Latest / Meadows Baptist Church Podcast / The Building of Abraham - 5/27/26 - Meadows Baptist Church - Pastor Charlie Branch

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The Building of Abraham - 5/27/26 - Meadows Baptist Church - Pastor Charlie Branch · Meadows Baptist Church Podcast

0:02
Welcome to the podcast of Meadows
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Baptist Church of Walnut Cove, North
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Carolina. We're so glad you joined us
0:10
today. If you enjoy today's message, be
0:12
sure to subscribe, follow, and share
0:15
with your friends. Now, let's join
0:17
Pastor Charlie Branch with a word from
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God.
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Genesis chapter 12 tonight.
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Genesis chapter 12. We'll begin reading
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in verse number four
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tonight.
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Two messages here in the life of
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Abraham. This will be our third this
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evening. And uh just praying what the
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Lord would have us to do. Series is
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good, but series without God is just a
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waste of breath. And so, um, I just want
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to follow him. Um, but I do believe he's
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led us back here again this evening. So,
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let's look in verse 4 of Genesis 12
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tonight. The Bible says, "So, Ab Abram
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departed as the Lord had spoken unto
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him, and Lot went with him. And Abram
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was 705 years old when he departed out
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of Haran. And Abram took Sarah his wife,
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and Lot his brother's son, and all their
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substance that they had gathered, and
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the souls that they had gotten in Haran,
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and they went forth to go into the land
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of Canaan, and into the land of Canaan
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they came. And Abram passed through the
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land under the place of Sycam, unto the
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plain of Mora. And the Canaanite was
1:43
then in the land. The Lord appeared unto
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Abram, and said, Unto thy seed will I
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give this land. And there builded he an
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altar unto the Lord, who appeared unto
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him. And he removed from thence unto a
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mountain on the east of Bethl, and
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pitched his tent, having Bethl on the
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west, and Ai on the east. And there he
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builded an altar unto the Lord, and
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called upon the name of the Lord. And
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Abram journeyed, going on still toward
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the south. Father, I ask you humbly
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tonight that you would help us. That I
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realize, Father, Lord, that once more, I
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have nothing to say if you do not speak
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through me. And Lord, I pray that you
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would hide the ignorance of my youth.
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And Lord, allow me to speak with the
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tongue of the learn tonight. Lord, give
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me liberty and give me uncction. God, I
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pray that you would fill me with the
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spirit of God. And Lord, I pray, Father,
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Lord, for each person that's here
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tonight, God, that you would bless and
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touch every life as a result of this
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time. May we take your word and apply it
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to our hearts and lives. And Lord, may
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we live what we read out in shoe leather
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these days. God, I thank you for this
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church. Please bless each one that's
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here. And we'll thank you for it because
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we ask it in Jesus name. Amen. Genesis
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12. Of course, we have studied the life
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of Abram up to this point in the text.
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We have considered uh the beginning of
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Abraham. We've considered the
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blessedness of Abraham. And if you want
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to alliterate it, you can call tonight's
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sermon the building of Abraham. But I
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just want to look at the text tonight
3:18
and simply give you uh what the Lord has
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put on my heart this evening. And uh we
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noted here concerning the blessedness of
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Abraham on last week that it was only
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found when Abram stepped out in faith.
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And I'm reminded of this fact in my life
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and yours that we will never experience
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God's blessing in our life until we just
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simply obey. And it just seems like
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that's been the thought that the Lord
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has driven home in every one of these
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sermons. It's been the the beginning and
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the ending of all of these messages
3:51
really. And I want you to notice in the
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text tonight, the Bible tells us that
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Abram left Haran there in verse number
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four when he was 75 years old. Lot is
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with him. And the Bible says in verse 5
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that he took Sarah, his wife, Lot, his
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brother's son, and all their substance
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that they had gathered, and the souls
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that they had gotten in Haran, and they
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went forth to go into the land of
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Canaan, and into the land of Canaan,
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they came. And so Abram here in the
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text, he is finally obeying God. He is
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finally doing what God had asked him to
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do. But what I find is interesting in
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this text, and you could look at it one
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of two different ways. I'm going to
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choose to look at it in one manner, is
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Abram is still hindered in this text.
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And you say, "What do you mean by that?"
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Well, I notice in verse number five,
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four five four things that I want to put
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on your heart by way of introduction.
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And I don't want you to miss these
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thoughts this evening. The Bible says
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there in the text that he gathers his
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family. Now, it mentions Sarah, his
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wife, and Lot, his brother's son. And
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so, his family is found there in verse
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number five. And then there's also a
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fortune that's mentioned there in verse
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number five. And all their substance,
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their possessions, notice this, that
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they had gathered. And then not only
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there's his family, his fortune, and
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then there is his followers or his
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servants. The Bible says, "And the souls
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that they had gotten in Haran, and they
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went forth to go into the land of
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Canaan, into the land of Canaan they
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came." And and this thought has been
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really just rolling around in my mind.
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Abram leaves Haran in this text with a
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lot of baggage. You say, "What do you
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mean by that?" Well, notice what's said
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there in the text. Now God highlights
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everything that Abram has. And we know
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that later on in Abram's life, it would
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be considered a prosper prosperous
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blessing. What Abram his blessing was
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given to him. It was a land. It was
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inheritance. It was a I I guess you
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would say a possessional or a monetary
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inheritance. But what I find in this
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text is Abram's disobedience is
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following him. You say, "What do you
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mean by that?" Well, the Bible says that
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these the souls that are mentioned, the
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substance that's mentioned, and also
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this son of of uh his brother here in
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the text, Lot is mentioned. All of these
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were gotten to Abraham in Haran. Now,
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what do we know about Haran? Haran was a
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place Abram was never supposed to be.
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>> Right?
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>> Amen. Abram picked up a whole lot of
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baggage in Haran because he went to a
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place that he was never supposed to go
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in the first place.
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>> I want to say this to you tonight. You
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need to be careful where you spend your
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life, what you invest your life in,
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where you allow yourself or a husband or
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a wife where husband where you allow
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your wife to go, wife, where you allow
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your children to go. You ought to be
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careful where you find yourself because
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Abram in this text picked up a lot of
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baggage that he would not have had
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otherwise.
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And the Bible says here in the text that
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his future is seen. In verse five, they
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went forth to go into the land of
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Canaan. And into the land of Canaan they
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came. And so we're thankful that Abram
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has made it out of where he was. He's
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made it out of Haran. He's come into
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Canaan land. But we know there's going
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to be problems that go from this day
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forward. And I don't want you to miss
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tonight the truth that's found in this
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text concerning the building of Abram.
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But Abram's building is going to be
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hindered in this text because of his
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disobedience. But when Abram finally
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leaves the place where he was never
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supposed to be, the Bible says that into
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the land of Canaan they came and Abram's
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75 years old and he's finally getting
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where God has desired for him to be. I
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would I would hate to know that I waste
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over half of my life
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>> just trying to get to the place where I
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know I was supposed to be anyway.
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And that's what I'm convinced and I I
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don't really the the rest of the message
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is not this real tone, but just
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something that's ringing in my heart
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this evening is I'm convinced that 50 to
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75% of Christian saved Bible believing
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church people who are faithful, who love
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God, will spend the majority of their
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Christian life wasting it, wandering
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around in a place they never should have
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been. You're
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>> right.
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>> And so I want to exhort you tonight. If
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God's telling you to go, get out and go.
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I'm not talking about the church. I'm
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saying and whatever he's telling you to
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do, get out of that place and go where
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he's telling you to be. Right?
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>> You say, "What is that?" Well, it it
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could be anything. You know in your
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heart what that is tonight. And so I
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notice in this text, you say, "Well,
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preacher, if you're telling me that I've
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got to go, what what what is the reason
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why I should go?" Well, number one, God
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told you you should go. You're
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>> right. But number two, there's a lot of
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things awaiting you over there that
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you're not going to realize. You're not
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going to be you're not going it's not
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going to be revealed to you until you
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get there.
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And so in the text, I noticed the Bible
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says in verse number six, look what your
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Bible says. And Abram passed through the
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land. He's finally come to the place
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where God has desired for him to be. And
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we know that the land of Canaan is still
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Israel's ownership to this day. Can I
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get an amen?
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>> Right. That whole land belongs to Israel
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and they're going to get it one of these
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days regardless what Donald Trump or
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Benjamin Netanyahu or anybody else has
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to say about it. They will get their
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entirety of their land. Amen. God shows
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it to Abraham in Genesis chapter 13.
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We'll look at that in the coming weeks.
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But they will inherit that land. And I I
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notice what's mentioned in this text.
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The Bible says Abram passed through the
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land into the place of Syikum unto the
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plain of Moa. and the Canaanite was then
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in the land. And I want to lay just a
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few things I I guess if you uh numbered
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them tonight, five things on your heart
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concerning what you'll find when you
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enter the land of Canaan, the place
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where God desired for you to be. I
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notice in this text and this is just a
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simple simple uh thought directly out of
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the verses tonight. I notice first of
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all the first place Abram comes to when
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he enters into the land of Canaan is a
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place called syum. Now when you look up
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that word syum in your Bible, it
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translates to a city that many of us
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would know well is called Sheckchum. And
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Sheckchum all through the Old Testament
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is mentioned as a place where the word
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of God was heard. And I'm not going to
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run references tonight because I don't
10:32
want to get ahead of myself, but I
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simply want to give you the definition
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tonight. And so what Abram found when he
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entered into the land of Canaan, when he
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got out of Haram and when he got to the
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place he was finally supposed to be,
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number one, I would say Abram found
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instruction.
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He found instruction. Now, what do I
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mean by instruction? Well, the Bible
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says he came, he passed through the land
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unto the place of Sheckchum. Notice
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this. Unto the plane of Mori of Mori.
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And so this plane of Mori here in the
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text, that word plane literally means a
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tree. It's not talking about a piece of
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land or a or a a parcel of ground or
11:13
even a large parcel of ground. What's
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mentioned later on in the text when Lot
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chose him all the plain of Jordan. It's
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a different word. That word plain means
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a tree. And that word mory in the text
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means this. It means uh let me get this
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get the definition up here. It's teach
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it means a teacher or instruction. And
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so when Abram come to the place of
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Sheckchum here in the text, he come to
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this tree in that place called Mory. And
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this this tree represents instruction.
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Now what's interesting to me in this
11:47
text is all the typology that's seen
11:49
here in the text. Now Abram has believed
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God. He has left his father. He's left
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his brethren in the Caldes. He left his
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father in Haran. He's finally journeyed
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to where God is wanting him to be. And
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he gets to this place. And what's the
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first thing he finds? A tree.
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Now, there's no coincidence in that
12:10
tonight. What did Jesus tell his
12:12
disciples? Matthew 16:4. I'm just going
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to be real simple tonight because I
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believe this is what we need. Amen. He
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said this. Matthew 16:24, "If any man
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will come after me, let him deny
12:24
himself, take up his cross
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>> and follow me." And the truth is, in all
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of our lives, when you get to the place
12:32
where God wanted you to be, the first
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thing you're going to find is a cross.
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>> You're right.
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>> You're going to find a tree. And what is
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this tree represents? It represents
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instruction. Now, I mentioned sheckchum
12:44
already, but here's what that word
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psychum. Sheckchum means in the text it
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means shoulder or strength. And so what
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I'm finding here what the emphasis of
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this text by application sense is Abram
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came to this tree and it was a place of
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teaching. It was a place of instruction
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for him that did what? It gave him
13:05
strength. You're not going to find
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strength in a church service in an
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emotional heightened moment. You're not
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going to find strength somewhere uh
13:16
having a a spell or on a creek bank or
13:19
even on an altar in such a sense as
13:22
having an experience. And experience is
13:24
not going to give you strength. You're
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>> right.
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>> Strength comes from instruction. And you
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know where instruction comes from?
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>> It comes from the word of God. You're
13:32
>> right.
13:33
>> Prayer functions. What does prayer
13:35
function off of? It functions based off
13:37
of the scripture. And so if you're
13:40
needing strength tonight, if you're
13:42
needing encouragement, that word
13:44
sheckchum literally means shoulder.
13:46
Abram found out when he left Haran, the
13:48
place where he was never supposed to be,
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he would come to a place called
13:52
Sheckchum, the first place he came, and
13:54
the name of it means shoulder, he would
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find a shoulder to lean on. He would
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find strength that he did not have
14:01
before.
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>> And now, let's be real honest tonight.
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How many of you need a shoulder?
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>> How many of you need some strength?
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That's right.
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>> Get out of her.
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>> Get out of the place where God never
14:16
told you to be.
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>> Right.
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>> You say, "Preacher, how is that?" And I
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keep going back to this because it's
14:21
just it's just on my heart right now.
14:23
You realize that Haran I did some more
14:25
studying on this today. You realize that
14:27
Haran between the Caes where Abraham
14:30
began, the Bible tells us that God spoke
14:33
to him there in Haran and then in the
14:37
Caldes and and so when God spoke to him
14:39
there, they left there and went to Iran.
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Well, Haran is some 600 miles from the
14:44
Caldes. But you know how far Haran is
14:47
from Canaan's land from where God wanted
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him to be? It's about 600 miles. And so,
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you know what Abram did? He got halfway
14:57
>> and stopped.
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You know what? I'm seeing that happen a
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lot,
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>> right?
15:02
>> I'm seeing people put one foot in
15:06
and the other one's out.
15:08
And here's the thing about the Christian
15:10
life. It don't work that way.
15:11
>> You're right.
15:13
>> You're either fully invested.
15:15
You say, "Preacher, well, I'll dab my
15:17
toes and what you'll find is you going
15:19
to fall off the back and drown." Amen.
15:21
on the other side
15:23
>> because a double-minded man's unstable
15:25
in all his ways. But when ca when when
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Abram got to the place where he was
15:30
supposed to be, there was instruction.
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Now, I know this tonight. We're all
15:34
looking for answers. We've got different
15:36
problems. We've got different
15:38
situations. We are in different places
15:40
and we're all looking for instruction,
15:42
but it's not going to be found until you
15:44
get out of the place where God never
15:47
wanted you to be. But when you get to
15:49
Canaan land, there will be instruction.
15:51
There will be strength. And it comes
15:54
through this teaching, this instruction,
15:57
this tree. It is your cross. Now, people
15:59
talk about a lot of times, you know, my
16:02
suffering. You know, well, it's my
16:03
cross. No, that's not the way that
16:05
works. A cross is something you had long
16:08
before your suffering. You're
16:09
>> right.
16:10
>> If you got saved, what you were called
16:11
to do the after you got saved, you were
16:14
saved to do what? Serve. Isn't that
16:17
right? And so, you know what? Since the
16:19
day you've got saved, you've had a cross
16:20
to bear, and that is obedience to
16:22
Christ.
16:22
>> You're right.
16:23
>> Amen. Now, there's a lot of things that
16:26
get hung on the cross.
16:29
There's a lot of things that you need to
16:30
hang on the cross.
16:31
>> You're right.
16:32
>> I'm not preaching this tonight, but I
16:34
just I don't know. I'm just trying to
16:36
mind the Lord. Okay? Just bear with me.
16:38
There's some things in your life that
16:40
unless you bring them to that place of
16:43
instruction and let them die there, you
16:46
know what it'll do? End up taking you
16:48
out.
16:48
>> You're right.
16:50
>> The strength comes through the
16:52
instruction that's given at the tree.
16:55
Notice this. You see, there's a lot of
16:58
things that happen at this tree. And you
17:00
say, "Preacher, is instruction the only
17:01
thing that happens here?" No. Look what
17:03
else takes place here in the text. The
17:05
Bible says there in verse number seven
17:09
or verse number six, "And Abram passed
17:10
through the land under the place of
17:11
Syakum under the plain of Mory. And the
17:14
Canaanite was then in the land." All
17:16
right. Now, you're probably going to be
17:17
able to identify a little more with
17:18
this. Okay? When you get to the place
17:21
where God wants you to be, there'll be
17:23
instruction. Well, let me just remind
17:24
you of something. There's going to be
17:26
some irritation.
17:27
>> You're right.
17:28
>> Look what your Bible says. And the
17:30
Canaanite was what? Then,
17:33
>> that's present tense. right now then in
17:37
the land. What was the Canaanite people
17:39
to Israel? They were a thorn in their
17:40
side,
17:41
>> right?
17:42
>> For all of history. And here's what you
17:44
got to realize that just because you're
17:47
out of har just because you are headed
17:49
to the place where God wants you to be.
17:51
You're finally getting there. You are
17:53
not free or exempt from struggles.
17:56
You're
17:56
>> right.
17:57
>> You're not exempt from the enemy. Matter
18:00
of fact, you're going to meet an enemy
18:01
that you never met before when you get
18:03
in that lane. You're right.
18:04
>> Because look what the Bible says there
18:06
in the text. The Canaanite was then
18:08
what's them last three words? In the
18:10
land. The Canaanites wasn't fought with
18:13
on the outside.
18:14
>> You're right.
18:15
>> You were dealing with yourself. Abram
18:17
was fighting with his family. When he
18:18
was in Haran, you know what he found
18:20
out? When he got over into where God
18:22
wanted him to be, then the enemies from
18:24
the outside started working in. When he
18:27
finally done what God told him to do,
18:29
then he realized there's another enemy
18:31
that he's going to have to deal with.
18:32
And let me say this to you, child of
18:33
God. Do not think, listen to me, do not
18:36
think that you're ever going to get to a
18:38
point in your life as a Christian that
18:40
you will not have an enemy.
18:41
>> You're right.
18:43
>> If you are saved, you have an enemy from
18:46
the moment that you were saved before
18:48
you were saved. From the moment you were
18:49
saved until the day of your death,
18:51
>> you're right.
18:52
>> You will have an enemy. You say,
18:54
"Preacher, but it's but but right now
18:56
I'm okay." Well, just beware. You may
18:58
not see him.
18:59
>> You're right.
19:00
You see, this text reveals to us that
19:02
when you get to where God wants you to
19:04
be, there will be some irritation. And
19:07
and the thing about is I think our
19:08
problem this day and time is we paint
19:10
the Christian life as some pretty rosy
19:12
picture that always works out perfectly.
19:15
But you know what happen? You know what
19:16
the problem with that is? There's people
19:19
we pray for that die loss without God.
19:22
>> Right?
19:22
>> There's people that we witness to that
19:24
don't come to church. There's people
19:27
that we try to help and try our best to
19:29
give them aid, but for some reason they
19:32
don't get right. You say, "Preacher,
19:33
THAT'S DOOM AND GLOOM." NO, IT'S THE
19:35
TRUTH,
19:35
>> RIGHT?
19:37
>> But that's not to affect you.
19:40
>> You see, Abram's present in the land was
19:42
not stringent on the Canaanites present
19:44
in the land.
19:47
>> They would always be present. You're
19:49
always going to have problems present in
19:52
your life, but you should not allow that
19:54
to kick you out of the land.
19:55
>> You're right.
19:57
>> Getting ahead of myself here, but what
19:58
happens just a few verses after this,
20:00
Abram goes through all this great
20:02
spiritual awakening in this text and
20:04
just literally less than six verses
20:06
away, Abram leaves the land because he
20:09
decides it's too bad there.
20:13
You got to stay in spite of the
20:15
irritation
20:17
there. And there will be, believe me,
20:20
irritations. Irritants. Amen. People.
20:24
Amen.
20:25
>> Right.
20:25
>> Some people I think their last names
20:27
irritation.
20:28
>> Amen.
20:30
I'm just being real tonight. They have
20:33
no concept of who God is or how God
20:35
works. And when you talk to them, you
20:37
might as well be talking to that pull
20:38
pit trying to talk spiritual sense into
20:40
them. And you know the reason why that
20:42
is? Number one, they probably not saved.
20:44
Number two, if they are, they ain't
20:45
never read enough Bible to know right
20:47
from wrong or up from down. Amen.
20:49
>> Right.
20:51
>> And the truth is, you know what that is?
20:53
That's a that's an enemy. Not the
20:55
person, but that mindset,
21:00
irritations.
21:02
There's instruction here. There's But
21:04
there is irritation here. And I'll say
21:06
this, all right? And I don't think I've
21:07
got any more negatives after this. The
21:09
Lord may change that, but we're going to
21:10
try to stay positive. Okay, notice verse
21:13
7. And the Lord appeared unto Abram,
21:15
said, "Unto thy seed will I give this
21:17
land." Now number three, we see not only
21:20
there's instruction, not only there's
21:21
irritation, but there is inspiration.
21:25
I don't know about you, but in these
21:27
days, I need something more than just a
21:31
a quote
21:33
on a Facebook post to encourage me.
21:37
>> Go ahead. I need something that's going
21:41
to give me some life. It's going to get
21:43
me from one day to the next. Here's what
21:46
I think's happened to us. We've become
21:48
so shallow, we've forgotten what it's
21:50
really like for God to move.
21:51
>> Amen.
21:53
>> Notice this. The Bible says, "And the
21:56
Lord appeared unto Abram." Now, you know
21:59
what had not happened since the day that
22:02
Abram was in the Caldes? God's not
22:04
spoken to him again.
22:07
Do you realize that God does not speak
22:09
to him while he's in her hand?
22:11
>> Right?
22:11
>> According to what Steven said in Acts
22:13
chapter 7, Acts chapter 7:2, Steven said
22:17
God spoke to him when he was in
22:18
Mesopotamia. That was of the Caldes. God
22:21
didn't speak to him when he was in Iran.
22:24
But he gets to Canaan's land. Who shows
22:26
up?
22:27
God does. You know why? Because God was
22:29
there
22:30
>> waiting on him to get there.
22:32
>> Amen.
22:33
>> You say, "Preacher, well, God's always
22:34
with you." You know what I'm saying?
22:36
God, you know where you're supposed to
22:38
be. And until you get to that place,
22:41
God's not going to speak to you
22:44
>> the way he did. You say, "Well,
22:45
preacher, he spoke to me when I was out
22:47
in sin." He ain't obligated to do that
22:49
at all. If he does it one time, it's his
22:51
grace.
22:52
>> Right?
22:52
>> Abram was called out of vericalities by
22:54
God's grace and that alone. That was it.
22:57
God saved you by his grace. But if you
23:00
do not follow his will or obey his word,
23:03
God is not obligated to speak to you
23:06
again. You're
23:06
>> right.
23:08
>> The Holy Ghost will convict you because
23:10
he lives on the inside. But the longer
23:12
that you shut that out, the less he will
23:15
speak to you. That knocking Jesus talked
23:19
about the church of Leosy in Revelation
23:21
chapter 3, that knocking just gets
23:23
quieter and quieter.
23:26
And the truth is, if we need some
23:28
inspiration, we're going to have to
23:29
realize when we get to this place, we're
23:32
going to have to have God appear. Now, I
23:34
put this in in my in my margin here. You
23:37
see, where there's an appearance of the
23:38
Lord, there should be an altar
23:42
built to the Lord.
23:44
You say, "What do you mean?" Well,
23:45
notice the text. And the Lord appeared
23:47
unto Abram, said unto thy seed, will I
23:49
give this land. Notice this. And there
23:50
buildeth he what? An altar. He built an
23:54
altar. You see, where God shows up, that
23:57
ought to be a place you want to come
23:58
back to,
23:59
>> right?
24:00
>> This what I can't figure out for the
24:01
life of me. Why would anybody want to
24:03
leave a church where God has been has
24:05
has moved and we've seen him move and
24:08
it's going in the right direction?
24:10
>> Why would we walk away from that?
24:12
>> Amen.
24:12
>> Why would we do that?
24:14
>> Here's what it is. It's because our
24:16
flesh has decided it's better back in
24:17
Haran.
24:18
>> You're right.
24:20
>> Because you know what? all them
24:21
irritations, irritants
24:24
that wasn't in her hand or present.
24:28
>> You're right.
24:31
>> I don't know who needs this tonight, but
24:33
I pray that you'll take this. I'll be
24:35
honest with you. Truth is for my life. I
24:37
understand we all need what I'm saying,
24:39
but God's nailing somebody tonight. I
24:41
hope you'll listen to him. This
24:43
inspiration, you see what what is this
24:45
inspiration reveal in the text? Well,
24:48
the Lord appeared unto Abram and he
24:50
speaks to him and the Bible says, "And
24:52
he said, "Unto thy seed will I give this
24:54
land." Now, what does that mean? Well,
24:55
that phrase speaks of three things.
24:57
There's a people under thy seed. There's
24:59
a promise will I give. And then there is
25:01
a place, this land.
25:05
You say, "How what does that fit?" Well,
25:07
this is a deeper revelation of what God
25:09
is going to do. You remember when Abram
25:10
was given the command, notice it just a
25:13
few verses earlier, the Bible says in
25:15
verse one, he said, "Thy he Abram, the
25:17
Lord had said unto Abram, get thee out
25:18
of thy country and from thy kindred and
25:20
from thy father's house unto a land that
25:23
I will show thee."
25:25
Abram would have never saw the land if
25:27
he hadn't left.
25:28
>> Right?
25:29
>> But in this text, God gets him to the
25:32
pl. He finally gets to the place where
25:33
he's supposed to be, and God says, "All
25:35
right, this is the land that I'm going
25:37
to give to you. what you're treading
25:39
upon this belongs to you.
25:43
You say, "What is that?" Well, it's the
25:46
inspiration. You say, "Preacher, why?
25:48
Why should I go on another day?" Because
25:49
there's a land that you're called to
25:51
inherit.
25:52
>> You're right.
25:52
>> You know what that is? That's victory in
25:54
Christ
25:55
>> over yourself. You know what your number
25:57
one problem is? Go
25:59
>> ahead.
26:00
>> It's not the regrets you have. It's not
26:02
the fears you have for somebody else.
26:04
It's it's not the disappointment you
26:05
have in somebody or something else. Your
26:07
number one biggest problem is yourself.
26:11
You're
26:11
>> right.
26:11
>> Your reaction, Amen, is more important
26:14
than anybody else's action.
26:16
>> You're right.
26:17
>> Did you hear what I said? Your reaction
26:19
is more important and will always be
26:22
more important than anybody else's
26:23
action. Abram in this text could have
26:25
missed a blessing if he hadn't come to
26:28
where God told him to be. But you see,
26:30
when he got to this place, he realized
26:32
that there would be some people who
26:34
would be blessed because of his
26:35
obedience. There would be a promise that
26:37
would be fulfilled because of his
26:39
obedience. And this place would be the
26:41
symbol
26:43
forever of Abram's obedience.
26:46
I wonder what land, let me listen to me,
26:48
mom and daddy. I wonder what land your
26:50
children are to inherit because of your
26:52
obedience. But if you don't obey, what
26:54
are they going to miss?
26:55
>> Right?
26:57
>> What inheritance are they going to have?
27:01
>> Because we're too afraid to face that
27:03
irritation. Go ahead.
27:10
this inspiration. He says in the text,
27:13
notice that he said, "I unto thy seed
27:15
will I give this land." And Abram, look
27:17
what his response is there. He builded
27:20
an altar unto the Lord who appeared unto
27:23
him. You say, "What does that
27:25
represent?" Well, I I've said all that
27:27
to say these these truths here. There's
27:29
instruction. There's irritation. There's
27:31
inspiration here. But there ought to be
27:32
an indication
27:34
when you get to the place where God
27:37
wants to be. And what is that? An
27:38
indication is not something that God
27:41
sets up, but it's something that you put
27:44
up to go back to the place where God
27:46
showed you something that you couldn't
27:49
see. You say, "What is that?" Well, God
27:51
didn't write a deed.
27:53
>> You're right.
27:53
>> All right. Hang with me. Okay. God
27:55
didn't give Abram a deed.
27:58
>> You're right.
27:59
>> That was handwritten by the fingers of
28:02
God and said, "This is your land and
28:04
sign God at the bottom of it."
28:06
>> He didn't do that. You know what? God,
28:08
your salvation that you've got, he
28:10
didn't write you a letter of salvation.
28:12
>> Amen. I know we've got the word of God.
28:14
Just hang with me. I'm making a point
28:15
here. God didn't write you a letter of
28:18
salvation say such and such date, such
28:20
and such time, such and such was
28:21
preaching. You got saved. sign God on
28:24
the bottom of it because that's not how
28:26
it works.
28:27
>> Right?
28:29
>> You say, "How does it work, preacher?"
28:30
Well, when God meets with us, he has
28:33
designed us in such a way that we're to
28:36
mark where he met with us.
28:38
>> Right?
28:40
>> You say, "Preacher, I don't understand."
28:42
Well, you remember when Noah got off
28:43
that ark, what was the first thing he
28:45
did? Built an altar,
28:47
>> right?
28:48
>> To remember that God brought him safely.
28:52
>> You know what? There was nothing. No, he
28:54
couldn't go through that storm again.
28:57
Thank God he couldn't. Amen.
29:01
But you'd be honest with me tonight and
29:02
say there's probably some of you that
29:04
wished at some point in time in your
29:05
life you could get saved again so you
29:08
could feel what it feels like to do it
29:09
again.
29:11
You know what your problem is? You
29:12
didn't set up a marker.
29:14
>> You're right.
29:15
>> You say, "Preacher, what's that
29:17
indication?" Well, let me say this. I I
29:19
want to draw your attention back to the
29:21
text here for just a minute. Look what
29:22
he says. There builded he an altar unto
29:24
the Lord. He doesn't only build one
29:26
altar in this text, but he builds two.
29:28
Look what the Bible says. Verse 8. And
29:30
he removed from then unto a mountain on
29:32
the east of Bethl and pitched his tent
29:34
having Bethl on the west and a on the
29:36
east. And what's the Bible say, church?
29:38
And there he builded an altar unto the
29:41
Lord. So here he builds a second
29:44
indication. All right. He comes into the
29:46
land. the first place he goes, that
29:48
place of instruction, that place of
29:50
strength, that place of encouragement,
29:52
that place where he found the shoulder
29:54
that he would need to lean on for his
29:56
stay in Canaan land. He leaves that
29:59
place, but only after he'd made an
30:02
indication.
30:04
He set up some tent pegs.
30:07
Remember what I believe it was Jeremiah
30:09
said? He said, "Remove not the ancient
30:11
landmark
30:13
which thy fathers have said." You know
30:16
why this generation struggles so much?
30:19
Because we've watched a bunch of people
30:20
go around pulling up landmarks. You're
30:22
>> right.
30:26
>> Because here's the thing about it. Those
30:27
indications in your life, there's so
30:29
much I could say about this. All right?
30:31
Those indicators in your life are put
30:33
there for you to have a place to come
30:35
back to.
30:37
>> Because in your flesh, just like Abram,
30:39
you know what he does just a few short
30:40
verses later? He goes back to Egypt. And
30:43
I'm getting ahead of myself so much, but
30:44
notice what the Bible says in verse one
30:46
of chapter 13.
30:51
Actually, notice verse three of chapter
30:53
13. After Abram left out of Egypt,
30:56
according to verse one, verse three. And
30:57
he went on his journeys from the south
30:59
even to Bethl unto the place where his
31:01
tent had been. What's that say? At the
31:04
beginning, between Bethl Ai, unto the
31:07
place of the what? Altar. Which he made
31:10
there at the first. And there Abram
31:12
called on the name of the Lord.
31:15
Let me ask you, how long's it been since
31:17
you've been back to that place? I'm not
31:19
talking about a physical place. I'm
31:21
talking about that spiritual place in
31:23
your life where you know that God met
31:25
with you.
31:27
You say, "Preacher, what is that?"
31:31
It's not a geographical location,
31:33
>> right?
31:34
>> You're not going to find it on a map.
31:36
But you know what you'll do? There's
31:38
some verses that God will give you and
31:40
it's all diff different for all of us,
31:43
but I got some
31:45
indicators stuck up in here in a few
31:47
places where God spoke to me at once and
31:50
I can go to that verse and you know what
31:51
immed immediately will happen to me.
31:53
It's a good reason why you write in your
31:54
Bible too. You're
31:55
>> right.
31:56
>> Write dates, times, events when God
31:59
helped you. But I can go back to that
32:01
place and most time I don't even I don't
32:02
even have to have a date or time. I can
32:05
look at them flags that stuck up and
32:08
find where God spoke to me. There's an
32:11
indicator left.
32:13
God spoke to you there using this vi
32:16
this verse. Notice this. I'm moving
32:20
quickly. I need to get done.
32:22
When you get to where you're supposed to
32:24
be, there ought to be an indication that
32:26
you put up, but there also ought to be
32:28
some identification that's given.
32:31
I ain't got time to labor this point,
32:33
but I don't want you to miss this. All
32:34
right. The Bible says that when he
32:37
removed from Sheckchum in the text in
32:39
verse number eight, he removed from
32:41
thence unto a mountain on the east of
32:42
Bethl and pitched his tent. Notice this,
32:44
having Bethl on the west and Ai on the
32:48
east. Now, simply put tonight, Bethl
32:50
means what, church? The house of God,
32:52
right? What does Ai mean? Means a heap
32:57
of ruins,
32:59
a heap of ashes. You say, "What does
33:01
that represent?" tent. Well, notice
33:03
where Abram built his altar and pitched
33:04
his tent in the text. He pitched his
33:07
tent having Bethl on the west and Ai on
33:09
the east. And there he builded an altar
33:11
under the Lord. He pitched his tent,
33:13
that's his dwelling place. And he built
33:16
his altar
33:18
between the house of God and the heap of
33:22
ruins. Now, what does that represent?
33:25
That represents the life of you and I.
33:27
When we get saved, what happens to us?
33:30
We get saved and one becomes two.
33:34
>> And you know what? We spend the rest of
33:36
our life doing
33:38
choosing
33:40
between the flesh, that heap of ruin.
33:42
You're
33:42
>> right.
33:43
>> And between the house of God, that
33:45
spirit. You see, the Bible tells us that
33:46
our body is the temple.
33:49
>> Ain't that right?
33:50
>> We're the house of God.
33:52
>> Abram built his tent between this. And
33:56
you know what this does? This sets up
33:58
the scope for the rest of Abram's life.
34:00
every decision that he makes is going to
34:02
go one of two ways.
34:05
Why did he do this? Because he needed to
34:08
realize where his center point is.
34:12
You see, he could have built that tent.
34:13
He could have put that tent. He could
34:15
have put that that altar anywhere. But
34:17
what does this represent to us? Well,
34:19
the tent, one writer put it this way. It
34:21
represents that we're pilgrims.
34:23
We're living between the house of God
34:25
and a heap of ruins. This world is not
34:27
our home. Abram was what? He was a
34:29
pilgrim in Canaan land. Paul said it
34:32
this way. He said he looked for a city
34:34
that hath foundations whose builder and
34:37
maker's God. What was it? That's an
34:39
eternal city. That's heaven,
34:40
>> right?
34:42
>> And he built he put up his tent here.
34:44
But you know what he also built? He
34:45
built an altar unto the Lord. What is an
34:48
altar? It's a place of sacrifice. It's a
34:50
place of supplication. And it's
34:52
mentioned the last phrase in verse
34:53
number eight. Notice the text. And there
34:56
he built an altar unto the Lord. What's
34:57
your Bible say? and called upon the name
35:00
of the Lord. You see, God will give you
35:03
instruction.
35:05
There going to be some irritations, but
35:08
he's going to give you some inspiration
35:10
to help you. The spirit of God will
35:12
inspire you. The scriptures will
35:14
instruct you. But you see, out of that,
35:16
you have a responsibility.
35:18
You ought to put up some indicators.
35:21
You ought to make a place of
35:24
identification. You say, "What what is
35:25
that, preacher?" Well, this is the
35:27
bottom line. this is who I am. You ought
35:29
to decide in your heart tonight and
35:30
realize, all right, you're not perfect.
35:34
When you got saved, God didn't make you
35:35
sinless. You're
35:36
>> right.
35:37
>> And so, what is this place of
35:39
identification? It's showing, all right,
35:40
I've got to b I've got to battle myself,
35:43
>> right?
35:44
>> Every day. But then thirdly, not only
35:47
this indication and identification, but
35:49
there is for sake of alliteration, and I
35:51
probably need to stop doing this, but I
35:53
I do it because it helps me. So, just
35:55
forgive me. There's a place of invoc
35:57
invocation in the text. He called upon
36:00
the name of the Lord. You see, this is
36:03
the fulfillment of who we are as
36:05
Christians.
36:08
The only desire that God has for his
36:10
people is that they would speak to him.
36:16
Do you realize that out of talking to
36:19
him? You say, "Preacher, but he wants me
36:20
to read his word." You understand that?
36:22
That all that goes hand in hand,
36:24
>> right? Your conversation with God is
36:27
prayer and Bible study. That's what it
36:28
is. And all he asked of us is that we
36:32
speak to him. And Abram decides that
36:34
that indicator was the altar, the place
36:37
of his sacrifice. The in the
36:39
identification showed his dwelling where
36:41
he would ultimately live his life
36:43
between these two places.
36:46
And his prayer was made on that altar to
36:49
his Lord. And you say, "Preacher, but
36:51
what if I fall?" Well, you notice in the
36:53
text, he falls right after this,
36:55
>> right?
36:56
>> Notice verse N.
36:59
And Abram journeyed going on still
37:01
toward the south. Now, some writers in
37:03
their ignorance have said this. Abram
37:05
was always going forward.
37:07
You better be careful with somebody
37:09
that's always going forward.
37:11
You say, "Preacher, but some change is
37:13
good
37:15
sometimes."
37:17
But notice what's happened. You see, up
37:19
to this point, Abra Abram moving has
37:21
been good. But you see, his journeying
37:24
was not good in verse number nine
37:26
because of his direction.
37:28
You ought to be careful to never be
37:30
still, but you also ought to be careful
37:32
about where you're going when you're
37:33
moving. You're
37:34
>> right.
37:35
>> Say, preacher, well, how do I know what?
37:37
Well,
37:39
simply put, David said it this way. Thy
37:41
word is a lamp unto my feet and a light
37:44
into my path.
37:46
the instruction that you're going to
37:47
find at that tree.
37:50
That's the only way you can keep it in
37:51
the bounds. You're
37:52
>> right.
37:53
>> And you're going to have to hide it in
37:54
your heart. Thy word have I hid in my
37:57
heart that I might not sin against thee.
38:02
And then and only then will you pray and
38:04
then will you find deliverance. You see
38:06
these build this building that Abram
38:08
does in the text. And I didn't really
38:10
get time to emphasize this. There was a
38:12
lot more I wanted to say, but I believe
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the Lord got across what he wanted to.
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Abram could have built a lot of things.
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He could have went to one place, you
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know, he could have built his house and
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put his stakes down and did all of that,
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but that wasn't what God wanted him to
38:27
do. All throughout this this story of
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Abram, you'll find in chapter 13, he
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journeys on, leaves that place at
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Sheckchham, goes to the plains of Mamry,
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and God blesses him there in the plains
38:39
of Mamry, and then he journeys all
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throughout the rest of his life. Why?
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Because he was a stranger.
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But you know, Abram was all was fine
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traveling as long as he was in the place
38:51
where God called him to be. And what was
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that? That was Canaan land. Anytime
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Abram got out of Canaan land, what
38:57
happened? There was trouble.
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You've got a realm of life that you can
39:03
live in. And in that realm, there's
39:06
freedom.
39:07
But you say, "Preacher, well, that's not
39:09
enough freedom for me." What you're
39:10
going to find is there's going to be
39:11
destruction on the outside of it. You're
39:13
>> right.
39:13
>> And you know what sets the bounds?
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Where this thing stops,
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>> right?
39:23
Because the land of Canaan is your
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Christian life.
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And that victory is only found when you
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live inside the bounds
39:32
of the map.
39:33
You're
39:34
>> right.
39:35
>> I hope you don't miss that. Father,
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thank you for the time tonight.
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Lord, it's different service tonight. My
39:42
flesh don't like it, but God, I pray
39:45
somebody's got some help tonight. Lord,
39:48
I know there's so much so many things
39:49
going on. We all got stuff in our minds,
39:53
thoughts, heaviness, burdens.
39:56
But Lord, I pray that each individual
39:58
before they leave here tonight would
40:00
realize, God, that just because there
40:01
wasn't an altar called doesn't mean this
40:03
altar wasn't open.
40:05
And Lord, I believe tonight that each
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one of us, Lord, ought to put up one of
40:10
those indicating marks on this altar
40:14
cuz Lord, I've watched you do it in the
40:16
last two years. these precious people.
40:18
Some have been here 30, 40 years and
40:21
they've seen you do it over and over and
40:24
over again. And Lord, they've got those
40:27
marks up. Maybe it's time for them to
40:29
revisit them again. Lord, would you help
40:32
us to be obedient to you? God, help us
40:34
to identify ourselves, who we really
40:36
are, and put ourselves in perspective to
40:39
make the right decisions. And Lord, help
40:41
us to always be people of prayer. God, I
40:44
realize that many of us live busy
40:47
schedules and God, we don't have the
40:49
time that we want to. But Lord, I pray
40:51
that you would help us throughout the
40:53
day, Lord, to be in a mental state of
40:55
prayer. God, as we go, Lord, you bring
40:58
somebody across our mind, Lord. We know
41:00
that we can bow our head in just a
41:02
moment and pray and lift their name up
41:04
to you. Lord, we know if there's a
41:06
sinner, Father, that we come in contact
41:08
with, God, we know that we may not even
41:10
know their name, but you do. and we can
41:12
call out to you and pray for them. But
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Lord, I pray you would help us all stay
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in the place where you put us. And God,
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if there's somebody here tonight in a
41:20
place where they're not supposed to be,
41:22
halfway between where they was lost and
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where they're found, God, I pray you'd
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get them to the place where they need to
41:29
be tonight. Lord, I love you. Thank you
41:31
for loving us. We ask it in Jesus name.
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Amen. I love you.
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>> Thank you for joining our service today.
41:38
We'd love it if you join us in person
41:40
the next time you are able at Meadows
41:43
Baptist Church. Our physical address is
41:46
2988
41:47
Stewart Road in Walnut Cove, North
41:50
Carolina. Our service times are Sunday
41:53
school at 10:00 a.m., Sunday morning
41:55
worship at 11:00 a.m., Sunday evening
41:57
worship at 6:00 p.m. and Wednesday
42:00
evening Bible study at 7:00 p.m. For
42:03
more information, visit us at
42:04
meadowsbaptisturch.com.
42:07
Thanks again for tuning in.