Latest / Eurasia Region Podcast / S1-E40 | Everyday Eurasia | Tanja Baum

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S1-E40 | Everyday Eurasia | Tanja Baum · Eurasia Region Podcast

• 0:06
  Welcome to the special Advent series of the Everyday Eurasia
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  podcast, Inspiring Fate or Everyday.
• 0:14
  In the coming weeks, they'll be journeying together toward
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  Christmas, A season of anticipation, reflection, and
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  light in the darker days. During this special season of
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  Advent, we will journey through the Advent themes of hope,
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  peace, joy, and love. In this last episode of the
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  Advent Journey, we will join Tonya Baum.
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  She's living in Germany near Frankfurt, together with her
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  husband Martin and family. For the last two years, she
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  served as a pastor in the Church of the Nazarene in North
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  Frankfurt. He's also helping the Germany
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  district, European Nasrin College and the Eurasia region
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  with finances and data protection.
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  She will share with us about the theme of love.
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  Today we want to consider another facet of the incredibly
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  broad spectrum of God's love. The entire Bible bears witness
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  to this, but is it is expressed particularly strong in this
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  verse and I read from John chapter one, verse 14.
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  The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us.
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  We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son,
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  who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.
• 1:33
  The first verses of the Gospel of John provide a very exciting,
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  theologically profound introduction to the account of
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  Jesus life and work. In verses 1 to 13, John uses
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  almost cryptic language to describe Jesus role from before
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  creation to his entry into this world.
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  And then comes verse 14. I will read it to you again.
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  The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us.
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  We have seen His glory, the glory of the one and only Son
• 2:14
  who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.
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  With this verse, John has basically covered the entire
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  Christmas story for him. There was apparently nothing
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  more to say, so he didn't. And yet this verse tells us a
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  lot. Because with this verse,
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  something changes in the language of John's gospel.
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  With this verse, it suddenly becomes personal.
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  The Word made his dwelling among us, and we have seen his glory,
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  he writes. Suddenly what had previously
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  only been described theologically became reality.
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  All of a sudden we are drawn into that previously sounded so
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  theological and theoretical. What was previously the Word
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  became flush. It came to life a living person
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  who lived with us on this earth, and we could see who he was and
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  what he did. This is exactly what the people
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  who lived at the time of Jesus experienced until the birth of
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  Jesus. They were prophets and the law,
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  and there was much talk about faith and about the Messiah who
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  was to come. And suddenly he was there.
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  He stood before them, physical, personal, human.
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  The Word became flesh. The many words of the Old
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  Testament culminated in this powerful act of God himself
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  coming into this world as a human being.
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  God acted, and this is where our today's facet of God's love
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  comes from. God's love is an active love.
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  With the birth of Jesus, God followed His words with actions.
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  Here in Germany we have a saying for when someone talks a lot and
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  likes to talk about themself, but then does not act
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  accordingly. We say many words but nothing
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  behind them. This is not the case with God.
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  His love is characterized by action.
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  The Old Testament promise of the Messiah was followed by action.
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  Jesus was born into our world as a human being.
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  He lived and worked among people, and he died a terrible
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  death on the cross. And after that he rose again and
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  descended to heaven to his Father.
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  That is a lot of actions. While he was living here on
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  earth, he communicated God's love not only with words, but
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  also in a very practical way by performing miracles and healing
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  people. Don't we love to read these
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  stories? Yes, because they are full of
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  actions. We believe in a living God.
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  That is why God's love does not stop at words.
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  He always puts them into actions.
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  At Christmas, this active love of God touches us in a very
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  special way because because it is so radical that Mary and
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  Joseph were able to hold the active Incarnate love of God in
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  their arms. The great thing is that active
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  love is not reserved for God alone.
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  We can too practice active love. Each and everyone of us can put
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  it into practice in our families, with our neighbors, at
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  work, while shopping, on the train, simply everywhere.
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  As we look ahead to the New year, I would like to invite you
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  to follow up your words with actions.
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  Be a witness to the great things God has done for this world
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  through your actions. Let us pray.
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  Thank you, Father, that You do not just speak empty words but
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  also follow them with actions. As your children, we want to do
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  the same and proclaim Your love through our actions.
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  Give us opportunities to tell people about You not only with
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  words but also with actions. Amen.
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  This was the last episode from the Everyday Eurasia podcast for
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  this year. We will go on a small break and
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  we'll be back on the 1st of January 2026.
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  We wish you in advance a happy New Year.
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  Thank you for listening to the everyday Eurasia podcast,
• 7:33
  Inspiring Fate for everyday. For more Everyday stories,
• 7:37
  subscribe on this podcast channel, follow our socials,
• 7:40
  Facebook and Instagram, or our newsletter snapshots.
• 7:44
  For our newsletter and further information about the Eurasia
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  region, visit our website, eurasiaregion.org.