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Talking To People About God Pt. 2 · Time with God with John North

• 0:05
  Speaker 1: Good morning. Every weekday morning at this time, we spend
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  Speaker 1: some time with God. We open the Bible, God's word
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  Speaker 1: to us, and we listen to Him because the Bible
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  Speaker 1: isn't just like an encyclopaedia about God, not just factual information.
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  Speaker 1: God actually speaks to us personally and into our lives
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  Speaker 1: through what's in the Bible, and day after day we
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  Speaker 1: get such practical input into our lives from God as
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  Speaker 1: we open our hearts and listen to what He might
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  Speaker 1: be saying to us today. So let's do that now.
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  Speaker 1: All this week we're talking about.
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  Speaker 1: Talking with people in our lives about God. Having God
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  Speaker 1: conversations with people. We saw yesterday, so many people in
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  Speaker 1: our lives are open to, in fact, are wanting, they're
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  Speaker 1: curious about what it means to know God and encounter
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  Speaker 1: God in their lives. How to start a relationship with God.
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  Speaker 1: As long as you're not pushing it down their throat,
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  Speaker 1: they're really keen for those conversations. Today, I just want
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  Speaker 1: to challenge you with this.
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  Speaker 1: Live as a witness about Jesus in your everyday encounters
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  Speaker 1: with people in your life.
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  Speaker 1: When Jesus finished his earthly ministry and He had risen
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  Speaker 1: from the dead, He was about to depart this world
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  Speaker 1: to be with the Father.
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  Speaker 1: And he gathered his closest followers, and he said to them,
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  Speaker 1: You will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come
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  Speaker 1: upon you, and you shall be my witnesses. Well, this
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  Speaker 1: is his key word for what their main responsibility was
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  Speaker 1: in this world, and that's been passed down to us
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  Speaker 1: who know God as well. You will be my witnesses,
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  Speaker 1: Jesus said. You come to the next chapter, Acts chapter 2.
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  Speaker 1: And Peter is speaking to a big crowd of people,
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  Speaker 1: and he talks about Jesus and says, this Jesus God
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  Speaker 1: raised up, and of that we are all witnesses. That is,
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  Speaker 1: we're not just telling you some hypothesis, we were there,
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  Speaker 1: we experienced it, and we want to tell you about it.
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  Speaker 1: Well, just like that you have experienced Jesus. If you
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  Speaker 1: are a follower of Jesus, He has impacted your life
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  Speaker 1: in deep ways. Be a witness about that. The very
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  Speaker 1: next chapter in Acts chapter 3 verse 15, Peter is
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  Speaker 1: speaking again to a group of people.
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  Speaker 1: A group of people who were actually there and shouted out,
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  Speaker 1: Crucify Jesus to the Roman governor.
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  Speaker 1: And he says to them, You killed the author of life,
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  Speaker 1: whom God then raised from the dead. To this we
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  Speaker 1: are witnesses. You see how they're fulfilling their role that
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  Speaker 1: Jesus gave them to be witnesses. You come a couple
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  Speaker 1: of chapters later to Acts chapter 5.
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  Speaker 1: And again, the apostles are speaking about Jesus and they
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  Speaker 1: say the God of our fathers raised Jesus, whom you
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  Speaker 1: killed by hanging him on a tree.
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  Speaker 1: God exalted him at his right hand as leader and
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  Speaker 1: saviour to give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins,
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  Speaker 1: and we are witnesses to these things, and so is
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  Speaker 1: the Holy Spirit whom God has given to those who
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  Speaker 1: obey Him. Well, if you are a follower of Jesus,
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  Speaker 1: God has given the Holy Spirit to you as well.
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  Speaker 1: And when you are a witness about Jesus to people
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  Speaker 1: in your life.
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  Speaker 1: The Holy Spirit is working through you to help those
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  Speaker 1: people encounter God for themselves. Don't think you've got to
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  Speaker 1: accomplish this somehow by your own brilliance. No, just talk
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  Speaker 1: about what Jesus means to you and let God introduce
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  Speaker 1: Himself to people in your life.
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  Speaker 1: You come to Acts chapter 10, and they say, and
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  Speaker 1: we are witnesses of all that he did both in
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  Speaker 1: the country of the Jews and in Jerusalem. They put
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  Speaker 1: him to death by hanging him on a tree, but
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  Speaker 1: God raised him on the 3rd day and made him
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  Speaker 1: to appear, not to all the people, but to us
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  Speaker 1: who had been chosen by God as witnesses, who ate
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  Speaker 1: and drank with Him after he rose from the dead.
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  Speaker 1: And he commanded us to preach to the people and testify.
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  Speaker 1: He is the one appointed by God to be judge
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  Speaker 1: of the living and the dead. To Him all the
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  Speaker 1: prophets bear witness that everyone who believes in Him receives
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  Speaker 1: forgiveness of sins through His name.
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  Speaker 1: Later
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  Speaker 1: The apostle Paul, who had been persecuting Christians, would be
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  Speaker 1: converted immediately after his conversion. God sent Ananias, a Christian,
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  Speaker 1: to him and said, For you will be a witness
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  Speaker 1: for Jesus to every one of what you have seen
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  Speaker 1: and heard.
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  Speaker 1: Well, that's what God is saying to you as well.
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  Speaker 1: If you know Jesus, you will be a witness to
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  Speaker 1: one of what you have seen and heard, of what
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  Speaker 1: you have experienced. I'm John North.
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  Speaker 2: To go deeper in your faith, visit AFCI.com.au.