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Focused Purpose | Ps Teejay Davidson · Citipointe Church Caboolture

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Hey, welcome to the City Point Church podcast.
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Thanks for joining us. Every day is an opportunity to
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take hold of. So we hope this message inspires
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you and build your faith, but it helps you have more of a God
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perspective for your day. Enjoy today.
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I want to talk to you about purpose.
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We all know that word in the Christian world, but I want to
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talk to you about a focused purpose.
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Not just purpose for purpose sake, but focused purpose.
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There's a man in the Bible. He goes by the Apostle Paul,
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previously known as Saul, and he had focused purpose.
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He had purpose before he met Christ too, and his purpose was
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to persecute the Christians. I like to start off with the
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Word. First, let's turn to our Bibles,
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to Acts 26, verses 9. Follow me there.
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Paul says this. I too was convinced that I ought
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to do all that was possible to oppose the name of Jesus of
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Nazareth. We sang that name Jesus.
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There's something about the name of Jesus because it's above
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every other name. There's no other name like it.
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The power in the name of Jesus. And when you speak the name of
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Jesus, there's miracles, demons go, there's healing, there's
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power in the name of Jesus. And verse 10, follow me there.
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And that is just what I did in Jerusalem on the authority of
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the chief priests. I put many of the Saints in the
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prison, and when they were put to death, I cast my vote against
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them. Many a time I went from one
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synagogue to another, one church to another, to have them
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punished, and I tried to force them to blasphemy in my
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obsession against them. I even went to foreign cities to
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persecute them. The Apostle Paul has got this
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obsession on persecuting Christians.
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He was a Pharisee, he was a Jew, a man that didn't believe that
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the risen Christ and to Christ said he was.
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So he thought I'm going to go fix him.
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And he went on the authority of the chief priests.
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Can I get some water, please? Oh, it's right there.
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Sorry, I didn't see that. I have the authority to drink
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water now. Thank you, Lord.
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And he went and he thought this is my job.
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Except for one event happened, one touch, one revelation, 1
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moment in time, where he was travelling along to the road to
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Damascus and there was the risen Jesus right before Paul.
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And it says the sun shone, that Jesus had shone brighter than
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the sun and him in his companions.
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They fell down and Paul was blinded for three days and after
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that something like scales had fallen off his eyes.
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He had a revelation of the risen King, the one that was supposed
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to be in the tomb, but the stone rolled away and he rose again in
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three days. This is the power of the gospel.
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1 moment Saul became Paul, and after that he had a revelation,
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one touch. And that revelation led to Paul
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going around preaching the good news of the risen King.
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Now Jesus, he rose when he died. He rose again in three days.
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He rose in victory. He rose as a conqueror.
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For you and I sin. And let me tell you, I'm going
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to give you an opportunity at the end.
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If you don't know Jesus today, there's going to be a moment.
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And just like Saul, you'll become Paul and you'll be
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transformed in a moment. Just like that, you'll go from
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death to life and that that opportunity will be given to you
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at the end of the service. Paul was a troublemaker.
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He loved to cause holy trouble. As pastor I said, And you know
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what, we as Christians, when we go into our community, we cause
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holy trouble. We come against what the Word,
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what the world comes in and teaches, but Christ teaches
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something else, and that's us as a church.
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We stand up into this community and we go and influence it.
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And that's what Paul did. And he was put on house arrest
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in Rome because he tried to stand up against Caesar.
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And he was there for two years, around 60 to 62 AD and Paul went
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through some suffering. And I want to want to highlight
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to you today and what Paul did in that moment, in those two
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years in prison whilst he was on house arrest.
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He writes and encourages four other churches or three other
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churches. He writes the Ephesians, the
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Ephesus church, the Philippians, the Colossians, and Philemon.
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Or if you're real bougie, Philemon, whatever you want to
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go with, that's fine. He was under house arrest.
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And scholars say that it was possible that he was, he was
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definitely in chain, but it was quite possible that he was
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chained to a Roman soldier for 24 hours of the day with six
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hours shift, a new Roman soldier coming in to take the shift.
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And Paul suffered for Jesus. He suffered for the gospel.
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It doesn't sound too good suffering, does it?
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But here's the truth about suffering.
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No matter whether you're with Christ or not, you're going to
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suffer. But there's a big difference.
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You can suffer over here without Christ in the world, but you'll
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do it alone. Or you can come give your life
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to Jesus and they're still suffering.
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But you won't do it alone this time.
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You'll do it filled with the Holy Spirit, the Helper.
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You do it with God's strength. You do it with his joy.
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You won't do it alone. Beloved, Christ didn't promise
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us that we wouldn't suffer, but He did promise us that He will
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be with us to the very end of the age.
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That's a promise. And Two Corinthians Chapter 11,
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chapter, Chapter 11, verses 24 just illustrates the sum of
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Paul's sufferings. But see, long-suffering is part
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of the fruit of the Spirit. I wish it was called short
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suffering. I would even settle for a little
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bit more suffering or middle suffering.
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But long-suffering is one of the fruit of the Spirit.
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Why? Because it helps us how we
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respond in suffering is everything right and who we turn
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to And suffering is everything. In Two Corinthians chapter 1124,
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five times he says I received from the Jews the 40 lashes -1 I
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reckon Paul would have felt the -1 that he didn't receive. 3
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times I was beaten with rods. Once I was pelted with stones.
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Three times I was shipwrecked. I spent a night and a day in the
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open sea. I have been constantly on the
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move. I've been in danger from rivers,
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in danger from bandits, in danger from my fellow Jews, in
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danger from Gentiles, in danger in the city, in danger in the
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country, in danger at sea, and in danger from false believers.
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I have laboured and toiled and often gone without sleep.
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I have known hunger and thirst and have often gone without
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food. I have been cold and naked.
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That's just the glimpse of some of the things that the Apostle
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Paul went through. Just a little snippet.
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He endured hardship and suffering.
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And I started to wonder in the text as I was reading this, as I
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preached to myself too, way before I come here to get that
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in my heart, to get it written on the tablet of my heart.
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And I thought, what was Paul's perspective in this?
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I thought, maybe this man's going to shrink back.
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You could think that maybe he's going to pull back in fear, but
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he didn't. And after Paul writes on how
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much he had suffered for Jesus, watch what happens here.
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His concern wasn't for himself. Watch the text right after this
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verse after he explained what he went through.
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It says this besides everything else.
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Come on. I felt the anointing on that and
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God speaking to me and say, TJ, do you have a besides everything
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else, everything that it could ever happen to you and and
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suffering and pain and and and the way that life goes?
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TJ would you have a besides everything else, let me tell you
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when you've got the living God in your life, when you've got
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the Holy Spirit that's filled you, you've got everything, man.
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It's besides everything beside the car, besides the, the the
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the bills, besides the the frustrations, besides your
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workplace of what's going on. God, I've got you, God, I've got
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you and it continues. He said ready.
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Watch this. I face daily the pressure of my
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concern for all the churches. What a man, what a spirit filled
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man. This is the Apostle Paul filled
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with the Holy Spirit. His concern wasn't about
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himself. His concern was about the
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churches. His concern was to encourage the
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churches and say come on church, you've got people to bring in,
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you've got people to impact and that's you today, beloved you
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being filled with the Holy Spirit man in your workplace in
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this community when you go shopping should looks different.
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Your concern for this community not in fear, but to say man,
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there's people out there that no need to know Jesus and I'm
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filled with the Holy Spirit. You are the answer the church to
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this community that brings Jesus Christ to make an impact and you
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all have the power to do that. Verses 29, he says who is weak
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and I do not feel weak. Well, after going through all of
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that, he says I don't feel weak. There's a scripture, it says in
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in our weakness. That's when God's made
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strongest, come on, His grace is sufficient.
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Who was led into sin and I do not inwardly burn.
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Paul viewed everything through a transformed life in Christ Jesus
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and in the power meant by the Holy Spirit.
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His suffering didn't break him. It clarified his purpose to
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advance the church, the body of Christ.
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And I know there's some people in here, you've got a dream.
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I know that some people in here, you, you, you just want to bust
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out of your seat and run into the community and, and making a
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an impact. And our prayer should be this
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God, would you make me an effective minister of the
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gospel, an effective minister of the gospel for Jesus Christ and
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for this community? Would you make me an effective
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father in my in my home? Would you make me an effective
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mother in my home, in my family and everywhere I go will
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encounter the love of God. Paul had the Holy Spirit
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inspired truth that saw past his physical chains and I just want
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to highlight in piece of Scripture in Ephesians where
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he's writing and he's encouraging them.
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If we could turn our Bibles to Ephesians 6 and watch what Paul
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does. But I started wondering.
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Paul on house arrest, looking around his surroundings in the
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rock walls that he was surrounded by, faced with the
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Roman soldier. Possible with the change of the
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guard every six hours. I know what my letter would have
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been like. Dear brothers and sisters, bust
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me out of here now. There's filthy Roman.
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Shiny leather looking smelly. Filthy Roman is guarding me.
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I need help. Would you bust me out quickly?
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I'll be writing a letter. Help.
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I'll be complaining. These rock walls are cold.
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I'm cold. There's no blanket.
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There's not much food, not much joy.
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But watch what Paul writes, he says.
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Therefore, put on the full armor of God so that when the day of
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evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground.
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I'm wondering when Paul was writing, did he have a
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revelation of when the Roman God was standing in that cell with
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him? And he says, hold on, hold on
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those shoes. There aren't just normal shoes
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and an inspired truth coming from the Holy Spirit.
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And he's had a revelation, he says.
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And after you've done everything to stand, stand firm then with
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the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate
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of righteousness in place, and with the feet fitted with the
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readiness that comes from the gospel of peace.
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In addition to all this, it says in verse 16, take up the shield
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of faith with which you can extinguish all the flaming
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arrows of the evil 1 and take the helmet of salvation and the
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sword of the spirit of which is the word of God.
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Paul had an amazing perspective. He had an amazing revelation, a
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Holy Spirit inspired truth, and despite being physically chained
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to a Roman soldier, his letters were not filled with sorrow and
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grief. And it's amazing how Paul
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encourages 3 churches in this time that he was in prison.
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And he's telling the church, you know what?
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I know you've faced some some kickback.
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I know that you've faced some challenges, but he's telling the
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Ephesus church, we just stand your ground because you're not
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cold and naked. You've got something that God's
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helping you to give you a focused purpose.
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You've been equipped with the belt of truth.
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You've been equipped with the breastplate of righteousness,
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with the shoes of the gospel of peace, with the shield of faith,
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with the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit.
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I'm wondering is there people in here today that don't like this
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surroundings and maybe you feel like the walls encapsulated in
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but maybe just very maybe that's not the devil who put you there.
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Maybe that's God who put you in there to stand firm then to be
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known it when you walk into a place that you're equipped with
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the armor of God and people can say, hey, Christian, what do you
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have that I need? And guess what, beloved, that's
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the power of God on your life that you were equipped.
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You're equipped in every circumstance, no matter or even
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if you're in the lowest of the low valley or the highest of the
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high mountain, you are equipped and you're not equipped with
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nothing. God equips you.
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I remember past the Gray when I before I went to Bible college,
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he said this something to me that carried me on.
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He said, TJ, if God's called you, he's also equipped you.
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Let me tell you, beloved, give God a shout.
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If you're called by God, let me tell you, you're equipped by God
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today. You're not cold and naked.
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God has equipped you, beloved. He's not only equipped you to
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sit on this chair in this church, but he's equipped you to
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go out there and get some people who don't know Jesus.
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Come on, give God a clap offering.
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Give God some praise. Moving on from verse 17, we go
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to verses 18. Watch this.
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Don't you just love the word of God?
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And Paul says this. He says and pray in the Spirit
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on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests.
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With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all
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the Lord's people, human mind, even in His prayer, even in Him
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writing this. Can you see how He's not
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writing? Woe is me, I have been wronged,
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I have had this and I am innocent.
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I've been put in jail for two years.
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Woe is me. But he says He gives us a key
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here. He says pray in the Spirit on
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all occasions. Let me tell you, there's a gift
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that God has given and that's the gift of the Holy Spirit.
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And today, if you can't speak in a heavenly language, that today
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can be your chance, your opportunity to get filled with
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the Holy Spirit. If you haven't been filled, let
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me tell you, you're missing out, man.
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When you start speaking the language of heaven, you realize
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when you're praying in that language, you're seated in
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heavenly places with Christ. That means you're no longer
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coming from the ground and looking up to God and asking him
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for help. You're coming from a heavenly
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perspective, a heavenly place that says to those situations,
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get beneath me, Satan. They'll tell those things get
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beneath me. You are beneath me because I am
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with the living Christ seated in heavenly places.
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And let me tell your church, beloved, we as a church are
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seated in heavenly places and this community along with it is
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seated in heavenly places. When you go into your workplace,
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when you go into your spaces, when you drop off your kids to
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church. You will go.
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You don't go seated on a low place.
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You go seated in a heavenly place, which means you can bring
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a heavenly word to that place. You can bring a heavenly word to
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your neighbor. Come on.
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Am I talking to somebody today? Is somebody got a heavenly word
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in them, a prophetic word to speak into their community and
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into the places that they influence?
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Paul's life was fueled by prayer, the kind of prayer that
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had purpose, focused purpose. Not just help me God, help me
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God, help me God. And I know I've prayed those
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prayers, but I'm talking about focused purpose prayers.
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Paul prayer requests revealed his character.
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Who knows? When you go through some things,
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it starts to reveal some things. It reveals your character.
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I know that God has shown me my fruit many times in the, in, in
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the hard times, in the challenging times.
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And I got to see the, the fruit that on my life.
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And it helps me see myself because sometimes the hardest
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person to see is yourself. It's why marriage is so good, so
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coming to church is so good as your brothers and sisters will
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edify you and lift you up. You ever been to Pastor Henry's
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life group? So challenging but so beautiful.
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He helped draw her out. God used him to disciple many
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and still today, if you're looking for a life group and you
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haven't been through foundations, let me tell you,
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get into foundations. It goes for 10 weeks.
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Is that right? Pastor Henry, let me tell you
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foundations, if you're a new Christian, it is a must.
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If you've been saved here in the last year and you haven't found
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yourself a place, go to foundations.
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It is incredible. It'll give you a head start and
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it will help you understand the word of God.
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Paul wasn't asking for comfort in his prayer.
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You notice that he didn't even ask for rescue.
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He wasn't saying pray for me for rescue.
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He wasn't asking for the suffering to stop or even the
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fire or fall on his enemies, but rather he goes on to say in
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verses 19, ready, what's this? Pray also for me.
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What for? That?
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Whenever I speak, words may be given so that I will fearlessly
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make known the mystery of the gospel for which I am an
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ambassador. That's an identity key.
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You're an ambassador today, Church, a representative of
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Christ Jesus in chains. And he says this.
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Pray that I may declare it fearlessly as I should.
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He wasn't saying pray, woe is me, I need help.
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I need rescue God. I don't know how I'm going to
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make it out. I don't even know if we're going
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to make it past these two years. I don't know how I got in here.
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I just innocently, innocently went to Caesar.
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I was telling him about Jesus and I got thrown into this
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place. I'm innocent.
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No, he's saying, pray also for me.
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Pray that I may declare God's word fearlessly.
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Pray that I declare the gospel fearlessly.
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That's why we can't hide behind this title called I'm an
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introvert anymore. We have no excuse because we've
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been filled with the Holy Spirit.
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I know I'm an extrovert and I want to go talk to everyone as
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well, but it challenges me too because I know that I can't do
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it on my own. When I walk into a place, I say,
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Holy Spirit, would you use me? Oh, Holy Spirit, I know that
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it's not on my power, but yours. Come on.
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Have I got any people in this place today that would go into
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their war workplace? Not on your own power, but the
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power of the Holy Spirit. Holy Spirit is not a friend that
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you call up when you need help. I've been there.
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How many times walk into movies, walk into places, that Holy
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Spirit, here I am again. I haven't spoken in three weeks,
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but I really need you now. Yes, I know, and I hate you
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being good, good, good, but the Holy Spirit wants relationship
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with you to bring you into closer communion, closer
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intimacy in relationship with Jesus.
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That's the Holy Spirit. He helps you come into a greater
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relationship with God and then by that intimacy, by that
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relationship, you get to step out into this community.
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You get to influence your world for good and for God to see this
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community be transformed for Jesus.
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Come on, I'm looking. I'm not just preaching to you.
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I'm preaching to the people that should be here.
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I've been seeing a lady in prayer for years that I've been
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praying for and I'm waiting to me to hear.
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And I'm wondering, have we got some prayers in this place
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today, people that they've seen that aren't here yet?
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Keep on praying. Keep on praying for Morton City
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because God will use you to impact our world, to influence
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our world, to transform this community for Christ.
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Your purpose is not just coming on Sunday and having
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relationship with him on church. Your purpose as a living child
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of God, a representative of God, is to influence, to bring God
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glory to every sphere of influence and places and spaces
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that you find yourself in. Paul wanted prayer to declare,
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to declare the good news, the gospel news boldly to those
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around him. Paul's focused purpose and
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prayer was not God. Get Me Out of this.
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You're ready. Paul's purpose, focus was this,
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God use me in this. I'll say that again.
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Paul didn't come to God and was like, God, Get Me Out of this.
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Get Me Out of this situation, this mess that I'm tied up in.
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Paul's prayer and focus purpose was God, would you use me in
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this? And I'm wondering, beloved, do I
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have some people here today bold enough with the Spirit filled in
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them that says God, would you use me in this?
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And what you thought you were chained to And to say that God
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would you Get Me Out of this doesn't do the justice and the
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love of God that we have for this community.
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No, no, no, we are not to shrink back in fear, but we are those
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people at City Point Caboolture that says this.
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We are prayers. God use me in this.
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Maybe your finances don't stack up the way you thought it would
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stack up, but do we have some people would say God use me in
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this? Do we have some struggles that
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are coming your way, maybe things that you didn't
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anticipate for 2025, but God use me in this.
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Maybe you got a workplace that you're not happy with at the
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moment, but in that workplace, you know, you're the only
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Christian. God use me in this.
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And then we have a group of people, a cohort of
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collaboration. We have a mission, a vision for
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this community. Do we have a people here today?
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And if you do, give God a shout to say God, use me in this
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community. He asked for prayer centered in
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focus. Purpose, not problems.
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His prayer wasn't based and focused on problems.
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He was focused on purpose. I know I'm going through this,
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but God, what's your focus purpose right now in this
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situation? What's your Rhema word?
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What's your now word? What do you have me in right now
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that I can impact people? I'm not just a Sunday Christian.
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I don't just commune with God on a Sunday at church.
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God, what am I doing here and how can I be more effective for
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your Kingdom? Paul's entire purpose in Christ
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was to represent Christ as the band comes up to be an
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ambassador of the gospel, a representative, to speak
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fearlessly, to declare the good news of Jesus, anyone within
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reach, even the Roman soldier that was potentially chained to
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him. Could you imagine Paul chained?
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He's talking to know Jesus. Do you know Jesus?
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Could you imagine a Man on Fire and joy with the power of the
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Holy Ghost chained in that room and a Roman soldier coming into
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that room? Imagine what he would have been
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thinking. I'm chained to this man and he's
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preaching to me. Hope.
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He's encouraging me. He's writing letters to
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churches. Who is this man?
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This is different to what the world acts.
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How is he doing this preaching the good news?
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Jesus is risen for your life, beloved.
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Jesus has taken away the sin of the world for all that take upon
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and have faith in Christ and all that give their life over to
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Jesus and that's available to you now.
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Could you imagine the Roman soldier thinking, what is this
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guy on? What does he have?
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Christianity is attractive. Your testimony, Paul's testimony
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of Christ. Wherever Paul went, he bring the
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gospel. The good news.
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Paul didn't waste his suffering. Are you ready?
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He assigned it focused purpose. Did anyone catch that here
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today? Paul didn't waste his suffering,
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he assigned it focused purpose. And I know that sometimes even
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in life, we, we encounter this. I know that, that, that that
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usually suffering isn't preached about.
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But let me tell you, beloved, when you are going through the
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valley, are you going to assign it purpose today?
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Is that your purpose to assign it focused purpose?
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And let me promise you today, we are a church that when, when
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persecution rises, we're going to assign it focused purpose
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because we have the gospel. Good news, the Holy Spirit was
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within us. That means you've been sealed
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with purpose, you have greatness within you, power within you,
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that you alone can step out in faith and God will use you today
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just like He's used me. I know I have a testimony too,
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just like Paul. And I'm up here because I said
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yes to Jesus and I knew the power, and I'm so grateful for
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my salvation because I was a dead man before.
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And now I've encountered Christ and I'm alive in him.
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And am I still being transformed?
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Yes. Am I still being sanctified?
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Yes. But that's the beauty of the
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journey. And today, beloved, that's for
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you and I today that we don't do this alone.
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We do it as a community as well. A common unity, something that
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we have common in is we believe in the Lord Jesus Christ.
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So I'm saying this today as we land this plane, don't waste
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your suffering. Don't waste what it looks like
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you're chained to because the very thing that you're in is the
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very focused purpose that God has placed you in to see people
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being impacted in your world. Maybe it's that Christmas dinner
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for us. We don't want to see those
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people. Maybe don't want to go to
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Christmas this year because Uncle Mike is going to start his
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stuff again. But let me promise you, you
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don't go into those places like that with that thinking.
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You go into those places, in the spaces and you step out and you
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say God, I'm going in here with you because it's a relationship.
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It's not performance. It's not even coming to church
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on Sunday. That's not your relationship
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with God. That's that's your overflow.
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It's where you come to God and you, you get to come in the
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house and enjoy his presence and enjoy the community of God
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through your relationship. But not only that, you know
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where else I come to church because I know that when I
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walked through those doors seven years ago, God had used another
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servant to welcome me and my family in the House of God.
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And it changed our life in an instant when we give our life to
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Christ. You have a purpose.
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Sunday has a purpose. Don't you miss church?
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Because when people get to come through that door, you will be
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used by God and God will use you if you position yourself in such
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a way. So I say this, please don't go
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out to the cafe and just speak to the same people every Sunday.
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Would we as a church look around and say who is new here today?
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Who is here going to be transformed by the living God,
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by my yes and my obedience? Who today can I speak to?
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Can I encourage, even know you? Maybe you've walked through
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those doors feeling discouraged. Maybe you've walked through
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these doors not feeling right. But would you say God, I'm not
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gonna let my feelings get in the way of somebody else's
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salvation. I'm not gonna let my life, my
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feelings get in the way of somebody else receiving a now
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word of God. And let me tell you, when we
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start doing this kind of thing, man, we start seeing the
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flourishing life of the church, man, who can I grab today?
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Who can I have coffee with next week?
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Who can I call? There's always a new person that
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you can bless. Your chains become your mission
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field, not your misery. The things that we've been
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praying and asking God, please Get Me Out of here.
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Maybe that's the very thing that God has got you into.
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Let's not give the enemy the glory things that God has done
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in your life and put you in in situations.
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Pray with purpose, not just comfort.
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Ask yourself, am I praying for comfort right now?
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Am I praying with a focused purpose?
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Let's suffering clarify your purpose, not weaken it.
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Represent Christ well in every circumstances.
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And to finish with this church, you are an ambassador for
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Christ. You are a representative of
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Christ. Come on, say it after me.
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We're going to say it three times because I want to declare
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it over this town. I want to declare it over Morton
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City. I wanted you to declare it in
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your workplace, in your family home.
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Come on, say it after me. I am an ambassador for Christ.
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Come on two more times. I am an ambassador for Christ.
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Come on. I am an ambassador for Christ,
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come on. Do you know I spoke about Jesus
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and how he rose again? But do you know why he went to
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the cross? The whole reason why he came to
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earth, the living God in flesh, Because he had a focus purpose.
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That focus purpose was to go blameless and innocently and get
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on that cross and die a brutal death only to be risen again.
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And that focus purpose was for you and I beloved, that focus
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purpose was to defeat sin at the cross, because sin is
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destructive in all its ways. Scripture says there is a way
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that seems right unto a man, but in in the end it leads to death.
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That's in Proverbs. And maybe you're thinking you're
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living the right way and I'm going the right way, but in the
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end it leads to death without Christ.