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23 - The Lord's Vineyard - Christ's Object Lessons · Philosophy and Faith

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Speaker 1: The Lord's Vineyard, Part one the Jewish Nation. The parable
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Speaker 1: of the two sons was followed by the parable of
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Speaker 1: the vineyard. In the one, Christ had set before the
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Speaker 1: Jewish teachers the importance of obedience. In the other, he
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Speaker 1: pointed to the rich blessings bestowed upon Israel, and in
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Speaker 1: these showed God's claim to their obedience. He set before
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Speaker 1: them the glory of God's purpose, which through obedience they
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Speaker 1: might have fulfilled. Withdrawing the veil from the future, he
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Speaker 1: showed how by failure to fulfill his purpose, the whole
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Speaker 1: nation was forfeiting his blessing and bringing ruin upon itself.
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Speaker 1: There was a certain householder, Christ said, which planted a
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Speaker 1: vineyard and hedged it round about, and digged a wine
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Speaker 1: press in it, and built a tower, and let it
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Speaker 1: out to husbandmen, and went into a far country. A
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Speaker 1: description of this vineyard is given by the prophet Isaiah.
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Speaker 1: Now will I sing to my well beloved a song
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Speaker 1: of my beloved touching his vineyard. My well beloved hath
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Speaker 1: a vineyard in a very fruitful hill. And he fenced
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Speaker 1: it and gathered out the stones thereof, and planted it
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Speaker 1: with the choicest vine and built a tower in the
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Speaker 1: midst of it, and also made a wine press therein,
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Speaker 1: and he looked that it should bring forth grapes. The
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Speaker 1: husbandman chooses a piece of land from the wilderness. He fences, clears,
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Speaker 1: and tilS it, and plants it with choice vines, expecting
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Speaker 1: a rich harvest. This plot of ground, in its superiority
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Speaker 1: to the uncultivated waste, he expects to do him honor
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Speaker 1: by showing the results of his care and toil in
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Speaker 1: its cultivation. So God had chosen a people from the
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Speaker 1: world to be trained and educated by Christ. The prophet says,
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Speaker 1: the vineyards of the Lord of Hosts is the house
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Speaker 1: of Israel, and the men of Judah his pleasant plant.
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Speaker 1: Upon this people God had bestowed great privileges, blessing them
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Speaker 1: richly from his abundant goodness. He looked for them to
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Speaker 1: honor him by yielding fruit. They were to reveal the
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Speaker 1: principles of His kingdom in the midst of a fall
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Speaker 1: and wicked world. They were to represent the character of
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Speaker 1: God as the Lord's vineyard. They were to produce fruit
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Speaker 1: altogether different from that of the heathen nations. These idolagious
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Speaker 1: peoples had given themselves up to work, wickedness, violence and crime, Greed, oppression,
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Speaker 1: and the most corrupt practices were indulged without restraint. Iniquity, degradation,
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Speaker 1: and misery were the fruits of the corrupt tree. In
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Speaker 1: marked contrast, was to be the fruit born on the
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Speaker 1: vine of God's planting. It was the privilege of the
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Speaker 1: Jewish nation to represent the character of God as it
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Speaker 1: had been revealed to Moses. In answer to the prayer
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Speaker 1: of Moses, show me Thy glory, the Lord promised, I
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Speaker 1: will make all my goodness pass before thee. And the
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Speaker 1: Lord passed before him and proclaimed the Lord, the Lord God,
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Speaker 1: merciful and gracious, long suffering, and abundant in goodness and truth,
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Speaker 1: keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin.
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Speaker 1: This was the fruit that God desired from his people.
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Speaker 1: In the purity of their characters, in the holiness of
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Speaker 1: their life lives, in their mercy and loving kindness and compassion.
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Speaker 1: They were to show that the law of the Lord
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Speaker 1: is perfect, converting the soul through the Jewish nation, it
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Speaker 1: was God's purpose to impart rich blessings to all peoples
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Speaker 1: through Israel. The way was to be prepared for the
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Speaker 1: diffusion of his light to the whole world. The nations
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Speaker 1: of the world, through following corrupt practices, had lost the
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Speaker 1: knowledge of God. Yet in his mercy, God did not
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Speaker 1: blot them out of existence. He purposed to give them
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Speaker 1: opportunity for becoming acquainted with Him through his church. He
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Speaker 1: designed that the principles revealed through his people should be
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Speaker 1: the means of restoring the moral image of God in man.
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Speaker 1: It was for the accomplishment of this purpose that God
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Speaker 1: called Abraham out from his idolatrous kindred and bade him
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Speaker 1: dwell in the land of Canaan. I will make of
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Speaker 1: thee a great nation, he said, And I will bless
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Speaker 1: thee and make thy name great, and thou shalt be
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Speaker 1: a blessing. The descendants of Abraham, Jacob and his postility
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Speaker 1: were brought down to Egypt, that in the midst of
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Speaker 1: that great and wicked nation they might reveal the principles
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Speaker 1: of God's kingdom. The integrity of Joseph and his wonderful
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Speaker 1: work in preserving the lives of the whole Egyptian people
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Speaker 1: was a representation of the life of Christ. Moses and
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Speaker 1: many others were witnesses for God in bringing forth Israel
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Speaker 1: from Egypt. The Lord again manifested his power and his mercy.
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Speaker 1: His wonderful works in their deliverance from bondage, and his
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Speaker 1: dealings with them in their travels through the wilderness were
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Speaker 1: not for their benefit alone. These were to be as
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Speaker 1: an object lesson to the surrounding nations. The Lord revealed
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Speaker 1: himself as a god above all human authority and greatness.
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Speaker 1: The signs and wonders he wrought in behalf of his
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Speaker 1: people showed his power over nature and over the greatest
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Speaker 1: of those who worshiped nature. God went through the proud
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Speaker 1: land of Egypt, as he will go through the earth
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Speaker 1: in the last days, with fire and tempest, earthquake and death.
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Speaker 1: The Great I Am redeemed his people. He took them
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Speaker 1: out of the land of bondage. He led them through
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Speaker 1: the great and terrible wilderness, wherein were fiery serpents and
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Speaker 1: scorpions and drought. He brought them forth water out of
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Speaker 1: the rock of flint, and fed them with the corn
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Speaker 1: of heaven. For said Moses, the Lord's portion is his people.
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Speaker 1: Jacob is the lot of his inheritance. He found him
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Speaker 1: in a desert land, and in the waste howling wilderness,
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Speaker 1: he led him about, He instructed him. He kept him
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Speaker 1: as the apple of his eye. As an eagle stirreth
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Speaker 1: up her nest, fluttereth over her young, spreadeth abroad her wings,
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Speaker 1: taketh them, and beareth them on her wings. So the
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Speaker 1: Lord alone did lead him, and there was no strange
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Speaker 1: God with him. Thus he brought them unto himself, that
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Speaker 1: they might dwell as under the shadow of the Most High.
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Speaker 1: Christ was the leader of the children of Israel in
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Speaker 1: their wilderness wanderings. Enshrouded in the pillar of cloud by
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Speaker 1: day and the pillar of fire by night, he led
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Speaker 1: and guided them. He preserved them from the perils of
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Speaker 1: the wilderness. He brought them into the land of Promise,
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Speaker 1: And in the sight of all the nations that acknowledged
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Speaker 1: not God, he established Israel as his own chosen possession,
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Speaker 1: the Lord's vineyard. To this people were committed the oracles
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Speaker 1: of God. They were hedged about by the precepts of
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Speaker 1: His law, the everlasting principles of truth, justice, and purity.
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Speaker 1: Obedience to these principles was to be their protection, for
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Speaker 1: it would save them from destroying themselves by sinful practices.
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Speaker 1: And as the tower in the vineyard God placed in
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Speaker 1: the midst of the land his Holy Temple. Christ was
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Speaker 1: their instructor, as he had been with them in the wilderness,
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Speaker 1: so he was still to be their teacher and guide.
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Speaker 1: In the Tabernacle and the Temple. His glory dwelt in
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Speaker 1: the Holy Shechina above the mercy Seat. In their behalf.
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Speaker 1: He constantly manifested the riches of his love and patience.
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Speaker 1: God desired to make of his people Israel a praise
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Speaker 1: and a glory. Every spiritual advantage was given them. God
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Speaker 1: withheld from them nothing favorable to the formation of character
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Speaker 1: that would make them representatives of himself. Their obedience to
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Speaker 1: the law of God would make the marvels of prosperity
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Speaker 1: before the nations of the world. He who could give
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Speaker 1: them wisdom and skill in all cunning work, would continue
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Speaker 1: to be their teacher and would ennoble and elevate them
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Speaker 1: through obedience to His laws. If obedient, they would be
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Speaker 1: preserved from the diseases that afflicted other nations, and would
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Speaker 1: be blessed with vigor of intellect. The glory of God,
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Speaker 1: his majesty and power were to be revealed in all
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Speaker 1: their prosperity. They were to be a kingdom of priests
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Speaker 1: and princes. God furnished them with every facility for becoming
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Speaker 1: the greatest nation on earth in the most definite manner.
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Speaker 1: Christ through Moses had set before them God's purpose and
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Speaker 1: had made plain the terms of their prosperity. Thou art
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Speaker 1: and holy people, unto the lawd thy God. He said,
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Speaker 1: The Lord thy God hath chosen THEE to be a
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Speaker 1: special people unto himself above all people that are upon
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Speaker 1: the face of the earth. Know therefore that the Law
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Speaker 1: thy God. He is God, the faithful God, which keepeth
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Speaker 1: covenant and mercy with them that love Him, and keep
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Speaker 1: his commandments to a thousand generations. Thou shalt therefore keep
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Speaker 1: the commandments and the statutes and the judgments which I
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Speaker 1: command THEE this day to do them. Wherefore it shall
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Speaker 1: come to pass if ye hearken to these judgments and
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Speaker 1: keep and do them, that the Lord thy God shall
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Speaker 1: keep unto THEE the covenant and the mercy which he
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Speaker 1: swear unto thy fathers. And he will love THEE and
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Speaker 1: bless THEE, and multiply THEE. He will also bless the
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Speaker 1: fruit of thy womb and the fruit of thy land,
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Speaker 1: thy corn, and thy wine and thine oil, the increase
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Speaker 1: of thy kind and the flocks of thy sheep in
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Speaker 1: the land which he swear unto thy fathers to give
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Speaker 1: thee Thou shalt be blessed above all people, and the
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Speaker 1: Lord will take away from thee all sickness, and will
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Speaker 1: put none of the evil diseases of Egypt, which thou
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Speaker 1: knowest upon thee. If they would keep his commandments, God
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Speaker 1: promised to give them the finest of the wheat and
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Speaker 1: bring them honey out of the rock with long life.
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Speaker 1: Would his sae satisfy them and show them his salvation.
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Speaker 1: Through disobedience to God, Adam and Eve had lost Eden,
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Speaker 1: and because of sin, the whole earth was cursed. But
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Speaker 1: if God's people followed his instruction, their land would be
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Speaker 1: restored to fertility and beauty. God himself gave them directions
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Speaker 1: in regard to the culture of the soil, and they
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Speaker 1: were to co operate with him in its restoration. Thus,
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Speaker 1: the whole land under God's control would become an object
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Speaker 1: lesson of spiritual truth, as in obedience to his natural laws,
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Speaker 1: the earth should produce its treasures. So in obedience to
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Speaker 1: his moral law, the hearts of the people were to
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Speaker 1: reflect the attributes of his character. Even the heathen would
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Speaker 1: recognize the superiority of those who served and worshiped the
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Speaker 1: Living God. Behold, said Moses, I have taught you statutes
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Speaker 1: and judgments, even as the Lord my God commanded me
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Speaker 1: that ye should do so. In the land whither ye
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Speaker 1: go to possess it. Keep therefore and do them. For
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Speaker 1: this is your wisdom and your understanding in the sight
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Speaker 1: of the nations, which shall hear all these statutes, and say, surely,
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Speaker 1: this great nation is a wise and understanding people. For
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Speaker 1: what nation is there so great? Who hath God so
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Speaker 1: nigh unto them? As the Lord our God is in
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Speaker 1: all things that we call upon him for? And what
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Speaker 1: nation is there so great that hath statutes and judgments
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Speaker 1: so righteous as all this law which I set before
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Speaker 1: you this day. The children of Israel were to occupy
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Speaker 1: all the territory which God appointed them. Those nations that
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Speaker 1: rejected the worship and service of the True God were
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Speaker 1: to be dispossessed. But it was God's purpose that by
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Speaker 1: the revelation of his character through Israel, men should be
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Speaker 1: drawn unto Him to all the world. The gospel invitation
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Speaker 1: was to be given through the teaching of the sacrificial service.
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Speaker 1: Christ was to be uplifted before the nations, and all
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Speaker 1: who would look unto him should live. All who, like
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Speaker 1: Rayhab the Canaanite, and Ruth the Moabitess, turned from idolatry
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Speaker 1: to the worship of the True God, were to unite
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Speaker 1: themselves with his chosen people. As the numbers of Israel increased,
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Speaker 1: they were to enlarge their borders until their kingdom should
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Speaker 1: embrace the world. God desired to bring all peoples under
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Speaker 1: his merciful rule. He desired that the earth should be
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Speaker 1: filled with joy and peace. He created man for happiness,
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Speaker 1: and he longs to fill human hearts with the peace
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Speaker 1: of heaven. He desires that the families below shall be
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Speaker 1: a symbol of the great family above. But Israel did
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Speaker 1: not fulfill God's purpose. The Lord declared, I had planted
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Speaker 1: thee a noble vine, wholly a right seed. How then
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Speaker 1: art thou turned into a degenerate plant of a strange vine.
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Speaker 1: Unto me? Israel is an empty vine. He bringeth forth
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Speaker 1: fruit unto himself. And now o inhabitants of Jerusalem and
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Speaker 1: men of Judah, Judge, I pray you betwixt me and
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Speaker 1: my vineyard. What could have been done more to my
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Speaker 1: vineyard that I have not done in it. Wherefore, when
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Speaker 1: I looked that should bring forth grapes, brought it forth
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Speaker 1: wild grapes. And now go to I will tell you
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Speaker 1: what I will do to my vineyard. I will take
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Speaker 1: away the hedge thereof, and it shall be eaten up.
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Speaker 1: And break down the wall thereof, and it shall be
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Speaker 1: trodden down, and I will lay at waste. It shall
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Speaker 1: not be pruned nor digged, but there shall come up
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Speaker 1: briars and thorns. I will also command the clouds that
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Speaker 1: they reign no rain upon it. For he looked for judgment,
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Speaker 1: but behold oppression for righteousness. But behold a cry the
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Speaker 1: Lord had through Moses, set before his people the result
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Speaker 1: of unfaithfulness. By refusing to keep his covenant, they would
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Speaker 1: cut themselves off from the life of God, and his
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Speaker 1: blessing could not come upon them. Beware, said Moses, that
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Speaker 1: thou forget not the Lord thy God, in not keeping
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Speaker 1: his commandments and his judgments and his statutes, which I
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Speaker 1: command thee this day. Lest when thou hast eaten and artful,
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Speaker 1: and hast built goodly houses and dwelt therein, and when
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Speaker 1: thy herds and thy flocks multiply, and thy silver and
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Speaker 1: thy gold is multiplied, and all that thou hast is multiplied,
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Speaker 1: then thine heart be lifted up, and thou forget the
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Speaker 1: Lord thy God, and thou say, in thine heart, my
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Speaker 1: power and the might of mine hand hath gotten me
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Speaker 1: this wealth. And it shall be if thou do it all,
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Speaker 1: forget the Lord thy God, and walk after other gods,
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Speaker 1: and serve them and worship them. I testify against you
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Speaker 1: this day that ye shall surely perish, as the nations
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Speaker 1: which the Lord destroyeth before your face, So shall ye perish,
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Speaker 1: because ye would not be obedient unto the voice of
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Speaker 1: the Lord your God. The warning was not heeded by
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Speaker 1: the Jewish people. They forgot God and lost sight of
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Speaker 1: their high privilege as His representatives. The blessings they had
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Speaker 1: received brought no blessing to the world. All their advantages
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Speaker 1: were appropriated for their own glorification. They robbed God of
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Speaker 1: the service he required of them, and they robbed their
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Speaker 1: fellow men of religious guidance. In a holy example, Like
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Speaker 1: the inhabitants of the antediluvian world, they followed out every
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Speaker 1: imagination of their evil hearts. Thus they made sacred things
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Speaker 1: appear a face, saying, the temple of the Lord, the
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Speaker 1: temple of the Lord are these, while at the same
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Speaker 1: time they were misrepresenting God's character, dishonoring his name, and
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Speaker 1: polluting his sanctuary. The husbandmen who had been placed in
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Speaker 1: charge of the Lord's vineyard were untrue to their trust.
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Speaker 1: The priests and teachers were not faithful instructors of the people.
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Speaker 1: They did not keep before them the goodness and mercy
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Speaker 1: of God and his claim to their love and service.
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Speaker 1: These husbandmen sought their own glory. They desired to appropriate
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Speaker 1: the fruits of the vineyard. It was their study to
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Speaker 1: attract attention and homage to themselves. The guilt of these
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Speaker 1: leaders in Israel was not like the guilt of an
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Speaker 1: ordinary sinner. These men stood under the most solemn obligation
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Speaker 1: to God. They had pledged themselves to teach thus seth
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Speaker 1: the Lord, and to bring strict obedience into their practical life.
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Speaker 1: Instead of doing this, they were perverting the scriptures. They
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Speaker 1: laid heavy burdens upon men, enforcing ceremonies that reached to
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Speaker 1: every step in life. The people lived in continual unrest,
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Speaker 1: for they could not fulfill them requirements laid down by
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Speaker 1: the rabbis. As they saw the impossibility of keeping man
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Speaker 1: made commandments, they became careless in regard to the commandments
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Speaker 1: of God. The Lord had instructed his people that he
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Speaker 1: was the owner of the vineyard, and that all their
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Speaker 1: possessions were given them in trust to be used for him.
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Speaker 1: But the priests and teachers did not perform the work
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Speaker 1: of their sacred office as if they were handling the
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Speaker 1: property of God. They were systematically robbing him of the
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Speaker 1: means and facilities entrusted to them for the advancement of
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Speaker 1: his work. Their covetousness and greed caused them to be
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Speaker 1: despised even by the heathen. Thus the gentile world was
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Speaker 1: given occasion to misinterpret the character of God and the
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Speaker 1: laws of his kingdom. With the father's heart, God bore
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Speaker 1: with his people. He pleaded with them by mercies given
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Speaker 1: and mercies withdrawn. Patiently, he set their sins before them,
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Speaker 1: and in forbearance, waited for their acknowledgment. Prophets and messengers
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Speaker 1: were sent to urge God's claim upon the husbandmen, but
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Speaker 1: instead of being welcomed, they were treated as enemies. The
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Speaker 1: husbandmen persecuted and killed them. God sent still other messengers,
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Speaker 1: but they received the same treatment as the first, only
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Speaker 1: that the husbandmen showed still more determined hatred. As a
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Speaker 1: last resource, God sent his son, saying, they will reverence
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Speaker 1: my son. But their resistance had made them vindictive, and
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Speaker 1: they said among themselves, this is the heir. Come let
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Speaker 1: us kill him and let us seize on his inheritance.
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Speaker 1: We shall then be left to enjoy the vineyard and
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Speaker 1: do as we please with the fruit. The Jewish rulers
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Speaker 1: did not love God. Therefore they cut themselves away from
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Speaker 1: him and rejected all his overtures for a just settlement. Christ,
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Speaker 1: the beloved of God, came to assert the claims of
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Speaker 1: the owner to the vineyard, but the husbandmen treated him
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Speaker 1: with marked contempt, saying, we will not have this man
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Speaker 1: to rule over us. They envied Christ's beauty of character,
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Speaker 1: his manner of teaching was far superior to theirs, and
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Speaker 1: they dreaded his success. He remonstrated with them, unveiling their
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Speaker 1: hypocrisy and showing them the sure results of their course
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Speaker 1: of action. This stirred them to madness. They smarted under
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Speaker 1: the rebukes. They could not silence. They hated the high
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Speaker 1: standard of righteousness which Christ continually presented. They saw that
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Speaker 1: his teaching was placing them where their selfishness would be uncloaked,
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Speaker 1: and they determined to kill him. They hated his example
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Speaker 1: of truthfulness and piety, and the elevated spirituality revealed in
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Speaker 1: all he did. His whole life was a reproof to
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Speaker 1: their selfishness. And when the final test came, the test
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Speaker 1: which meant obedience unto eternal life or disobedience unto eternal death,
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Speaker 1: they rejected the Holy One of Israel. When they were
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Speaker 1: asked to choose between Christ and Barabbas, they cried out,
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Speaker 1: release unto us Barabis. And when Pilot asked, what shall
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Speaker 1: I do then with Jesus, they cried fiercely let him
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Speaker 1: be crucified. Shall I crucify your king? Pilot asked, And
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Speaker 1: from the priests and rulers came the answer, we have
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Speaker 1: no king but Caesar. When Pilot washed his hands, saying
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Speaker 1: I am in a and of the blood of this
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Speaker 1: just person, the priests joined with the ignorant mob in
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Speaker 1: declaring passionately his blood be on us and on our children.
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Speaker 1: Thus the Jewish leaders made their choice. Their decision was
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Speaker 1: registered in the book which John saw in the hand
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Speaker 1: of him that sat upon the throne, the book which
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Speaker 1: no man could open in all its vindictiveness. This decision
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Speaker 1: will appear before them in the day when this book
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Speaker 1: is unsealed by the lion of the tribe of Judah.
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Speaker 1: The Jewish people cherished the idea that they were the
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Speaker 1: favorites of Heaven, and that they were always to be
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Speaker 1: exalted as the Church of God. They were the children
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Speaker 1: of Abraham, they declared, and so firm did the foundation
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Speaker 1: of their prosperity seem to them, that they defied Earth
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Speaker 1: and Heaven to dispossess them of their rights. But by
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Speaker 1: lives of unfaithfulness, they were preparing for the condemnation of
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Speaker 1: Heaven and for separation from God. In the Parable of
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Speaker 1: the Vineyard, after Christ had portrayed before the priests their
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Speaker 1: crowning act of wickedness, he put to them the question,
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Speaker 1: when the Lord therefore of the Vineyard cometh, what will
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Speaker 1: he do unto these husbandmen. The priests had been following
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Speaker 1: the narrative with deep interest, and without considering the relation
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Speaker 1: of the subject to themselves, they joined with the people
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Speaker 1: in answering he will miserably destroy those wicked men, and
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Speaker 1: will let out his vineyard unto other husbandmen, which shall
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Speaker 1: render him the fruits in their seasons. Unwittingly, they had
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Speaker 1: pronounced their own doom. Jesus looked upon them, and under
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Speaker 1: his searching gaze they knew that he read the secrets
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Speaker 1: of their hearts. His divinity flashed out before them with
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Speaker 1: unmistakable power. They saw in the husbandmen a picture of themselves,
19:33
Speaker 1: and they involuntarily exclaimed God forbid. Solemnly and regretfully. Christ asked,
19:40
Speaker 1: did ye never read in the scriptures the stone which
19:42
Speaker 1: the builders rejected? The same is become the head of
19:45
Speaker 1: the corner. This is the Lord's doing, and it is
19:48
Speaker 1: marvelous in our eyes. Therefore say I unto you, the
19:52
Speaker 1: Kingdom of God shall be taken from you and given
19:54
Speaker 1: to a nation, bringing forth the fruits thereof. And whosoever
19:58
Speaker 1: shall fall on this stone shall be broken, But on
20:01
Speaker 1: whomsoever it shall fall, it will grind him to powder.
20:05
Speaker 1: Christ would have averted the doom of the Jewish nation
20:07
Speaker 1: if the people had received him, but envy and jealousy
20:10
Speaker 1: made them implacable. They determined that they would not receive
20:14
Speaker 1: Jesus of Nazareth as the Messiah. They rejected the light
20:17
Speaker 1: of the world, and henceforth their lives were surrounded with darkness,
20:21
Speaker 1: as the darkness of midnight. The doom foretold came upon
20:25
Speaker 1: the Jewish nation. Their own fierce passions, uncontrolled, wrought their ruin.
20:30
Speaker 1: In their blind rage, they destroyed one another. Their rebellious,
20:33
Speaker 1: stubborn pride brought upon them the wrath of their Roman conquerors.
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Speaker 1: Jerusalem was destroyed, the temple laid in ruins, and its
20:41
Speaker 1: sight plowed like a field. The children of Judah perished
20:45
Speaker 1: by the most horrible forms of death. Millions were sold
20:48
Speaker 1: to serve as bondmen and heathen lands. As a people,
20:52
Speaker 1: the Jews had failed of fulfilling God's purpose, and the
20:54
Speaker 1: Vineyard was taken from them. The privileges they had abused,
20:58
Speaker 1: the work they had slighted, were entrusted to others. Part two.
21:03
Speaker 1: The Church of today. The parable of the Vineyard applies
21:07
Speaker 1: not alone to the Jewish nation. It has a lesson
21:09
Speaker 1: for us. The Church in this generation has been endowed
21:13
Speaker 1: by God with great privileges and blessings, and he expects
21:16
Speaker 1: corresponding returns. We have been redeemed by a costly ransom.
21:21
Speaker 1: Only by the greatness of this ransom can we conceive
21:23
Speaker 1: of its results on this earth. The earth whose soil
21:27
Speaker 1: has been moistened by the tears and blood of the
21:29
Speaker 1: Son of God are to be brought forth the precious
21:31
Speaker 1: fruits of paradise. In the lives of God's people. The
21:35
Speaker 1: truths of his word are to reveal their glory and excellence.
21:39
Speaker 1: Through his people. Christ is to manifest his character and
21:42
Speaker 1: the principles of his kingdom. Satan seeks to counter work
21:46
Speaker 1: the work of God, and he is constantly urging men
21:48
Speaker 1: to accept his principles. He represents the chosen people of
21:52
Speaker 1: God as a deluded people. He is an accuser of
21:55
Speaker 1: the brethren, and his accusing power is employed against those
21:59
Speaker 1: who work righteous. The Lord desires, through his people, to
22:03
Speaker 1: answer Satan's charges by showing the results of obedience to
22:06
Speaker 1: rite principles. These principles are to be manifest in the
22:09
Speaker 1: individual Christian, in the family, in the church, and in
22:13
Speaker 1: every institution established for God's service. All are to be
22:17
Speaker 1: symbols of what can be done for the world. They
22:19
Speaker 1: are to be types of the saving power of the
22:21
Speaker 1: truths of the Gospel. All are agencies in the fulfillment
22:25
Speaker 1: of God's great purpose for the human race. The Jewish
22:29
Speaker 1: leaders looked with pride upon their magnificent temple and the
22:32
Speaker 1: imposing rites of their religious service. But justice, mercy, and
22:36
Speaker 1: the love of God were lacking. The glory of the temple,
22:40
Speaker 1: the splendor of their service could not recommend them to
22:43
Speaker 1: God for that which alone is of value in his sight.
22:46
Speaker 1: They did not offer. They did not bring him the
22:49
Speaker 1: sacrifice of a humble and contrite spirit. It is when
22:52
Speaker 1: the vital principles of the Kingdom of God are lost
22:55
Speaker 1: that ceremonies become multitudinous and extravagant. It is when the
23:00
Speaker 1: character building is neglected, when the adornment of the soul
23:03
Speaker 1: is lacking, when the simplicity of Godliness is lost, sight
23:06
Speaker 1: of that pride and love of display demand magnificent church edifices,
23:11
Speaker 1: splendid adornings, and imposing ceremonials. In all this, God is
23:17
Speaker 1: not honored. A fashionable religion that consists of ceremonies, pretense,
23:21
Speaker 1: and display is not acceptable to Him. Its services call
23:25
Speaker 1: forth no response from the heavenly messengers. The church is
23:30
Speaker 1: very precious in God's sight. He values it not for
23:33
Speaker 1: its external advantages, but for the sincere piety which distinguishes
23:36
Speaker 1: it from the world. He estimates it according to the
23:39
Speaker 1: growth of the members in the knowledge of Christ, according
23:42
Speaker 1: to their progress in spiritual experience. Christ hungers to receive
23:47
Speaker 1: from his vineyard the fruit of holiness and unselfishness. He
23:51
Speaker 1: looks for the principles of love and goodness. Not all
23:55
Speaker 1: the beauty of art can bear comparison with the beauty
23:57
Speaker 1: of temper and character. To be rever field in those
24:00
Speaker 1: who are Christ's representatives. It is the atmosphere of grace
24:04
Speaker 1: which surrounds the soul of the believer, the Holy Spirit
24:07
Speaker 1: working upon mind and heart, that makes him a savor
24:10
Speaker 1: of life unto life, and enables God to bless his work.
24:15
Speaker 1: A congregation may be the poorest in the land. It
24:18
Speaker 1: may be without the attraction of any outward show. But
24:21
Speaker 1: if the members possess the principles of the character of Christ,
24:24
Speaker 1: they will have His joy in their souls. Angels will
24:28
Speaker 1: unite with them in their worship. The praise and thanksgiving
24:31
Speaker 1: from grateful hearts will ascend to God as a sweet oblation.
24:35
Speaker 1: The Lord desires us to make mention of his goodness
24:38
Speaker 1: and tell of his power. He is honored by the
24:41
Speaker 1: expression of praise and thanksgiving. He says, whoso offereth praise
24:45
Speaker 1: glorifieth me. The people of Israel, as they journey through
24:49
Speaker 1: the wilderness, praised God in sacred song. The commandments and
24:53
Speaker 1: promises of the Lord were set to music, and all
24:56
Speaker 1: along the journey, these were sung by the pilgrim, travelers
24:59
Speaker 1: and and canaan as they met at their sacred feasts.
25:02
Speaker 1: God's wonderful works were to be recounted and grateful thanksgiving
25:06
Speaker 1: offered to his name. God desired that the whole life
25:09
Speaker 1: of his people should be a life of praise. Thus
25:12
Speaker 1: his way was to be made known upon the earth,
25:15
Speaker 1: his saving health among all the nations. So it should
25:18
Speaker 1: be now the people of the world, the worshiping false gods.
25:22
Speaker 1: They are to be turned from their false worship, not
25:24
Speaker 1: by hearing denunciation of their idols, but by beholding something better.
25:29
Speaker 1: God's goodness is to be made known. Ye are my witnesses,
25:33
Speaker 1: saith the Lord that I am God. The Lord desires
25:36
Speaker 1: us to appreciate the great plan of redemption, to realize
25:40
Speaker 1: our high privilege as the children of God, and to
25:42
Speaker 1: walk before him in obedience with grateful thanksgiving. He desires
25:46
Speaker 1: us to serve him in newness of life, with gladness
25:49
Speaker 1: every day. He longs to seek gratitude welling up in
25:52
Speaker 1: our hearts because our names are written in the Lamb's
25:55
Speaker 1: book of Life, because we may cast all our care
25:58
Speaker 1: upon him who cares for us. He bids us rejoice
26:01
Speaker 1: because we are the heritage of the Lord, because the
26:04
Speaker 1: righteousness of Christ is the white robe of his saints,
26:07
Speaker 1: because we have the blessed hope of the soon coming
26:10
Speaker 1: of our Savior. To praise God in fullness and sincerity
26:14
Speaker 1: of heart is as much a duty as his prayer.
26:17
Speaker 1: We are to show to the world and to all
26:19
Speaker 1: the heavenly intelligences that we appreciate the wonderful love of
26:22
Speaker 1: God for fallen humanity, and that we are expecting larger
26:26
Speaker 1: and yet larger blessings from His infinite fulness. Far more
26:30
Speaker 1: than we do. We need to speak of the precious
26:32
Speaker 1: chapters of our experience after a special outpouring of the
26:36
Speaker 1: Holy Spirit. Our joy in the Lord and our efficiency
26:39
Speaker 1: in his service would be greatly increased by recounting His
26:42
Speaker 1: goodness and his wonderful works in behalf of his children.
26:46
Speaker 1: These exercises drive back the power of Satan. They expel
26:51
Speaker 1: the spirit of murmuring and complaint, and the tempter loses ground.
26:55
Speaker 1: They cultivate those attributes of character which will fit the
26:58
Speaker 1: dwellers on earth. For the heavenly man, such a testimony
27:02
Speaker 1: will have an influence upon others. No more effective means
27:06
Speaker 1: can be employed for winning souls to Christ. We are
27:09
Speaker 1: to praise God by tangible service, by doing all in
27:13
Speaker 1: our power to advance the glory of his name. God
27:16
Speaker 1: imparts his gifts to us that we also may give,
27:19
Speaker 1: and thus make known His character to the world. Under
27:22
Speaker 1: the Jewish economy, gifts and offerings formed an essential part
27:26
Speaker 1: of God's worship. The Israelites were taught to devote a
27:29
Speaker 1: tithe of all their income to the service of the sanctuary.
27:33
Speaker 1: Besides this, they were to bring sin offerings, free will gifts,
27:36
Speaker 1: and offerings of gratitude. These were the means for supporting
27:40
Speaker 1: the ministry of the Gospel for that time. God expects
27:43
Speaker 1: no less from us than he expected from his people anciently.
27:46
Speaker 1: The great work for the salvation of souls must be
27:49
Speaker 1: carried forward in the tithe with gifts and offerings. He
27:52
Speaker 1: has made provision for this work. Thus he intends that
27:55
Speaker 1: the ministry of the Gospel shall be sustained. He claims
27:59
Speaker 1: the tithe as his, and it should ever be regarded
28:02
Speaker 1: as a sacred reserve, to be placed in his treasury
28:05
Speaker 1: for the benefit of his cause. He asks also for
28:08
Speaker 1: our free will, gifts and offerings of gratitude. All are
28:11
Speaker 1: to be devoted to the sending of the Gospel into
28:13
Speaker 1: the uttermost parts of the earth. Service to God includes
28:17
Speaker 1: personal ministry. By personal effort, we are to cooperate with
28:21
Speaker 1: Him for the saving of the world. Christ's commission, go
28:25
Speaker 1: ye into all the world and preach the Gospel to
28:27
Speaker 1: every creature is spoken to every one of his followers.
28:31
Speaker 1: All who are ordained unto the life of Christ are
28:34
Speaker 1: ordained to work for the salvation of their fellow men.
28:37
Speaker 1: Their hearts will throb in unison with the heart of Christ.
28:41
Speaker 1: The same longing for souls that He has felt will
28:43
Speaker 1: be manifest in them. Not all can fill the same
28:46
Speaker 1: place in the work, but there is a place and
28:49
Speaker 1: a work for all. In ancient times, Abraham Isaac Jacob,
28:53
Speaker 1: Moses with his meekness and wisdom, and Joshua with his
28:56
Speaker 1: varied capabilities were all enlisted in God's service. The music
29:01
Speaker 1: of Miriam, the courage and piety of Deborah, the filial
29:04
Speaker 1: affection of Ruth, the obedience and faithfulness of Samuel, the
29:08
Speaker 1: stern fidelity of Elijah, the softening, subduing influence of Alicia.
29:13
Speaker 1: All were needed. So now all upon whom God's blessing
29:17
Speaker 1: has been bestowed are to respond by actual service. Every
29:20
Speaker 1: gift is to be employed for the advancement of His
29:23
Speaker 1: kingdom and the glory of his name. All who receive
29:27
Speaker 1: Christ as a personal savior are to demonstrate the truth
29:30
Speaker 1: of the Gospel and its saving power upon the life.
29:33
Speaker 1: God makes no requirement without making provision for its fulfillment.
29:37
Speaker 1: Through the grace of Christ, we may accomplish everything that
29:40
Speaker 1: God requires. All the riches of Heaven are to be
29:43
Speaker 1: revealed through God's people. Herein is my Father, glorified. Christ
29:47
Speaker 1: says that ye bear much fruit, so shall ye be
29:51
Speaker 1: my disciples. God claims the whole earth as his vineyard,
29:55
Speaker 1: though now in the hands of the usurper, it belongs
29:58
Speaker 1: to God redemption no less than by creation. It is
30:02
Speaker 1: his for the world. Christ's sacrifice was made. God so
30:06
Speaker 1: loved the world that he gave his only begotten son.
30:10
Speaker 1: It is through that one gift that every other is
30:13
Speaker 1: imparted to men. Daily the whole world receives blessing from God.
30:17
Speaker 1: Every drop of rain, every ray of light shared on
30:20
Speaker 1: our unthankful race. Every leaf and flower and fruit testifies
30:25
Speaker 1: to God's long forbearance and his great love. And what
30:29
Speaker 1: returns are made to the Great Giver. How are men
30:32
Speaker 1: treating the claims of God? To whom are the masses
30:35
Speaker 1: of mankind giving the service of their lives? They are
30:38
Speaker 1: serving mammon. Wealth position pleasure in the world is their aim.
30:43
Speaker 1: Wealth is gained by robbery, not of man only, but
30:46
Speaker 1: of God. Men are using His gifts to gratify their selfishness.
30:50
Speaker 1: Everything they can grasp is made to minister to their
30:53
Speaker 1: greed and their love of selfish pleasure. The sin of
30:56
Speaker 1: the world to day is the sin that brought destruction
30:58
Speaker 1: upon Israel. Ingratitude to God, the neglect of opportunities and blessings,
31:04
Speaker 1: the selfish appropriation of God's gifts. These were comprised in
31:08
Speaker 1: the sin that brought wrath upon Israel. They are bringing
31:11
Speaker 1: ruin upon the world to day. The tears which Christ
31:14
Speaker 1: shed upon olivet as he stood overlooking the Chosen City,
31:18
Speaker 1: were not for Jerusalem alone. In the fate of Jerusalem,
31:21
Speaker 1: he beheld the destruction of the world. If thou hadst known,
31:25
Speaker 1: even thou at least in this thy day the things
31:28
Speaker 1: which belong unto thy peace. But now they are hid
31:31
Speaker 1: from thine eyes. In this thy day. The day is
31:35
Speaker 1: nearing its close. The period of mercy and privilege is
31:39
Speaker 1: well nigh ended. The clouds of vengeance are gathering. The
31:42
Speaker 1: rejectors of God's grace are about to be involved in
31:45
Speaker 1: swift and irretrievable ruin. Yet the world is asleep. The
31:50
Speaker 1: people know not the time of their visitation in this crisis.
31:54
Speaker 1: Where is the church to be found? Are its members
31:56
Speaker 1: meeting the claims of God? Are they fulfilling his commission
32:00
Speaker 1: and representing His character to the world? Are they urging
32:03
Speaker 1: upon the attention of their fellow men? The last merciful
32:06
Speaker 1: message of warning men are in peril. Multitudes are perishing,
32:11
Speaker 1: But how few of the professed followers of Christ are
32:14
Speaker 1: burdened for these souls. The destiny of a world hangs
32:17
Speaker 1: in the balance. But this hardly moves even those who
32:20
Speaker 1: claim to believe the most far reaching truth ever given
32:23
Speaker 1: to mortals. There is a lack of that love which
32:26
Speaker 1: led Christ to leave his heavenly home and take man's nature,
32:30
Speaker 1: that humanity might touch humanity and draw humanity to divinity.
32:35
Speaker 1: There is a stupor a paralysis upon the people of God,
32:39
Speaker 1: which prevents them from understanding the duty of the hour.
32:43
Speaker 1: When the Israelites entered Canaan, they did not fulfill God's
32:46
Speaker 1: purpose by taking possession of the whole land. After making
32:49
Speaker 1: a partial conquest, they settled down to enjoy the fruits
32:52
Speaker 1: of their victories. In their unbelief and love of ease,
32:56
Speaker 1: they congregated together in the portions already conquered, instead of
33:00
Speaker 1: pushing forward to occupy new territory. Thus they began to
33:03
Speaker 1: depart from God. By their failure to carry out his purpose,
33:07
Speaker 1: they made it impossible for Him to fulfill to them
33:10
Speaker 1: his promise of blessing. Is not the Church of to
33:13
Speaker 1: day doing the same thing with the whole world before
33:16
Speaker 1: them in need of the gospel. Professed Christians congregate together
33:19
Speaker 1: where they themselves can enjoy gospel privileges. They do not
33:23
Speaker 1: feel the necessity of occupying new territory, of carrying the
33:26
Speaker 1: message of Salvation into regions beyond. They refuse to fulfill
33:31
Speaker 1: Christ's commission, go ye into all the world and preach
33:34
Speaker 1: the Gospel to every creature. Are they less guilty than
33:38
Speaker 1: was the Jewish Church? The professed followers of Christ are
33:41
Speaker 1: on trial before the heavenly universe. But the coldness of
33:44
Speaker 1: their zeal and the feebleness of their efforts in God's
33:47
Speaker 1: service mark them as unfaithful. If what they are doing
33:51
Speaker 1: were the best they could do, condemnation would not rest
33:53
Speaker 1: upon them. But were their hearts enlisted in the work,
33:57
Speaker 1: they could do much more. They know the world knows
34:01
Speaker 1: that they have to a great degree lost the spirit
34:03
Speaker 1: of self denial and cross bearing. Many there are against
34:07
Speaker 1: whose names will be found written in the books of Heaven,
34:09
Speaker 1: not producers but consumers. By many who bear Christ's name,
34:14
Speaker 1: his glory is obscured, his beauty veiled, his honor withheld.
34:19
Speaker 1: There are many whose names are on the church books,
34:21
Speaker 1: but who are not under Christ's rule. They are not
34:24
Speaker 1: heeding his instruction or doing his work. Therefore they are
34:28
Speaker 1: under the control of the enemy. They are doing no
34:30
Speaker 1: positive good. Therefore they are doing incalculable harm. Because their
34:35
Speaker 1: influence is not a savor of life unto life. It
34:38
Speaker 1: is a savor of death unto death. The Lord says,
34:42
Speaker 1: shall I not visit for these things? Because they failed
34:45
Speaker 1: of fulfilling God's purpose, The children of Israel were set aside,
34:49
Speaker 1: and God's call was extended to other peoples. If these
34:52
Speaker 1: too prove unfaithful, will they not, in like manner be rejected.
34:57
Speaker 1: In the parable of the Vineyard, it was the husband
35:00
Speaker 1: men whom Christ pronounced guilty. It was they who had
35:03
Speaker 1: refused to return to their Lord the fruit of his ground.
35:06
Speaker 1: In the Jewish nation, it was the priests and teachers who,
35:09
Speaker 1: by misleading the people, had robbed God of the service
35:12
Speaker 1: which he claimed. It was they who turned the nation
35:15
Speaker 1: away from Christ. The law of God, unmixed with human tradition,
35:19
Speaker 1: was presented by Christ as the great standard of obedience.
35:23
Speaker 1: This aroused the enmity of the rabbis. They had set
35:26
Speaker 1: human teaching above God's word and turned the people away
35:29
Speaker 1: from his precepts. They would not give up their man
35:32
Speaker 1: made commandments in order to obey the requirements of the
35:34
Speaker 1: Word of God. They would not, for the truth's sake, sacrifice,
35:38
Speaker 1: the pride of reason, and the praise of men When
35:41
Speaker 1: Christ came, presenting to the nation the claims of God,
35:45
Speaker 1: the priests and elders denied his right to interpose between
35:48
Speaker 1: them and the people. They would not accept his rebukes
35:51
Speaker 1: and warnings, and they set themselves to turn the people
35:53
Speaker 1: against him and to compass his destruction for the rejection
35:57
Speaker 1: of Christ. With the results it followed, they were responsible.
36:01
Speaker 1: A nation's sin and a nation's ruin were due to
36:04
Speaker 1: the religious leaders in our day. Are not the same
36:08
Speaker 1: influences at work of the husbandmen of the Lord's vineyard?
36:12
Speaker 1: Are not many following in the steps of the Jewish leaders?
36:15
Speaker 1: Are not religious teachers turning men away from the plain
36:18
Speaker 1: requirements of the Word of God instead of educating them
36:22
Speaker 1: in obedience to God's law? Are they not educating them
36:25
Speaker 1: in transgression from many of the pulpits of the churches.
36:29
Speaker 1: The people are taught that the law of God is
36:31
Speaker 1: not binding upon them. Human traditions, ordinances, and customs are
36:35
Speaker 1: exalted pride and self satisfaction because the gifts of God
36:38
Speaker 1: are fostered, while the claims of God are ignored. In
36:42
Speaker 1: setting aside the law of God, men know not what
36:45
Speaker 1: they are doing. God's law is the transcript of his character.
36:49
Speaker 1: It embodies the principles of His kingdom. He who refuses
36:52
Speaker 1: to accept these principles is placing himself outside the channel
36:56
Speaker 1: where God's blessings flow. The glorious possibilities set before for
37:00
Speaker 1: Israel could be realized only through obedience to God's commandments.
37:04
Speaker 1: The same elevation of character, the same fullness of blessing,
37:08
Speaker 1: blessing on mind and soul and body, blessing on house
37:11
Speaker 1: and field, blessing for this life and for the life
37:14
Speaker 1: to come, is possible for us only through obedience. In
37:18
Speaker 1: the spiritual as in the natural world, obedience to the
37:21
Speaker 1: laws of God is the condition of fruit bearing. And
37:25
Speaker 1: when men teach the people to disregard God's commandments, they
37:28
Speaker 1: are preventing them from bearing fruit to his glory. They
37:31
Speaker 1: are guilty of withholding from the Lord the fruits of
37:34
Speaker 1: his vineyard to us. God's messengers come at the bidding
37:38
Speaker 1: of the Master. They come demanding, as did Christ, obedience
37:42
Speaker 1: to the word of God. They present his claim to
37:44
Speaker 1: the fruits of the vineyard, the fruits of love and
37:47
Speaker 1: humility and self sacrificing service. Like the Jewish leaders, are
37:51
Speaker 1: not many of the husbandmen of the vineyard stirred to anger.
37:55
Speaker 1: When the claim of God's law is set before the people,
37:57
Speaker 1: do not these teachers use their influence in leading men
38:00
Speaker 1: to reject it. Such teachers God calls unfaithful servants. The
38:05
Speaker 1: words of God to ancient Israel. Have a solemn warning
38:07
Speaker 1: to the Church and its leaders today of Israel. The
38:11
Speaker 1: Lord said, I have written to him the great things
38:14
Speaker 1: of my law, but they were counted as a strange thing.
38:17
Speaker 1: And to the priests and teachers, he declared, my people
38:20
Speaker 1: are destroyed for lack of knowledge. Because thou hast rejected knowledge,
38:24
Speaker 1: I will also reject thee. Seeing thou hast forgotten the
38:27
Speaker 1: law of thy God, I will also forget thy children.
38:31
Speaker 1: Shall the warnings from God be passed by unheeded? Shall
38:35
Speaker 1: the opportunities for service be unimproved? Shall the world's scorn,
38:39
Speaker 1: the pride of reason, conformity to human customs and traditions
38:43
Speaker 1: hold the professed followers of Christ from service to him?
38:46
Speaker 1: Will they reject God's word as the Jewish leaders rejected Christ.
38:50
Speaker 1: The result of Israel's sin is before us. Will the
38:53
Speaker 1: Church of today take warning? If some of the branches
38:57
Speaker 1: be broken off, and thou being a wild olive tree
39:00
Speaker 1: work grafted in among them, and with them partakest of
39:03
Speaker 1: the root and fatness of the olive tree boast Not
39:07
Speaker 1: because of unbelief, they were broken off. And thou standest
39:11
Speaker 1: by faith, Be not high minded, but fear, for if
39:14
Speaker 1: God spared not the natural branches take heed, lest He
39:18
Speaker 1: also spare not thee end of Chapter twenty three