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2 Timothy 1:8-18 - Why Christians Follow Jesus Even In Persecution · The Bible Explained with Jenn Kokal

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  Speaker 1: Life Audio. Good morning, faithful listeneries. This is Jen with
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  Speaker 1: the Bible Explain podcast, and thank you so much for
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  Speaker 1: tuning in to this episode of Tewod Timothy. We're going
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  Speaker 1: to be talking about the second portion of chapter one
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  Speaker 1: and how Paul was unashamed of the good news even
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  Speaker 1: though he was in chains, and he's encouraging Timothy, who
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  Speaker 1: presumably at this point in time is not in chains,
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  Speaker 1: to also be strong in God, even though persecution was
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  Speaker 1: happening pretty rampantly during this time. So we'll get into
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  Speaker 1: this episode in just a second. So for those of
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  Speaker 1: you who don't know, I participated in the Federal duck
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  Speaker 1: stamp competition this past year and I did not do
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  Speaker 1: well in the competition. And for those of you who
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  Speaker 1: don't know what the Federal duck stamp competition is, it
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  Speaker 1: is basically a painting that you submit to the Fish
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  Speaker 1: and Wildlife Service and every single year they choose one
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  Speaker 1: out of hundreds, you know, they get so many in
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  Speaker 1: and they choose just one to be next year's stamp
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  Speaker 1: that you can buy at the post office. And that
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  Speaker 1: stamp actually is what duck hunters need on their licenses.
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  Speaker 1: So it's a really intense competition and it was a
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  Speaker 1: lot of fun to participate in it. But I am
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  Speaker 1: now making another painting for a stamp competition, specifically for Ohio.
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  Speaker 1: So that is what I've been doing this past weekend
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  Speaker 1: and it's been a lot of fun doing all of that.
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  Speaker 1: So let me know what are your guys's hobbies. I'd
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  Speaker 1: like to hear about you, faithful listeners, and you can
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  Speaker 1: find my contact information listed in the description of this episode,
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  Speaker 1: So contact me and tell me what is your hobby.
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  Speaker 1: But let's get into two Timothy chapter one, verses eight
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  Speaker 1: through eighteen. And before I read this for you guys,
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  Speaker 1: here's a quick word from one of our sponsors. All right,
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  Speaker 1: let's get into seek in Timothy chapter one, eight through eighteen.
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  Speaker 1: As always, I'll be reading from the we b version,
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  Speaker 1: so feel free to grab the version of the Bible
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  Speaker 1: that you prefer. If it's not the Web version, that
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  Speaker 1: is totally fine. And also grab your cup of coffee
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  Speaker 1: or your cup of tea this morning to share along
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  Speaker 1: with me. And once you grab those things, let's go
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  Speaker 1: ahead and read tewod Timothy one eight through eighteen. Therefore,
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  Speaker 1: don't be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, nor
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  Speaker 1: of me his prisoner, but endure hardship for the good
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  Speaker 1: news according to the power of God, who saved us
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  Speaker 1: and called us with a holy calling, not according to
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  Speaker 1: our works, but according to his own purpose and grace,
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  Speaker 1: which was given to us in Christ Jesus before times eternal,
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  Speaker 1: but has now been revealed by the appearing of our Savior,
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  Speaker 1: Jesus Christ, who abolished death and brought life and immortality
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  Speaker 1: to light through the good News. For this I was
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  Speaker 1: appointed as preacher, an apostle, and a teacher of the gentiles.
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  Speaker 1: For this cause I also suffer these things. Yet I
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  Speaker 1: am not ashamed, for I know him whom I have believed,
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  Speaker 1: and I am persua that he is able to guard
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  Speaker 1: that which I have committed to him against that day.
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  Speaker 1: Hold to the pattern of sound words which you have
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  Speaker 1: heard from me in faith and love, which is in
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  Speaker 1: Christ Jesus. That good thing which was committed to you
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  Speaker 1: guard through the Holy Spirit who dwells in us. This
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  Speaker 1: you know that all those who are in Asia turned
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  Speaker 1: away from me, of whom are Figilus and Homogenes made
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  Speaker 1: the Lord grant mercy to the house of Onacipherus, for
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  Speaker 1: he often refreshed me and was not ashamed of my chain.
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  Speaker 1: But when he was in Rome, he sought me diligently
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  Speaker 1: and found me the Lord granted to him to find
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  Speaker 1: the Lord's mercy in that day, and in how many
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  Speaker 1: things he served at Ephesus, you know very well. In
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  Speaker 1: verse eight, Paul says, therefore, don't be ashamed of the
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  Speaker 1: testimony of our Lord, nor of me his prisoner, but
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  Speaker 1: endure hardship for the good News according to the power
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  Speaker 1: of God. And we talked a little bit about that
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  Speaker 1: verse last Thursday, if you didn't get a chance to listen. Basically,
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  Speaker 1: Paul is telling Timothy not to be ashamed of the Gospel,
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  Speaker 1: embarrassed of it, or scared to live it out. Actually,
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  Speaker 1: the verse right before this, verse seven, it says, for
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  Speaker 1: God didn't give us a spirit of fear, but of power,
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  Speaker 1: love and self control. So because God doesn't give us fear,
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  Speaker 1: but he gives us power, we should be unafraid to
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  Speaker 1: live the good News. We shouldn't be ashamed of the Gospel,
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  Speaker 1: but we should live it because God gives us the
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  Speaker 1: power to do that even under extreme circumstances. For example,
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  Speaker 1: you know, when Paul wrote this letter, he was sitting
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  Speaker 1: in prison. This is very likely the last letter, the
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  Speaker 1: last epistle that Paul ever wrote before his death. Church
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  Speaker 1: history says that Paul died very shortly after this, that
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  Speaker 1: he was beheaded by Nero. So if this is Paul's
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  Speaker 1: last letter, I mean, just think about these words that
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  Speaker 1: he's writing, that even though he's sitting in prison, that
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  Speaker 1: he is in chains right now, he is not afraid
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  Speaker 1: to live out the Gospel message. And he goes on
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  Speaker 1: to explain that in verse twelve. But basically he's encouraging
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  Speaker 1: Timothy to all s so not be fearful, but to
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  Speaker 1: take hold of the gifts that the Spirit gives you,
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  Speaker 1: which is power, love, and self control. And he says,
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  Speaker 1: here's why you do this verse nine, God who saved
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  Speaker 1: us and called us according to a holy calling, not
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  Speaker 1: according to our own works, but according to his own
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  Speaker 1: purpose and grace which was given to us in Christ
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  Speaker 1: Jesus before times eternal has now been revealed by the
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  Speaker 1: appearing of our savior, Christ Jesus, who abolished death and
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  Speaker 1: brought life and immortality to light through the Good News.
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  Speaker 1: So the gospel message is something good to live by,
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  Speaker 1: even if other people are ashamed of it, even if
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  Speaker 1: a Christianity is hated. It's a good thing to live
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  Speaker 1: by because God saved us and called us, is what
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  Speaker 1: Paul says, not because of our own good works. You know,
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  Speaker 1: a lot of people think that their good works is
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  Speaker 1: what's going to save them. Even now. You know, many
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  Speaker 1: people believe that whatever the afterlife is, they're going to
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  Speaker 1: go to the good side of the after life because
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  Speaker 1: they did good things on earth. But no, God did
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  Speaker 1: not save us according to our works, but according to
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  Speaker 1: his own purpose and grace, which was given to us
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  Speaker 1: in Christ Jesus before times eternal. So this is another
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  Speaker 1: verse that talks about predestination. Predestination is basically defined as
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  Speaker 1: God for knowing something before it existed. And in this case,
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  Speaker 1: it says that God called us with a holy calling,
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  Speaker 1: which was given to us in Christ Jesus before times eternal. So,
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  Speaker 1: in other words, this calling that we have was predestined.
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  Speaker 1: It existed before the foundations of the entire earth, is
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  Speaker 1: what it says. But notice that this calling that we
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  Speaker 1: have was given to us in Christ Jesus. If you
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  Speaker 1: turn to First Peter chapter one and read verses eighteen
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  Speaker 1: through twenty one, it goes a little bit more into detail.
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  Speaker 1: About the predestination of Jesus himself. So let's read verse
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  Speaker 1: Peter one. Starting in verse eighteen, it says, knowing that
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  Speaker 1: you were redeemed, not with corruptible things like silver or gold,
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  Speaker 1: from the useless way of life handed down from your fathers,
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  Speaker 1: but with precious blood as of a lamb, without blemish
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  Speaker 1: or spot, the blood of Christ, who was foreknon indeed
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  Speaker 1: before the foundation of the world, but was revealed in
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  Speaker 1: this last age for your sake, who through him are
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  Speaker 1: believers in God, who raised him from the dead and
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  Speaker 1: gave him glory, so that your faith and hope might
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  Speaker 1: be in God. So those verses mean that Jesus was
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  Speaker 1: in a sense predestined. He was foreknown about before the
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  Speaker 1: foundations of the earth. So before God even created humans,
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  Speaker 1: before he created the earth, he knew that Jesus was
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  Speaker 1: going to have to die for humanity. It was foreknown about.
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  Speaker 1: It was predestined. And so Jesus himself was predestined in
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  Speaker 1: a sense, and all of us who choose to believe
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  Speaker 1: in Jesus are predestined right along with him. We were
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  Speaker 1: chosen or called from the foundations of the earth. But
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  Speaker 1: we can only be chosen or called if we believe
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  Speaker 1: in Jesus first, because Jesus was the one who was
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  Speaker 1: truly predestined. He was the one who was going to
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  Speaker 1: take the sins away from the people, and so anyone
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  Speaker 1: who believes in Jesus kind of shares in that predestination.
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  Speaker 1: And so that's what Paul is talking about right here,
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  Speaker 1: that we were called not because we did anything good,
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  Speaker 1: but because Jesus, who was predestined from the foundations of
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  Speaker 1: the earth, saved us and called us to believe in him.
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  Speaker 1: And so anybody who does believe in him were called.
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  Speaker 1: It says, if we go back to our passage for today,
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  Speaker 1: we were called with a holy calling, not according to
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  Speaker 1: our works, but according to his purpose and grace which
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  Speaker 1: was given to us in Christ, Jesus before times eternal.
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  Speaker 1: And continuing in verse ten, it says, but now has
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  Speaker 1: been revealed by the appearing of our savior Christ, Jesus,
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  Speaker 1: who abolished death and brought life and immortality to light
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  Speaker 1: through the good News. So Jesus now has been revealed.
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  Speaker 1: You know, the Old Testament, if you read through it,
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  Speaker 1: there's a lot of things that kind of go unanswered.
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  Speaker 1: For example, the after life is not really talked about
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  Speaker 1: in the Old Testament. You know, David in the Psalms
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  Speaker 1: talks about this place called Shoal, which basically just meant
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  Speaker 1: the ground. And even now people have questions about that.
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  Speaker 1: Where did Old Testament believers go after they died. There's
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  Speaker 1: a place talked about in scripture in the New Testament
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  Speaker 1: called Abraham's bosom, But what does that look like? What
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  Speaker 1: does that mean for people who lived before Jesus came
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  Speaker 1: and saved the entire earth? Because we know that when
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  Speaker 1: Jesus came and saved everybody, he saved everybody past, present,
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  Speaker 1: and future. So looking through the Old Testament, a lot
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  Speaker 1: of that stuff is very foggy because Jesus was prophesied about,
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  Speaker 1: but he hadn't come yet. But now, for you and I,
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  Speaker 1: this mystery has been explained. It has been revealed by
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  Speaker 1: the appearing of our savior, Jesus Christ, who abolish death
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  Speaker 1: and brought life and immortality to light through the Good News.
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  Speaker 1: So we didn't understand a lot about it before. We
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  Speaker 1: didn't understand immortality in life and what the afterlife looked like,
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  Speaker 1: and we still don't really understand it. We're not going
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  Speaker 1: to fully understand until we experience it for ourselves. But
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  Speaker 1: still that mystery has been revealed to us. And for
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  Speaker 1: those of you who are brand new to Christianity or
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  Speaker 1: to this podcast, you might be like, well, what is
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  Speaker 1: that mystery revealed? Well, the mystery Paul talks about is
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  Speaker 1: the fact that because Jesus saved us from our sins,
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  Speaker 1: we now can have fellowship with God if we believe
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  Speaker 1: in the death and resurrection of Jesus, if we believe
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  Speaker 1: that we need a savior. Jesus took that punishment for us,
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  Speaker 1: and so when we believe that, scripture is clear that
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  Speaker 1: we now have fellowship with God the Father and we
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  Speaker 1: can go to be with him someday. Whereas before people
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  Speaker 1: didn't have that same relationship with God the Father until,
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  Speaker 1: of course, Jesus came and made everything right. It says
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  Speaker 1: in scripture that Jesus took the punishment for us while
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  Speaker 1: we were still enemies of him. So that's the mystery explained.
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  Speaker 1: We can have true confidence that we're going to be
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  Speaker 1: in paradise with Jesus someday because of his sacrifice, and
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  Speaker 1: that's why all of this is worth living for, and
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  Speaker 1: that's why Paul is encouraging Timothy to not have a
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  Speaker 1: spirit of fear, because that's not from God, but to
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  Speaker 1: have a spirit of power, love, and self control. Living
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  Speaker 1: for these things. Even though the world was and still
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  Speaker 1: is hostile to Christianity. Paul says, I was appointed as
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  Speaker 1: a preacher, an apostle, and a teacher of the gentiles
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  Speaker 1: for this cause. I also suffer these things. Paul truly
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  Speaker 1: did suffer. I mean, you can look at his life.
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  Speaker 1: He did not have an easy life. You know, now,
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  Speaker 1: we're so far removed from Paul's life that we kind
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  Speaker 1: of think that he was blessed in every avenue of life.
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  Speaker 1: But no scripture talks about the troubles he went through.
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  Speaker 1: He went through sicknesses, he went through pain and suffering.
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  Speaker 1: He lost friends, he was put in prison. How many times,
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  Speaker 1: he was shipwrecked. He was beaten with rods on multiple occasions.
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  Speaker 1: He was stoned, possibly to death at one point. He
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  Speaker 1: was involved in multiple riots where people were just wanting
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  Speaker 1: to beat him to death. He had a very difficult
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  Speaker 1: life as a Christian, and yet he says, I suffer
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  Speaker 1: these things. But verse twelve, I am not ashamed for
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  Speaker 1: I know him whom I have believed. I am persuaded
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  Speaker 1: that he is able to guard that which I have
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  Speaker 1: committed to him against that day. So he says, the
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  Speaker 1: reason Timothy, I am not ashamed is because I know
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  Speaker 1: him whom I have believed. I know the person I
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  Speaker 1: believe in. I know that this is the truth, and
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  Speaker 1: I am not going to be ashamed of it. I
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  Speaker 1: am not going to be scared to share the gospel message.
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  Speaker 1: This reminds me of the verse of the Day that
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  Speaker 1: you version put out yesterday, which says, it's from Mark
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  Speaker 1: eight thirty five. For whoever wants to save their life
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  Speaker 1: will lose it. But whoever loses their life for Me
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  Speaker 1: and for the Gospel, will save it. And that is
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  Speaker 1: Jesus talking. Jesus was telling his disciples. If you try
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  Speaker 1: to hold on to your life here, if you love
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  Speaker 1: life so much much that you're not going to follow me,
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  Speaker 1: then that means you've actually lost your life. But if
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  Speaker 1: you give up your life for my sake, if you
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  Speaker 1: truly take up your cross and follow me, then that
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  Speaker 1: means you are actually gaining life. And that's what Paul
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  Speaker 1: says here too. He says, the reason I do this,
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  Speaker 1: the reason I am not ashamed, is because I know
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  Speaker 1: him whom I have believed. I know this is the truth.
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  Speaker 1: I'm going to follow Jesus, and I am persuaded that
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  Speaker 1: he is able to guard that which I've committed to
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  Speaker 1: him against that day. So what has Paul committed to Jesus. Well,
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  Speaker 1: he committed his life, for sure. He committed everything really
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  Speaker 1: to him. Paul was a servant of Jesus through and through.
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  Speaker 1: And Paul says, I know that Jesus is able to
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  Speaker 1: guard me until that day. And what day is that, Well,
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  Speaker 1: that's probably either the day that Paul dies or the
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  Speaker 1: day that Jesus returns. He knows that Jesus is going
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  Speaker 1: to guard him until that time comes and guard everything
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  Speaker 1: that he has committed to Jesus, his life, his testimony,
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  Speaker 1: these churches that he founded, the letters that he has written,
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  Speaker 1: And man, is it not true that God has guarded
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  Speaker 1: this stuff? Like we're still reading Paul's letters to this day.
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  Speaker 1: We have all of this because God is guarding everything
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  Speaker 1: that Paul did to this very day. So Paul was
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  Speaker 1: certainly right when he said that he knew that God
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  Speaker 1: was going to guard this until the day. So then
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  Speaker 1: in verse thirteen, he says, Timothy hold the pattern of
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  Speaker 1: sound words which you have heard from me in faith
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  Speaker 1: and love, which is in Christ Jesus. So don't fall
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  Speaker 1: away from what I have told you, the sound words
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  Speaker 1: that I have told you, which should have been, you know,
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  Speaker 1: the entire Gospel message, essentially, the sound words which you
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  Speaker 1: have heard from me. Hold onto those. Don't fall away
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  Speaker 1: from them. Good thing which was committed to you guard
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  Speaker 1: through the Holy Spirit who dwells in us. So that's
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  Speaker 1: a really interesting verse that whatever was committed to Timothy,
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  Speaker 1: Timothy has the responsibility to guard it along with the
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  Speaker 1: Holy Spirit. Now, the Holy Spirit is obviously supreme in
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  Speaker 1: our lives, you know, like he's God, he can do
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  Speaker 1: whatever he wants in our lives. But it's interesting also
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  Speaker 1: that Paul says that Timothy has a role to play
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  Speaker 1: as well, that Timothy must also guard these things through
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  Speaker 1: the Holy Spirit who lives inside each of us. So
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  Speaker 1: whatever was committed to Timothy, whatever Paul's talking about here,
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  Speaker 1: and I don't really know what it is, whether it's
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  Speaker 1: Timothy's spiritual gift that Paul keeps mentioning but never says
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  Speaker 1: exactly what it is. It could be that it could
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  Speaker 1: be this church that Timothy was at. Maybe that's what
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  Speaker 1: Paul's talking about whatever was committed to Timothy. He says, guard,
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  Speaker 1: guard it, guard it through the Holy Spirit, who dwells
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  Speaker 1: in us. So all of us Christians have that responsibility
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  Speaker 1: as well. We must all guard what has been committed
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  Speaker 1: to us. Whatever that might be. For you, faithful listeners,
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  Speaker 1: whether it's your family, whether it's your spiritual gifts, whether
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  Speaker 1: it's your ministry or the volunteer work that you do
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  Speaker 1: at church, whatever has been committed to you, guard it
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  Speaker 1: deeply through the power of the Holy Spirit. Obviously, guard
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  Speaker 1: the things that God trusted to you. And now, in
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  Speaker 1: verses fifteen through eighteen, Paul concludes the first part of
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  Speaker 1: his letter. He says, this, you know that all who
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  Speaker 1: are in Asia turned away from me, of whom are
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  Speaker 1: Figilus and Homogenes. Now we don't know who these two
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  Speaker 1: people are, but apparently they turned away from Paul. We
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  Speaker 1: do know that Paul was arrested before this, you know,
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  Speaker 1: in the end of the Book of Acts, it mentions
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  Speaker 1: how Paul was arrested and to Rome and had to
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  Speaker 1: stand in front of Caesar in order to get out
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  Speaker 1: of prison. Essentially, it could be that at that time
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  Speaker 1: the people who were in Asia specifically, Fidulus and Homogenes
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  Speaker 1: turned away from Paul, maybe gave a bad testimony against him,
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  Speaker 1: maybe just deserted him out of fear. Who knows exactly
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  Speaker 1: what happened, but I'm sure that this really hurt Paul.
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  Speaker 1: That friends were betraying him, turning away from him, or
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  Speaker 1: they could have also just turned away from the faith.
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  Speaker 1: But I'm kind of guessing that they probably turned away
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  Speaker 1: from Paul physically because he says that they turned away
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  Speaker 1: from him personally, and a lot of times whenever we
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  Speaker 1: see Paul talking about people like spiritually leaving the faith,
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  Speaker 1: he words it different to say that they left Jesus,
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  Speaker 1: not him. So I'm going to guess that he was
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  Speaker 1: betrayed by these two guys. But then on the flip side,
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  Speaker 1: there was one guy named Onnocypherus who apparently did the
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  Speaker 1: upmost to actually help Paul during his time of need.
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  Speaker 1: He says, made the Lord grant mercy to the house
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  Speaker 1: of Onocipherus, for he often refreshed me and was not
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  Speaker 1: ashamed of my chain. But when he was in Rome,
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  Speaker 1: he sought me diligently and found me. So in spite
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  Speaker 1: of the fact that all these people from Asia turned
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  Speaker 1: away from Paul. This one man, Onocipherus, actually went out
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  Speaker 1: of his way to try to help Paul, going to
• 19:29
  Speaker 1: Rome when Paul was in prison, possibly the first time around,
• 19:33
  Speaker 1: and actually searching for Paul, trying to figure out where
• 19:36
  Speaker 1: he was, and refreshing Paul. And what's interesting is that
• 19:40
  Speaker 1: the name Onocipherus actually means help bringer, So this man
• 19:45
  Speaker 1: definitely lived up to his name for sure. He was
• 19:47
  Speaker 1: the help giver and he refreshed Paul on multiple occasions.
• 19:51
  Speaker 1: So he asks that the Lord grants to him the
• 19:54
  Speaker 1: Lord's mercy in that day verse eighteen, and then he
• 19:57
  Speaker 1: also goes on to explain how much work Onocipherus actually
• 20:01
  Speaker 1: did in ephesis as well. So even though there were
• 20:05
  Speaker 1: some bad things happening in Paul's life, God was still
• 20:09
  Speaker 1: giving Paul refreshment in different areas, specifically in the case
• 20:13
  Speaker 1: of Onocipherus, who gave Paul a lot of comfort while
• 20:17
  Speaker 1: he was in prison, possibly the first time around, or
• 20:20
  Speaker 1: maybe even the second time around. When Paul was arrested
• 20:23
  Speaker 1: again and writing this letter, I don't know, but just
• 20:26
  Speaker 1: knowing that Paul was about to die very shortly after
• 20:29
  Speaker 1: writing this letter, it kind of brings it home a
• 20:32
  Speaker 1: little bit more. You know, you can see the urgency
• 20:36
  Speaker 1: with which Paul is writing this letter. In fact, it
• 20:39
  Speaker 1: really kind of seems like Paul knows that he may
• 20:43
  Speaker 1: die very soon, that this is sort of the end
• 20:46
  Speaker 1: for him. I don't know, but we'll get into the
• 20:48
  Speaker 1: second part of this letter on Thursday. So I hope
• 20:51
  Speaker 1: you guys tune in then at six am or whenever
• 20:54
  Speaker 1: you choose to wake up and listen, but faithful listeners.
• 20:56
  Speaker 1: Before I end the episode, here's a quick word from
• 20:59
  Speaker 1: a sponsor. And speaking of sponsors, I really do want
• 21:04
  Speaker 1: to thank Life Audio for working with me when it
• 21:07
  Speaker 1: comes to the ads. The one thing I was really
• 21:10
  Speaker 1: concerned about is putting an ad right in the middle
• 21:13
  Speaker 1: of our Bible discussion. And so they worked with me
• 21:16
  Speaker 1: through that and they were like, yeah, you can put
• 21:17
  Speaker 1: one at the beginning and one at the end, and
• 21:20
  Speaker 1: so that was really really awesome of them. And also,
• 21:23
  Speaker 1: as you guys heard, I'm sure there was a casino
• 21:26
  Speaker 1: that was sponsoring my podcast, and yeah, that's not supposed
• 21:32
  Speaker 1: to happen. So if you hear it happen again, please
• 21:34
  Speaker 1: let me know tell me what episode you heard it on.
• 21:37
  Speaker 1: And also the name of the casino and I will
• 21:40
  Speaker 1: try to get to the bottom of that. But faithful listeners,
• 21:43
  Speaker 1: I hope you all have a fantastic and wonderful rest
• 21:45
  Speaker 1: of your day. I'll see you guys tomorrow morning, bright
• 21:48
  Speaker 1: and early for an episode from Second to Chronicles, Happy listening,
• 21:52
  Speaker 1: and God bless. I just want to take a second
• 21:59
  Speaker 1: to thank the team at Life Audio for their partnership
• 22:01
  Speaker 1: with me on the Bible Explain podcast. In fact, if
• 22:04
  Speaker 1: you go to lifeaudio dot com you will find dozens
• 22:07
  Speaker 1: of other faith centered podcasts in their network. The Gut
• 22:09
  Speaker 1: shows about prayer, Bible study, parenting, and more.