his own image. You were made of the overflow of God's fullness. He is full of life and full of love and so God is pictured here as one like King David he is the king that he is upon the throne of the cosmos in the heart of God. If you understand the heart of God understand it like this. God is always saying is there anyone that I could bless anyone that would be ready to receive the magnificence of my love. David is just saying I don't even know if Jonathan has any living descendents. Any children any grandchildren I really know if they exist, but I just feel like blessing somebody because of the covenant that I made with Jonathan, is there anybody and so the servant number verse number two, whose name was he, but was called to David and the king said to use the monies that I'm your servant, and the king said, is there not still someone of the house of Saul, that I might show the kindness of God to him and Zima said to the king. There is still a son of Jonathan. He's crippled in his feet and the king said to him, where is he, Zima said to the king. He is in the house of my care, the son of Miele at low bar. Scholars say that load of our either means the place of no pasture or it may just mean no place barren place. The man whose name was Shane, who was crippled because he fell during a great anxious run was hiding out in the place of no pasture, no life, no productivity, fearing being found out existing but not really living with OSHA and all the while he had no idea that there was a king in Israel that was calling out for someone just like if we could just understand the heart of God. If we could just get a glimpse into the heart of the king of the cosmos. What we would see is that he is pursuing us with his Majesty with his love and he wants us to experience Ellen right. Today's teachings title the highest visit of all this in our series for yourself yourself replacing the bookmark here to pick up on the remaining part of this teaching. Next time, but Alan Wright is back in the studio here in just a few moments and will have a closing good new start for you today. Stick with us like to be accepted perfectly free to be yourself with no fear of injection rolled her eyes in front of you and Lottie last no more anxious feeling that you feel like the pressure is always on longing for your life with no show in paradise before sin came into the world's relationship notion since the fall has been riddled with shame you can't send out tiny perfect in order to meet others to decide, since on a measure at them as well. Right now the road ahead is pleasing Shane and there's only grace of God in Jesus Christ.

We cleaned look for yourself yourself exposes the lies of soul. He leads you into a revolution of God's love that heals your cell discover freedom joy as you shall performance be spreading shame and fear for good life-changing full-length book from Alan Wright for yourself. The gospel is shared when you get Alan Wright Ministries this broadcast is only possible because of listener financial support. When you get today. We will send you a special offer were in the final days of this special offer being made available to you.

We are happy to send this to you as I thanks from Alan Wright Ministries call us at 877-544-4860 877-544-4861 come to our website past Rowan.org Esther Allen in the studio in our parting good new start for today. Theology is thrilling when you understand the story of the Bible and it is a story not of God coming in and telling us what we ought to do. It's a story of God coming to rescue us and many many people today are fearful, thinking that they really got close to God. It might not be a good thing but in the story of Martha Bischoff. What we see and were going to see tomorrow is that God has made it possible in Christ for you to come to his banqueting table where you join the Royal feast and there. Your shame is covered and there you are fully and completely accepted because of a new covenant in Christ. It's not like the old covenant there was between the people and God where the people said will try hard to obey the new covenant is a covenant that is between the father and the son and the sun has made in The covenant on your behalf when you are in Christ and therefore your in the new covenant and a recipient of all its benefits, Daniel. I can't think of any higher vista of theology than that the glory of the covenant of the grace of God. Guilt and shame are two words that the typically in the Christian world go hand-in-hand together, but there is a distinction between the two right well will learn a lot about your guilt is a real thing right but commit a crime guilty and I have guilt so were all guilty. We all we all have sin, we all fall short of the glory of God. To say shame off you is not to soften up on sin was not what it means is not to say that grace means that you get salt on sin either as status, as was the solution. All this and what we're distinguishing between is what some have called true guilt and and fault guilt but shame is something that's not just the same thing as false guilt and is not even the same thing exactly his condemnation. What will you learn is that shame really is a system of thought. It is a whole stronghold of the house of thoughts a way of looking at life way. Look at your own life is subtle at times and you don't realize it. And then there are others who've been through the deepest and darkest types of trauma, for whom it is a poison that's been taken and very deeply is very toxic, but the conviction of sin is will discover is a good thing. That's a gift from God is good to know how we can go a better way is good to know how the grace of God can lead us into a better way of living. So that's the grace of God conviction. This is not something to be ever shy about is not something we should run to his goods from God. Shame the shame that I describe in this series they know something we say it is toxic. Today's good news message listener supported production Alan Wright Ministries