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736. Bible Study: Isaiah 49 (This is about Jesus Christ and Our Future!) · Faith by annm2705

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Today we're covering chapter 49 from the book of Isaiah.
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I can tell you when I first heard a reference to Jesus from
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the book of Isaiah, it was just one.
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And I thought that was around 700 something BC that Isaiah,
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Isaiah wrote it. And I thought, wow, that's wild
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that he actually wrote something that long ago about Jesus.
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And that was one quote that I had heard.
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It was actually at church and it isn't, or it wasn't until now
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reading this in detail that I am seeing Jesus in almost every
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chapter. I mean, there Jesus is all over
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the book of Isaiah, and this one clearly is Jesus.
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And so let's get into chapter 49.
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And as I've learned, Scripture interprets Scripture so we can
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find things that confuse us. Maybe we can find answers
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throughout other Scripture because it references it.
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So it's really cool when you find that stuff out.
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So Jesus is everywhere all over the book of Isaiah Old Testament
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written about 2700 years ago talked about Jesus.
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So anyway, let's get started and we'll start with a prayer.
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Dear God, please be with us and open our eyes to the revelation
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of your son through this chapter.
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We ask for this in Jesus name to make him known and to make you
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known in Jesus name, Amen. This is titled the Servant of
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the Lord in my study Bible and I'm going to read what the study
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Bible says. Who is speaking here?
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The speaker is the Messiah, though the Lord's servant is
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called Israel in verse 3. Verses 5 and 6 make it clear
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that the Servant is not national Israel, for he has a ministry to
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Israel. The Messiah will be Israel as
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Israel was meant to be. He will succeed where nation
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where national Israel failed, and he will be the light for the
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Gentiles and bring God's salvation to the ends of the
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earth. So let's get started.
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Isaiah says Listen to me, you islands hear this, you distant
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lands. Before I was born, the Lord
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called me from my mother's womb. He has spoken my name so that
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the first part of that was something that it, it's
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confusing, you know, like, who is this?
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Like, listen to me, This is like for everyone.
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This is announcing who the servant of the Lord is.
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And it says, before I was born, the Lord called me.
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And that's, that's really interesting because if you think
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about it, from my mother's womb, he has spoken my name.
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So remember how Jesus was brought forth that he was
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conceived by the Holy Spirit, the Holy Spirit of God.
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Joseph was his like stepfather on earth, but he was conceived
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by the by the Holy Spirit. And let's see, I wanted to, I
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think I thought I'd searched that, but now it's not showing
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up conceived. And maybe I didn't put this in
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order. So let me find where it says
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this. OK, Matthew chapter one, verse
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20. And this is referring to Joseph
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and Joseph wanted to divorce Mary because he found out she
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was pregnant. And it says, but after he had
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considered, considered this, an Angel of the Lord appeared to
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him in a dream and said, Joseph son of David, do not be afraid
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to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her
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is from the Holy Spirit. So that's where this kind of
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points us to Jesus. Then verse 2, it says in Isaiah,
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he made my mouth like a sharpened sword in the shadow of
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his hand He hid me. He made me into a polished arrow
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and concealed me in his quiver. Jesus was kind of a surprise to
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everybody on earth. Nobody knew what Jesus was here
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for. Nobody knew that he, Jesus knew
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he was going to die on the cross, and he came for
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salvation. He came for the salvation of all
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mankind when He came. So when it says He made my mouth
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like a sharpened sword, like God made my mouth like a sharpened
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sword. When we read about the sharpened
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sword, it's referred to in the Book of Revelation in chapter 1,
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verse 16, and this is talking about the vision that John had
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while he was on the island of Patmos and he sees Jesus, so it
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says in his right hand, meaning Jesus, he held seven stars.
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These are symbolic things, seven stars.
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And coming out of his mouth was a sharp, double edged sword.
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His face was like the sun shining in all its brilliance.
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So this is a description of Jesus, the vision that John has
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of Jesus. And then go back to what Isaiah
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said. He made my mouth like a
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sharpened sword. And John says out of his mouth
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was a sharp double edged sword. And then in Revelation chapter
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2, verse 12, this is Jesus talking about, you know, saying
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give this to the messenger of the church to the Angel or
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messenger of the church in programam, right?
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These are the words of him who has the sharp double edged
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sword. So these are a couple different
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references to to Jesus. And this is this is kind of
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interesting. This isn't necessarily well,
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yeah, it is. OK, you can tie it again to
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Jesus here in Hebrews chapter 4 verse 12 it says for the Word of
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God is alive and active, sharper than any double edged sword.
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It penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit joints and
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marrow. It judges the thoughts and
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attitudes of the heart. Now the word of God, if we read
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John chapter 1, it refers to Jesus as the word of God.
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So the word of God is alive and active, sharper than any double
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edged sword. So that kind of like indirectly
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ties again to Jesus continuing on in Isaiah, he said to me, you
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are my servant Israel. Now Israel here can mean like a
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descendant of Israel. So and Jesus was a descendant of
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Judah, one of the tribes of Israel.
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So he said to me, you are my servant.
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And this is something else that is talked about is a
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bondservant. And so a bondservant in in Roman
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times, the bondservant or the slave would refer to someone who
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voluntarily served others. And this is exactly what Jesus
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did for us. He voluntarily came to earth and
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died on the cross to break the curse of death and eternal
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separation that would affect all of us if he had not died on that
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cross. So that's something else that
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let's see. Oh, there's another one too
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about the sharpened sword that I missed.
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So in Revelation chapter 19, verse 15, this is this is
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talking about Jesus's return. And it says and, and actually,
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yeah, let's, let's read this. So coming out of Revelation
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chapter 19, verse 15, coming out of his mouth is a sharp sword
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with which to strike down the nations.
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He will rule them with an iron scepter.
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He treads the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God
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Almighty. So this is talking about Jesus.
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This is talking about when Jesus returns and brings wrath to
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those who are, who never repented, who are against God,
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rebelled against God. So those are the people who will
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suffer God's wrath. So again, it ties to Jesus.
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So let's read Isaiah verse 3 again.
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He said to me, you are my servant or bond servant, Israel
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or descendant of Israel, in whom I will display my splendor.
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So God's splendor is displayed through Jesus.
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When he was here on earth, He healed people.
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He raised people from the dead. He did all sorts of miracles.
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He cast demons out of people. He made people free from their
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sins and he did lots of things. Those were Jesus actually said,
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if you have seen me, you have seen the Father.
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So the Father is working and he said that he didn't.
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He only speaks what the Father does.
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So everything that comes out of his mouth is from the Father.
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But I said I have labored in vain, I have spent my strength
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for nothing at all. When I read this, I, you know,
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it's like he said to me, you are my servant.
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But I said I have labored in vain, I've spent my strength for
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nothing at all. This is just my opinion.
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I think this is like, this refers to the crucifixion.
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Could you imagine Jesus saying this?
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I have labored in vain, I have spent my strength for nothing at
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all. Because there's unbelief of the
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Jews and it's still many other people today.
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So Jesus went through all this stuff, the crucifixion, rising
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from the dead, appearing to other people, and still there is
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unbelief. So that's what it means.
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That's what it says to me as I read this.
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Yet what is do me is the Lord's hand, and my reward is with my
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God. And so this is like to me, it's
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like Jesus is obedient to the Father.
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And he says, in fact, in Luke chapter 22, verse 42, Jesus says
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this when he's praying, Father, if you are willing, take this
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cup, which is cup of wrath, the suffering, the abuse that and
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everything that he was going to receive, take this cup from me,
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yet not my will, but yours be done.
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So he he was, you know, he was obedient to the Father.
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He knew what he was there for. He knew what was coming and and
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he was, you know, open to another way of doing this, but
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also submitting to the father. It actually even said that he
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sweated blood when he was doing that.
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And that apparently can truly happen medically under severe
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duress. And being the son of God, he
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knew what was coming. He wasn't just like a regular
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human being that didn't really foresee what was going to come.
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He knew and he even knew people's thoughts.
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I can't even imagine what it would I'd be like to be God in a
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human body. And that's what Jesus, that's
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who Jesus was. So it says in Matthew chapter 26
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verse 36 through 46. It says that Jesus said to said
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to them, my soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of
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death. Stay here and keep watch with
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me. Going a little farther, he fell
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with his face to the ground and prayed.
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My father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me
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yet. Not as I will, but as you will.
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So again, that was documented. He also, this is also documented
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in Mark chapter 14, the Gospel of Mark versus 32 through 42
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about him doing this. And then in John chapter 18, it
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just talks about him praying. It doesn't really go into the
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details of what he actually prayed.
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But three of the gospels say, you know, repeat that Jesus
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said, if you are willing, take away this from me.
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And so then we'll go back to let's see where we are.
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So yet, yet what is due to me like Jesus knew he was going to
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have to suffer on the cross is in the Lord's hand like God was,
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you know, God was there and his reward is with God.
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You know, all the authority of everything has been turned over
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to his Son with his obedience. And now the Lord says he who
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formed me in the womb to be his servant.
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So remember, this is like a bond servant, a willing servant to
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bring Jacob back to him. Because all of the the thing
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about it is the sacrifices that Israel made.
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You know, Jacob can be Israel, the nation to bring Jacob back
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to him. All of the sacrifices they were
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doing with animals never fully atoned for their sin because it
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wasn't a like, you know, it's an unblemished animal.
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So it was a substitution, but it wasn't like it wasn't it didn't.
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It wasn't able to atone for sin where Jesus's life as a human
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being, but God being perfect was able to atone for sin.
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And that's how we can be in God's Kingdom because we are as
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people say we are covered by the blood of Christ, like the blood
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of Christ covers our sins and makes us righteous in front of
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the Father so that we can eventually live in God's
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Kingdom. So let's see it says, let me,
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let me read this sentence because there's there's another
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verse that I want to get to. And now the Lord says he who
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formed me in the womb to be his servant, to bring Jacob back to
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him and gather Israel to himself.
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For I am honored in the eyes of the Lord and my God has been my
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strength. He says, is it too small a thing
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for you to be my servant, to restore the tribes of Jacob and
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bring back those of Israel I have kept?
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I will also make you a light for the Gentiles, that my salvation
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may reach to the ends of the earth.
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So this is salvation for everybody, Jews and Gentiles.
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And it's talked about in the book of Isaiah.
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And this is Jesus. Who is this?
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Now? A verse that I want to bring go
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back to is where it says to bring Jacob back to him, to God,
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and gather Israel to himself. It's interesting because in
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Matthew verses chapter 23, CA yeah, chapter 23, verse 37,
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Jesus says this Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the
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prophets and stone those sent to you, how often I have longed to
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gather your children together as a hen gathers her chicks under
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her wings, and you are not willing.
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This is Jesus coming into the city and he's just he would love
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to just gather them at that point, but he had to go through
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more. Luke chapter 13, verse 35 says
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the same thing. It repeats the same thing, the
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calling out to Jerusalem. And so anyway, this is, you
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know, he Jesus wanted to gather Israel to himself.
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And then let's see it says like also in this is quotation of
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from what Isaiah says and bring back those of Israel.
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I have kept so Jesus says something else that made me
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think about this in in John chapter 18 verse 9, Jesus said
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this happened so that the words he had spoken would be
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fulfilled. I have not lost one of those you
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have given me. I have not lost one of those you
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gave me. It's you know, this is what this
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verse reminded me of was and bring back those of Israel.
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I have kept so God has spared some and Jesus is saying I've
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not lost one of those that you gave me.
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I will also make you a light. Jesus is often called the light.
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He is referred to as the light. I did write down a couple of
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things that I didn't research. So I'll just I'll kind of
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Passover that for right now. Then continuing on, it says this
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is what the Lord says, the Redeemer and Holy one of Israel
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to him who was despised and abhorred by the nations, by the
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nation. So in in John chapter 15 verse
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18, Jesus says, if the world hates you, keep in mind it hated
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me first. So again, this is a tribute
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attributed to Jesus, so to him who was despised and abhorred by
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the nation, to the servants, the servant of rulers.
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Kings will see you and stand up, Princess will see you and bow
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down, because of the Lord who is faithful, the Holy One of
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Israel, who has chosen you. So when Jesus returns, all eyes
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will see him. And Jesus said this in Matthew
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16. Truly I tell you, some who are
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standing here will not taste death before they see the Son of
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Man coming in His Kingdom. And then in chapter 24 of
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Matthew he says then will appear the Son of Man in heaven.
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And then all the peoples of the earth will mourn when they see
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the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and
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great glory. And then Matthew 26 says you
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have said so Jesus replied, But I say to all of you, from now on
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you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the
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mighty One and coming on the clouds of heaven.
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In Mark chapter 13 Jesus said at that time people will see the
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Son of Man coming in clouds with great power and glory.
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Mark 14 says I am said Jesus, and you will see the Son of Man
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sitting at the right hand of the mighty one and coming on the
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clouds of heaven. In Luke chapter 17, Jesus said
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to his disciples that time is coming when you will long to see
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the one, long to see one of the days of the Son of Man, but you
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will not see it. Actually, I didn't mean to read
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that one. So Luke chapter 21 it says at
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that time they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with
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power and great glory. And then in Revelation, John
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writes chapter one verse 7. Look, He is coming with the
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clouds, and every eye will see Him, even those who pierced him,
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and all the peoples on earth will mourn because of him.
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So shall it be. Amen.
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So it really says like Princess will see, this is Isaiah what he
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said. Princess will see and bow down
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because of the Lord who is faithful, the Holy One of
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Israel, who has chosen you. This is what the Lord says,
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continuing on in Isaiah. In the time of my favor I will
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answer you, and in the day of salvation I will help you.
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I will keep you and will make you to be a covenant for the
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people. So Jesus is the new covenant,
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and he's referred to that in actually Jeremiah says the days
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are coming, declares the Lord, when I will make a new covenant
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with the people of Israel and with the people of Judah.
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And then Jesus says when he's eating with his disciples in the
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same way, after the supper, he took the cup, saying this cup is
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the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you.
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They didn't know what he was talking about, but he was
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talking about his upcoming crucifixion and that this cup
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represented the blood that he was pouring out for all of
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mankind. In First Corinthians 11, it's,
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you know, it repeats this. So Paul writes about it and says
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in the same way after supper he took the cup, saying this cup is
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the new covenant in my blood. Do this whenever you drink it in
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remembrance of me. And so then in Second
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Corinthians chapter 3, Paul says he has made us competent as
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ministers of a new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit.
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For the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.
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This kind of takes me into another thought because of what
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Jesus said like the 10 commandments are the letter of
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the law and the letter kills because we know that we have
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broken the commandments. But the Spirit gives life and
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the only way that we get received the Spirit is through
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Jesus. Jesus requests the Spirit of the
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Father and gives it to those whomever he wants.
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So if you don't believe in Jesus, you can't receive the
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Holy Spirit. But the Holy Spirit is what
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gives life. And Jesus explained this in John
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chapter 3 when he was talking to Nicodemus and he said in order
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to see the Kingdom of God you must be born of the Spirit.
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And so first you have to believe in Jesus, then you have to
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receive the Holy Spirit. OK, then let's see in Hebrews
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chapter 8, verse 6. But in fact the ministry Jesus
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had received is as superior to theirs as the covenant of which
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He is mediator and superior to the old one, since the new
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covenant is established on better promises.
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In Hebrews chapter 8 it says, But God found fault with the
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people and said, The days are coming, declares the Lord, when
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I will make a new covenant with the people of Israel and with
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the people of Judah. In Chapter 9 of Hebrews it says
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for this reason Christ is the mediator of a new covenant, that
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those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance
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now that he has died as a ransom to set them free from the sins
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committed under the first covenant.
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So the first covenant convicted us of sin, and there was no hope
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for us. That was the law.
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The the wages of sin is death, but Jesus death on the cross was
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the ransom the money paid. His life was paid to set all
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people who are sinners under the first covenant to set them free
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from sins committed under the first covenant.
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I'll read that sentence again because it's really important
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for this reason. Christ is the mediator of a new
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covenant that those who are called may receive the promised
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eternal inheritance now that he has died as a ransom to set them
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free from the sins committed under the first covenant.
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So this is where we get the salvation is by grace and not by
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works. We can't do anything we we just
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are because of our sin nature. I guess we are incapable of
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living a sinless life and once we commit a sin, we've separated
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ourselves. So any sin separates us from God
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and the only way to remedy that was for Jesus.
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Jesus to give his own life on the cross for us so that we
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could be considered righteous. He is the mediator between God
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and us, the Father and us. Hebrews 12 says to Jesus the
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mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that
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speaks a better word than the blood of Abel.
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That I don't quite fully understand and I haven't studied
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this, so anyway I shouldn't have probably read that one.
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There's another one too in Hebrews chapter 8.
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By calling this covenant new in quotations, he has made the
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first one obsolete, and what is obsolete and outdated will soon
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disappear. So that means that because of
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Jesus, we don't have to die as a result of the sins, the sins,
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sins, whatever how many we committed, but we have to be
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born of the Spirit. Like Jesus said in John chapter
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3. He took care of the hard part
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like he made it possible. He made the impossible possible
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for us to be in God's Kingdom. But we need to receive the Holy
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Spirit. We need to be born again.
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We need to be in agreement with God that we don't want sin in
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our life anymore. That's our free will.
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We have to respond to God with our free will to say yes, God, I
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need your help to remove the sin from my life.
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I want the Holy Spirit to help me and ask that of Jesus.
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If you believe in Jesus and pray that to God and ask Jesus for
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the Holy Spirit, he will give that He knows your heart, He
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knows what you're thinking, He knows all of that.
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So that's how you are saved and it's a free gift from God.
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And the Holy Spirit will start changing you and we'll start,
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It's weird because it really truly happens to people.
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Like I've heard people testify that their addictions went away,
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that they're, they become a new creation.
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Their life starts changing, their desires start changing,
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the things that they once desired are changing.
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And it's not just a choice they made.
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It's this powerful spiritual change in a person.
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And it all starts when we willingly ask God for the Holy
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Spirit. So let's continue on here.
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So Jesus is the new covenant and it says I will keep you and will
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make you to be a covenant. This is, we're going back to
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Isaiah, and this is what God, this is what the Lord is saying,
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I will keep you and will make you to be a covenant for the
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people, to restore the land and to reassign its desolate
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inheritances, to say to the captives, come out and to those
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in darkness be free. Jesus frees.
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That's why everybody praises Jesus, because if it wasn't for
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Jesus, we would be eternally separated from God.
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So Jesus gives that freedom. He broke that curse, the curse
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of death. That was because of the the law,
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because of disobedience. So there is so much about this
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restoration of the land if you want to read.
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Well, first of all, let's talk about the new earth.
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So to restore the land, there's a new earth that's coming.
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Isaiah talks about it, Peter talks about it, and John talks
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about it. And I find this, like I said,
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Scripture interprets scripture. And also God always establishes
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2 to 3 witnesses to establish truth.
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And so we have 3 witnesses here. We have Isaiah, we have Peter,
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and we have John in the Book of Revelation.
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So we have 3 witnesses that are saying the same thing.
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So here's what Isaiah says in chapter 65.
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See, I will create a new heavens and a new earth.
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The former things will not be remembered, nor will they come
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to mind. And then in chapter 66, Isaiah
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says, as the new heavens and the new earth that I make will
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endure before me, declares the Lord, so will your name and
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descendants endure. So there's something new coming.
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We have not seen this yet. We are not on a new earth.
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We are still on a broken earth. OK then, Peter says.
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But in keeping with his promise, we are looking forward to a new
31:54
heaven and a new earth where righteousness dwells.
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So there's nothing unrighteous that lives in our on the new
32:07
earth. So again, this is this is after
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judgement in Revelation 21, John sees this, he said.
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Then I saw in his vision, then I saw a new heaven and a new
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earth. For the 1st heaven and the first
32:25
earth had passed away and there was no longer any sea.
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We still have seas, right? But in this new heaven and new
32:35
earth, there's not going to be a sea anymore.
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So that's drastically different and there's other things that
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are drastically different. But again, this is something
32:44
future that's coming. Again, Isaiah was talking about
32:48
it. And then when we get to reassign
32:52
its desolate inheritances. So when Jesus comes and reigns
32:58
as king for the thousand year period, there is going to be a
33:04
new distribution of land and a restoration.
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And it talks about, I don't know if I actually did this, but
33:14
anyway, I'll get to it eventually.
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But Ezekiel chapter 45, chapter 4748, there's a lot in there
33:23
that talks about the restoration, so I'm not going to
33:28
read all that. But if you're interested in
33:29
hearing about Israeli full restoration and what it will be
33:34
like, read Ezekiel chapter 4547 and 48, continuing on in Isaiah.
33:43
They will feed beside the roads and find pasture on every barren
33:47
hill they were. They will neither hunger nor
33:51
thirst, nor will the desert heat or the sun beat down on them.
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He who has compassion on them will guide them and lead them
34:01
beside springs of water. Now this again refers to Jesus.
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So in Revelation Chapter 7 verse 17 for the Lamb, which is
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symbolic of Jesus because He was the sacrificial Lamb on the
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cross. For the Lamb at the center of
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the throne will be their shepherd.
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Jesus will be their shepherd. He will lead them to springs of
34:27
living water, and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.
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Talk about restoration, right? And then there's this Psalm 23
34:40
that talks about Jesus. The it's a Psalm of David, and
34:44
it says the Lord is my shepherd. I lack nothing.
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He makes me lie down in green pastures.
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He leads me besides quiet waters.
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He refreshes my soul. He guides me along the right
34:58
paths for his name's sake. Even though I walk through the
35:03
darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me.
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Your rod and your staff, they comfort me.
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You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies.
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You anoint my head with oil. My cup overflows, surely your
35:24
goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life and I
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will dwell in the House of the Lord forever.
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So this is the eternal promise of being in God's Kingdom.
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And then once again in Revelation chapter 21 verse 6,
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Jesus says it is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega,
35:50
the beginning and the end to the thirsty.
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I will give water without cost from the spring of the water of
35:59
life, it says. And then continuing, those who
36:04
are victorious will inherit all of this, and I will be their God
36:08
and they will be my children. But the cowardly, the
36:11
unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral,
36:14
those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and liars, they
36:17
will be consigned to the fiery lake of burning sulfur.
36:22
This is the second death, so that, yeah, it's not something
36:28
that we want to experience. But then let's say it says I
36:33
will turn all my mountains into roads and my highways will be
36:38
raised up. See, They will come from afar,
36:41
some from the north, some from the West, some from the region
36:45
of Aswan. Shout for joy, you heavens,
36:48
rejoice, you earth burst into song, you mountains.
36:53
For the Lord comforts his people and will have compassion on his
36:58
afflicted ones. So there's a joy to be looked
37:02
forward to for all of us, you know, His, the Lord's people,
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the afflicted ones. There's joy in God's Kingdom,
37:10
but Zion said the Lord has forsaken me, the Lord has
37:13
forgotten me. So this is like Israel or future
37:16
Israel feeling like, I guess because of the desolation that
37:21
they feel like God has turned away from them.
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But here's what the Lord says. Can a mother forget the baby at
37:29
her breast and have no compassion on the child she is
37:32
born, though she may forget? I will not forget you.
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So Israel is not forgotten by God.
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See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands.
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Your walls are ever before me. Your children hasten back, and
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those who laid you waste depart from you.
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Lift up your eyes and look around.
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All your children gather and come to you as surely as I live,
37:57
declares the Lord. You will wear them all as
38:00
ornaments. You will put them on like a
38:03
bride. Now, the interesting thing is
38:06
like Jerusalem is like a bride. So in Revelation chapter 21,
38:11
verse 2, this is what John sees. I saw the holy city, the new
38:17
Jerusalem coming down out of heaven, prepared as a bride,
38:24
beautifully dressed for her husband.
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So it. Yeah.
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So that's another thing that's to be remembered.
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So like a bride, Jerusalem, the bride though you were ruined and
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made desolate and your land laid waste, now you too, you will be
38:47
too small for your people and those who devoured you will be
38:53
far away. The children born during your
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bereavement. Bereavement will say in your
38:59
hearing, this place is too small for us, give us more space to
39:04
live in. Then you will say in your heart,
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who bore me these? I was bereaved and barren, I was
39:10
exiled and rejected. Who brought these up?
39:13
I was left alone. But these, where have they come
39:16
from? I think this refers to all the
39:18
other nations who are grafted in as brothers and sisters to those
39:24
of Israel because the Lord Paul talks about that, how branches
39:30
are broken off if they don't. I mean, everything's symbolic.
39:33
So the branches are broken off if they don't bear fruit, if
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they don't have the fruit of the Spirit.
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Go to Galatians chapter 5 verse 22.
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Well, other verses around there, but Galatians chapter 5 read
39:46
about the fruit of the Spirit. So if people don't have the Holy
39:50
Spirit, they can't be in the Kingdom of God.
39:53
The evidence of the Holy Spirit is what is called fruit.
39:59
So if a branch, so Jesus is the vine and then there's branches
40:03
that come off of it. So if a branch that something
40:06
that comes off, you know that Jesus is is reached out to.
40:09
If it doesn't bear fruit, it's cut off.
40:13
But then others who are not natural to the vine or the tree
40:16
are grafted back in. So Gentiles, non Jewish people
40:22
are grafted back into are grafted not back, but grafted
40:26
into that vine. And then even the the ones of
40:29
Israel that were broken off, if they do produce fruit, they will
40:33
be grafted back in. Like God is compassionate, but
40:38
our source is Jesus. And there's a lot of symbolism
40:42
and all of that with the vine and the branches, but it's very
40:45
interesting. So it, you know, it's it to me,
40:49
this verse is here where the people of Israel will say, well,
40:52
how did all these people get in the Kingdom?
40:54
Where are they from? And these are ones that are
40:57
grafted in by the Lord. This is what the Sovereign Lord
41:01
says. See, I will beckon to the
41:03
nations. I will lift up my banner to the
41:05
people. They will bring your sons in
41:08
their arms and carry your daughters on their hips.
41:11
Kings will be your foster fathers and Queens your nursing
41:14
mothers. They will bow down before you
41:17
with their faces to the ground. They will lick the dust at your
41:20
feet. Then you will know that I am the
41:23
Lord. Those who hope in me will not be
41:27
disappointed. Can plunder be taken from
41:30
warriors or captives be rescued from there, from the fierce?
41:35
God makes the impossible possible, but this is what the
41:40
Lord says. Yes, captives will be taken from
41:43
warriors and plunder retrieved from the fierce.
41:46
I will contend with those who contend with you and your
41:51
children. I will save.
41:53
I will make your oppressors eat their own flesh.
41:57
They will be drunk on the their own blood as with wine.
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Then all mankind will know that I the Lord am your Savior, your
42:08
Redeemer, the mighty one of Jacob.
42:11
This is about Jesus. So there was some other verse
42:16
that I didn't go to that, oh, about this size.
42:22
I want to it's in Revelation 21 that the new Jerusalem.
42:31
OK, this I'll just read about the new Jerusalem, which is the
42:35
bride of the lamb. Because this is actually in I
42:41
guess it matches up with Ezekiel chapter 48.
42:44
Remember when I said, you know the new Earth and the
42:48
restoration of the land and the new division of the reassignment
42:52
of inheritance? That's in Ezekiel chapter 48.
42:57
So this is also in the Book of Revelation.
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Again, 2 witnesses established the truth.
43:03
So the new Jerusalem is the the bride of the Lamb.
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The lamb is Jesus, the bride is those who are in the new
43:11
Jerusalem. So little description about it.
43:17
One of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the
43:21
seven last plagues came to me and said, come, I will show you
43:24
the bride, the wife of the Lamb. And he carried me away in spirit
43:30
to a mountain great and high, and showed me the holy city,
43:33
Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God.
43:38
It's shown with the glory of God, and its brilliance was like
43:41
that of a very precious jewel, like a Jasper, clear as it had a
43:47
great high wall with 12 gates and with 12 angels at the gates.
43:54
On the gates were written the names of the 12 tribes of
43:58
Israel. There were three gates on the E,
44:02
3 on the N, 3 on the South, and three on the West.
44:06
The wall of the city had 12 foundations, and on them were
44:11
the names of the 12 apostles of the Lamb.
44:15
The Angel who talked with me had a measuring rod of gold to
44:20
measure the city, its gates and its walls.
44:23
The city. Here's what's really
44:25
interesting. So this is the city of Jerusalem
44:27
and the size of it. The city was laid out like a
44:30
square, as long as it was wide, so it's not the same size of as
44:37
Jerusalem today. He measured the city with the
44:41
rod and found it to be 12,000 stadia in length and as wide and
44:48
as high as it is long. So 12,000 stadium that is 1400
44:55
miles or about 2200 kilometers. So what's interesting in
45:02
comparison, this city is a square and it's half the size
45:07
roughly of the United States landmass.
45:11
So right in the middle, like half.
45:12
Just picture that what that what that area is.
45:16
That's the city Jerusalem, and it's as tall as it is wide as it
45:22
is high as it is deep. So it's this cube that, you
45:26
know, this is not what we have today.
45:28
This is something new coming from God.
45:32
And there's like this, this wall, and it says it's 100.
45:36
The Angel measured the wall using human measurement and it
45:39
was 144 cubits thick. That's about 200 feet or 65
45:46
meters thick. The wall surrounding it, like
45:48
the protective wall surrounding it, the wall was made of Jasper
45:53
and the city of pure gold. As pure as glass.
45:57
The foundations of the city walls were decorated with every
46:00
kind of precious stone. The first foundation was Jasper,
46:04
the second sapphire, the third a gate, the 4th emerald, the 5th
46:09
Onyx, the 6th Ruby, the 7th crystallite, the 8th barrel, the
46:14
9th Topaz, the 10th turquoise, and the 11th jacinth and the
46:18
12th amethyst. The 12 gates were 12 pearls.
46:22
Each gate was made of a single Pearl.
46:25
The Great city, The great St. of the city was of gold, as pure as
46:30
transparent glass. I did not see a temple in the
46:34
city because the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its
46:38
temple. So in the New Jerusalem there's
46:41
not going to be a temple on the earth.
46:44
The rest, the Restoration 1. So that's why we know there's
46:47
going to be a third temple here, because the New Jerusalem
46:50
doesn't have one. The city does not need the sun
46:53
or the moon to shine on. For the glory of God gives its
46:56
light, and the Lamb its lamp. The nations will walk by its
47:00
light, and the kings of the earth will bring their splendor
47:03
into it. On no day will its gates ever be
47:07
shut, for there will be no night there or no darkness there.
47:11
The glory in honor of the nations will be brought into it.
47:15
Nothing impure will ever enter it, nor will anyone who does
47:20
what is shameful or deceitful, but only those whose names are
47:25
written in the Lamb's book of life, Jesus's book of life.
47:30
Jesus brings life. Jesus brings freedom.
47:32
Jesus brings us into the Kingdom of God.
47:35
Jesus brings us into the New Jerusalem.
47:37
So now you know why Jesus is so important to all human beings,
47:46
because there's no way we can get into God's Kingdom without
47:49
Jesus. And so I will read, I guess, a
47:54
few of the things that the Study Bible says about these chapters,
47:58
and then we will wrap up this chapter.
48:00
So questions and answers from the Study Bible start now.
48:04
So when is the time of God's favor, the time when God decides
48:08
to redeem his people? The phrase may have been drawn
48:10
from the year of Jubilee, which was every 50th year.
48:15
So this is really interesting because we are supposedly in a
48:18
Jubilee year this year and then there's another I guess 49 years
48:26
remaining after this. And that kind of matches up with
48:29
the what the Dead Sea Scroll calendar came up with.
48:32
So supposedly that gets us to the six or the 6000 mark, I
48:38
guess. So we are in the in the yeah,
48:42
ever since Jesus died on the cross, we were in the end times
48:46
of the last days. OK, At that time slaves were
48:49
freed. During the Jubilee year, slaves
48:53
were freed and the land was returned to its original owners.
48:55
In the New Testament, Paul quoted this verse, adding now is
48:59
the time of God's favor. God is doing a whole new work of
49:03
redemption through Jesus. Why turn mountains into roads?
49:08
This poetry may symbolize the Lord making the way easier for
49:11
His people to return. Although it could describe
49:14
actual mountain roads blocked by landslides are closed by an
49:18
enemies nation or tribes. God's people would find a way
49:22
through them with God's help. Where were these places?
49:25
In the north, the West, and the region of Aswan.
49:27
God would draw his people back to their land, not only from
49:31
Babylonian in the east, but from Babylon in the east, but also
49:35
from other places where they had been scattered.
49:38
Assyria had forcibly scattered the northern Kingdom of Israel
49:41
in 722 BC, but many others had emigrated when times got tough.
49:47
There were already Jewish settlements in many of the areas
49:51
of the Mediterranean world, even in Assyrian, even in Aswan in
49:57
southern Egypt. Why did God engrave them on His
50:01
hands? This poetic image communicated
50:03
to the despairing Israelites that God would not forget them
50:07
or fall, fail to express His constant concern for them.
50:11
Instead of the normal practices of tattooing the master's name
50:15
on the servant's hand, the servant's name was engraved on
50:18
the master's hand. This mirror the devotion the
50:22
Israelites would exhibit toward God.
50:25
What are these walls? The walls of Jerusalem, which
50:27
had been broken down during the captivity.
50:31
God envisioned an established, secure Jerusalem.
50:34
That's the new Jerusalem that'll be secure.
50:37
Why would Jerusalem and the surrounding land be too small
50:41
for the people? Zion was to look up to see her
50:45
restored citizens coming. God pictures Zion as proudly
50:49
wearing her citizens like a bride.
50:51
Her jewels. The numbers coming would be so
50:54
great that the city could not house them all.
50:57
The language in the passage is out of proportion to the actual
51:00
returns of Babylonian exiles that occurred in 538 and 4:45
51:05
BC. Furthermore, God promised that
51:08
He would expand His Kingdom to include the Gentiles.
51:12
The focus is now on a worldwide response to God's reconciliation
51:18
through the work of the servant, the Messiah.
51:23
Why did God say that the Gentiles?
51:26
What did God say that the Gentiles would do for the Jews?
51:30
In verse 7, the servant was told that kings and Princess would
51:33
give him respect and submission. His people will also have their
51:38
share. For not only will the nation's
51:40
rally to God's banner, tenderly bringing the exiled Israelites
51:44
with them, but their exalted monarchs, with all the gentle
51:47
care of parents, will also bow before them.
51:50
Clearly, this picture goes beyond the return of the
51:53
Babylonian exiles. Though its final fulfillment is
51:57
yet to come, it has been wonderfully realized in Christ
52:01
Church that includes both Jews and Gentiles.
52:05
Does God still contend with Israel's enemies today?
52:09
Some believe these prophecies address a literal nation or
52:13
people either restored Israel following the Babylonian
52:16
captivity or the followers of the Messiah in the end times.
52:20
Others believe they address a spiritual Israel, those who have
52:24
received salvation through Jesus Christ.
52:27
Many believe a combination of these opinions options is in.
52:32
Many believe a combination of these options is in view.
52:36
Raging conflict in the Middle East has sparked new interest in
52:40
these prophecies. Some Christians see anyone who
52:43
stands in opposition to the state of Israel as an enemy of
52:47
God. So those holding that viewpoint
52:49
might also believe that God will deliver Israel by contending
52:53
with those enemies. That's something that, you know,
52:56
there's this anti-Semitism that's occurring and it's
53:00
something that, you know, it says I will bless those who
53:03
bless you and curse those who curse you.
53:05
So it's, you know, Israel is God's chosen.
53:08
They aren't perfect, just like none of us are perfect.
53:10
So we have to remember that, but don't go against Israel.
53:16
Did God force cannibalism during a siege?
53:20
A cities inhabitants might be reduced to cannibalism.
53:24
This prophecy is a gruesome way of indicating the utter
53:28
desperation of Israeli enemies overcome with hunger and thirst,
53:33
in contrast to Israel's promised condition as described in verses
53:37
9 through 10. God certainly is not commanding
53:41
cannibalism, though, through such imagery, but rather
53:45
communicating via the most graphic means that those who
53:49
violated His people will receive retributive justice.
53:54
So that's a clear warning to those.
53:58
So anyway, that's the end of chapter 49.
54:00
I hope you come back for Chapter 50 and we'll see what what we
54:05
discover in that chapter.