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Moody Presents - 2026-10-31 Inauguration of Dr. Rick Melson part 2 · WPGM On Demand

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S1: Up next on Moody presents a vision for leadership with
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S1: Moody Bible Institute president Doctor Rick Nelson.
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S2: We are one moody. Imagine what God might do if
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S2: we increasingly bring everything that he has entrusted to us
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S2: together around a common mission and vision to become the
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S2: most trusted source for biblical formation.
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S1: Welcome to Moody Presents from Moody Bible Institute. I'm John Gager,
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S1: and we're continuing our coverage of the installation service for
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S1: the 11th president of Moody Bible Institute, Doctor Rick Nelson.
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S1: If you missed last week's broadcast, it's available online at
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S1: Moody presents.org. That's Moody presents.org. We wish we could present
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S1: every minute of this tremendous inauguration service. We can't. We're
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S1: bringing you the highlights. And we're going to start today
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S1: with a word from the executive director of the Moody
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S1: Alumni Association, Jeff Pope. And boy, has he got a
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S1: story to share. Let's listen.
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S3: In 1990, a broke, moody student named Carl Bastian invited
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S3: President Joe Stowell to lunch. Carl was working multiple jobs
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S3: and one day, while valet parking doctor Stoll's car, he
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S3: left a note inside asking if he might take him
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S3: to a meal. A few days later, the phone rang
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S3: in Carl's dorm room. It was the president calling to
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S3: say yes. On May 2nd, Carl picked him up at
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S3: the arch in his Chevy Chevette and drove him to
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S3: the rock and roll McDonald's. Students. That is the previous
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S3: Mick Boogie. Carl was the house magician there, which meant
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S3: he could eat for free. A pretty good arrangement when
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S3: you're entertaining the president. They talked about life, faith, and ministry.
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S3: Before leaving, Karl asked Doctor Stohl to write a challenge
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S3: in his Bible. Doctor Stohl wrote, Be God's man in
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S3: God's place. He encouraged Karl to keep asking two questions.
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S3: AM I who God wants me to be? And am
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S3: I where God wants me to serve? Karl never forgot
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S3: those words. He went on to serve in children's ministry
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S3: and founded Kidology, an organization equipping others to reach children
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S3: for Christ. Years later, reflecting on that lunch, Karl said,
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S3: I am very thankful that this president wasn't too busy
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S3: to make time for an individual student. And he explained
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S3: that Doctor Joe Stoll's example shaped his own approach to ministry,
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S3: making time for individuals just as someone had made time
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S3: for him. But Karl's story actually began a generation earlier.
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S3: His mother, Patty, first came to Christ as a little
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S3: girl through the Ministry of Moody Students. She later attended
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S3: Moody herself, graduating in 1964. Her son followed in her footsteps,
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S3: and today, a scholarship he established here in her memory
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S3: helps prepare future children's ministry workers from generation to generation.
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S3: Moody alumni are marked by lives transformed by Jesus, who
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S3: then carry the gospel into the world and equip others
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S3: to do the same. Doctor Melson, thank you for being
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S3: a student first president, because decades from now, the enduring
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S3: legacy of your presidency will be measured by the lives
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S3: of students who leave Moody prepared to serve Christ faithfully
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S3: where he calls them. And as alumni, we are grateful
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S3: for your commitment. So, on behalf of the Moody Alumni
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S3: Association and generations of Moody's around the world, welcome. We
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S3: are praying for you and may God bless the school
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S3: that D.L. Moody founded.
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S1: With his inaugural address. Let's listen now to Doctor Rick Melson,
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S1: 11th president of the Moody Bible Institute, on today's edition
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S1: of Moody Presents.
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S2: Thank you, Doctor Kim. Thank you, Moody Corral. Thank you,
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S2: Doctor Maddox for leading us in wonderful worship. I was
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S2: glad when they said unto me, let us go into
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S2: the house of the Lord. Amen. Well, what a joy
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S2: it is to be here today. What an incredible honor
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S2: it is to stand before you. And it is with
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S2: great humility that we are here. I want to thank
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S2: our chairman, Rick Warren, our vice chairman, Mark Flannery, Doctor Job,
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S2: for the incredible honor of being here and being part
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S2: of this doctor job. Thank you for handing off this
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S2: medallion of incredible importance to be the 11th president of
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S2: the Moody Bible Institute. How incredible and humbling this is.
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S2: To stand before you as the 11th president is one
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S2: of the greatest honors of my life. And I stand here,
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S2: much like the turtle on the fence post, Doctor Stoll.
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S2: I recognize all of the people behind me of the
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S2: shoulders that I stand on. I received this responsibility with
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S2: profound gratitude, but also with a deep sense of stewardship.
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S2: To my fellow trustees, thank you for what you have
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S2: entrusted to me, to the faculty and staff. Thank you
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S2: for the partnership in the work that we get to
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S2: do together. To all of my students who are here,
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S2: I am so grateful to be your president. You are
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S2: why we are here. To our alumni and donors and friends,
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S2: we are so grateful that you are our ministry partners
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S2: in this work. To our distinguished predecessors who are seated
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S2: behind me, President Joe Stoll, President Michael Easley, President Paul
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S2: Nyquist and President Mark Jobe. They represent 40 years of
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S2: faithful service to Moody Bible Institute. I am only the
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S2: 11th president in 140 years, and five of us are
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S2: here today. I am incredibly grateful. Grateful for the faithful leadership.
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S2: And I'm incredibly grateful to build upon that faithful Leadership.
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S2: Thank you. Thank you for the privilege and opportunity. However,
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S2: today is not ultimately about a president. Today is not
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S2: about a position, and it is certainly not about one person.
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S2: Today is about the faithfulness of God, the same God
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S2: who called D.L. Moody. The same God who established this ministry.
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S2: The same God who has sustained Moody from generation to generation,
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S2: who has used this ministry to equip men and women
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S2: to strengthen the church, to proclaim the gospel, to reach
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S2: people around the world. And the same God who has
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S2: faithfully led Moody through generations of service to the church.
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S2: That is the same God who continues before us and friends,
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S2: that gives us great hope for all that lies ahead.
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S2: Tammy and I did not arrive at Moody by ambition.
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S2: We arrived here the same way that we've tried to
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S2: arrive at every season and station of our life and marriage.
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S2: Surrender to Christ with our hands open. Asking God to
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S2: lead that posture is not new for us. It is
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S2: the same posture that God has repeatedly and repeatedly called
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S2: us to, and every time we have simply opened our
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S2: hands and he has continued to prove himself faithful. Tammy.
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S2: Thank you. Thank you for your partnership, your prayers, your
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S2: willingness to say yes to wherever God has called us.
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S2: I would not be here today without you. There is
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S2: a scripture verse that has accompanied me through much of
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S2: my adult life. Psalm 374 delight yourself in the Lord,
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S2: and he will give you the desires of your heart.
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S2: Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you
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S2: the desires of your heart. It's my life and guiding verse.
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S2: And over the years I've come to understand that the
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S2: great promise of this verse is not simply that God
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S2: gives us whatever we desire. It is something far better.
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S2: When we delight ourselves in him, God shapes our desires.
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S2: He changes what we love, what we seek, what we value,
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S2: and what we live for. Eventually, our deepest desires becomes
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S2: not merely receiving something from God, but knowing God Himself.
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S2: His glory becomes our ambition. His purposes become our purposes,
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S2: and Christ becomes our greatest joy. I believe that same
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S2: principle today can apply to an institution so moody. What
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S2: does moody desire? What gives us our greatest joy? That
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S2: question matters because institutions like individuals can drift. Methods can
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S2: become missions. Programs can become purposes, preservation can replace proclamation,
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S2: and success can slowly be redefined by enrollment and audience
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S2: and revenue or budgets. And all of those are important.
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S2: Those things matter. We must steward them well. However, none
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S2: of them can be our greatest soul. Satisfying joy. Christ
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S2: must be our greatest joy. So as I began my
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S2: years of service and season of service, my prayer is
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S2: simple may do, may, may together. May, moody delight in
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S2: the Lord. It is our duty to delight. May Moody
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S2: continue to delight in the Lord. May we desire what
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S2: he desires. May everything that God has entrusted to Moody
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S2: be placed at the service of Jesus Christ, his Church,
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S2: and the gospel for his Kingdom. We live in a
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S2: world that is changing around us education, media, publishing, technology,
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S2: the culture, everything is rapidly changing around us. Moody must
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S2: not be afraid of change. Innovation has always been part
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S2: of our story. A Bible institute 140 years old, publishing, radio, aviation, seminary, education,
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S2: digital media, global partnerships and whatever comes next. Our methods
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S2: may change. Our platforms may change. However, our mission must
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S2: remain unchanged. Why? Because we have and serve a Christ
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S2: and the gospel that are unchanging. As already reminded today,
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S2: it is Jesus Christ that is the same yesterday and
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S2: today and forever. So what must remain true for Moody? First,
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S2: Christ must be the center of our calling. We must
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S2: remain unapologetically Christ centered in everything we do. Second, scripture
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S2: must be the foundation of our work. We are Moody
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S2: Bible Institute. It is Bible that is our middle name.
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S2: We must remain uncompromising and unwavering in the commitment of
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S2: the authority and the sufficiency of God's Word. Third, the
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S2: gospel must be our message to the world. We must
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S2: be unrelenting in our passion to make the gospel available
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S2: and accessible to every single person. So first, Christ is
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S2: the center of our calling. Paul writes in Colossians one
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S2: that Christ is before all things, and that in him
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S2: all things hold together. That in everything he might be preeminent.
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S2: That is my prayer for Moody. Not simply that Christ
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S2: would be prominent, that Christ would be preeminent. There's a difference.
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S2: Christ is not just simply one component of Moody's mission,
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S2: not simply one subject among many. We teach not merely
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S2: the name in which we attach to ministries. Christ is
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S2: the center, the center of our education, our publishing, our
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S2: radio and global media, our aviation and seminaries all exist
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S2: for him. Our faculty teach for Christ. Our staff serve
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S2: for Christ. Our students prepare for Christ. Our ministry partners
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S2: give for Christ. So that gives us a very simple
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S2: question to ask for every major decision. Does this help
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S2: us exalt Christ and advance the mission and the vision
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S2: that he has entrusted to us? If it does, then
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S2: let us pursue it courageously. If it does not, then
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S2: let us have the courage to let it go. Second,
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S2: Scripture is the foundation of our work. Paul tells young
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S2: Timothy as he is handing the baton. All Scripture is
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S2: breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof,
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S2: for correction, and for training in righteousness. Moody was born
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S2: from confidence in the Word of God. Moody's future must
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S2: be built on that same confidence and foundation. Cultures change.
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S2: Opinions change. Generations change. The grass withers, the flower fades.
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S2: But the Word of God will stand forever. There will
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S2: always be pressures for Christian institutions to loosen their grip
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S2: on biblical conviction, ultimately to try to gain some level
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S2: of cultural acceptance. Our response can never be fear, retreat
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S2: or compromise. Our response must always be faithfulness. Faithfulness to
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S2: the Word of God. Let Moody always be a place
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S2: where the Bible is opened, taught, and Entrusted where difficult
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S2: questions are welcomed and answered with confidence in Scripture, where
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S2: students learn not to just merely study the Bible, but
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S2: to live under its authority and proclaim its truth boldly. Third,
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S2: the gospel is our message to the world. Paul declares
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S2: in Romans 116, I am not ashamed of the gospel,
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S2: for it is the power of God for salvation to
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S2: everyone who believes. Let us never be ashamed of the
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S2: good news of Jesus Christ. That is the gospel. The
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S2: world doesn't ultimately need moody. The world needs Jesus. Chicago
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S2: does not ultimately need Moody. Chicago needs Jesus. And God
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S2: has entrusted Moody with an extraordinary collection of people and
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S2: platforms and resources to make him known. Let us make
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S2: him known. There are still people who have never heard
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S2: the gospel. There are still communities without sufficient access to
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S2: biblical teaching. There are still churches that need pastors and
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S2: missionaries who need training and places in the most unreached
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S2: places that still need people to go. There are still
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S2: places difficult to reach. Moody must continue to say yes.
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S2: We must prepare, go, preach, teach, and take the gospel
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S2: wherever God sends us. And as we do, I pray
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S2: that these three words will continue to characterize us. Courage, clarity,
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S2: and compassion. Courage. Because biblical truth will not always be popular.
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S2: Clarity because it. Confused world needs a clear gospel and
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S2: compassion because the gospel is always good news for all people.
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S2: So today I am calling the entire moody community together
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S2: toward a shared future. One mission, one vision, one moody.
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S2: We are blessed with extraordinary ministries education, seminary, radio, publishing, aviation,
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S2: global media, and more. Each has its own history, expertise
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S2: and constituency, though we are not unrelated. Collection of unrelated
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S2: ministries who just happen to share the same name. We
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S2: are one moody. Imagine what God might do if we
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S2: increasingly bring everything that he has entrusted to us together
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S2: around a common mission and vision to become the most
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S2: trusted source for biblical formation. One mission to proclaim the
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S2: Gospel of Jesus Christ and equip people to serve one vision,
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S2: to make the gospel available and accessible to every person
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S2: and one moody. To mobilize everything that God has entrusted
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S2: to us in service to Christ and to His Church
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S2: and to his kingdom. One mission, one vision, one moody.
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S2: So let me begin and return to where I began.
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S2: Delight yourself in the Lord. That is where I want
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S2: my presidency to begin. And wherever God determines that my
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S2: season of leadership shall be complete, that is where I
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S2: want it to end. Not with what we built, not
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S2: with how large we became, but with a different set
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S2: of questions. Did we delight in the Lord? Did we
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S2: love Christ more? Did we trust His Word more deeply?
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S2: Did we serve His Church more faithfully? Did we proclaim
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S2: his gospel more widely and through it all? Did we
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S2: find our greatest joy in Christ? That is the presidency
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S2: I pray to steward. We have received a remarkable inheritance,
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S2: a commitment to the authority of Scripture, a passion for
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S2: evangelism and discipleship, and a love for Jesus Christ and
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S2: His church. We've also been given a burden for the
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S2: nations and a calling to send and go. We did
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S2: not create this, but we are stewards of it, and
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S2: one day we will place it into the hands of
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S2: the next generation. So today, with profound gratitude for those
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S2: who have gone before us and great hope for those
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S2: who will come after us, I offer this commitment. Since
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S2: our founding, Moody's mission has remained unchanged. Christ is the
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S2: center of our calling. Scripture is the foundation of our work,
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S2: and the gospel is our message to the world. The
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S2: same God who has faithfully led Moody through generations of
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S2: service to the church continues to go before us, giving
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S2: us great hope for all that lies ahead. May we
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S2: faithfully equip men and women to proclaim Jesus Christ with courage, clarity,
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S2: and compassion until the gospel is available to every person
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S2: for his glory and our greatest joy. One mission, one vision,
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S2: one moody. And may Jesus Christ be preeminent in it all.
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S2: Thank you. Amen.
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S1: And now, a benediction from Wes Ward, vice president of
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S1: Moody Radio.
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S4: Thank you, Heavenly Father, for being a good, good father
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S4: who delights in giving good gifts to his children. And today, Lord,
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S4: we have enjoyed a gift which is to see a
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S4: baton passed from one generation to the next. And Lord,
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S4: we ask that Moody Bible Institute. As we celebrate and
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S4: we look back, we also look forward. We're so delighted
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S4: that there's been 140 years of continuance in the Gospel
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S4: of Jesus Christ. And today, Lord, we keep Christ above all, preeminent,
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S4: first in this institution and first in our hearts. So, Lord, um,
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S4: for any part of our hearts that is cold to
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S4: you today as individuals or concrete like make our hearts,
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S4: hearts of flesh today. Revive our hearts to your glory
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S4: because you are overall. And Lord, give us a greater
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S4: hunger for your word as a people, as a body,
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S4: as an institution, but also as individuals. And our hearts
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S4: and homes make us make our want to for your
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S4: word stronger than ever before. And Lord, then help us
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S4: to preach the gospel to ourselves every single morning, to
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S4: our coworkers, to our students, to our audiences. And at
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S4: the end of each day, as we pillow our head,
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S4: we're delighted in you. We love you, Christ. We love
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S4: your word, and we love the mission that you have
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S4: given us to take the gospel here, near and far, increasingly.
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S4: And Lord, if you will make us dangerous for the
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S4: gospel in a good way and do something that you've
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S4: never before done among us as a people. We pray
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S4: a blessing over the Nelsons. Help them delight in you,
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S4: love your word and love the gospel for themselves more
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S4: than ever before. And thank you, Lord, for blessing the
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S4: school that D.L. Moody founded. And it's in his name
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S4: that all of God's people said, Amen.
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S5: And. We enjoy it. I will be ready to cheer
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S5: and to guide strength for today. And the boys who
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S5: Whom all blessings. All. Power in me some great is
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S5: thy faithfulness. Great is thy faithfulness. Why did I walk
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S5: through mercy? I see all I am me. I have
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S5: all my days. Great is thy faithfulness. Great is thy faithfulness.
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S5: Great is thy faith.
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S1: Important touch points from Doctor Rick Nelson in his inaugural
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S1: address here on Moody presents courage, clarity, compassion and all
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S1: of that under the banner of one Moody serving our
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S1: great Savior, Jesus Christ. Boy, we're looking forward with excitement
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S1: to the days ahead. Under the leadership of Doctor Rick Nelson.
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S1: Quick reminder that you can get your copy of Experiencing
24:26
S1: the Land of the book. The reason you want it
24:28
S1: is because it's like a trip to Israel, minus the
24:31
S1: cost of a plane ticket or the need for a passport.
24:34
S1: Page after page jammed with full color photos and maps
24:37
S1: that help you finally make sense of all the places
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S1: and names and things you find in the Bible, but
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S1: aren't quite sure where they all fit. Experiencing the land
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S1: of the book also shares some really great stories, some
24:49
S1: of them quite funny, from Doctor Charlie Dyer, the book's author,
24:52
S1: who has led more than a hundred tours to Israel.
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S1: Get your copy of Experiencing the Land of the book
24:57
S1: as you head online with your gift of any amount
25:00
S1: at Moody presents dot o Moody Presents dot ORG. If
25:05
S1: you'd rather, you could phone in your gift at (800) 400-7022. (800) 400-7022.
25:15
S1: And we'll send you your copy of Experiencing the Land
25:18
S1: of the book. Trust. You've enjoyed today's message, I certainly have.
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S1: And maybe you have a word of encouragement or a
25:23
S1: prayer that you'd like to share with our new president,
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S1: Doctor Rick Nelson. Share it in an email. Would you
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S1: write to Moody presents@moody.edu? That's moody presents@moody.edu. Thanks for joining
25:37
S1: us today on Moody Presents. I'm John Yeager for our producer,
25:41
S1: Chris Sieghart. Moody presents is a production of Moody Radio,
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S1: a Ministry of Moody Bible Institute.