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Romans 9 Intro · Providence Baptist Church - Sermons

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Go ahead with me and turn in your copy of God's Word, which I hope you have with you this day, to the book of Romans chapter 9.
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! I am always and forever dependent on God's favor in preaching. I'm always looking to Him for grace.
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And this day, I feel the weight of that a little bit more. This could have possibly been the worst week for us to start at 10.30.
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I've had a very busy week. We took a bunch of the college students to Tallulah Gorge yesterday, which is a young man's game.
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And I am having to admit that I'm no longer a young man. I'm very sore this morning.
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Last night, I was doing some more studying, and we were watching the steward children, so our family went from 4 to 8 in a day.
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And we were downstairs as Sam was going to the grocery store, and I had a book in one hand and a cup of coffee in the other hand at 9 o'clock,
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hoping to stay up for a few more hours. And I had drank about half a cup of coffee.
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And then the next thing I knew, Sam was shutting the door coming home.
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And I had fallen asleep with a cup of coffee sitting on my chest in a book just like this for about 20 minutes.
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And so I'm tired.
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I also, I'm a type 1 diabetic, and for the last hour, I've been trying to get my blood sugar level up.
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And I've drank lots of sugary liquid, so I might be bouncing off the walls in a minute.
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But I'm also recouping from that.
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Beyond that, we have ahead of us just the weight of opening God's word.
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Lord, it's a privilege to even get to hear these words, as we so often take for granted the fact that we even have it in our language,
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and that we can read.
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More than that, it's a privilege to get to preach it to you this day,
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to get to spend a good bit of my time each week studying it to bring to you.
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So I'm saying all that to say, I need grace.
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Let's pray together for that.
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Father God, I pray this morning you'll bless the reading of your word.
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You'll bless the preaching of it, and you'll bless the hearing of it.
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Nothing of any value happens here this morning apart from you.
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And so by your spirit that dwells within those who are known by Christ,
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I pray, Father, this day we will learn and we will grow, we will love you more,
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and we will be turned to love the world more as a result.
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I pray that in all things this day, Christ is exalted above everything.
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And I pray this in his precious name.
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Amen.
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Amen.
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So we have taken a pretty big break over the summer from our expositional verse-by-verse preaching of the book of Romans.
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We stopped, took a little kind of a topical series break through the summer,
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and we are back at the time, back to Romans chapter 9.
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And to this point in Romans, Paul has, in varying ways and kind of over and over again, to our benefit,
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laid out a case for justification before God by faith alone.
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We're not saved by our works, we're not saved by our lineage,
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we're not saved by any type of status we may have, or anything else whatsoever,
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but by the goodness and loving kindness of God.
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God has bestowed that upon those who are his,
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and it has nothing to do with anything we've done to earn that favor.
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He gives it to us freely, the very definition of grace itself.
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In chapter 8, he speaks to us about God's sovereign goodness that sustains us
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as we endure the battle that rages within,
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between our flesh and the spirit that now abides within us,
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as well as the suffering that will endure from external sources.
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And he hinges all of this upon the sovereign goodness of God towards those who are his.
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So let's read together verse 28 to the end of the chapter.
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Of chapter 8, just to be clear.
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And we know that for those who love God, all things work together for good,
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for those who are called according to his purpose.
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For those whom he foreknew, he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son,
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in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers.
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And those whom he predestined, he also called.
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And those whom he called, he also justified.
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And those whom he justified, he also glorified.
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What then shall we say to these things?
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If God is for us, who can be against us?
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He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all,
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how will he not also with him graciously give us all things?
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Who shall bring any charge against God's elect?
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It is God who justifies.
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Who is to condemn?
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Christ Jesus is the one who died.
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More than that, who was raised.
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Who is at the right hand of God.
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Who indeed is interceding for us.
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Who shall separate us from the love of Christ?
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Such tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine,
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or nakedness, or danger, or sword?
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As it is written,
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For your sake we are being killed all the day long.
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We are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.
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No.
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In all these things, we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.
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For I am sure that neither death, nor life,
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nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come,
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nor powers, nor height, nor depth,
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nor anything else in all creation
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will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus, our Lord.
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And if you're a Christian this morning,
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your heart must be saying amen to something like that.
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So then we begin chapter 9.
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And we go from chapter 9 to 10 to 11
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to talk about the doctrine of election.
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And intermixed in all of this,
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we see Israel and what has happened to Israel.
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What is going on?
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If God is sovereign over all things,
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and Israel was his special people,
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why is it that all of Israel has not turned to Christ at this point?
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And Paul starts out with a lament.
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In verse 2 of chapter 9, he says,
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I have great sorrow and unceasing anguish in my heart
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over the lostness of the Israelites.
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And he begins to work that out.
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It seems kind of random, interjected, where it's at.
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And I can assure you that it's not,
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and we're going to come to understand that further in the coming weeks.
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But it just feels like, Paul, couldn't you have just skipped
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from the end of chapter 8 to the very end of chapter 11?
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Oh, the depths of the ridges in wisdom and knowledge of God.
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Couldn't you have just jumped over all this really challenging stuff
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about election and Israel and how that all plays together?
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I have had some times this week that I really wish he had.
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I have been literally studying my brains out
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for the past couple of weeks on this.
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And I can say to you, I'm not sure I'm ready yet
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to understand it in its entirety.
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I have sensed in our congregation an eager expectation,
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a good expectation, for this place in Paul's letter
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to the Roman Christians, coming to chapter 9 and learning from it.
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But my fear is that as individuals,
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you're either, one, not prepared to learn the truth contained therein,
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for multiple reasons.
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Maybe you just need to grow up a little bit,
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or maybe you don't know me well enough to know my heart,
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to know that I love the Scriptures,
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and I love people, and I want to see the kingdom advance.
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This concerns me.
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But secondly, and I actually fear this most,
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that you believe that you've already taken hold
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of all that is offered in the doctrine of election,
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that you think you've totally wrapped your mind around it,
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and you hold to it tightly, and what you've been waiting for
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is for us to get to 9 and me prove you right.
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Me to arm you to go out and be self-indignant
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and tell everybody how very, very smart you are.
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And for those two reasons, I need another week.
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I need seven more days.
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And what I hope is accomplished in those seven days
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is two things.
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I want to better prepare my head.
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There's some really,
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I'd encourage you to read 9, 10, and 11.
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There is some weighty stuff in here,
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and some things that even on the surface seem contradictory.
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There are varying opinions across Christendom
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from men I highly respect on these issues.
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And I labor to do the work myself.
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I labor to look at the language
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and to study well on my own.
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But I also want to look to as many sources as I can,
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men that are wiser than me,
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because they're most men are,
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and glean what I can to properly bring to you
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what can be understood of the next three chapters.
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So I want to better prepare my head,
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but mostly I want all of us to better prepare our hearts.
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The doctrine of election is weighty.
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It is taught throughout all of Scripture.
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I will not for a moment back down
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that it is in fact the teaching of Scripture,
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but it has been very divisive.
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Currently in the Southern Baptist Convention,
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which we are a part of,
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it is ripping things apart,
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and I believe that God's going to put it all back together.
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I believe this is going to be to the benefit of the convention
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and not to the detriment of it.
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But there have been some statements that have come out
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and signed by a bunch of guys.
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There's been a lot of positioning.
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Much of it is political,
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and it can be sickening at times
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for those of us who stand on this side
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of the understanding of the doctrine of election.
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We receive the Scriptures from above.
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You get that, right?
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God's Word is breathed out by God.
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It comes down to us from above.
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And as Christians,
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we are to humbly submit ourselves to it.
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All of your questions will not be answered by this book.
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Understand that.
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It doesn't clarify everything for us.
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It gives us exactly what we need, though.
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There are some ends that seem so loose
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and hanging out there.
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If this is so, how can this be so?
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There are things that appear to be paradoxical,
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appear contradictory.
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They're not, but they appear that way
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as we begin to study.
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You will not solve the world's questions
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from the Scriptures.
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All of them.
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But we should humbly submit ourselves to the Scripture.
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Let it come down to us.
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And say to God,
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when you don't answer something,
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that's okay.
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When I can't completely work this out
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from your inspired Word,
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that must be for a reason.
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Let me give you an example of that.
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Romans 9, 20.
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Paul says,
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Who are you, O man,
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to answer back to God?
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Up to this point,
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he has been directly quoting God
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from the Old Testament.
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He doesn't use the prophets.
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He doesn't quote Moses.
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He's directly quoting God
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as we work through this doctrine of election.
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What it means for us.
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Okay?
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And then there's a question asked.
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Which seems to be a very reasonable question
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in verse 19.
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It's a question I had asked
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before I ever read Romans 9, verse 19.
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Seems very reasonable.
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And I want a clear answer to it.
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In my flesh,
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I really want to know
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how it can be then.
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I want a clear answer to it.
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I want a clear answer to it.
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And Paul says,
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Who are you, Nathan Rainer?
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How dare you question God?
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God says to us,
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Be quiet.
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I have spoken.
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And it is for you to try to understand.
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Are you with me?
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We do the opposite so often.
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Particularly with this topic.
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We turn the whole thing around
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and we stand over the Word of God
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and have it serve us.
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Right?
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There are fancy terms for this.
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Right?
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That is called,
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when we stand over the Word of God
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and we read out of it
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what we want to hear,
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that's called eisegesis.
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We pull out,
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we apply to what we think
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the Word of God has to say
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about God and His character.
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And we don't practice that.
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Faithful Christians
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do not practice that.
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We practice exegesis.
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We look at what the Word of God
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actually says.
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And we wrestle with it
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and we come to understand it
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in that way.
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Humble yourself.
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Submit yourself
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to God's revelation
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to us.
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So we need to prepare our hearts.
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And I pray that we'll all approach
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the study of God's
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holy, inspired,
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absolutely perfect
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Word to us
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with great reverence
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as we begin this time
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throughout the fall.
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So,
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let's turn away now
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from the book of Romans
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for this week.
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We'll start next week.
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And turn with me
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to the book of 1 Corinthians
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chapter 13.
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I'll have you know
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just so you can join me
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in this chuckle.
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I decided to
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change this path
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when I woke up
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with a cup of coffee
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in my hand
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last night.
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You have those moments
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in your life
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where
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it's as if
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God
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were just a little louder.
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He would have been audible.
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It really felt like
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God said something to you.
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You can almost
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taste the fact
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that He's telling you
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to do something different
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than what you were already
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intending to do.
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And that was one of those
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moments for me.
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So,
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I'm going to begin reading
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in chapter 13
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verse 1.
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I'm going to read
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the entire chapter to you.
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I'm just praying
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that you'll
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really listen
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to these words.
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Chapter 13 verse 1.
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If I speak in the tongues
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of men and of angels
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but have not love
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I am a noisy gong
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or a clanging cymbal.
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And if I have
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prophetic powers
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and understand
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all mysteries
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and all knowledge
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and if I have
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all faith
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so as to remove mountains
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but have not love
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I am nothing.
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If I give away
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all I have
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and if I deliver
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my body
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to be burned
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but have not love
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I gain nothing.
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Love is patient
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and kind.
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Love does not
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envy or boast.
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It is not arrogant
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or rude.
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It does not insist
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on its own way.
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It is not irritable
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or resentful.
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It does not rejoice
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at wrongdoing
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but rejoices
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with the truth.
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Love bears all things,
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believes all things,
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hopes all things,
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endures all things.
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Love never ends.
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As for prophecies
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they will pass away.
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As for tongues
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they will cease.
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As for knowledge
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it will pass away.
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For we know in part
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and we prophesy in part
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but when the perfect comes
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the partial will pass away.
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When I was a child
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I spoke like a child.
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I thought like a child.
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I reasoned like a child.
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When I became a man
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I gave up childish ways.
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For now we see
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in a mirror dimly
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but then face to face.
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Now I know in part
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then I shall know fully
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even as I have been fully known.
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So now faith, hope,
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and love abide.
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These three.
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But the greatest of these
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is love.
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Not just a passage
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to be read
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at a wedding.
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Right?
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Paul takes a pause
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here in 1 Corinthians
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chapter 3
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is that the Corinthians
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had become
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over consumed
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with gifts.
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Much arguing
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was going on
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in the church.
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Too much emphasis
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being placed on
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the gifts of the Spirit.
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And Paul doesn't
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belittle the gifts.
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They're valuable.
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They're given to the church.
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They're graces to us
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for our growth in Christ.
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However,
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here in 13
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he shows us
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a still
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more excellent way.
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The very end of
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chapter 12
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he says,
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and I will show you
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still
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a more excellent
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way.
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And I want to draw
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your attention
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to the first three verses.
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It's primarily
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where I want to sit today.
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The first three verses.
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And you see him
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speak of some gifts.
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Speaking in the tongues
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of men and angels.
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Being an eloquent speaker.
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I'm sure you know
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somebody like that.
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I don't count myself
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amongst them
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who just speaks
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so well.
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Has that gift of gab.
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Can captivate you
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with their words.
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And of angels
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that speak prophetic things.
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But if these people
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don't do so
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from love,
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what are they?
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noisy gongs
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and clanging cymbals.
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Not appealing
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sound at all.
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Just
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talk.
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Prophetic powers.
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Understanding all
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mysteries
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and all knowledge.
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Faith to remove
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mountains.
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But not love.
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Nothing.
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Give away
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all that you have.
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These pious acts.
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Deliver up your body
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to be burned.
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To be martyred
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for the sake of Christ.
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But you don't do it
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from love.
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You gain
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nothing.
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And notice that
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the gifts themselves
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are not likened
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to noise
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or called nothing
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or devalued.
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The gifts have value
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but it's the person
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who exercises it
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without love
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who is
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a noisy gong
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called nothing.
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Is devalued.
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If your giftedness
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the things that
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God has given you
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is practiced
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apart from love
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then it's motivated
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by selfishness.
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You're doing it
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for
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you.
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The Christian life
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should
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necessarily
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be characterized
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by Christian love.
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The doctrine of election
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I would
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just love it
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if every time
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somebody really
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wraps their mind
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around the fullness
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of the doctrine
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and what it means
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for them
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I wish we could
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quickly lock them
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in a cage
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with a mirror
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and let them
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argue with themselves.
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I'd give it a year.
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I've stood in this place
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the arrogance
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that comes from
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thinking we've arrived
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at some grand truth
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that other people
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don't get
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and how it becomes
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our mission
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to go around
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informing everybody
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how stupid they are
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and how brilliant
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we are.
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it's grace
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to us
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if you understand
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anything I say
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this morning
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anything I say
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this morning
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that you can even
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hear me say
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if you understand
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anything I say
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this morning
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is a grace
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to you.
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Understanding a truth
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of scripture
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makes me no better
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than anybody else.
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It's just
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a grace
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a free gift
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given to me
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and how I should
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use that
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to be
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from
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Christian love.
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What I do
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with that
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should be
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from Christian love
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because the gifts
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are given
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for the edification
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of other Christians.
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Not for the demeaning
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of other Christians
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they're given
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for the edification
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for the building up
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of other Christians.
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In Romans 1
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verse 11 and 12
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Paul says
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for I long to see you
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that I may impart
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to you
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some spiritual gift
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to strengthen you.
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That is
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he clarifies
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that is
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that we may be
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mutually encouraged
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by each other's faith
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both yours
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and mine.
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And so the gifting
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that we're given
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is given
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to operate
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from faith
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for faith.
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That's how we're
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meant to operate
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from a dependency
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on God
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to give us
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proper motivation
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to use
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and exercise
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those gifts
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for the sake
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of faith
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to increase
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other people's
19:56
dependency on God.
19:59
Now
20:00
God may use
20:03
noisy gongs
20:05
and clanging cymbals
20:06
and men
20:07
who are nothing
20:07
and men
20:08
who are gaining
20:09
nothing
20:09
by their action.
20:10
God
20:10
in his sovereign
20:11
will
20:12
can use
20:13
their gifts
20:14
even when
20:15
improperly motivated.
20:17
That can happen.
20:18
So I'm not
20:18
lessening God's
20:19
ability here.
20:20
What I'm telling you
20:21
is that we
20:22
rob ourselves
20:24
of the joy
20:25
that is
20:25
given to us
20:27
when we
20:27
properly love
20:28
and use our
20:29
gifts
20:29
as such.
20:30
Use our knowledge
20:31
as such.
20:33
Matthew 27,
20:34
21-23
20:35
you have a
20:36
group
20:36
standing in front
20:37
of God
20:38
to be judged
20:38
and it says
20:39
not everyone
20:39
who says to me
20:40
Lord, Lord
20:40
will enter
20:41
the kingdom
20:41
of heaven
20:41
but the one
20:42
who does
20:43
the will
20:43
of my Father
20:43
who is in heaven.
20:44
On that day
20:45
many will say
20:46
to me
20:46
Lord, Lord
20:46
do we not
20:47
prophesy
20:48
in your name
20:48
and cast out
20:50
demons in your name
20:50
and do many
20:51
mighty works
20:52
in your name?
20:52
So these are
20:53
people who are
20:54
doing things
20:55
that are good
20:56
that are gifts
20:57
that God
20:59
could use
21:00
to advance
21:01
his kingdom
21:01
and then I
21:02
will declare
21:03
to them
21:03
I never
21:03
knew you
21:04
depart from me
21:05
you workers
21:06
of lawlessness
21:07
So our
21:09
activity
21:10
in the spiritual
21:11
gifting
21:11
in the things
21:12
that God's
21:12
given us
21:13
to turn around
21:14
and give to the church
21:15
should be motivated
21:16
by love
21:16
because that
21:16
is the evidence
21:18
that we are Christ
21:19
Now we must be
21:21
careful at this point
21:22
Our culture
21:25
has lost sight
21:25
of what love
21:26
is
21:27
If you type
21:28
into Google
21:29
definition of love
21:31
you'll get
21:32
lots of definitions
21:33
just look in the feed
21:34
you'll get all kinds
21:35
of definitions
21:35
about love
21:36
being this emotion
21:37
this affection
21:38
for
21:39
I mean it really
21:40
misses the point
21:42
Love is
21:43
ultimately
21:45
it's an affection
21:45
for another
21:46
but it's an affection
21:46
that seeks
21:47
their highest good
21:48
over yours
21:50
it seeks
21:50
their highest good
21:52
And so
21:54
we quickly
21:56
and I think
21:56
so many Christians
21:57
do that
21:58
we trade love
22:00
for the truth
22:01
and we don't think
22:02
that the two
22:03
can coincide
22:04
we think they're
22:04
mutually exclusive
22:05
that if we're going
22:07
to love one another
22:09
and by that
22:09
we mean
22:10
get along
22:11
and have cozy feelings
22:12
when we show up
22:13
to church together
22:14
that we
22:15
must dismiss
22:16
the truth
22:17
because sometimes
22:17
the truth
22:17
hurts
22:19
but proper love
22:22
seeks to confront
22:25
the fallacies
22:25
in somebody's life
22:26
proper love
22:28
helps people
22:30
grow
22:31
in Christ
22:32
so hear me
22:33
carefully
22:34
I'm not saying
22:35
we shouldn't talk
22:36
about hard doctrines
22:37
I'm not saying
22:39
you shouldn't call
22:39
people out
22:40
for their sin
22:41
but you should do
22:42
so
22:43
from a motivation
22:44
to love them
22:45
not yourself
22:46
and you know
22:49
the difference
22:49
I don't have to
22:50
give you examples
22:51
you know
22:52
when you're
22:53
teaching somebody
22:54
something because
22:55
you love them
22:55
and you want them
22:56
to grow
22:56
and when you're
22:57
teaching somebody
22:57
something because
22:58
you want to be
22:59
right
22:59
guess what
23:02
we are all
23:03
wrong
23:03
God is right
23:05
so glad
23:06
he uses us
23:07
as vessels
23:08
verse 2
23:12
I'm going to
23:16
shorten the verse
23:17
just a bit
23:17
not to be
23:18
unfaithful to the
23:19
scripture
23:19
but I want to
23:20
talk about
23:20
specifically
23:21
having prophetic
23:22
powers and
23:23
understanding all
23:24
mysteries and all
23:25
knowledge
23:26
but you don't have
23:28
love
23:28
you're nothing
23:29
and Paul uses
23:30
himself
23:30
in this case
23:31
certainly in my
23:33
mind if anybody
23:34
was able to
23:36
boast in having
23:37
prophetic powers
23:38
and understanding
23:39
all mysteries and
23:40
all knowledge
23:40
it would have
23:41
been Paul
23:41
he wrote the
23:42
vast majority
23:43
of the New
23:43
Testament
23:43
certainly if there
23:45
were things being
23:46
revealed in a new
23:47
way to an
23:48
individual in time
23:50
it would have
23:51
been Paul
23:52
the prophetic
23:53
powers he's speaking
23:54
about here I
23:55
believe are not
23:56
the way we would
23:57
refer to prophetic
23:58
powers now
23:58
a prophet now is
23:59
someone who draws
24:01
people back to the
24:02
truth of God
24:03
who shows people
24:04
the black and white
24:05
of situations
24:05
and helps the
24:07
people of God
24:08
stay intact
24:10
and on purpose
24:11
with God
24:12
but in this
24:13
time I think
24:13
it was a special
24:14
time when there
24:15
were new
24:15
revelations of
24:16
God coming to
24:17
the people of
24:17
God like these
24:19
letters Paul
24:20
himself never
24:21
calls himself a
24:21
prophet he
24:22
calls himself
24:22
apostle one who
24:23
is sent but he
24:24
never calls himself
24:25
a prophet and I
24:26
would imagine as
24:27
he's pinning these
24:28
letters he's being
24:29
carried along by the
24:30
spirit and he
24:31
never knew that
24:32
someday they would
24:33
be canonized and
24:34
they would be in
24:35
millions and
24:37
millions and billions
24:37
of which to be
24:38
sure copies of
24:40
the scripture and
24:41
that they would be
24:41
used by God to
24:42
guide Christians for
24:43
ages he didn't even
24:45
call himself a
24:47
prophet surely but
24:49
he could have and
24:49
he said in Ephesians
24:50
2 20 that the
24:50
church is built on
24:52
the foundation of the
24:53
apostles and the
24:54
prophets something to
24:57
be desired the
25:00
prophet speaks
25:01
directly from God
25:03
the prophet receives
25:05
messages straight from
25:07
the source what an
25:11
amazing thing that
25:12
would be and on top
25:13
of that this
25:15
hypothetical person
25:16
Paul speaks of
25:17
understands all
25:19
mysteries and all
25:21
knowledge he has all
25:22
the facts and all
25:23
the meaning he has a
25:25
mind filled with God's
25:28
truth and all of its
25:30
outworking you could
25:31
say this man is
25:33
theologically omniscient
25:34
he gets everything
25:37
if there was ever a
25:38
gift to be envy this
25:39
would be it I can
25:40
as a guy that has to
25:42
prepare sermons every
25:43
week boy do I wish I
25:45
had all wisdom all
25:48
understanding of all
25:49
mysteries and all
25:51
knowledge that would
25:53
make life phenomenal
25:54
just in my study of the
25:56
beginning of Romans
25:57
chapter 9 as Paul
26:00
laments over the
26:00
Israelites he speaks of
26:02
the benefits that they
26:02
had received from God
26:03
and one of the things
26:04
they received was the
26:05
glory to them belongs
26:07
the glory and I spent a
26:09
good portion of this
26:09
week studying the Old
26:11
Testament because when
26:12
he talks about the
26:13
glory he's talking about
26:14
the physical manifestation
26:16
the dwelling of God with
26:18
the Israelites which
26:19
started in the Exodus
26:20
when he went before them
26:22
as a cloud in the day
26:23
and as a pillar of fire
26:24
by night and ended in
26:27
the book of Ezekiel when
26:29
his glory his physical
26:30
dwelling in the temple was
26:32
lifted up and taken from
26:34
the Mount of Olives we're
26:35
going to talk about that
26:36
more next week so I've
26:38
been reading a lot from
26:40
Exodus to Ezekiel this
26:42
week what do I wish I
26:44
just already had all that
26:45
information in my head
26:46
wouldn't that be
26:47
phenomenal to know it
26:49
would be incredible but
26:52
what Paul says is I have
26:53
all that do you know
26:55
what kind of preacher I
26:57
would be if I had all that
26:59
I could pull stuff out of
27:00
my head at random I could
27:02
just take you through all
27:03
of the scriptures at any
27:04
moment of any day but I
27:06
don't have love I'm nothing
27:10
so what is a guy like me
27:14
who is a very very far
27:17
degree from that what am I
27:20
if I have not love less than
27:23
nothing I'm less than
27:26
nothing because I can't be
27:27
this guy this hypothetical
27:28
character so I'm less than
27:31
nothing if I don't have
27:33
love the equation he gives
27:35
us is gift knowledge minus
27:39
love equals nothing
27:42
Matthew Henry said on this
27:45
a clear and deep head is of
27:47
no signification without a
27:49
benevolent and charitable
27:50
heart and John Calvin said
27:53
love alone is the rule
27:55
governing our actions the
27:58
only guide is the right way
27:59
to use the gift of God God
28:01
approves of nothing that
28:03
lacks it no matter how
28:04
magnificent man may think
28:06
it without love the fairness
28:07
of all virtues is mere
28:09
veneer it is empty jangling it
28:12
is not worth straw in short it
28:15
is rank and offensive so at
28:22
this point you might say
28:23
why should we even study such
28:26
topics wouldn't it be a lot
28:28
easier if we just skipped
28:29
let's get to the end of the
28:32
glorious end of chapter 8 in
28:34
Romans and let's just skip over
28:36
to the practical outworking in
28:39
chapter 12 let's just jump right
28:40
over the top of it some of you
28:44
might say if if knowing things
28:48
causes us to be responsible for
28:50
teaching those things with love
28:52
for proving and rebuking people
28:54
in love and that's such a hard
28:56
thing to do then why do it do we
29:00
focus too much on doctrine on the
29:02
truth of God as a church and and
29:04
I'm going to tell you that the
29:05
answer to that question is no and
29:07
I hope you never ask the question
29:08
again there's no such thing as
29:10
over emphasizing doctrine there is
29:14
such a thing as under emphasizing
29:16
love Paul's not saying to us that
29:21
love is better than all these
29:23
things and all these things should
29:24
be dismissed Paul saying that all
29:26
these things are valuable to us and
29:28
they should always be accompanied by
29:31
love
29:32
do not fall prey to the lie that the
29:39
truth and Christian love are
29:40
mutually exclusive it's not a choice
29:44
we don't have to choose between the
29:45
truth and love he's not saying choose
29:49
between truth and love choose love
29:52
he's saying combine truth and love for
29:55
the sake of Christ's church this
29:59
teaching Romans 9 10 and 11 has great
30:04
value for us you might say okay well
30:06
you've kind of been talking like it's
30:08
gonna be really challenging how is it
30:10
that it has great value for us it
30:11
shows us a greater picture of Jesus
30:13
Christ any study of scripture ought a
30:17
greater magnify Jesus Christ our
30:21
vision statement Wes said it this
30:23
morning Christ the only church exists
30:25
to experience proclaim and display the
30:27
supremacy of Jesus Christ in all
30:29
things and you know how we do that we
30:30
preach the Bible because if you preach
30:32
the Bible that happens the Bible is
30:36
constantly uplifting Jesus Christ even
30:39
some of those boring parts in the old
30:41
Testament that you don't understand
30:42
someday we'll get there I hope you
30:45
understand I hope you understand how
30:47
everything in the scriptures points to
30:51
Jesus Christ this church is about the
30:55
centrality of Jesus Christ to all
30:58
things we must be careful this is why
31:02
we we as a general habit preach verse
31:05
by verse expositionally because we must
31:08
be careful not to allow the enemy to set
31:11
our agenda for us he'd have us avoid
31:15
this kind of teaching the enemy wants us
31:18
to feel like we're dangling out on the
31:20
end and anything we might do on any
31:24
given day will push us off the edge will
31:26
no longer receive the goodness and
31:28
loving kindness of God the doctrine of
31:31
election teaches the opposite it teaches
31:33
us that nothing can take us out of God's
31:35
hand there is no thing even yourself that
31:40
can remove you from the hand of almighty
31:43
God he is sovereign over all things I
31:49
can't fully work that out there are some
31:51
things of questions that pop up in my
31:53
head and I go what does that mean what
31:55
does that mean for this what about this I
31:58
don't know I don't know but there are
32:01
things taught to us the doctrine of
32:02
election being one of them that are
32:03
supremely valuable for us and cause us to
32:07
live proper Christian lives during all
32:12
of our cromwell's reign as Lord
32:14
protector over all of England a young
32:17
soldier was sentenced to die as a result
32:19
of some egregious offense the young woman
32:22
to who he had been engaged pleaded with
32:24
cromwell to spare the life of her
32:25
fiance all to no avail the young man was
32:29
to be executed when the curfew bell
32:30
sounded at the appropriate moment as he
32:33
had done for many years the sextant of
32:36
the church grabbed the rope and pulled
32:38
on it repeatedly but unlike any time
32:40
before the bell made no sound the young
32:44
woman had climbed into the bell tower and
32:46
had wrapped her body around the clapper
32:48
said it could not strike the bell with
32:52
every pull of that rope her body was
32:53
pummeled and smashed against the sides of
32:55
that giant bell but she refused to let go
32:58
until the clapper stopped swinging when
33:01
the sextant finally stopped tugging on
33:03
the rope the young woman managed to
33:04
climb down from the bell tower and
33:05
stepped out to meet those who had
33:07
gathered to watch the execution she was
33:10
bruised from head to toe and was
33:11
bleeding terribly when she explained what
33:14
she had done the overwhelmed cromwell
33:16
commuted the sentence a poet who was
33:19
there that day gathered with the crowd to
33:21
see the execution captured the scene
33:23
with these words at his feet she told the
33:27
story showed her hands all bruised and
33:30
torn and her sweet young face still
33:32
haggard with the anguish it had worn
33:34
touched his heart with sudden pity lit his
33:38
eyes with misty light go your love lives
33:42
said cromwell curfew will not ring tonight
33:45
the doctrine of election is the blessed
33:49
truth that for the church of Christ the
33:52
curfew bell will never ring that's why it's a
33:59
value to us that's why we're gonna spend
34:02
three chapters talking about it and the
34:05
implications for Israel and I hope that
34:09
you will come and learn that you'll come up
34:12
underneath the word of God not me but
34:15
underneath the word of God humbly let it
34:17
speak to you you won't stand over it
34:20
passing judgment on it as if you are God
34:23
but you will learn from the most holy
34:26
who stays the ringing of the curfew bell
34:30
let's pray together
34:31
together
34:32
together