Latest / 1 Year Audio Bible Podcast / From Seed to Glory | The Promise of Resurrection (Aug 24)

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From Seed to Glory | The Promise of Resurrection (Aug 24) · 1 Year Audio Bible Podcast

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How will the dead be raised? What kind of bodies
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will they have? Is there life after death?
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If there is not, many would follow the maxim,
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eat, drink, and be merry, for tomorrow we shall die.
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How are we to live our lives knowing that
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there is going to be a resurrection to the heavenly realm?
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After we die? These are some of the
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questions that Paul raises in 1 Corinthians chapter
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15. He likens our earthly body to
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a seed that is planted in the ground,
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and when the seed dies, a new seedling
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emerges from the seed.
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How should we then live? Join us
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as we look at these questions: life from the
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dead. Welcome to the Daily Audio Torah. Today is
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August 24th. Now let's continue our journey reading through
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the entire Bible in one year.
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This week we are reading from the New Living Translation for the Old Testament
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and for the New Testament.
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Deuteronomy 12:11-32.
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You must bring everything I command you— your burnt offerings, your sacrifices, your tithes,
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your sacred offerings, and your offerings to fulfill
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a vow, to the designated place of worship, the place
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the Lord your God chooses for his name to be honored. You must
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celebrate there in the presence of the Lord your God with your sons and daughters
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and all your servants. And remember to include the Levites who live
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in your towns, for they will receive no allotment of land among you.
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Be careful not to sacrifice your burnt offerings just
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anywhere you like. You may do so only
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at the place the Lord will choose within one of your tribal territories.
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There you must offer your burnt offerings and do everything I command
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you. But you may butcher your animals and eat their meat in
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any town whenever you want. You may freely eat the animals
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with which the Lord your God blesses you. All of
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you, whether ceremonially clean or unclean, may eat that
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meat, just as you now eat gazelle and deer.
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But you must not consume the blood; you
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must pour it out on the ground like water. But you may
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not eat your offerings in your hometown, neither the tithe
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of your grain and new wine and olive oil, nor the firstborn
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of your flocks and herds, nor any offering to fulfill a vow,
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nor your voluntary offerings, nor your sacred offerings.
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You must eat these in the presence of the Lord your God at the place
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he will choose. Eat them there with your children, your servants, and the
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Levites who live in your towns, celebrating in the presence of the Lord your God
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in all you do. And be very careful never to
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neglect the Levites as long as you live in your land.
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When the Lord your God expands your territory as He has promised,
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and you have the urge to eat meat, you may freely eat meat
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whenever you want. It might happen that the designated place
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of worship the place the Lord your God chooses for His name to be honored,
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is a long way from your home. If so,
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you may butcher any of the cattle, sheep, or goats the Lord has given you,
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and you may freely eat the meat in your hometown, as I have commanded
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you. Anyone, whether ceremonially clean or unclean,
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may eat that meat, just as you do now with gazelle and
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deer. But never consume the blood.
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For the blood is the life, and you must not consume the lifeblood with
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the meat. Instead, pour out the blood on the
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ground like water. Do not consume
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the blood, so that all may go well with you and your children after you,
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because you will be doing what pleases the Lord. Take your sacred
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gifts and your offerings given to fulfill a vow to, to the place
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the Lord chooses. You must offer the meat and blood of your
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burnt offerings on the altar of the Lord your God.
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The blood of your other sacrifices must be poured out on the altar
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of the Lord your God, but you may eat the meat. Be careful
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to obey all my commands so that all will go well with
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you and your children after you, because you will be doing what is good
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and pleasing to the Lord your God. When the Lord your God goes ahead of
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you and destroys the nations and you drive them out and live in their land,
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do not fall into the trap of following their customs and worshiping
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their gods. Do not inquire after their gods saying,
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how do you— how do these nations worship their gods?
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I want to follow their example. You must not worship the Lord
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your God the way other nations worship their gods, for they perform for
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their gods every detestable act that the Lord hates. They even burn
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their sons and daughters as sacrifices to
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their gods. So be careful to obey all
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the commands I give you. You must not add anything to
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them or subtract anything from them.
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Job 12:1-15, 35.
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Then Job spoke again, You, Zophar, really know everything,
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don't you? And when you die, wisdom will die with you.
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Well, I know a few things myself, and you're no better than I am.
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Who doesn't know these things you've been saying? Yet my friends laugh
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at me. I am a man who calls on God and receives an answer.
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I am a just and blameless man, yet they laugh at me.
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People who are at ease mock those in trouble. They give
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a push to people who are stumbling. But even robbers are left
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in peace, and those who provoke God and God has them in His power
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live in safety. Ask the animals and they will teach you.
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Ask the birds of the sky and they will tell you. Speak to the
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earth, and it will instruct you. Let the fish of the sea speak to
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you. They all know that the Lord has done this, for the life of every
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living thing is in His hand, and the breath of all humanity.
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Just as the mouth tastes good food, so the ear tests
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the words it hears. Wisdom belongs to the aged,
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and understanding to those who have lived many years.
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But true wisdom and power are with God; counsel and understanding
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are His. What He destroys cannot be rebuilt.
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When He closes in on someone, there is no escape. If He
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holds back the rain, the earth becomes a desert.
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If He releases the waters, they flood the earth.
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Yes, strength and wisdom are with Him; deceivers
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and deceived are both in His power. He leads counselors
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away stripped of good judgment. He drives judges to
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madness. He removes the royal robe of kings. With ropes
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around their waists, they are led away. He leads priests away stripped
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of status. He overthrows the mighty. He silences the trusted
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advisor, and he removes the insight of the elders.
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He pours disgrace upon princes and confiscates weapons
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from the strong. He floods the darkness
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with light. He brings light to the deepest gloom.
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He raises up nations and he destroys them. He makes
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nations expand and he abandons them. He takes away the understanding
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of kings and he leaves them wandering in a wasteland
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without a path. They grope in the darkness without a light.
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He makes them stagger like drunkards.
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Look, I have seen many instances such as you describe.
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I understand what you are saying. I know as much as you do.
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You are no better than I am. Oh, how long— how I
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long to speak directly to the Almighty. I want
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to argue my case with God himself, for you are smearing
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me with lies. As doctors, you are worthless
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quacks. Please be quiet.
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That's the smartest thing you could do. Listen to my charge.
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Pay attention to my arguments. Are you defending God by
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means of lies and dishonest arguments? You should be impartial
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witnesses, but will you slant your testimony in his
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favor? Will you argue, argue God's case for
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him? Be careful that he doesn't find out what you are doing.
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Or do you think you can fool him as easily as you fool people?
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No, you will be in serious trouble with him.
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If even in your hearts you slant your testimony in his favor?
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Doesn't His Majesty strike terror into your heart?
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Does not your fear of him seize you? Your statements have about
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as much value as ashes. Your defense is as fragile
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as a clay pot. Be silent now and leave me alone.
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Let me speak, and I will face the consequences. Yes,
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I will take my life in my own hands and say what I really think.
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God might kill me, but I cannot wait. I am going
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to argue my case with Him. But this is what will save me,
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that I am not godless. If I were, I would be thrown from
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His presence. Listen closely to what I am about
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to say. Hear me out. I have prepared my case. I will
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be proved innocent. Who can argue with me over this?
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If you could prove me wrong, I would remain silent
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until I die. O God, there are 2 things I beg of you,
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and I will be able to face you. Remove your hand from me
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and don't terrify me with your awesome presence. Now summon me
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and I will answer, or let me speak to you and you reply.
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Tell me, what have I done wrong? Show me my rebellion
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and my sin. Why do you turn away from me? Why do you
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consider me your enemy? Would you terrify a leaf that is blown
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by the wind? Would you chase a dry stalk of grass?
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You write bitter accusations against me and bring up all the sins of
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my youth. You put my feet in stocks. You watch
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all my paths. You trace all my footprints.
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I waste away like rotting wood, like a moth-eaten coat.
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How frail is humanity! How short is life and
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how full of trouble! Like a flower, we blossom for a
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moment and then wither. Like the shadow of a passing cloud,
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we quickly disappear. Must You keep an eye on such
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a frail creature and demand an accounting from me? Who can create
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purity in one born impure? No one!
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You have decided the length of our days. You know how many months
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we will live, and we are not given a minute longer. So give us a
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little rest, won't you? Turn away your angry stare. We are like
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hired hands, so let us finish the task you have given us. If a tree
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is cut down, there is hope that it will sprout again and grow new branches.
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Though its roots have grown old in the earth and its stump decays,
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at the scent of water it may bud and sprout again like a new seedling.
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But when people die, they lose all strength.
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They breathe their last, and then where are they? As water
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evaporates from a lake, and as a river disappears
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in drought, people lie down and do not rise again.
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Until the heavens are no more, they will not wake up nor be roused
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from their sleep. I wish You would hide me with the dead
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and forget me there until Your anger has passed.
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But mark Your calendar to think of me again. If mortals die,
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can they live again? This thought would give me hope, and through my
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struggle I would eagerly wait for release. You would call and I
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would answer, and You would yearn for me, Your handiwork.
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For then You would count my steps instead of watching for
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my sins. My sins would be sealed in a pouch, and You would cover
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over my iniquity. But as mountains fall and
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crumble, and as rocks fall from a cliff,
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as water wears away the stones and floods wash away the soil,
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So you destroy people's hope. You always
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overpower them, and then they pass from the scene.
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You disfigure them in death and send them away. They never
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know if their sons grow up in honor or sink to insignificance.
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They are absorbed in their own pain and grief.
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Then Eliphaz the Temanite replied, You are supposed to be
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a wise man, and yet you give us all this foolish talk. You are
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nothing but a windbag! It isn't right to speak so foolishly.
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What good do such words do? Have you no fear of
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God, no reverence for Him? Your sins are
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telling your mouth what to say. Your words are based on clever deception.
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But why should I condemn you? Your own mouth does.
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Were you the first person ever born? Were you born before
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the hills were made? Were you listening at God's secret council?
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Do you have a monopoly on wisdom? What do you know
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that we don't? What do you understand that we don't?
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On our side are aged gray-haired men much older than
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your father. Is God's comfort too little for you?
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Is His gentle word not enough? What has captured your reason?
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What has weakened your vision that you turn against God and say
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all these evil things? Can a mortal be pure?
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Can a human be just? Why, God doesn't even trust the angels.
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Even the heavens cannot be absolutely pure in his sight. How much
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less pure is a corrupt and sinful person with
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a thirst for wickedness? If you will listen, I will answer
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you from my own experience, and it is confirmed by the experience
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of wise men who have heard the same thing from their fathers. Those to
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whom the land was given long before any foreigners arrived.
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Wicked people are in pain throughout their lives. They are
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surrounded by terrors, and even on good days they fear the attack of the destroyer.
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They dare not go out into the darkness for fear they will be
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murdered. They wander abroad for bread, saying, where is it?
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They know their ruin is certain. That dark day terrifies
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them. They live in distress and anguish, like a king preparing
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for an attack. For they have clenched their fists against God,
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defying the Almighty. Holding their strong shields, they defiantly
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charge against Him. These wicked people are fat and rich,
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but their cities will be ruined. They will live in abandoned
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houses that are ready to tumble down. They will not continue to be
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rich. Their wealth will not endure, and their possessions will
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no longer spread across the horizon. They will not escape
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the darkness. The flame will burn them up, and the breath of God
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will destroy everything they have. Let them no longer trust in
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empty riches. They are only fooling themselves, for emptiness
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will be their only reward. They will be cut down in the prime of life,
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and all they counted on will disappear.
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They will be like a vine whose grapes are harvested before they are
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ripe.
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Like an olive tree that sheds its blossoms so the fruit cannot
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form. For the godless are barren.
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Their homes, enriched through bribery, will be consumed
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by fire. They conceive trouble and evil, and their hearts
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give birth only to deceit.
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1 Corinthians 15:29-58.
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If the dead will not be raised, then what point is there in people
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being baptized for those who are dead? Why do it
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unless the dead will someday rise again? And why should
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we ourselves be continually risking our lives, facing death hour
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by hour? For I swear, dear brothers and sisters, I face
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death daily. This is as certain as my pride
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in what the Lord Jesus Christ has done in you. And what value
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was there in fighting wild beasts Those men
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of Ephesus, if there will be no resurrection from the
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dead, if there is no resurrection, let's feast and get drunk,
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for tomorrow we die. Don't be fooled by
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those who say such things, for bad company corrupts good character.
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Come to your senses and stop sinning, for to your shame I
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say that some of you don't even know God. But someone may ask,
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how will the dead be raised? What kind of bodies will they have?
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What a foolish question! When you put a seed into the ground, it doesn't
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grow into a plant until it dies first.
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And what you put into the ground is not the plant
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that will grow, but only a dry little seed of wheat or whatever
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it is you are planting. Then God gives it a new body, just the
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kind he wants it to have. A different kind of plant grows from each
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kind of seed, and just as there are different kinds of seeds and
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plants, so also there are different kinds of flesh,
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whether of humans, animals, birds, or fish.
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There are bodies in the heavens and there are bodies on earth.
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The glory of the heavenly bodies is different from the beauty of
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the earthly bodies. The sun has one kind of glory,
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while the moon and stars each have another kind, and even the stars
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differ from each other in their beauty and brightness. It is
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the same way for the resurrection of the dead.
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Our earthly bodies, which die and decay, will be different
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when they are resurrected, for they will never die. Our bodies
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now disappoint us, but when they are raised,
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they will be full of glory. They are weak now, but when they are raised,
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they will be full of power. They are natural
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human bodies now, but when they are raised, They will be spiritual
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bodies. For just as there are natural bodies, so also
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there are spiritual bodies. The scriptures tell us
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the first man, Adam, became a living person, but the last Adam,
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that is Christ, is a life-giving spirit.
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What came first was the natural body, then the spiritual body comes
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later. Adam, the first man, was made from the dust
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of the earth, while Christ, the second man, came from heaven.
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Every human being has an earthly body just like Adam's,
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but our heavenly bodies will be just like Christ's.
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Just as we are now like Adam, the man of the earth, so we
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will someday be like Christ, the Man from heaven.
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What I am saying, dear brothers and sisters, is that flesh and
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blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God.
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These perishable bodies of ours are not able to live forever.
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But let me tell you a wonderful secret God has revealed to us.
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Not all of us will die, but we will all be
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transformed. It will happen in a moment,
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in the blinking of an eye, when the last trumpet
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is blown. For when the trumpet sounds, the Christians
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who have died will be raised with transformed bodies,
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and then we who are living will be transformed so
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that we will never die. Where our perishable earthly bodies must
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be transformed into heavenly bodies that will never die.
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When this happens, when our perishable earthly bodies
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have been transformed into heavenly bodies that will never die,
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then at last the Scriptures will come true: Death
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is swallowed up in victory. O death,
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where is your sting? O death, where is your sting?
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For sin is the sting that results in death, and the
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Law gives sin its power. How we
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can thank God who gives us victory over sin
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and death through Jesus Christ our
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Lord! So, my dear brothers and sisters,
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be strong and steady, always enthusiastic about
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the Lord's work, for you know that nothing you do for the Lord
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is ever useless.
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Psalm 39:1-13.
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I said to myself, I will watch what I do and not sin in
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what I say. I will curb my tongue when the ungodly
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are around me. But as I stood there in silence,
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not even speaking of good things, the turmoil within
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me grew to the bursting point. My thoughts grew hot
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within me and began to burn. Igniting a fire of words.
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Lord, remind me how brief my time on earth will be.
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Remind me that my days are numbered and that my
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life is fleeing away. My life is no longer than
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the width of my hand. An entire lifetime is just a
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moment to You. Human existence is but a
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breath.
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We are merely moving shadows, and all our busy rushing
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ends in nothing. We heap up wealth for someone else
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to spend. And so, Lord, where do I put my hope?
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My only hope is in you. Rescue me from
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my rebellion, for even fools mock me when I rebel.
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I am silent before you. I won't say a word, for my
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punishment is from You. Please don't punish me anymore.
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I am exhausted by the blows from Your hand. When You discipline
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people for their sins, their lives can be crushed like the life of a moth.
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Human existence is as frail as a breath.
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Hear my prayer, O Lord. Listen to my cries for help.
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Don't ignore my tears. For I am your guest,
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a traveler passing through, as my ancestors
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were before me. Spare me so I can smile again before
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I am gone and exist no more.
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Proverbs 21:30-31.
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Human plans, no matter how wise or well-advised, cannot stand
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against the Lord. The horses are prepared for battle, but the
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victory belongs to the Lord. I want
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to speak to you today from our reading for 1 Corinthians chapter 15.
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And in this chapter, Paul is addressing a
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heresy that has come up, that there have been those
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who have come forth and said there is no resurrection of the dead,
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that when you die, that's it, that's the end of life. And Paul is
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addressing this head-on, and he goes on
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to say, he makes a comparison to a seed.
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That when the seed is planted in the ground,
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it dies, and out of that dead seed,
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a new plant comes forth. He says in verse 36,
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when you put a seed into the ground, it doesn't grow into a plant unless
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it dies first. And what you put in the ground is not the plant
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that will grow, but only a dry little seed of wheat
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or whatever it is you are planting. Then God gives it a
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new body, just the kind He wants it to have.
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So really, this whole passage is addressing
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destiny, purpose, and our earthly
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life, which will eventually lead to a heavenly life.
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The seed is our earthly life,
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and when you think about it, every one of us is like a living,
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breathing, walking seed. And when we die,
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that seed goes into the ground, and then a
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plant comes forth, issues forth out of the ground,
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out of the soil, and that plant, that new life, is your heavenly body,
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your heavenly life in heaven.
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In verse 42, it goes on to say it is the same way for the
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resurrection of the dead. Our earthly bodies, which die and
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decay, will be different when they are resurrected, for they will never die.
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And when, when we are raised, we will be full of glory.
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Our body now is weak, but when we are raised,
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we will be full of power. We are natural human bodies now,
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but when we are raised, we will be spiritual bodies.
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And so what kind of a seed are
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you in the process of becoming?
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When there's different kinds of seeds, there's watermelon seeds and orange seeds
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and apple seeds and avocado seeds, all different kinds of seeds.
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What kind of a seed are you becoming?
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Everything about the life of that plant is embedded in the
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seed, in the DNA of that seed. And so depending
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upon how you are filling
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up your mind and your heart and your soul with worldly
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things or with the things of God, if you are eating
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and consuming nothing but materialistic things,
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or if you're filling your soul and your spirit with the Word of
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God and with spending time with Him,
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it— that's going to shape the kind of seed that you are.
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And we don't have to be afraid of the moment of death because the moment
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of death, when we come to that time of death, it is
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the seed that is being sown into the ground and that
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will be raised into eternal life. When we die,
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we will immediately be in the presence of the Lord if
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we are truly born again. He goes on to say about
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the blessed hope that we have in Christ, that there is a
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day coming, if you want to call
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it the Rapture or the
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taking away, the gathering in. He speaks about it here
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in verse 51. But let me tell you a wonderful secret
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God has revealed to us. Not all of us will die,
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but we will all be transformed.
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It will happen in a moment, in the blinking of
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an eye when the last trumpet is blown.
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For when the trumpet sounds, the Christians who have died will be raised
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with transformed bodies, and then we who
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are living will also be transformed so
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that we will never die.
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For our perishable earthly bodies must be transformed
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into heavenly bodies that will never die.
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So he's talking about the rapture,
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that when that happens, those who are dead in Christ will be raised
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up from the dead. They'll be given a glorified heavenly body,
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and then we who are alive shall also be transformed,
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and we will be caught up together with Him in the clouds and be with
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Him forever and ever and ever. And so that's
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an incredible moment in time that is our destiny.
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It is in our future. It hasn't happened yet, but it is our
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blessed, blessed hope.
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So I don't know what you're dealing with as you listen, if you're fighting a
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battle of cancer, if you have a long-term illness,
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if you have long-term pain, chronic pain of some kind,
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or whatever you might be dealing with. But this is the blessed
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hope that there is a day coming when we will all get a—
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be transformed, and we won't have an earthly body anymore.
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We'll have a heavenly body, and we shall live together with Him forever
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and ever and ever in eternity in Heaven with Jesus.
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So our time here on this earth is training time.
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It's preparation time. It's our pre-life. Our real life
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is coming when we are with Jesus in Heaven. And so
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make your time count. Make every
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moment and every hour and every day count.
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It matters how you spend your life, that you
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keep your focus on Jesus, that you hear His voice,
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that you follow Him and obey Him, and that His purpose
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and His destiny for your life is fulfilled,
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that you would Complete the mission He has given to you.
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He's given you assignments and tasks that
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you would walk in step with Him and hear His heartbeat
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and be led gently by Him.
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Have a blessed day, and we'll see you tomorrow. Shalom.
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विहिष्मरेखा यह
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है आदुना
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है पनाविलका
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विकुन्नेका
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Yisrael Adonai,
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na'af eleka,
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vayesehe leka leka
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shalom.
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The Aaronic Blessing from Numbers chapter 6,
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24 to 26.
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Adonai bless you and keep you.
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Adonai make his face to shine upon you and
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be gracious to you. Adonai lift
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up his countenance upon you and give you peace.