Latest / Near East Christian Fellowship Sermons / The Supernatural Nature of the Christian Gathering (Part 6)

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The Supernatural Nature of the Christian Gathering (Part 6) · Near East Christian Fellowship Sermons

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Welcome to NECF sermons. Each message here is
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designed to uplift and strengthen you in your
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walk with God. Don't miss out. Stay with us until
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the end for our rewarding experience. Let's dive
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right in. Good evening everyone. I want to thank
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God for these opportunities to bring the world
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again to us. And I also want to thank the pastorate
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for this opportunity. So today we're going to
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continue with what we were doing on Sunday, right?
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And we were looking at part of what I've been
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teaching, the supernatural nature of the Christian
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gathering. And Matthew chapter 28 is where we
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have been at. Matthew chapter 28, verse 18, verse
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18 to 20. And it says, Jesus came and spoke to
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them, saying, All authority has been given to
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me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make
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disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the
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name of the Father, the Son, and of the Holy
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Spirit, teaching them to observe all the things
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that have commanded you, and, lo and which you
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all wish, to the end of the age. Praise the Lord.
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And we said that this is the mandate of every
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believer this is what God has given to us to
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go and make disciples of all nations to go and
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preach the gospel praise the Lord the God's desire
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is for us that we are discipled so that we disciple
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others that his work continues on the earth that
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God's work continues on the earth that we carry
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out or we continue to carry out the mandate of
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God on the earth so he said that He, just as
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the Father has sent Him, we saw in John, so also
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He sent us, praise the Lord. So we are going
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and we are, God is walking through us, we are
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in partnership with the Holy Spirit to carry
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out the agendas and the plan of God on the earth,
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praise the Lord. And we said that that involves
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discipleship, praise the Lord. That you learn
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the Word, that you learn to minister and also
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that you learn to apply it, praise the Lord,
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in your daily life. And so we said that Jesus
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said to them in verse 20, he said, teaching them
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to observe all the things that have commanded
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you and law and virtue always, even to the end
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of the age. So they were certain things that
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Jesus has taught or Jesus has commanded his disciples
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that he's saying they should teach, praise the
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Lord. And we said it's important that We pay
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attention to these things because Christ did
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not teach about his experience. Praise the Lord.
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Christ did not teach about maybe he would tell
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us that, you know, in the world above that there
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are some things here and there. He didn't bother
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about that. He came to teach particular things
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and those things were already given. Praise the
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Lord. Those things were already given. So he
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came to bring revelation he came to bring explanation
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he came and he was bringing explanation to people
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praise the lord he was doing he was explaining
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to people he was telling them the things that
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has been written concerning him he interpreted
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the scriptures praise the lord so even as we
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go out to teach it's important that we teach
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the things that he has commanded us to teach
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praise the lord so sometimes I don't know for
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any other person but sometimes I might be reading
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the scriptures and maybe you just see maybe you're
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reading a story and then if you're not very careful
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your heart can lean towards something. Praise
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the Lord. Your heart can lean towards a direction.
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You start maybe applying it, not really interpreting
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the scripture but because maybe that thing you're
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just seeing for the first time is fascinating
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to you. You're just following that direction.
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Praise the Lord. So sometimes like this example
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a good example is I remember some time ago I
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was We you know the cave where David was right
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the cave where David was and Actually, I was
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okay. Let me just read through that place. There
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was already a lot said in the scriptures about
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the cave the things Particularly that happened
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in that cave. There were not a lot of things
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that were said about it praise the Lord so what
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sometimes you can be tempted to begin to maybe
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talk about it you know maybe David was there
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and as he was there you know the Lord was ministering
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to him he was there so many things like that
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that was not said praise the Lord so it's important
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that we pay attention to the things that he has
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commanded us to say so Jesus was teaching from
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a particular place he was he was teaching from
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we said that the Bible that he had was from was
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Genesis to Malachi this is what he taught This
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is the explanation he was giving people. In Luke
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chapter 24, we saw from verse 24 to 25 to 27,
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and 44 to 45, where he was explaining the scriptures.
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He was interpreting the scriptures containing
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himself. So he took his time to explain to them
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the things containing himself. So when he says
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that he opened their understanding, he did that
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by explanation. Praise the Lord. So how people
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can understand is by explanation by you diligently
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interpreting the scriptures and we said that
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it's important that a believer know how to interpret
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the scripture you should strive for it praise
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the Lord so that you're not confused so that
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when you see somebody confused you are able to
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help them praise the Lord so that you do the
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work of the Father you do the mandate of God
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on the earth when you pay attention to learning
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how to interpret and we said that the the church
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it should be a place where or should be called
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a bible school where the word is taught where
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the word is prioritized right praise the lord
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where there's not a lot of activities that is
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being maybe put there to entertain people praise
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the lord it's a place of training so we learn
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how to behave or move around in the church and
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so we also saw from the scriptures that in that
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Luke chapter 24 that he talks about the prophet
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he keeps talking about the prophet and we say
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that one of the ways in which or one of the ways
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in which the Old Testament was described is what
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the book of prophets praise the Lord it is known
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as the book of prophets it is a prophetic it
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talks about prophetic scriptures in Romans is
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a prophetic book so we now said if if the scripture
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is talking about or we call it a prophetic book
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it therefore means that we need to understand
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who then is a prophet praise the lord because
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if he's writing prophetic things then he should
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be talking about or his content should be about
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prophets so if the book is written by prophets
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that means that the context of what he's saying
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will be about the prophet so who is a prophet?
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who is a prophet? So it's a Hebrew word that
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is called Nabi, right? N -A -B -I. It means a
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spokesperson for a divine being, right? Or somebody
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who interprets words of a divine being or a date.
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So a prophet is a spokesperson for a divine being.
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So growing up, they had the experience to stay
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in the village in the east of Nigeria. And before,
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there used to be people that would always hit
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the hitting... They come to deliver a message,
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basically, right? And so they have a particular
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type of a wooden drum that they hit. It's not
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a drum, but it's made out of wood. Sometimes
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they use the... I don't know the English word
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for that. But they use it to... They just hit
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it, and the more they hit it, what we used to
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do is to tell you how this was 2004, right? It
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was still happening like that. So they would
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hit it, hit it, hit it, and it goes from one
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village to the other village, and from every
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street, and it just hits it, hits it, hits it.
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People just, whatever you do, you just drop.
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This is how they pass messages, right? They would
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just keep hitting it, keep hitting it, everybody
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would keep quiet. that you know the rhythm, when
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it stops, then you're not here for what he will
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say, right? Tomorrow, there is a meeting in so
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-so -and -so place, these people are supposed
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to come, that people are supposed to come, that's
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how they pass messages. There was no, oh, let
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me text this person, let me, do you understand?
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It was not far, it was not far, it was not far,
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right? Out to you, we started to use phones and
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all of those things, right? So, idzi. A prophet
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is somebody who speaks. or a spokesperson for
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a divine being who interprets the words of a
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divine being a deity so on who hears supernaturally
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and communicates it naturally praise the lord
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somebody who hears supernaturally and communicates
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it naturally right so a messenger of supernatural
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information if you like an agent praise the lord
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so he's somebody who is sent to pass a message
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to deliver a message. So which means that the
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context of the scriptures is to see that the
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scriptures is a conveyor of supernatural information.
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The scripture conveys supernatural information.
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So if a prophet is somebody who speaks for a
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divine being, it therefore means that the scripture
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conveys supernatural information. praise the
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Lord the prophet conveys the message of the supernatural
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job chapter 15 job chapter 15 deal on that prophet
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job chapter 15 from a seven to eight he says
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are you the first man who was born or were you
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made before the hills have you heard the council
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of god do you limit wisdom to yourself Praise
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the Lord. Have you heard the counsel of God?
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So we see Job's friend, Elphas, asking him a
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question. So we see also that he described more
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like the first man. He says that the first man
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is the man that heard the counsel of God. So
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we see he's asking his friend, but he's also
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saying that the first man is a man that He had
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the council of God, right? That council there,
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some other scriptures would put it as the secret
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of God, right? So that word council in the Hebrew
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is the word sod, S -O -D, right? Which means
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to be in an assembly. That word council in verse
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eight is that have you heard the council of God?
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It's the word sod, right? Which means to be in
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an assembly. the council of God. He said, have
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you heard in the assembly of God or in the fellowship
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of God? So we said that the book or the Bible
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is known as the book of the prophets, right?
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So prophets are special people. They are special
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people. But we see that the friend of Job is
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saying that the first man we should be the modern
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man is someone who had heard in the council of
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God or the assembly of God. Genesis chapter 49
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verse 6 Genesis chapter 49 verse 6 it said let
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not my soul enter thy council let not my honor
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be united to the assembly for in thy anger thou
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slew a man in thy self will thou hamstoon an
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ox hamstrong an ox so is that word the assembly
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we see there again so it means a special information
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within the assembly, a supernatural assembly.
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So Elphaz is saying, we know that the first man
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had from the assembly of God. Job 29 verse 4.
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Let's look at those places where this word again
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shows up. Job 29 verse 4. Just as I was in the
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days of my prime, when the friendly counsel of
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God was over my fence. So we see that word again,
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council. Psalms 55 verse 14. Psalms 55 verse
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14. We took three councils together and walked
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to the house of the Lord in the throne. Praise
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the Lord. We see that place again. So that word
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throne there is the word company, right? It's
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usually talking about assembly. Psalms 89 verse
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4, verse 7. Psalms 89 verse 7 God is greatly
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to be feared in the assembly of the saints and
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to be held in reverence by all those around him.
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So we see that word again there Jeremiah chapter
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6 verse 11 Therefore I am full of the fury of
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the Lord and weary of holding it in I'll pour
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it out on the children outside on the assembly
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of young men together for even the husband shall
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be taken with the wife and the aged, and the
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aged with him who is full of days." So we see
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that word again, assembly, there. So what do
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we know about the first man? So in Genesis chapter,
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where we read chapter 2 and chapter 3, right,
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speaking of Adam, right, so we have, we have
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a picture of God's will and plan for man. So
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when you read Genesis chapter 2, and also Chapter
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3, we see God's will and plan for the first man.
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So the first thing that we see is that the Garden
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of Eden is God's dwelling. The Garden of Eden
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is God's dwelling. Man was brought there, which
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means that man or mankind find their purpose
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in God's dwelling. The first thing that we see
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is that the Garden of Eden is God's home. and
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it's all his dwelling, right? Man was brought
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in there, right? Which means that man or mankind
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find his popples in God's dwelling place. So
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man starts to live only when he starts functioning
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in God's popples or, sorry, he starts functioning
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in God's presence or God's dwelling place. Man
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starts to live, praise the Lord, man starts to
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live when he starts to function in God's presence
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or God's dwelling place. The second thing that
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we see, Genesis 2 verse 15, he said then the
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Lord took the man and put him in the garden of
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Eden to tend it and to keep it, to tend and keep
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it. So we see God's purpose for man, he says
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that man put him there to tend and to keep it,
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that he put him there to dress some other scriptures,
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we say to dress and to keep it. So if we keep
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reading from Genesis to Exodus, we also see how
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Moses, when he was building the tabernacle, what
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he gave the priest to do. We see what Moses gave
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the priest, what their responsibility was to
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do. And part of their responsibility was what
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he said for them to dress it. We're going to
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see a scripture that talks about that. For them
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to dress it. The priest, we have to keep the
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tabernacle. the priests were to keep the tabernacle.
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So the word, that word, keep it, sorry, that
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word, to keep it or to dress it, right, is a
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word, adad, right, A -D, sorry, A -B, A -D, right,
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we see here is the word to dress it. So man's
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purpose was to keep, man's purpose was to be
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in God's presence. right or keeper of God's dwelling
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place praise the Lord man's purpose was what
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to be in God's presence or keeper of God's dwelling
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place that is that man has become God has given
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man has become it's more like he's supposed to
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he's a trustee so God has given him something
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to do to keep it to dress it so a minister of
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God's dwelling place is to be a minister or a
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minister of God's dwelling place if you like
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so Adam we can say was a priest because God gave
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him something to do and we also saw that Moses
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did the same when the priest or the instruction
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he gave the priest so Adam was a priest that
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is Adam and Eve that is mankind was a priest
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so mankind is made to be a priest right to officiate
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to minister in God's presence. Mankind is made
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to be a priest, to officiate, to be in God's
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presence. So let's go back to Job chapter 15.
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Job chapter 15. Job chapter 15, verse 7. He said,
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Are you the first man who was born? Or were you
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made before the hills? Have you heard the counsel
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of God? Do you limit wisdom? to yourself so the
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council of god right that is to hear from god
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and interpret it praise the lord to hear from
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god and interpret it that is what god's purpose
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for mankind was was to be a priest right to be
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a prophet to hear and interpret so you can say
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that man's purpose or god's purpose for you is
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to be his temple we see that in the new testament
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to be his temple to be in his temple what we
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are meant to do there is to be what to be priest
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right and to be prophet and to be his servant
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or as the scriptures will say servant king so
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god's purpose for you is to be his temple to
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be in his temple and what we are supposed to
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do there is to be his priest his prophet and
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his servants. So your purpose in life is tied
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to God's dwelling place. So your purpose in life
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is tied to God's dwelling place. That is God's
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plan for everyone. Praise the Lord. That is God's
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plan for our life. So if you are looking for
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purpose, I don't hear that word these days, I
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don't know why, right? About two, three years
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ago, Everybody is talking about what is your
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purpose? What is your purpose? What is your purpose?
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There are seminars about purpose. There are so
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many things. Praise the Lord. And see it, people
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still are looking for, or they still, from all
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of those things, don't still find purpose. Or
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even if they find, they will change their mind
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after some years. Praise the Lord. They will
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find new purpose. So, a purpose that does not
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change. God's purpose for your life does not
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change. is that you should be his priest and
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his prophet on the earth to be a spokesperson
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to be somebody who will hear and interpret praise
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the lord to be somebody who will hear and interpret
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so it therefore means that we ought to take the
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ministry or the office or the purpose that god
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has given us very seriously praise the lord is
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to take the purpose that God has given us very
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seriously. And how do we do that? We do that
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by sitting down, being discipled, and disciple
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others. In doing that, we are able to achieve,
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or we are able to live in the purpose of God,
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to hear from God, and to interpret it, to see
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what God is saying every season. As I've said
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earlier, a lot of us, almost everybody is in
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Cyprus and they are moving. At some point, they
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would move to a different location. At some point,
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they would move to a different location. It's
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not to make the excuse that you were not taught.
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Don't make the excuse that you were not equipped.
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Don't make the mistake that you are not equipped.
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they are not equipped. Because if you see what
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is happening around us, whether it be in the
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church, whether you're online and you see people
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teaching and you see people saying some things,
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you know that what this person is saying is not
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sound. Praise the Lord. So for you to identify
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that which is not sound, it means that you have
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been trained. Praise the Lord. It means that
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you are in a position where you also can be a
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good teacher of the world praise the Lord where
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you can be a good teacher of the world so it's
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not to it's not to go and say okay the things
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that happened to me in Cyprus where the four
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years was it's just four years I just went there
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to school and I finished and you know let's just
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continue let's just continue what we are hearing
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before praise the Lord is to be a priest of God
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on the earth so we see also see that in, I think
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it was in John, in John chapter 17, we see the
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prayers of Jesus for all believers. John chapter
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17 verse 20. He says, I do not pray for these
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alone, but also those who would believe in me
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through their words, that they all may be one
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as you, Father, and in me, and I in you, and
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that They also may be one in us that the world
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may believe that you sent me praise the Lord
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So Jesus is saying he's making a prayer, right?
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And he says what I pray for this but for those
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who will believe He's saying that so the prayer
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he's praying is for not just his disciples Right,
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but the people that will believe later on but
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then he's not praying for those people to believe
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to believe He's saying that they will believe
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because of what? because these ones here are
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going to do something. Praise the Lord. These
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ones here, these ones that are listening to him
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here, these ones that are listening here are
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going to do, he said they are going to believe
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what, through what their words. They are going
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to believe in him through what their words. So
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Jesus is sure that his disciples are going to
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carry on the mandate. Praise the Lord. He is
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very sure that these people are, so he's saying
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that they may be one. Praise the Lord. That they
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may be united that they may be in unity but he
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knows that his disciples are going to do the
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work in which he has sent them to do praise the
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lord his disciples are going to do the same thing
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that he has instructed them to do so god is trusting
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and god knows that you are the person who is
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also supposed to what to continue to teach the
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word another person man was talking about evangelism
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and he was saying that sometimes the reason why
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we don't evangelism is because there is anxiety
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there is fear there is what would a person say
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if they ask me this question it's usually us
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just limiting ourselves right we are afraid of
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something praise the lord but if only you know
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how equipped you are if only you know how equipped
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you are if only you can see how God has said
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that the things that you have is sufficient enough.
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The teaching that you have received is sufficient
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enough for you to go about your day and in your
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busyness, in the schedules that you have, to
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still see someone and say, oh, let me speak to
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this person about Christ. Praise the Lord. Let
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me speak to this person about Christ. Let me
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explain the scriptures to somebody. If only you
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allow yourself to see how equipped God has equipped
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you. How God has enabled you. Not just through
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the power of the Holy Spirit, but through the
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discipleship that you have received. Through
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the instructions that you have received. Through
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the learning and the teaching that you have gone
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through. Praise the Lord. So he prays and is
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assured that the people will believe because
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of the words that these people are going to speak.
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So God believes that People are going to be transformed
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by the word that you are saying to them. So why
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are you anxious? Praise the Lord. Why are you
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anxious about it? Why are you thinking too much
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about it? So today we're going to pray. We're
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going to pray for everything that we have heard
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throughout this whole teaching about what makes
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the Christian gathering a supernatural one. We're
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going to pray that God would enable us God will
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give us boldness. God will give us strength.
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God would also increase this church. Praise the
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Lord. God will also increase this church. Even
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as Jesus was praying, he prayed for those who
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will believe. So what you're praying also, you're
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also praying for those who will also, in 10 years,
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in 20 years, be sitting where you are or in a
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better place in this camp. Praise the Lord. You're
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also praying that the world that they will be
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hearing will not be the watered -down world praise
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the Lord that they would continue to hear the
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sound doctrine of Christ that any CF will continue
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whether the lead pastor is currently around or
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is not around whether the people that started
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the walk were around or not around that the church
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will continue to grow right also for your life
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that you will continue to grow I said something
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within the week that God expects us to carry
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out this mandate Praise the Lord. That the people
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around us, that are families, that are friends,
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will hear the gospel through us. That the busyness
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of life, somebody said, I saw something online,
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it was like, you think that maybe like school
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is, when you're in school, you think it's stressful.
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You say wait until you graduate, then maybe you
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find out what stress is about, or, praise the
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Lord. So, that's why some people... My desire
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is that they want to continue school. Praise
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the Lord. That the business of life will not
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make you, you know sometimes your responsibilities
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will increase. You have children, you have things
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to take care of, you have parents that are maybe
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growing old and they need attention and time
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and resources and everything. And you're just
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thinking about many things that you forget to
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preach the gospel. That you just, you know what?
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We used to do that. Praise the Lord. So I just
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want us to rise up on our feet. We appreciate
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you being here today. We hope you carry this
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word with you throughout your week. Don't forget
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to check the show notes for additional insights.
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Stay connected with us through our website or
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follow us on social media. If you were encouraged,
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share this message with someone you care about.
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Until next time, stay blessed.