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Raymund Lull: Captive to Christ and Compelled by Love · Traveler’s Tales

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  Have you ever noticed how easy it is to love people who already love you?
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  It's natural to care for friends, to pray for family, to invest in people who appreciate
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  us.
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  But what about those who reject us?
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  Those who oppose us?
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  Or those who never return our kindness?
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  The greatest demonstrations of Christ's love are often seen not in comfortable places,
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  but in hostile ones.
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  Welcome to Traveler's Tales, produced by Enjoying the Journey.
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  This is Greg Dowdy.
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  Throughout history, God has delighted in using imperfect people to accomplish extraordinary
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  things.
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  And when we look beyond their flaws, we often discover timeless lessons that challenge our
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  own walk with Christ.
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  Today's journey takes us to the life of a man who believed that the love of Christ
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  was stronger than hatred, stronger than fear, and even stronger than death.
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  His name was Raymond Lull.
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  While we would not agree with every aspect of his theology or his methods, his life leaves
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  us with a powerful challenge.
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  What can the love of Christ compel an ordinary believer to do?
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  Raymond Lull was born around 1232 on the island of Majorca, off the coast of Spain.
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  As a young man, he lived for pleasure, wealth, and worldly success.
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  Few would have ever imagined that he would one day become one of the most courageous
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  missionary voices in the Middle Ages.
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  Everything changed when Christ transformed his life.
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  After his conversion around 1263, Lull surrendered himself completely to the Lord.
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  He devoted his life to studying scripture, learning languages, and preparing others to
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  carry the gospel across cultural barriers.
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  He even established schools where missionaries could be trained to communicate the gospel
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  in the languages of those they hoped to reach.
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  Lull became convinced that one of the greatest mission fields in the world was among the
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  Muslims of North Africa.
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  During a period marked by the violence and bitterness of the Crusades, many viewed Muslims
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  only as enemies to be defeated.
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  Raymond saw them as souls that needed Christ.
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  That conviction led him to make repeated missionary journeys to places where the gospel was unwelcomed.
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  He preached in Tunis.
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  He traveled to Algeria.
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  He ventured deep into North Africa.
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  More than once he was imprisoned.
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  More than once he was expelled from the city under threat of death.
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  Yet each time he returned.
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  Finally, during his last missionary journey, an angry mob attacked him and brutally stoned
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  him for preaching Christ.
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  Believers rescued his battered body and carried him aboard a ship bound for home.
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  Before reaching the shores of his beloved Majorca, Raymond Lull entered the presence
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  of the Savior he had spent his life proclaiming.
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  While history remembers him as a scholar who wrote hundreds of books, perhaps the greatest
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  testimony of his life was not found in his writings, but in the love that compelled him
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  to keep going.
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  The Apostle Paul wrote in Ephesians 5 to walk in love as Christ also hath loved us and hath
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  given himself for us.
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  That verse could summarize Raymond Lull's life.
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  His motivation was not anger.
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  It was not politics.
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  It was not revenge.
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  It was love.
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  One of his prayers revealed the depth of his surrender.
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  To thee, Lord God, do I now offer myself, my wife, my children, and all that I possess.
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  These were not merely emotional words spoken in a moment of inspiration.
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  They became the pattern of his life.
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  Everything belonged to Christ.
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  Lull also understood something profound about the God of the Bible.
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  He longed to introduce people to the God who is love.
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  1 John 4, 8 reminds us God is love.
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  Raymond believed that people needed more than religion.
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  They needed a relationship with the God whose love was demonstrated at Calvary.
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  He once wrote, He who loves not, lives not.
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  He who lives by the life cannot die.
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  Near the end of his life, his heart's desire was still the same.
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  He prayed, Men are wont to die from old age, but thy servant would rather die in the glow
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  of love even as thou wast willing to die for him.
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  What a remarkable statement.
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  He didn't simply want to live for Christ.
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  He wanted to love like Christ.
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  And that's where this story reaches each of us.
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  Most of us will never face imprisonment for our faith.
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  We may never stand before an angry mob.
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  But every day God places people in our path who desperately need to see the love of Christ.
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  Will we love those who disagree with us?
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  Will we pray for those who oppose us?
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  Will we intentionally carry the gospel to people outside our comfort zone?
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  It is easy to love people who are like us.
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  It is Christ-like to love people who need Him.
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  The love of Christ has always been the greatest missionary force the world has ever known.
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  Programs cannot replace it.
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  Knowledge cannot substitute for it.
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  Courage alone cannot sustain it.
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  Only a heart captivated by the love of Jesus can continue loving when love is costly.
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  May the Lord fill our hearts with that sane love.
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  May His love move us beyond comfort, beyond convenience, and even beyond fear.
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  And may the people around us see not just our convictions, but the compassion of Christ
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  shining through our lives.
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  Because when the love of Christ controls us, there is no person beyond our concern, no
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  place beyond our reach, and no sacrifice too great for the one who first loved us.
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  Thank you for joining us today on Traveler's Tales.
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  As we close this episode, I want to remind you that if God opens a door for you to speak
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  to someone about Christ, you don't have to wonder what to say.
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  That's why the resources available at ETJ.Bible are such a blessing.
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  You'll find practical tools that can help you clearly explain the gospel, help you answer
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  common questions, and you can confidently point others to Christ.
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  From gospel tracts to Bible reading plans, discipleship resources, each tool has been
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  developed to help believers become more effective witnesses.
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  I encourage you to visit ETJ.Bible, find these resources, and ask the Lord to use them and
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  use you to help someone take their first step toward Jesus Christ.