Latest / Meadows Baptist Church Podcast / Preserving Patience - 4/1/26 - Meadows Baptist Church - Pastor Charlie Branch

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Preserving Patience - 4/1/26 - Meadows Baptist Church - Pastor Charlie Branch · Meadows Baptist Church Podcast

• 0:02
  Welcome to the podcast of Meadows
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  Baptist Church of Walnut Cove, North
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  Carolina. We're so glad you joined us
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  today. If you enjoy today's message, be
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  sure to subscribe, follow, and share
• 0:15
  with your friends. Now, let's join
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  Pastor Charlie Branch with a word from
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  God.
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  Let's look tonight Matthew chapter 5 and
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  uh
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  tonight's message and then one more
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  we'll be I think we'll be through
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  here with this text and I got a lot of
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  ground to cover so we're going to jump
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  right in tonight. Matthew chapter 5
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  verse number 38
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  be our next statement here uh we'll look
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  at tonight. Matthew 5:38,
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  the Bible says, "Ye have heard that it
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  hath been said, an eye for an eye, and a
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  tooth for a tooth. But I say unto you
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  that ye resist not evil. But whosoever
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  shall smite thee on the right on thy
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  right cheek, turn to him the other also.
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  And if any man will sue thee at the law,
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  and take away thy coat, let him have thy
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  cloak also. And whosoever shall compel
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  thee to go a mile, go with him twain.
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  Give to him that askketh thee, and from
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  him that would borrow of thee, turn that
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  not thou away. Notice verse 38 again.
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  Jesus says, "Ye have heard that hath
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  been said, an eye for an eye, and a
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  tooth for a tooth." Tonight in this
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  text, we've considered several messages.
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  Um I think up to this point there's been
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  four messages of these this preservation
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  series. Five messages um so far. And so
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  um I want to look tonight uh at the
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  sixth one if we could and consider the
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  thought preserving patience. Preserving
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  patience. And last week was tough but
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  this one's going to be real tough. So
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  you pray tonight that God would help us
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  and uh as we deal with this text and
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  let's let's ask him to help us for just
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  a moment time. Father, thank you uh God
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  for this time of Bible study and Lord,
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  time of preaching. Thank you for these
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  people that are so faithful and Lord, I
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  love each one of them so much. God, I
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  pray they feel that in their heart
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  tonight. But Lord, more than my love for
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  them, I pray uh God, that you would let
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  them know, God, and Lord, as you always
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  do, that you love them. And uh Lord,
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  you're you're grateful for them being in
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  your house tonight. And Lord, I
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  appreciate it from the bottom of my
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  heart. But Lord, I could never
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  appreciate it the way that you do. And
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  so Lord, I pray God that you would help
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  us tonight. Lord, I don't want to waste
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  their time and I don't want to waste
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  your time. You've given us uh this
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  opportunity. And so Lord, I pray you'd
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  help us to have listening ears and
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  attentive hearts to the word of God. May
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  we be obedient to the truth that shared
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  tonight and uh give us strength to do to
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  obey. And we'll give you praise for what
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  you do because we ask it in Jesus name.
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  Amen. This text here particularly of
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  course Jesus is still speaking here in
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  the sermon on the mount and the greatest
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  sermon ever given our Lord gave uh in
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  this text and I like what he has said in
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  this chapter. Now he has brought to
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  light a lot of different subjects and
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  man I was thinking uh just a little
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  while ago and a thought just crossed my
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  mind again. What must it have been to
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  stand there and to hear him say these
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  words? Um those men you know there was a
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  crowd that appreciated what he said.
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  those disciples that are were around
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  him, they had a desire to listen to what
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  he had to say. But you know, even amidst
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  that, there were the Pharisees there
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  that were present and they had no desire
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  to adhere to what Jesus was teaching.
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  And so, we shouldn't expect any
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  different in this day and time. And uh
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  you know, even out of the 12 that were
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  devoted to him, one of them was the
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  devil. And so, we ought to make sure uh
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  that we are giving our best to the Lord
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  when it comes to our listening as well
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  as our teaching, what God has us to do.
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  And so I when I come to this text
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  tonight, I want to lay three things out
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  to you uh just like I normally do when
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  we deal with this. And I want to point
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  out to you, first of all, the law that
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  is stated in verse number 38. The Bible
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  says, "You have heard that it hath been
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  said, "An eye for an eye and a tooth for
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  a tooth." Now that statement tonight is
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  more than just a lyric in a country
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  song. Okay? That is scriptural. All
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  right? When it comes to this text, this
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  statement is made in the Old Testament.
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  This is a repeat of the law that was
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  given. I'll give you the three
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  references uh for this text. Give you
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  the three different uh terms that are
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  used here for these references. I would
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  say first of all when you see or the
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  first mention of this statement, an eye
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  for an eye and a tooth for a tooth is
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  found in the book of Exodus chapter
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  number 21 and verse number 24. And it
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  has to deal with the death of a baby,
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  the wrongful death of a baby. it it
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  speaks there in the text. You could turn
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  there and read it. I'm not going not
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  going to take time to deal with all that
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  tonight. But when you look at that
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  passage, the context of it is that if
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  there is a man that for some reason in a
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  a physical um altercation uh does
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  something to a lady and out of that the
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  baby that she's pregnant with is lost,
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  that means that he is to repay that same
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  amount that death for that baby. You
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  say, "Well, the man may not have a
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  pregnant wife." Well, that's not the
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  principle. I'll share with you the
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  principle in just a minute. But in
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  Exodus 21, it is has to do with the
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  death of a baby. A woman that's with
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  child and that baby dies out of a
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  physical altercation with a man. Second
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  time it's mentioned in the word of God
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  is in Leviticus chap 24 and verse number
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  20. And it has to deal not with the
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  death of a baby but damage to the body.
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  It literally talks about a blemish. if a
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  man cause a blemish in someone else's
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  body. And so that's also a physical
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  altercation, a physical injury. And so
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  there is the death of a baby that's
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  dealt with in Exodus 21. And then damage
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  to a person's body in Leviticus 24 and
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  verse number 19. But the third place
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  this is seen in the penitute in the law
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  is in the book of Deuteronomy chapter 19
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  and verse number 21. And it has to do
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  not with a p not with a physical injury,
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  but it has to do with a false
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  accusation. And so I use this
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  foriteration. It helps me remember it.
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  If it helps you remember it, praise the
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  Lord. If it don't, I'm sorry. It's just
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  what I use to help remember it. But I I
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  it's not just uh physical, but it has to
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  do with an accusation. So there's the
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  distortion of blame that's found in
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  Deuteronomy 19
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  down through verse number 21. And you
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  say, "Well, what does all three of those
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  have in common?" Well, all three of
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  these instances have in common the fact
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  that there was damage inflicted. And
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  because of the damage that was
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  inflicted, there must be a repayment
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  >> of equal value.
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  >> Right?
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  >> You say, "What is that?" Well, notice
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  the verse again in verse 38. You have
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  heard that it hath been said, what's
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  your Bible say? An eye for an eye and a
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  tooth for a tooth. Dwight Pentecost said
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  this concerning this text. He said, "In
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  all of these references, God is
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  protecting the innocent from the
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  guilty." And let me say this. I don't
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  care what our country does, what our
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  government does as far as protecting the
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  guilty goes in this c in this country.
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  You need to remember something. God is
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  watching from heaven above. And he sees
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  when there's injustice that's dealt. He
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  sees when a judge deals wrongfully. He
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  knows every case that goes wrong. Let me
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  say he's not going to forget a single
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  one of them. Amen. And so it doesn't
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  matter how wrong you're done on this
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  side by a legal system or by a person
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  morally. God knows and God sees. Amen.
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  And he's going to iron out every
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  wrinkle. He's going to straighten out
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  every uh injustice that's done. And
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  Jesus gives this truth in this text. And
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  you say, "Well, preacher, it's a Bible
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  truth. He says an eye for an eye and a
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  tooth for truth." Well, here's what you
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  need to understand. When that was
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  shared, that was never meant to be
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  literal.
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  >> You're right.
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  >> You say, "What do you mean?" Well, it
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  was never meant for mutilation.
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  It was never meant that if somebody else
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  that that instance in the book of
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  Leviticus 24 that talks about the
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  blemish of a person's body even in that
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  text it does not mean that if a man was
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  to pluck out someone's eye or to rip off
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  someone's hand or whatever. It does not
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  mean that that man would go through the
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  same same punishment that he dealt to
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  the other person. But what it means is
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  that he would pay the cost of what that
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  person deemed he deserved for his
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  punishment.
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  >> Good.
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  >> And so when we think about an eye for an
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  eye and a tooth for a tooth, country
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  boys all throughout the south have used
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  this as an excuse to get in brawls for
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  the last four or five decades. But let
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  me tell you something about that
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  tonight. A brawling man has no
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  inheritance in the kingdom of God.
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  >> He has no right to holiness. He has no
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  right to grace. A brawler is not a
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  righteous man. And let me say this to
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  you as a man or even as a woman in this
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  day and time. If you're always looking
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  to pick a fight, there's something wrong
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  with you. You're
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  >> right.
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  >> Amen. You say, "Well, the Bible says an
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  eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth."
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  Well, just remember, you might go a long
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  ways in life and you might win a few
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  fights, but you going to come upon one.
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  One of these days, you ain't going to be
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  able to win. Somebody say amen right
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  there. You get a hold of something a
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  little more than you can handle. Amen.
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  And maybe that'll give you a taste of
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  your own medicine, desiring to deal
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  justice by yourself. And you say, "What
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  does that have to do?" Well, Jesus has
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  stated the law in this text. But
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  remember, what have we noticed in all of
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  these verses that there has been an
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  application to the Pharisees because
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  what are they doing? They're corrupting
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  the law.
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  >> And so I say this for the uh
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  alliteration application since we see
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  the law in verse number 38. But what we
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  do not see in the text is the lesion
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  that is happened to that law by the
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  Pharisees. Now here's what we know
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  concerning this text. Jesus is dealing
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  with this thought. And what this means
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  is this law the legion here the Jews had
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  taken this beyond the rule of
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  governmental law to so to speak that an
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  eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth
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  that every man had a right to go beyond
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  and take the law into his own hands so
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  to speak. And you know what? That's
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  dangerous,
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  >> right?
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  >> It's very dangerous when men and women
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  decide that they are going to take the
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  law into their own hands. This is what
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  the Jews had done. You say, "Why is
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  that?" Well, Rome had, of course, their
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  their government had been dispersed.
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  There was the chief priests. There were
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  uh the Pharisees. There was the uh the
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  Sadducees, the Sanhedrin court, but they
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  had no governmental status. And you say,
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  "Well, how do you represent that?" Well,
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  you think about this. When they were
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  trying to get Jesus tried, what did they
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  do? They didn't bring him before the
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  Jews. But who' they take him to? They
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  took him to the Romans, didn't they?
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  Because Rome was the government that was
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  at hand. And so these Jews, because Rome
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  would not support their ideas and their
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  theologies about justice, they decided
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  that it was okay for them in matters
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  where Rome wouldn't handle it, they
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  would take it into their own hands. Let
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  me say this to you. Just because the
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  government doesn't handle something
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  doesn't mean we shouldn't we should take
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  it into our own hands. Okay.
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  >> Now, I know our gut justice system is
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  corrupt, but I'm going to give you a
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  verse in just a minute that you need to
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  know and you need to make sure that you
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  stay well acquainted with it because in
• 11:51
  this day and time, people are doing this
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  left and right. You say, "How is that?"
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  Well, you look at the social media
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  world, everybody's incriminating
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  somebody for something. Everybody's in
• 12:01
  in conducting their own investigations.
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  Everybody's doing their own
• 12:05
  incriminating and they're getting their
• 12:06
  case together and then they want the
• 12:08
  justice system to take it. What do we
• 12:09
  have? We have a justice system that's
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  overloaded and overwhelmed that can't
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  get anything accomplished.
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  >> Right?
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  >> And so in this text here, the lesion of
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  this commandment is the Jews, they were
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  in essence taking the law into their own
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  hands. And let me remind you, the law is
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  to be dealt by lawgivers, magistrates,
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  and judges. Listen to what Romans 13
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  says. If you have a question about this,
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  I encourage you to put it in your
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  margin. Romans 13. Really, you could
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  look all the way from verse number one
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  to verse number four. But listen to what
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  he says in verse number three of Romans
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  13. For rulers are not a terror to good
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  works, but to the evil. Wilt thou then
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  not be afraid of the power. Do that
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  which is good, and thou shalt have
• 12:51
  praise of the same. Verse four, for he
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  is the minister of God to thee for good.
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  Now he's talking about government here.
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  Listen what he says. But if thou do that
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  which is evil, be afraid. For he beareth
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  not the sword in vain. For he is the
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  minister of God, a revenger to execute
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  wrath upon him that doeth evil. And you
• 13:08
  say, how does that refer to rulers?
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  Well, notice verse one of chapter 13.
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  Let every soul be subject unto the
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  higher powers. That's government. And so
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  what that is saying is is that
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  government has the right to enforce
• 13:23
  their laws. And aren't you thankful for
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  our country, man? We could live
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  somewhere else.
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  >> You're right. where the government could
• 13:31
  try to kill us for what we're doing.
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  >> It could be a lot worse than it is. I
• 13:35
  know it's bad, but it could be a whole
• 13:37
  lot worse than what it is. Amen. And
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  there's countries tonight where people
• 13:42
  are underground worshiping God and and
• 13:44
  doing Bible studies and things of that
• 13:46
  nature. And you say, "Preacher, well,
• 13:48
  they are they going against the
• 13:49
  government?" Well, there comes a line.
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  There comes a time when the line is
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  drawn,
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  >> right?
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  >> We follow the government to an extent.
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  Amen. But we cannot go with them when
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  they say you can't you can't worship
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  your God anymore. Amen. Because he is
• 14:02
  the government over their government.
• 14:04
  Amen. So we we see the Legion here in
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  this thought. And and let me say this.
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  Let me before I get into the message
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  tonight. Vengeance is never listen to
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  me. Vengeance is never to be taken into
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  our own hands.
• 14:20
  You should never take it make it your
• 14:22
  responsibility to get even with
• 14:24
  somebody. And you know, you say,
• 14:26
  "Preacher, well, I wish the young people
• 14:27
  could hear this." Y' y'all need to hear
• 14:29
  it just as much as they do. Amen.
• 14:31
  >> Because adults, this is the way they
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  live. Man, I'm telling you, you look at
• 14:34
  the corporate work world today and you
• 14:36
  see people, man, they'll take out the
• 14:38
  next one if it means they can get
• 14:40
  another rung up on the ladder because
• 14:41
  they, you know, they got stepped on and
• 14:43
  passed because somebody else took
• 14:45
  vengeance on them. What I'm saying is
• 14:47
  God said, "Vengeance is mine."
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  >> Right?
• 14:49
  >> Amen. It belongs unto him. Deuteronomy
• 14:53
  uh chapter number Deuteronomy here
• 14:56
  chapter 32:35
• 14:58
  he said it belongs unto me Romans 12 and
• 15:00
  verse 19 Paul said the vengeance is mine
• 15:03
  sayaith the Lord I will repay and so
• 15:08
  there is the law and there is the legion
• 15:10
  but then let's consider what the Lord
• 15:11
  has to say about it amen notice the text
• 15:14
  the Bible says in verse number 39 he
• 15:17
  said but I say unto you man I'm thankful
• 15:19
  for every time there's been a a word of
• 15:22
  condemnation. Jesus has got a word of
• 15:24
  grace. Amen. Listen to what he says.
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  Amen. He says, "But I say unto you that
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  ye resist not evil." Now, this has been
• 15:34
  misconstrued many times as much as the
• 15:36
  Bible has. And I want to do my best to
• 15:38
  try to interpret this rightly tonight.
• 15:40
  But let's let's consider what the Lord
• 15:42
  says. Now, you say, "What does that mean
• 15:44
  when he says, "Resist not evil." Well,
• 15:47
  in light of what he has already said, he
• 15:49
  says, "An eye for an eye and a tooth for
• 15:51
  a truth." What would we say by that?
• 15:53
  Well, we would say that there is a a
• 15:55
  wrongdoing. Wouldn't that what we would
• 15:57
  call that? If somebody has taken out an
• 15:59
  eye, that's wrong. Amen. We we would
• 16:01
  Okay, somebody's knocked out a tooth.
• 16:03
  Amen. Just like on the the middle school
• 16:05
  playground. Amen. You know, knocked out
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  a tooth. That would be a wrongdoing.
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  That would get you sent to the
• 16:10
  principal's office. Isn't that right?
• 16:12
  And so, there's been a wrongdoing. But
• 16:14
  in spite of their own doing, Jesus says,
• 16:17
  rather than bringing retribution,
• 16:21
  he says, there's something else you need
• 16:22
  to do. Rather than retaliating or taking
• 16:27
  vengeance into your own hands, listen to
• 16:29
  what he says. He says, "But I say unto
• 16:31
  you that you resist not evil." Now, you
• 16:34
  say, "Preacher, what does that mean?"
• 16:35
  Well, I think it means three things. All
• 16:37
  right? And I I'll give you these three
• 16:38
  things and get to the message tonight.
• 16:40
  Number one, when he says to resist not
• 16:42
  evil, number one, it means this is that
• 16:44
  we're when we are done evil, when we are
• 16:46
  done wrong, we're not to speak our
• 16:48
  rights.
• 16:51
  You say, "What do you mean?" Well, in
• 16:54
  the case of this gentleman that has had
• 16:56
  his eye taken out or this lady that's
• 16:58
  had her tooth taken out, it means this
• 17:02
  that they're not quick to respond.
• 17:04
  >> Good. that the first, you know, word
• 17:08
  that comes to their mind, you know,
• 17:09
  well, you know, you shouldn't have done
• 17:11
  that.
• 17:13
  We're not quick to respond. I'm going
• 17:16
  somewhere. Stay with me. All right. And
• 17:18
  he says, he said, by saying you that you
• 17:20
  resist, not evil. So, that deals with a
• 17:22
  spoken word. We're not to speak our
• 17:25
  rights. Now, I'll give you more on that
• 17:27
  in just a minute. You say, "Well, Jesus
• 17:29
  rebuked uh the chief priest." I'll get
• 17:31
  there in just a minute. All right? Hang
• 17:32
  with me for a minute, okay? He says to
• 17:34
  resist not evil. Number one, that means
• 17:36
  we're not to speak our rights. Number
• 17:37
  two, it means this. We're not to seek
• 17:39
  retribution.
• 17:41
  Look what he says again. Resist not
• 17:44
  evil. So when that work, when you're
• 17:46
  done wrong, that means immediately
• 17:48
  you're not to speak, but you also don't
• 17:51
  need to act.
• 17:53
  >> Let me say this. When you're done wrong,
• 17:54
  the worst thing you can do is respond.
• 17:56
  That's right.
• 17:58
  >> Immediately.
• 18:00
  When you are done wrong, you ought to be
• 18:02
  silent. But you also ought to be still.
• 18:05
  Okay? All right. So, we get the point.
• 18:07
  All right. Number one, you're not to
• 18:09
  speak your rights. Number two, you're
• 18:11
  not to seek retribution. Number three,
• 18:13
  all right? And this is where I get to
• 18:15
  the message right here. Okay? You're not
• 18:17
  to speak you're not to seek retribution,
• 18:19
  but you do not need to surrender your
• 18:21
  reward. Now, what do I mean by that?
• 18:24
  Turn back with me in this chapter to
• 18:26
  verse number 11.
• 18:30
  Matthew 5 verse number 11. Listen to
• 18:33
  what he says.
• 18:34
  Blessed are ye when men shall revile you
• 18:36
  and persecute you and shall say all
• 18:39
  manner of evil against you falsely.
• 18:41
  Remember he's talking about being done
• 18:42
  wrong, right? For my sake. Verse 12.
• 18:45
  Rejoice and be exceeding glad. What's
• 18:47
  the next five words, church?
• 18:50
  For great is your reward in heaven. for
• 18:55
  so persecuted they the prophets which
• 18:58
  were before you. So in this matter of
• 19:02
  being done wrong, our our first reaction
• 19:05
  is to be silent. Okay? When you're done
• 19:08
  wrong, you ought to be silent. Number
• 19:09
  one, when you're done wrong, not only
• 19:11
  you ought to be silent, but you need to
• 19:12
  be still. And number three, you need to
• 19:15
  be thinking about what's coming ahead.
• 19:17
  >> Right?
• 19:19
  >> Because how you go forward from this is
• 19:20
  going to determine how you walk out of
• 19:22
  this situation. All right?
• 19:24
  You say, "Preacher, BUT I GOT TO STAND
• 19:27
  UP for myself."
• 19:30
  Let me ask you, did Jesus stand up for
• 19:32
  himself?
• 19:34
  You say, "Preacher, well, I'm not going
• 19:36
  to let somebody come in and walk over my
• 19:39
  wife and walk over my children." No,
• 19:40
  that's not what Jesus is asking you to
• 19:42
  do. Okay? There comes a limit between
• 19:45
  self-preservation
• 19:47
  and self-pride. That's
• 19:49
  >> right.
• 19:50
  >> Okay? If a man comes at you with a gun,
• 19:53
  you're not going to stand there and and
• 19:54
  and be silent and steal.
• 19:57
  Okay, we have common sense. All right,
• 20:00
  don't we? But let's be honest. How many
• 20:03
  people's How many of us has had somebody
• 20:05
  come at us with a gun?
• 20:08
  Very few, if any of us. Okay, but let's
• 20:11
  be real. How many times have we been
• 20:13
  faced with a situation
• 20:16
  where somebody was hot? And when I say
• 20:19
  hot, I mean full of wrath,
• 20:21
  >> mad, upset. We've all been in a
• 20:24
  situation where it could have got
• 20:26
  physical very quick.
• 20:27
  >> Right?
• 20:28
  >> So, let's deal with what's more
• 20:29
  prevalent. All right? Listen to what he
• 20:32
  says in verse 39.
• 20:34
  He said, "But I say unto you that you
• 20:36
  resist not evil." So, that means this.
• 20:38
  When it comes when somebody does you
• 20:40
  wrong, and he's going to give three
• 20:42
  examples here in the next few verses,
• 20:44
  and I'm going to give you those in just
• 20:45
  a minute. But in those examples,
• 20:47
  however, whatever way they do you wrong,
• 20:49
  he uses the physical example. You're not
• 20:52
  to resist that. You are not to to stand
• 20:56
  your ground and bow up and beat somebody
• 20:58
  up. But let me say this. I'm not telling
• 21:00
  you to be a doormat. Okay? That's not
• 21:01
  what I'm telling you. But I'm telling
• 21:03
  you to use common sense because who do
• 21:05
  we represent?
• 21:06
  >> We represent Christ. Amen. So notice
• 21:09
  what he has to say about this tonight.
• 21:11
  Okay? You say, "Preacher, I really do
• 21:13
  not understand what you're saying."
• 21:14
  Well, I'm going to give it to you right
• 21:15
  here. Okay, first of all, I would say
• 21:17
  this tonight when we consider the
• 21:19
  thought Jesus gives three illustrations.
• 21:22
  Number one, the first illustration that
• 21:23
  he gives is in verse 39 and it has to do
• 21:26
  with being physically injured. Now, he's
• 21:28
  already mentioned, you know, an eye for
• 21:31
  an eye, a tooth for a tooth. That's the
• 21:32
  Old Testament law. It meant that if
• 21:34
  somebody, you know, if there was a
• 21:36
  physical altercation, the party who was
• 21:39
  damaged, the party who was injured, they
• 21:41
  had to be repaid to the desire of the
• 21:44
  lawgiver to of the mediator, they had to
• 21:46
  be repaid the amount that was measured
• 21:49
  out by the law. But Jesus says in this
• 21:52
  text, if a man takes a swing, if you, he
• 21:55
  says, if a man smite thee on the right
• 21:57
  cheek, look what he says, turn to him
• 21:59
  the other also. Now, we don't like this
• 22:03
  verse. Okay? But I'm going to tell you
• 22:04
  why we don't like it. Because that is
• 22:06
  not a fleshly response.
• 22:09
  >> And you're not going to do that in the
• 22:10
  flesh. You say, "What does that mean?
• 22:13
  Does that mean I cower?" No, that means
• 22:15
  that you're the bigger person,
• 22:17
  >> right?
• 22:17
  >> How is that? All right. What this means
• 22:20
  is is not that you turn when somebody
• 22:23
  smites you. And this is the image we
• 22:24
  have. Okay? And this is what I thought.
• 22:26
  All right? To be fair, you know, I
• 22:28
  thought, you know, Jesus is saying, you
• 22:30
  know, in humility that when somebody
• 22:32
  slap me in the face that I need to turn
• 22:34
  the other cheek and say, "Go ahead, hit
• 22:36
  me here."
• 22:36
  >> Right?
• 22:37
  >> That's not what he means. What does he
• 22:39
  mean by that? He means this. He says
• 22:42
  when somebody smites you, he said, "You
• 22:44
  need to be prepared because if they'll
• 22:45
  do it once, they'll probably do it
• 22:47
  again."
• 22:47
  >> Right?
• 22:49
  >> Jesus is not telling you to lay down.
• 22:52
  He's telling you just to be aware of
• 22:54
  what's coming.
• 22:56
  You say, "How is that?" Well, let me say
• 22:57
  if somebody will stab you in the back
• 22:59
  once, they'll do it twice.
• 23:00
  >> Right?
• 23:01
  >> And Jesus says, number one, that we're
• 23:03
  to patiently take it. Notice that he
• 23:06
  says, "Whosoever shall smite thee on the
• 23:08
  right cheek." Jesus there's no clause
• 23:10
  for retaliation. There's no opportunity
• 23:13
  for the hand to come up. And you know,
• 23:15
  I've heard people say, I've even heard
• 23:17
  some people say it in this church. I
• 23:18
  don't know who said it, but I'm I'm not
• 23:20
  going to point them out. Okay? But they
• 23:22
  said, "After that second one, Jesus
• 23:23
  didn't give me no instruction on what to
• 23:25
  do." So then I'm going to do what I want
• 23:28
  to do. But you know what? That ain't
• 23:31
  what Jesus did.
• 23:32
  >> That's right.
• 23:33
  >> And aren't you thankful that ain't what
• 23:34
  he did,
• 23:35
  >> right?
• 23:36
  >> You say, "What do you mean?" I'm saying
• 23:37
  Jesus patiently took his smiding.
• 23:43
  Patiently took it. But not only that, he
• 23:46
  was prepared for more than one. Why is
• 23:49
  that? because he knew that if they would
• 23:51
  lay hands on him once, they would do it
• 23:53
  twice. Now, you say, "Preacher, I'm not
• 23:55
  going to let somebody lay hands on me
• 23:57
  more than once." Well, let me just say
• 23:58
  this, okay? If you don't respond, if you
• 24:02
  don't retaliate, they're going to be so
• 24:04
  shocked
• 24:06
  they ain't even going to know what to
• 24:07
  do.
• 24:10
  If somebody smites you on the face, all
• 24:12
  right, and they do it again, you know,
• 24:15
  and you don't say nothing, you don't
• 24:17
  move, you don't do anything, what do you
• 24:19
  think they're going to do?
• 24:22
  Now, I've seen this before, okay? And
• 24:24
  y'all act looking at me like I'm crazy,
• 24:26
  but I'm telling the truth, okay? You
• 24:28
  know what that does? It inspire, it
• 24:29
  provokes fear is what it does. Because
• 24:32
  you know what they see? They see that
• 24:33
  you are not moved by their input.
• 24:36
  Because why did they smite you in the
• 24:38
  first place? They wanted you to respond,
• 24:40
  >> right?
• 24:41
  >> Amen.
• 24:42
  >> If somebody smacks you across the face,
• 24:44
  they are expecting you to bring
• 24:46
  something back.
• 24:47
  >> And if you do not respond to that, what
• 24:49
  have you done? You have broke their
• 24:50
  expectation. You say, "How does this fit
• 24:53
  the text? I'm saying when somebody," and
• 24:56
  you say, "HOW PREACHER, HOW IS THAT
• 24:58
  OKAY? That is abuse. How can I just let
• 25:00
  that go?" Here's the thing. And Jesus is
• 25:02
  not saying let it go, but he's saying
• 25:05
  the law needs to deal with that.
• 25:08
  Don't teach your children if somebody
• 25:10
  slaps them or hits them that they need
• 25:11
  to hit back.
• 25:14
  Don't teach your children that. You say,
• 25:16
  "Preacher, why? They need to defend
• 25:18
  themselves." No. No, they don't. Because
• 25:21
  you know what? If they do, they'll end
• 25:22
  up having to do it the rest of their
• 25:23
  life. I know y'all don't like this
• 25:26
  preaching, but I'm going to preach it
• 25:27
  anyway. All right.
• 25:29
  Look. Okay. Here's what needs to happen.
• 25:32
  All right, you say, "Well, somebody hit
• 25:34
  my daughter. Somebody hit my son."
• 25:36
  Here's what you need to do. That needs
• 25:38
  to go to the higher power.
• 25:40
  Okay? Your son or your daughter's not in
• 25:43
  authority.
• 25:44
  All right? You say, "Well, they need to
• 25:46
  defend. They need to protect
• 25:47
  themselves." If somebody, if it's a
• 25:49
  little girl or a little boy and they on
• 25:53
  the face, come on.
• 25:56
  You really want your kid to do that? You
• 25:59
  really want them to be just like the
• 26:00
  person
• 26:02
  that did it to them. Now, this ain't
• 26:05
  popular. Okay, that's the reason why
• 26:06
  it's so quiet, but this is right. You
• 26:08
  say, "Preacher, how do we deal with
• 26:10
  that?" You teach them that when
• 26:11
  something happens to them, you know what
• 26:13
  they do? They go to the first person
• 26:15
  that they know has control over that
• 26:17
  other party.
• 26:19
  You say, in this case, what do we do? It
• 26:21
  has to do with dealing with a higher
• 26:23
  power. Jesus says in the text, look what
• 26:26
  he says. He says, "Whosoever shall smite
• 26:28
  thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the
• 26:30
  other also." And it means that you're to
• 26:32
  take it patiently, but be prepared. It
• 26:35
  will come again.
• 26:38
  And you say, "Well, what do I do after
• 26:40
  that?" Well, let me give you this truth.
• 26:41
  Okay? Jesus, when he was smitten, John
• 26:45
  chapter number 18, let's see what Jesus
• 26:47
  did. Okay?
• 26:49
  And and when you know the best thing you
• 26:52
  your child can do when they're in this
• 26:53
  situation is they need to leave the
• 26:55
  situation. First of all, amen. And you
• 26:58
  say, "Well, they're a coward if they
• 26:59
  run." No, they're a child. They don't
• 27:02
  have to fight for themselves.
• 27:04
  Use common sense. John 18 verse 22.
• 27:08
  Listen what your Bible says. And when he
• 27:10
  had thus spoken, speaking of Jesus, one
• 27:12
  of the offers which stood by struck
• 27:14
  Jesus with the palm of his hand, saying,
• 27:16
  "Answerest thou the high priest?" So,
• 27:18
  verse 23, Jesus answered him, "If I have
• 27:21
  spoken evil, bear witness of the evil.
• 27:24
  But if well, why smiteest thou me? So
• 27:27
  Jesus in this text, he doesn't
• 27:29
  retaliate. He rebukes him. Rebuke's
• 27:32
  fine. And your child, if somebody hits
• 27:34
  them, you know what they ought to do?
• 27:35
  They ought to tell them, "Why did you do
• 27:36
  that? You don't need to do that." But
• 27:39
  it's not their place to knock their
• 27:40
  block off in return.
• 27:43
  Say, "Preacher, I don't like that." It's
• 27:45
  Bible.
• 27:48
  It's Bible. It is not your job to defend
• 27:51
  yourself. You say, "If I walked up there
• 27:52
  and smacked you, preacher, would you
• 27:54
  stand there and take it?" Well, I'd have
• 27:55
  to.
• 27:57
  Here's the truth. What we don't like to
• 27:59
  admit. The reason why that we don't like
• 28:01
  this is because it hurts the least bit
• 28:03
  that little bit of pride that we have.
• 28:05
  We'll do everything else. We'll submit
• 28:07
  to everything else, but we're not going
• 28:09
  to allow somebody to hurt us physically.
• 28:11
  Well, let me ask you something. What are
• 28:12
  you What are you going to do when you
• 28:14
  talk to all them martyrs who were burned
• 28:15
  at the steak and had their tongue ripped
• 28:17
  out and all that other stuff and they
• 28:19
  never said anything?
• 28:21
  What are you going to do with Jesus?
• 28:23
  When Jesus went all the way to the
• 28:25
  cross, he was mocked his entire life. He
• 28:27
  never laid a finger on anybody. He never
• 28:30
  had a wrong thought. And he went all the
• 28:32
  way to the cross, died perfect and
• 28:34
  sinless, and never had to defend
• 28:36
  himself.
• 28:37
  >> It's not your job to defend yourself.
• 28:40
  Jesus, what did God say? Vengeance is
• 28:47
  >> We're to patiently take it. We're to
• 28:49
  prepare for two. You say, "Well, that's
• 28:51
  Jesus, preacher. That he was perfect. He
• 28:54
  was sinless." Well, let me give you
• 28:55
  another one. All right. If that's not
• 28:57
  good enough, Peter, the Bible says in
• 29:00
  the book of First Peter, chapter 5 and
• 29:01
  verse number 10, listen to what Peter
• 29:03
  says. All right? Peter literally talks
• 29:06
  about suffering the entirety of his
• 29:08
  epistle. And I'm going to get to Paul in
• 29:10
  just a minute, but Peter literally says
• 29:12
  this at the last chapter of his first
• 29:14
  epistle in 1 Peter 5 and verse number
• 29:17
  10. But the God of all grace, who hath
• 29:19
  called us into his eternal glory by
• 29:21
  Christ Jesus, what's that say? After
• 29:24
  that ye have suffered a while, make you
• 29:27
  perfect, establish, strengthen, and
• 29:29
  settle you. Suffering is a part of our
• 29:32
  life. Yay. And all that will live godly
• 29:34
  in Christ Jesus shall suffer
• 29:36
  persecution. Verse number 1 Peter
• 29:39
  chapter 2 and verse 19. For this is
• 29:42
  thankw worthy, if a man for conscience
• 29:45
  toward God endure grief, suffering
• 29:46
  wrongfully. For what glory is it, if
• 29:49
  when you be buffeted for your fault, you
• 29:50
  shall take it patiently? But if when you
• 29:52
  do well and suffer for it, you take it
• 29:54
  patiently, this is acceptable with God.
• 29:57
  Verse 21, for even here unto you called,
• 30:01
  because Christ also suffered for us,
• 30:04
  leaving us an example that you should
• 30:06
  follow in his steps. Let me just keep
• 30:09
  reading. All right, remind you what this
• 30:11
  says. Who did no sin, neither was G
• 30:14
  found in his mouth, who when he was
• 30:16
  reviled, reviled not again. When he
• 30:18
  suffered, he threatened not, but
• 30:19
  committed himself to him that judgeth
• 30:22
  righteously. Is anybody in the building
• 30:25
  who his own self bear our sins in his
• 30:27
  own body on the tree, that we being dead
• 30:29
  to sins should live unto righteousness,
• 30:31
  by whose stripes you were healed. For ye
• 30:33
  were as sheep gone astray, but are now
• 30:36
  returned in the shepherd and bishop of
• 30:38
  your souls. You say, "Preacher, I am not
• 30:41
  going to allow somebody to smite me and
• 30:43
  not smite them back." Well, you're not
• 30:45
  right with God, and you're in sin when
• 30:46
  you do it.
• 30:49
  >> I know y'all don't like it, but it's
• 30:51
  true. Amen. It's true. You say,
• 30:54
  "Preacher, why do you take this so
• 30:56
  easy?" I had my daddy beat it into me.
• 30:58
  My daddy's not perfect, but I had my
• 31:00
  daddy beat it into me from the time that
• 31:02
  I was just a little feller. That he
• 31:04
  didn't care who touched me. He said, "If
• 31:06
  I touched him back, he was going to wear
• 31:08
  me out when I got home."
• 31:13
  >> He said, "If you lay your hand on
• 31:15
  anybody," he said, "you just know." He
• 31:17
  said, "You going to come get." He said,
• 31:18
  "I don't care if they deserve it. You
• 31:20
  did it. You're going to get it."
• 31:25
  I know I that's not popular, but it's
• 31:27
  the truth. Amen. Peter, Paul said in 2
• 31:30
  Corinthians 11 23-2, he received 39
• 31:34
  stripes. He was spitting. He was beaten
• 31:36
  with rods. He was ma he was mangled time
• 31:40
  and time and time again. But he took it
• 31:42
  all patiently and in silence.
• 31:46
  But whosoever shall smite thee on the
• 31:48
  right cheek, turn to him the other also.
• 31:50
  If you can't do that, you have a problem
• 31:52
  with pride.
• 31:54
  If you cannot accept the fact that if
• 31:56
  somebody was to lay their hands on you
• 31:58
  and you can do nothing about it, you've
• 32:00
  got a problem with pride.
• 32:03
  Notice this. That's really going to get
• 32:05
  to where we live. Not only it has to do
• 32:08
  with being physically injured, but it
• 32:10
  goes from phys being physically injured
• 32:12
  to being financially defrauded. Listen
• 32:14
  to what the Bible says in verse 40. And
• 32:17
  if any man will sue thee at the law and
• 32:20
  take away thy coat, let him have thy
• 32:22
  cloak also. Now, let me say this. All
• 32:25
  right. When you consider this text, all
• 32:28
  right, this this truth here, what he's
• 32:30
  dealing with this coat, it was given in
• 32:32
  the law as somebody could, you know, sue
• 32:34
  for personal matters, whatever it is,
• 32:36
  you know, I I don't know the the
• 32:38
  technical ins and outs of this, but I do
• 32:40
  know that in the law, it was a written
• 32:42
  in the law that if a man had did
• 32:44
  something to another man, he could sue
• 32:46
  and be given his coat. But that
• 32:48
  undercloak, what he mentions in the
• 32:50
  text, that is beyond the law. There was
• 32:52
  no law provision given for a man giving
• 32:56
  more than his coat. Now let me remind
• 32:58
  you of this, okay? It was common for
• 33:01
  legal processes to be is it it is common
• 33:04
  for legal processes to be made use of
• 33:07
  for doing the greatest injuries.
• 33:11
  You look at people in the world today
• 33:13
  and you see, you know, every and people
• 33:15
  will sue over nothing. I mean, and you
• 33:18
  know, that's a whole another message in
• 33:19
  itself. Amen. But I'll be honest with
• 33:22
  you, I don't think I don't know that
• 33:23
  there's ever a place in life where you
• 33:25
  ought to sue.
• 33:28
  You say, "Well, I didn't I I I wasn't
• 33:31
  treated right. I wasn't done right."
• 33:32
  Well, let me ask you this. Do you think
• 33:34
  that's what Jesus would do?
• 33:37
  Now, when I consider this text, number
• 33:39
  one, I want you to consider the size of
• 33:42
  the matter in this text. Notice what
• 33:44
  said. All right? We were talking about
• 33:46
  just getting smitten in verse 39. And I
• 33:49
  don't want to remind you, common sense
• 33:50
  comes into play here. And and you know,
• 33:52
  y'all are looking at me like I'm saying
• 33:54
  your children have no right to defend
• 33:55
  themselves. If somebody comes at your
• 33:57
  child with a knife or a gun, they ought
• 33:59
  to be running. They ought to be
• 34:00
  screaming to the top of their lungs. But
• 34:02
  if it's just a little
• 34:05
  play,
• 34:06
  they don't it's there's no need for that
• 34:08
  to continue. Okay. But this thought
• 34:11
  right here, the size of this matter, it
• 34:13
  has to do with a cloak. There's not a
• 34:15
  whole farm's not in question here.
• 34:17
  They're not talking about the measure of
• 34:19
  a man's entire inheritance, but they're
• 34:22
  talking about a suit for a cloak. So,
• 34:25
  this is obviously something that's
• 34:27
  manageable. It's a suit that somebody
• 34:29
  could deal with and they could pay it
• 34:31
  and it wouldn't really hurt them. And
• 34:33
  let me say this, you ought not make a
• 34:35
  big deal over small matters. All right?
• 34:38
  Let me say this. If somebody comes to
• 34:40
  you and and you know and and an example
• 34:43
  like this, something that I've dealt
• 34:45
  with in the industry that we're in, you
• 34:47
  know, our our trucks and things of that
• 34:48
  nature will have rocks that fly off of
• 34:50
  them at times. And you will never see
• 34:53
  somebody get bor more been out of shape
• 34:55
  when a rock comes out of a tire or off
• 34:57
  the top of a truck and it cracks their
• 34:59
  windshield. All right? You would have
• 35:00
  thought that you would have stabbed them
• 35:02
  to death and shot them after you did it.
• 35:04
  And look, I understand. I get that, you
• 35:06
  know, things happen on the road, but
• 35:08
  there's a sign on the back of it that
• 35:09
  says stay back 300 feet for a reason,
• 35:12
  okay? But let me say this, all right,
• 35:14
  that's a small thing. All right? And
• 35:17
  that's like what this is talking about.
• 35:18
  And people will get so been out of
• 35:20
  shape, but you know what you ought to do
• 35:21
  with that? You don't rare back at them.
• 35:25
  You don't get mad. You don't get upset.
• 35:27
  Jesus says in this text, look what he
• 35:29
  says. He says in verse number 40, if any
• 35:32
  man will sue thee at the law and take
• 35:33
  away thy coat, let him have thy cloak
• 35:36
  also. So it goes from not just the size
• 35:38
  of the matter, but the suit in the
• 35:40
  matter. It has to do with a piece of
• 35:42
  clothing. It's something small. And so
• 35:45
  if they're requiring of you something
• 35:47
  small, all right, and it's beyond the
• 35:49
  law and it will make peace, you know
• 35:51
  what y'all do? You ought to give it.
• 35:53
  Now, that's hard for me to hear because
• 35:55
  I've dealt with stuff like this. We all
• 35:57
  deal with small things like this and we
• 35:59
  think to ourselves, well, they don't
• 36:01
  deserve it. They're making a big deal
• 36:04
  out of nothing. And here's the thing in
• 36:06
  this text. It's not when somebody you've
• 36:08
  done somebody wrong, but somebody's done
• 36:10
  you wrong and they're expecting you to
• 36:12
  pay them for what they did to you.
• 36:14
  >> Right?
• 36:17
  >> Now, it's a whole lot easier when you
• 36:19
  out of mistake have had something happen
• 36:22
  and you have to cover your losses. But
• 36:24
  it's a whole different story when
• 36:25
  somebody else is at fault and they're
• 36:27
  expecting you to pick up where they're
• 36:29
  messed up at.
• 36:31
  >> You say, "What do you mean?" Well, I
• 36:34
  hate to use my family again, but it's
• 36:35
  the best illustration I know. My dad
• 36:38
  many years ago, probably been I don't
• 36:41
  know at least 15 16 years ago. He was on
• 36:45
  a job in u over in in uh Suriri County
• 36:49
  where where I'm from and done several he
• 36:52
  done a week's worth of work there. done
• 36:53
  a whole lot of stuff. Put a lot of
• 36:55
  material, a lot of aggregate down,
• 36:56
  different things, a lot of stuff went on
• 36:58
  there and uh had a big bill. I mean, it
• 37:01
  was, you know, uh five digits on up in
• 37:04
  five digits. I mean, it was a large
• 37:06
  bill. And this man got to the end of the
• 37:08
  job and decided he wasn't going to pay.
• 37:11
  Well, starting out, that's pretty tough.
• 37:14
  Dad been in business for a little while,
• 37:16
  but I mean, even, you know, those hits
• 37:17
  when you take a week's worth of work and
• 37:19
  you pay four guys to work on a job for a
• 37:21
  week and all your materials and all of
• 37:23
  that, that adds up a whole lot.
• 37:25
  >> But I'll never forget it. Daddy was
• 37:27
  pastoring at the time and and he was
• 37:29
  trying to get some help on it, trying to
• 37:30
  figure out what to do. And and I don't
• 37:32
  remember exactly how the story went. I
• 37:34
  don't remember if he called a lawyer or
• 37:36
  I think it was just a lawyer found out
• 37:38
  about it. And uh he called daddy and and
• 37:40
  daddy been dealing with this for a month
• 37:42
  trying to get this guy to pay his bill
• 37:44
  and and uh he he went on to tell he said
• 37:47
  he said that lawyer called him and daddy
• 37:49
  said I'd already decided God I went to
• 37:51
  church. God said just mark it off. Don't
• 37:53
  worry about it and cut your losses. You
• 37:55
  don't need to lose the sleep. You're
• 37:57
  pastoring a church and you'll do fine.
• 37:59
  I'll get you through it. And that lawyer
• 38:01
  called daddy the next week and daddy
• 38:03
  told that lawyer that lawyer looked at
• 38:05
  him and said, "You got a good case here.
• 38:06
  we can get all your money and probably
• 38:07
  some more.
• 38:09
  Daddy looked at him and said, "I done
• 38:12
  laid that to rest. I'm not going to
• 38:14
  bring it up no more." And you know what?
• 38:16
  He let that go. Never talked to the man
• 38:19
  again. Never got a dime of the money.
• 38:21
  But you know what? He could sleep at
• 38:22
  night.
• 38:24
  Why is that? Because it made peace.
• 38:27
  You say, "Well, it didn't make peace
• 38:28
  with that man." Well, it made peace for
• 38:30
  him.
• 38:30
  >> Right? You see in this text the Bible
• 38:33
  says there in verse 40 if any man will
• 38:34
  sue thee at the law and take away thy
• 38:36
  coat let him have thy cloak also what it
• 38:38
  means is if it will resolve conflict
• 38:41
  it's just a small cost remember who we
• 38:44
  represent I mean it and the thing about
• 38:46
  it is you know who we represent you're a
• 38:49
  Christian you want to sue somebody
• 38:51
  oh friend you sue somebody and they get
• 38:53
  wind of that you better know they're
• 38:54
  going to come after you
• 38:58
  know this we don't like this kind of
• 38:59
  stuff but it's just the truth
• 39:01
  Notice this about this thought and you
• 39:03
  say, "Well, how do I handle that? What
• 39:04
  where do I draw the line?" You see, this
• 39:07
  this matter is small. And you say,
• 39:09
  "Well, what what about when it gets up
• 39:11
  there out of hand?" Well, you just have
• 39:13
  to ask the Lord to help you with that.
• 39:14
  But let me say this. When Jesus tells in
• 39:17
  this text, he says, Ma Matthew Henry
• 39:19
  says this concerning thought. He said,
• 39:21
  "If he wants your coat, he said, you
• 39:23
  just let him have have your cloak also."
• 39:26
  He said this. He said, "It will not cost
• 39:28
  thee so much to buy another cloak as it
• 39:31
  will cost thee by course of of by course
• 39:35
  of law to recover that which you lost."
• 39:37
  You know what? There's a lot of things
• 39:39
  that if we'll just let go of and go on,
• 39:41
  we'll recover it a lot faster instead of
• 39:43
  trying to fight with it to get it back.
• 39:47
  You know, that's that's the whole
• 39:48
  problem with suits because, you know,
• 39:50
  you think and and I'm being real
• 39:52
  practical tonight, but truth is you pay
• 39:53
  a lawyer and you go through all of that
• 39:55
  process and you go through all of the
• 39:57
  mess to deal with that and everything
• 39:58
  that goes along with that and and I
• 40:00
  understand there's situations where you
• 40:02
  have to get a lawyer involved different
• 40:04
  things and you know, every bit of that
• 40:05
  is because of sin,
• 40:08
  >> right?
• 40:09
  >> People dealt properly wouldn't be an
• 40:11
  issue, would it?
• 40:14
  You say, "How does this how I I don't I
• 40:16
  don't like what you're saying." Well,
• 40:17
  just remember you you're you're to
• 40:18
  silence your rights.
• 40:20
  Well, I've got my rights and I'm going
• 40:22
  to get retribution. Well, you going to
• 40:24
  find out you're going to get a reward
• 40:25
  for that, too. And it ain't going to be
• 40:26
  a heavenly reward, either. You inherit a
• 40:29
  mess. Notice this third, and I'm done
• 40:32
  tonight, and I'm going to preach till I
• 40:33
  get done on this, okay? Just hang with
• 40:35
  me. There's the physically injured fact.
• 40:38
  There's the financially defrauded fact
• 40:40
  in this text. But then there's also the
• 40:42
  fact of our liberty being infringed in
• 40:44
  verse 41. Look what he says. And
• 40:47
  whosoever shall compel thee to go a
• 40:49
  mile, go with him twain. Now, you
• 40:50
  remember what I said about the Roman
• 40:52
  government being the rule of law at this
• 40:54
  time. And what that means is that the
• 40:56
  Roman government had made a a a law that
• 40:59
  said where a soldier if he was traveling
• 41:01
  any distance that and he had armor that
• 41:03
  he had to carry, he could get a manu uh
• 41:06
  or a a crier of any a courier of any
• 41:08
  type uh to come and help him. And the
• 41:10
  law said that that man at the request of
• 41:12
  that Roman soldier had to carry his
• 41:14
  equipment a mile.
• 41:17
  You say, "I I what do you mean by that?"
• 41:19
  Well, turn with me to the book of
• 41:20
  Matthew.
• 41:22
  Matthew chapter number 27 here. Want to
• 41:26
  find this. Okay.
• 41:28
  And uh
• 41:30
  Matthew 27. I thought I wrote this down.
• 41:32
  Let me look right here. I've got it in
• 41:34
  here.
• 41:36
  Yeah. Matthew 27:32.
• 41:40
  You'll know exactly what this is when I
• 41:42
  show it to you. Matthew 27:32
• 41:45
  or verse number 31. After that they had
• 41:48
  mocked him, they took the robe off from
• 41:49
  him and put his own raignment on him and
• 41:51
  led him away to crucify him. Verse 32.
• 41:54
  And as they came out, they found a man
• 41:56
  ofSirene, Simon by name. What you Bible
• 41:59
  say? Him they compelled
• 42:02
  to bear his cross. Now notice the text
• 42:05
  again in verse number 41. Whosoever
• 42:08
  shall
• 42:09
  compel thee to go a mile, go with him
• 42:12
  twain. The only time that word compel is
• 42:15
  used in this Bible in that translation
• 42:18
  is for that instance and its parallel
• 42:20
  accounts in the other gospels. It only
• 42:22
  has to do with when Simon ofSirene
• 42:24
  helped Jesus carry the cross. And it
• 42:26
  literally means that at the request of
• 42:28
  that Roman soldier, those who are around
• 42:30
  had to be obedient to his request.
• 42:34
  Now, what does that express? Well,
• 42:36
  expresses this that you understand man
• 42:39
  is a free moral agent, but at this point
• 42:41
  in time, that Roman guard has overrode
• 42:43
  whatever he had going on at that present
• 42:45
  time. He had to stop what he was doing
• 42:46
  and go on and help with what was going
• 42:48
  on. And what does Jesus say? You see,
• 42:51
  the Jews felt like they had a right
• 42:52
  because they were Pharisees and, you
• 42:54
  know, seekers of God and studyers of the
• 42:56
  law, you know, that we're exempt from
• 42:58
  that. We don't have to obey that. But
• 43:00
  Jesus looks him in the face and says,
• 43:02
  "Matter of fact, not only should you
• 43:04
  obey it, but you ought to do it and be
• 43:05
  willing to do it more than anybody
• 43:06
  else."
• 43:07
  >> Right?
• 43:08
  >> Notice it again. Whosoever shall compel
• 43:10
  thee to go a mile, go with them twain.
• 43:12
  You ever heard the statement to go the
• 43:13
  extra mile?
• 43:15
  That's what that means. You say, "But
• 43:18
  it's wrong. It's it's wrongful." You
• 43:20
  say, "Preacher, should I help somebody
• 43:22
  that doesn't deserve my help?
• 43:26
  Should I help somebody preacher that's
• 43:28
  doing wrong?" No. You never should. But
• 43:30
  you if somebody asks for your help and
• 43:32
  they need it genuinely, you ought to
• 43:34
  help them.
• 43:36
  Now, what does this mean? And and and so
• 43:39
  let me say this. Number one, you you
• 43:40
  ought not be hateful about it. Look what
• 43:42
  he says. Whosoever shall compel thee to
• 43:44
  go a mile, it implies that you need to
• 43:46
  go the mile with him. But then he says,
• 43:49
  go with him twain. Isn't that
• 43:50
  interesting? He says twain. Again,
• 43:53
  all of these increments are two. Verse
• 43:56
  41, two miles. Verse 40, two coats.
• 43:59
  Verse 39, two smidings.
• 44:02
  What is the significance of that? It has
• 44:05
  to do with the fact Jesus says you need
• 44:07
  to do more than what you're asked to
• 44:10
  even when you're not in the wrong.
• 44:16
  You say, "Why is that, preacher?"
• 44:17
  Because that's what Jesus did.
• 44:21
  Remember, he was never in the wrong. But
• 44:24
  you know what he did? He went all the
• 44:26
  way to the cross.
• 44:27
  >> Amen. and did everything he was asked to
• 44:29
  do and gave us more than we could have
• 44:32
  ever got
• 44:34
  >> and we are the ones that did him wrong.
• 44:41
  >> Let me say this. If we are obligated to
• 44:44
  go a mile, don't measure the mile.
• 44:48
  Notice it again. You know, you ever been
• 44:51
  around some people? Verse 41, whosoever
• 44:53
  shall compel thee to go a mile goeth in
• 44:55
  plain. You ever been around some people?
• 44:56
  And I I've been around some people like
• 44:58
  this. You you you do business with them,
• 45:00
  spend thousands of dollars, you know,
• 45:02
  business work, things of that nature,
• 45:04
  and you go to get a cookie as you go out
• 45:06
  the door that's 50 cents. You've spent
• 45:09
  $10,000 on material, and they won't give
• 45:12
  you the 50 cent cookie
• 45:14
  because they're too tied to do that.
• 45:17
  >> You know, there's a lot of us that live
• 45:18
  that way in life. People ask for our
• 45:21
  help. You know what? We do what they ask
• 45:23
  and nothing else.
• 45:28
  And you say, "Preacher, what if it's
• 45:29
  wrongful?" And it is in this text. All
• 45:31
  of this is wrong. You've been done
• 45:33
  wrong.
• 45:34
  What do I do? Well, you go on and do it
• 45:37
  anyway.
• 45:41
  I know that does not fit the narrative
• 45:43
  of our flesh, but it's so true. Do not
• 45:45
  measure the mile. Don't decide how far
• 45:48
  you're going to go. Go until you feel
• 45:50
  like you need to stop. Notice this.
• 45:52
  Verse 42. Give to him that askketh thee,
• 45:54
  and from him that would borrow of thee,
• 45:56
  turn not thy way. And he gives two
• 45:58
  truths here. Number one, you need to be
• 46:00
  generous in your giving. Give to him
• 46:02
  that askketh of thee. You ought to give
• 46:04
  what he asked, expecting nothing in
• 46:07
  return. Jesus said, Luke chapter number
• 46:09
  6 and verse 38.
• 46:16
  Luke 6 and verse 38. Really the parallel
• 46:19
  account to this. He says, "Give and it
• 46:20
  shall be given unto you. good measure,
• 46:22
  pressed down, shaken together, running
• 46:24
  over, shall men give into your bosom.
• 46:26
  For with the same measure that you meet
• 46:27
  with all shall be measured to you again.
• 46:30
  Not only you're to be generous in your
• 46:31
  giving, but you're to be gracious in
• 46:33
  your lending. Look what he says. Verse
• 46:34
  42, give to him that askketh them. For
• 46:37
  him that would borrow of thee, turn not
• 46:38
  thou away.
• 46:41
  Luke 6 and verse 34, Jesus goes into
• 46:44
  deeper depths with this. Verse 34. And
• 46:46
  if you lend to them of whom you hope to
• 46:47
  receive, what think have ye? For sinners
• 46:49
  also lend to sinners to receive as much
• 46:51
  again. Verse 35. But love your ye your
• 46:54
  enemies and do good and lend hoping for
• 46:56
  nothing again and your reward shall be
• 46:58
  great and you shall be the children of
• 47:00
  the highest. For he is kind unto the
• 47:02
  unthankful
• 47:03
  and to the evil.
• 47:07
  You say preacher that's mess that that's
• 47:10
  messianic kingdom. This is you know this
• 47:12
  is for when we're living in a perfect
• 47:14
  society and we operate in a perfect
• 47:17
  realm. And the truth is in the immediate
• 47:19
  context, yes, that's true. But you
• 47:21
  understand it's it's implied. It's
• 47:24
  applied to you and I.
• 47:27
  We ought to operate the same way. That
• 47:29
  we are not to be quick to speak our
• 47:31
  rights. That we're not to be quick to
• 47:33
  seek retribution. When you're done
• 47:35
  wrong, the first thing you ought to do
• 47:37
  is is desire to defeat the wicked in
• 47:40
  your life. And you say, "So, you're
• 47:41
  telling me now that I've got to go and
• 47:43
  defeat that other person?" No, they're
• 47:44
  not your problem. You know what your
• 47:46
  problem is?
• 47:49
  When you're done wrong, the first person
• 47:50
  you got to defeat is not the person you
• 47:52
  were done wrong by, but the one who's
• 47:54
  going to do wrong if you allow it to.
• 47:56
  And you know how you do that? You
• 47:58
  delight in his word. When he says this,
• 48:02
  he says, "Whosoever shall smite thee on
• 48:04
  the right cheek," you just
• 48:07
  don't be looking to smite him back,
• 48:10
  but just expect it to come again.
• 48:13
  Jesus when he was smitten upon when he
• 48:16
  was smitten you think about this when we
• 48:18
  are smitten a lot of times we don't
• 48:20
  expect it do we Jesus knew his entire
• 48:23
  life the suffering that he would go
• 48:25
  through on Calvary and you know what he
• 48:27
  got to the cross he didn't have a single
• 48:29
  word to say he didn't retaliate he
• 48:32
  didn't say anything but you know what he
• 48:34
  looked on that crowd that was that was
• 48:36
  accusing him and rebuking him and
• 48:39
  spitting on him and smiting him and what
• 48:41
  did he say father forgive them for they
• 48:44
  know not what they do.
• 48:49
  The truth is tonight we ought to make
• 48:51
  sure that we're teaching our children.
• 48:53
  You say, "Preacher, you're telling me
• 48:54
  that I should let my child be walked
• 48:56
  on?" No, it's not what I'm telling you.
• 48:58
  I'm telling you you they need to know
• 48:59
  that there is a higher power that
• 49:01
  protects them.
• 49:04
  And the truth is when it comes down to
• 49:06
  it in our life, if they didn't have to
• 49:08
  live in the situations that they do,
• 49:10
  they wouldn't have to worry about it.
• 49:13
  It's why Moses said, "Teach them when
• 49:15
  you lying down, when you rise up, as you
• 49:18
  walk in the way, all about your day. All
• 49:21
  of your life you teach your children."
• 49:23
  Why? So you can protect them. That
• 49:26
  wasn't the public schools and all the
• 49:28
  other things wasn't a problem in the
• 49:29
  Bible days
• 49:30
  >> because the families raised their
• 49:31
  children. And that's why he could say,
• 49:34
  "Don't you got to be around."
• 49:38
  I know that's that's that's hard. It's
• 49:40
  tough stuff, but it's still the truth.
• 49:41
  We need to teach them that they're not
• 49:42
  to retaliate. Amen. Because what'll
• 49:44
  happen is we put that in them as as a
• 49:46
  young child, what they'll do, they'll
• 49:48
  grow up and get married and they'll
• 49:49
  retaliate against their spouse.
• 49:52
  And then,
• 49:56
  Father, thank you for this day. Thank
• 49:58
  you for this time. Lord, I know it's
• 49:59
  been different tonight. Lord, I hope
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  that I've said what I I I really do. I
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  believe I've said what you put on my
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  heart, what this text says. And uh Lord,
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  I know that we're not to allow the world
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  to walk over us. But God, I also know
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  this. You didn't allow people to control
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  your reaction. You didn't allow people's
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  actions to control what you were going
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  to do. Your plan was going to be
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  fulfilled regardless of what people did
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  around you. And Lord, I pray that you
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  would help us to see that purpose in our
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  life, God. That we are to walk for you
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  and toward you in spite of what others
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  may do around us. and to not seek
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  vengeance, to not seek retribution, not
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  even to speak our rights, but God, just
• 50:43
  to know that vengeance belongs to you
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  and that you will judge the wicked and
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  those that do us wrong. God, help us to
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  be obedient to that. I pray, Lord, I
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  love you. Thank you for these people. I
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  pray you bless them. Let them have a
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  good rest of their week. And I pray,
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  Lord, as we go out visiting on Saturday,
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  God, you'd prepare each heart and life
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  uh that we will uh knock on their door.
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  I pray you give us wisdom to do so. and
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  we love you in Jesus name. Amen. I
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  >> thank you for joining our service today.
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  We'd love it if you join us in person
• 51:13
  the next time you are able at Meadows
• 51:15
  Baptist Church. Our physical address is
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  2988
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  Stewart Road in Walnut Cove, North
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  Carolina. Our service times are Sunday
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  school at 10:00 a.m., Sunday morning
• 51:27
  worship at 11:00 a.m., Sunday evening
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  worship at 6:00 p.m., and Wednesday
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  evening Bible study at 700 p.m. For more
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  information, visit us at
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  meadowsbaptisturch.com.
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  Thanks again for tuning in.