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God With Us (Part 2) · Near East Christian Fellowship Sermons

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Welcome to NECF Sermons. Each message here is
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designed to uplift and strengthen you in your
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walk with God. Don't miss out. Stay with us until
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the end for a rewarding experience. Let's dive
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right in. Good evening, everybody. I want to
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thank you for coming out under this weather,
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in the rain, and raining. And I pray that as
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you listen to the word of God, that you will
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be blessed. Thank God for this opportunity to
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also bring the word to us. Amen. Matthew chapter
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28. Matthew chapter 28. We're going to continue
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from where we stopped on Sunday. It is God with
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us. Right? Matthew chapter 28, verse 18. It says,
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Jesus came and spoke to them saying, All authority
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has been given me in heaven and on earth. Go
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therefore and make disciples of all nations,
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baptizing them in the name of the Father, the
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Son, and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to
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observe all things I have commanded you, and
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lo, I am with you always, even to the end of
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the age. Praise the Lord. And on Sunday we establish
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that I am with you is a person, praise the Lord,
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that God is with us. all the time. Praise the
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Lord. God is with us all the time. Mark chapter
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1, speaking of John the Baptist, Mark chapter
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1, Mark chapter 1, verse 4. John came baptizing
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in the wilderness and preaching a baptism of
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repentance for the remission of sins. Then all
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the land of Judea and those from Jerusalem went
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out to him and were all baptized by him in the
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Jordan River, confessing. their sins. And we
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said that John deliberately went to the Jordan,
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praise the Lord, because it was through the Jordan
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that they came to the promised land, praise the
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Lord. It was through the Jordan that they came
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to the promised land. It was Joshua who took
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them to the land, praise the Lord. And we said
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that Jesus was given that name to represent what
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he came to do, to save his people from sins.
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Amen. So he took them to the Jordan to baptize
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them. So I said that Jordan is how they entered
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into that land, right? And we said that when
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they got into that land, right, they thought,
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oh, we're going to be free from our enemies.
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There will be nothing else to worry about. But
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they discovered that there were enemies as well
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in the land. Praise the Lord. There was the enemy
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of sin. There was the enemies around them and
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within them. Praise the Lord. So they were looking
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for something else, right? The enemies were there.
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So the land was not what was promised, but a
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Messiah that is God with us. They were waiting
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for a Messiah. And John says that that Messiah
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is here. He's pointing to them, right? John was
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not pointing them to a land, but he was pointing
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them to a person. Praise the Lord. So Jordan
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was how they crossed into the land. And John
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is saying that the kingdom is here. The Messiah
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is here. We are close to it. If I call his name,
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remember where we read, if I call his name, what?
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Joshua, right? For he will save his people from
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their sins. He will save his people from their
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sins. And we said that how they were saved, right,
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was that they were taken out of the land of Egypt,
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that is the children of Israel. They were taken
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out and they were taken into the land of promise.
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So when John the Baptist came as a messenger,
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right, to prepare the way before his face, Exodus
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chapter 23, verse 20. Exodus chapter 23, verse
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20. Behold, I send an angel, Malek, before you
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to keep you in the way and to bring you into
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the place which I have prepared. malachi chapter
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3 verse 1 malachi chapter 3 verse 1 behold i
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send my messenger the same thing right as the
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angel there my leg right and he would prepare
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the way before me and the lord whom you seek
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will suddenly come to his temple even the messenger
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of the covenant in whom you delight behold he's
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coming says the lord of hosts isaiah chapter
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40 verse 3 isaiah chapter 40 Verse three, the
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voice of the one, the voice of one crying in
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the wilderness, prepare the way of the Lord,
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make straight in the desert, the highway for
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our God. So John came to prepare the way of the
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Lord, a voice of one that cries in the wilderness.
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Praise the Lord, right? So the land has been
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what? Replaced by whom? By the Lord. Praise the
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Lord. The thing that they sought to, where they
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sought to go to has been replaced by the Lord.
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We'll see that in verse 9 of this Isaiah chapter
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40. He talks about, he said, O Zion, you who
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bring good tidings, get up into the high mountain,
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O Jerusalem, you who bring good tidings. Lift
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up your voice with strength, lift it up. Do not
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be afraid. Be not afraid, says... Say to the
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cities of Judah, behold your God. Praise the
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Lord. The land was a parable, like I said, right?
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Because the land is God himself. He is our possession.
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Behold your God. He is our prized possession.
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He is the one that they were looking forward
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to. He's the one that they were anticipating
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for. Praise the Lord. But then... Is it possible
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that somebody can be waiting for something and
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they don't know how it looks? Praise the Lord.
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They don't know how it looks. Praise the Lord.
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We're going to see that very shortly. So God
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is their possession. So he's given a name, right,
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of a man so that they will know what he's doing.
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Praise the Lord. So he was giving that name Jesus
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so that they will know what he's doing, his assignment.
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Praise the Lord. The name. We said describes
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or is descriptive of his function. He's given
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the name Jesus. Remember we were talking about
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and we said that that name Jesus was a common
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name. People bear it today in different parts
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of the world, especially in Brazil, right? So,
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but what is important about him was that he is
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Emmanuel, God with us, that God being with man,
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a man like God. Praise the Lord. So he would
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deliver his people. Right? From their saints.
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Jesus, Emmanuel, God with us. Praise the Lord.
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So today we'll continue from there. So we see
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what Zechariah, the prophecy says, right? It
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says in Luke chapter 1. Luke chapter 1, verse
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68. Luke chapter 1, verse 68. It said, Blessed
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is the Lord of Israel. for he has visited and
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redeemed his people. Next verse. And has raised
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up a horn of salvation for us in the house of
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his servant, David. Praise the Lord. Now, verse
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71. That we should be saved from our enemies
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and from the hand of all who hate us. Praise
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the Lord. So what is he doing? He's saving that
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he should be saved from where? From their enemies.
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From the hands of those who hate them. Right?
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So Jesus has come forward for deliverance. Praise
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the Lord. To liberate men. And then we also see
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that he says in Matthew, in Mark, right? That
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in his name, we will cast out demons. Praise
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the Lord. In my name, you will cast out demons.
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And if you drink any deadly thing, it will by
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no means hurt you. Mark chapter 16, verse 17.
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Mark chapter 16. Verse 17. He said, these signs
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will follow those who believe. In my name, they
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will cast out demons. They will speak with new
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tongues. In my name, they will cast out demons.
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They will speak with new tongues. Luke chapter
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24, verse 47. Luke chapter 24, verse 47. He said,
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that repentance and remission of sin be preached
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in his name. to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.
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Right? That repentance and remission of sin be
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preached in his name to all nations. John chapter
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20, verse 31. John chapter 20, verse 31. But
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these are written that you may believe that Jesus
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is the Christ, the Son of God, that believing
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you may have life in his name. Praise the Lord.
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You may have life through his name. John chapter
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14, verse 12 to 13. John chapter 14, verse 12
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to 13. Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes
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in me, the works that I do, the works that I
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do, he will do also. Greater works than these
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he will do, because I go to my Father. And whatever
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you ask in my name, That I will do, that my Father
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may be glorified in the Son. Amen. In the name,
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in that name. Praise the Lord. Exodus chapter
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6 verse 3. Exodus chapter 3, 6 verse 3. I appeared
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to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob as God Almighty.
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But by my name, by my name, Lord, I was not known
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to them. Praise the Lord. Exodus chapter 3. 3,
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verse 14. You see something interesting here,
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no? He said, and God said to Moses, I am who
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I am, right? Remember, we dealt with this. I
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will be what I will be. He said, thus you shall
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say to the children of Israel, I am have sent
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you, right? That is the person that God has sent
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you. I am, we said, is a person. Then Paul tells
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us in Philippians chapter 2. So, speaking about
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unity in the church or among believers. Philippians
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2 .1 -3. Therefore, if there is any consolation
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in Christ, if any comfort of love, if any fellowship
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of the Spirit, if any affection and mercy, fulfill
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my joy. By being like -minded, having the same
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love, being of one accord, of one mind. Let nothing
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be done through selfish ambition or concern.
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But in loneliness of mind, let each esteem others
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better than himself. Praise the Lord. Let what?
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Esteem others better than himself. So, he's saying
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that you should... Look at the interest of others.
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Praise the Lord. Which in our generation now,
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you know, people like the idea of self -love.
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Praise the Lord. Okay, let's not go into that.
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So people like the idea of self -love, which
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is not the biblical love. Praise the Lord. Self
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-love is not the biblical love. Praise the Lord.
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Not sharing or not loving one another is not
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biblical. Praise the Lord. God's love is to esteem
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others better than ourselves. Let's see verse
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4 to 9. Let each of you look out not only for
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his own interest, but for the interest of others.
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Let his mind be in you which was also in Christ
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Jesus. who, being in the form of God, did not
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consider its robbery to be equal with God, but
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made himself of no reputation, taking the form
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of a born servant, coming in the likeness of
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man, being found in their appearance as a man,
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he humbled himself, being obedient to the point
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of death, even death of the cross. Therefore
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God has highly exalted him and has... and given
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him the name which is above every other name.
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He came in the likeness of man, being found in
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the appearance of man. Praise the Lord. So we
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see, you know, we can also see where this, where
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we find, we see the, he's talking about God and
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man, right? giving a description of God and man
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together. Praise the Lord. Talking about how
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Jesus came. Let's go back to verse 7. He said,
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He made himself of no reputation, taking the
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form of a born servant and coming in the likeness
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of man. Praise the Lord. God coming in the likeness
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of man. Verse 8. Being found in the appearance
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as a man. Praise the Lord. So they found God
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like a man. Praise the Lord. He humbled himself
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and became obedient to the point of death, even
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the death of the cross. Praise the Lord. So it's
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not the first time we see the description of
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man and God together. Genesis chapter 1 verse
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26. Genesis chapter 1 verse 26. Then God said,
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let us make man in our image, according to our
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likeness. Right? Let him have dominion over the
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fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, over
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the caters, over all earth and over every creeping
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thing that creeps on the earth. Let us make man
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in our likeness, in our image. Let's make him
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in our image, male and female. Who are mankind?
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Praise the Lord. But we don't see what Paul was
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reflecting here. Let's go back to Philippians
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2. Philippians 2, from verse 9 to 11. Philippians
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2, verse 9 to 10. Therefore God also has highly
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exalted him and given him the name which is above
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every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee
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should bow of those in heaven and those on earth,
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of those underneath the earth. That every tongue,
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and that every tongue should confess that Jesus
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is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. Praise
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the Lord. Right? He's giving him a name that
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is above every other name. Right? That at the
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name of Jesus, every knee should bow. Right?
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Every knee should bow. So he's not just saying,
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just mention, he's not like saying, mention Jesus.
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Like I said, it is a common name. Praise the
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Lord. But it is in that which Christ has done.
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Praise the Lord. It is in that which Christ has
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done. It's not just mentioning a name, right?
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It's said at the name. Every knee should bow
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in heaven and on earth and beneath the earth.
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Every tongue should confess what? That Jesus
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is Yahweh, is Lord. Right? Jesus is Lord. That
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is the word, Yahweh. In the Greek word, it's
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Adonai. Praise the Lord. Yahweh, to the glory
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of God the Father. To the glory of God. So, where
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was Paul writing from? Where was Paul writing
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from? Meanwhile, let's read Isaiah chapter 42,
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verse 8. I am the Lord, that is my name, and
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my glory I will not give. to another, nor my
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praise to curved images. Praise the Lord. I am
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the Lord. That is my name. My glory he will give
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to no other. But we were just reading something
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in Philippians. He said what? He gave him what?
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Go back to Philippians chapter 10. He said, That
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at the name of Jesus, every knee should bow.
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No, verse 9, where he gave him the name. Okay.
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He said, therefore God has highly exalted him
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and given him the name, which is above what?
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Every other name. He gave him a name, which is
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above every other name. But then in Isaiah 42,
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verse 8, what do we see? Isaiah 42. He said,
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I am the Lord, that is my name. My glory I will
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not give to another, nor my praise to carved
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images. Praise the Lord. He will not what? I
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will not give my name, that's what it means,
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to another. Praise the Lord. I will not give
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my name to another. I am what? The Lord. I am
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Yahweh. I will not give my name to another. My
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glory I will not give to another. So what Paul
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was telling us was, that God gave his glory to,
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he gave his glory to Jesus. The father gave it
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to Jesus. So let's see where he was reading from.
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Isaiah chapter 45, verse 21 to 24. Isaiah 45,
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21 to 24. Tell and bring forth your case. Yes,
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let them take counsel together who I declare
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is from the ancient time. who are told it from
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that time. Have I not I, the Lord, and there
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is no other God beside me? A just God and a Savior.
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There is none beside me. Look at me and be safe,
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all you ends of the earth, for I am God and there
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is no other. I have sworn by myself. The word
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has gone out of my mouth in righteousness. and
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shall not return that to me every knee should
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bow, every tongue should take an oath. He shall
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say, Surely in the Lord I have righteousness
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and strength. To him men shall come, and all
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shall be ashamed who are incensed against him.
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Praise the Lord. He said, Unto me every knee
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should bow, every tongue. She swear, she take
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an oath. My name, I will not give another. But
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Paul therefore said that God became what? A man.
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And his name is Jesus, Yeshua. Then he gave him
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a name, right? And that Yeshua is the very, sorry,
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and he gave him the very name of God. Praise
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the Lord. He gave him the name of God, right?
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We see that he's sharing, God is sharing his
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name. with a man, and that man is himself. Praise
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the Lord. That man is himself. I remember this
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week, I came to this faculty to see one of the
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professors, and he was asking one of his students,
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apparently he has been asking her a lot of questions,
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and part of the question he's been asking is,
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how is Jesus God? praise the lord how is jesus
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god and going through these studies i was like
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okay let me let me be ready the next time i go
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back to his office right so that i will know
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what to tell him praise the lord so even him
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is asking the question how is jesus god how do
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you explain that praise the lord he has shared
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his name with a man and that man is himself he
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said i will share my glory with no order. Right?
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But in the resurrection, what did he do? Right?
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In the resurrection, what did he do? Right? In
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the name of Jesus, that is the name who came,
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that is the one who came to die for a sin, he
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is God himself. And that every knee should bow
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and every tongue should confess that Jesus is
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who? Jesus is God. Jesus is the Lord. Yahweh.
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So, This is the same one, this is the same Yahweh
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who appeared to Moses. This is the same one who
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appeared to Abraham. This is the same one who
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appeared to Jacob, to the glory of God, the Father.
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We also see that Paul writes in 1 Corinthians
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8, verse 6, Yet for us there is one God, the
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Father, of whom are all things, and we for him.
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and one Lord Jesus Christ, through whom are all
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things, and through whom we live. Praise the
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Lord. Where was he reading from? Deuteronomy
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chapter 6, verse 4. Deuteronomy chapter 6, verse
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4. He said, Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God,
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the Lord is one. Praise the Lord. The Lord is
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one. The Lord Jesus Christ, the one, and that
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is the Lord Jesus Christ, in whom all things,
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and by him God has done all things. God has become
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a man. He bore a man's name, Yeshua. And what
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will he do? He said that he will save his people
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from their sins. He will save his people from
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their sins. His name is God. His name is God.
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When we say at the name of Jesus, right? We are
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saying that what? We are saying that Jesus Christ
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is God. Praise the Lord. When we say in the name
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of Jesus, right? What we are saying is what?
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That Jesus Christ is God. He's God. He's the
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I am. In the name of Jesus, right? Above all
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name. It is the name of God. God is Christ. God
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is a son. He bears the name. Yeshua. So we remember
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we're talking about that land where John was
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pointing them to. He was pointing them to God.
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He was pointing them to Yahweh. He was pointing
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them to their Messiah. He said, let's go to our
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God. That he takes away the sins of the world.
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Let's go to God. Let's leave darkness to our
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God. That's what he's saying to them. Let's leave
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sin and go to God. Let's leave darkness and go
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to God. Let's go from ourselves, right? And go
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to God. He is the promised land. He is that land
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that is promised. He's our precious possession.
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Hallelujah. He's our precious possession in the
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name of Jesus. So you can write this down. So
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Jesus simply means the name of God and all his
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promises. The name of Jesus simply means the
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name of God and all his promises. The name of
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Jesus simply means we are united with God. We
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are united with God. Our sins are forgiven, right?
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and that God has carried out his promise. He
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has carried out which he had promised. Praise
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the Lord. He has carried out which he had promised.
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So we notice that in Paul's writing, he will
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always write and address the people, and we use
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words like grace and peace from our Lord Jesus,
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or grace and peace from the Father. from God
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the Father, praise the Lord, and our Lord Jesus.
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We always write and say, grace and peace from
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God the Father and our Lord Jesus Christ. So
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we see that throughout his letters, grace and
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peace, right, from God the Father and our Lord
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Jesus Christ, right? He's not just greeting,
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he's not just a greeting, praise the Lord. He's
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not just giving a salutation, right? He's declaring
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a message, praise the Lord. He's declaring a
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message. He's declaring a message. So he also
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writes to us, he says, well, to be content with
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such things as you have. And he said, for I will
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not leave you nor forsake you. The promise of
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the Father is God himself. God did not promise
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us things. Praise the Lord. He promised us to
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give himself, God, with us. is to give himself
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to us. So when John goes to the Jordan, he's
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saying that God is about to show up. But like
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I said earlier, is it possible that people go
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to expect something, but they don't know what
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it looks like? Praise the Lord. Is it possible
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to go in expectation of something, but then you
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are disappointed by the package? Praise the Lord.
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You're disappointed. by the package. So when
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he says them, right, that God is about to show
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up, right, the people were disappointed because
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he showed up as a man. Praise the Lord. And a
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man that they know. Praise the Lord. A man from
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where? Galilee of the Gentiles. Praise the Lord.
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So they become very disappointed because that
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was not their expectation, right, that he would
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show up as somebody that they know. or they have
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knowledge of. And he's coming from the Galilee
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of the Gentiles, of all places. He could come
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from every other place, right? But he came from
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the Galilee of the Gentiles. He showed up as
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a man. And we said that what? He's a man -like
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God. He showed up as a man. Praise the Lord.
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So they were not expecting that he comes the
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way he comes. Right? God becoming a man. So we
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see that in the scriptures, he writes a lot of
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things about this. In the Synoptic Gospels, Matthew
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chapter 1 verse 1. Matthew chapter 1 verse 1.
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He says what? The book of the genealogy of Jesus
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Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.
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He's just saying the book of the genealogy, right?
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It is the genesis of what? Of Jesus Christ. Praise
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the Lord. where he came from. Our genealogy is
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Genesis. That is the Genesis of Jesus Christ.
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We can read the Genesis of Jesus Christ. So in
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Genesis, what we have in the beginning was chaos.
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What we have in the beginning in Genesis was
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chaos. Things were not in place. Things were
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not... in order. Praise the Lord. And God brought
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calmness to it. Right? We have light and darkness.
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Right? Genesis 1 and 2. Right? Light and darkness.
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But then, what is the genesis of Jesus Christ?
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What does the genesis of Jesus Christ say? What
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does the genealogy of Jesus Christ say? Right?
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He says what? There is a new beginning. Praise
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the Lord. There is a new beginning. It is no
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longer a time of chaos. It is no longer a time
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of disorder. Praise the Lord. It is not a time
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of disorder. A new beginning of what? Of God
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amongst men. Praise the Lord. God amongst men.
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Right? It is God's new creation. Light out of
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darkness. Matthew chapter 1 verse 1 as we saw.
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The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the
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son of David, the son of Abraham. So John the
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Baptist is announcing the coming of God as a
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man. He will save his people from their sins.
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And what will he do? He's not just saving his
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people from their sins. Remember when we said
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that he's not just a name, Jesus, but what is
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important is Emmanuel, God with us, that he's
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taking those people to himself. Hallelujah. He's
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taking them to himself. He saves his people from
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their sins and he will take them to themselves.
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So what is the beauty or what is the important
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thing about the gospel? What is the important
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thing about the gospel? What is so important
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about the gospel? What is the blessing of it?
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The blessing of it is God himself. Praise the
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Lord. The package that we receive is what? God
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himself. That is the beauty of the gospel. So
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when you're preaching to somebody, what you're
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doing is that you're presenting God to the person
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as a gift. Praise the Lord. When you preach to
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a person, you're presenting God to them. We receive
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at salvation God. Praise the Lord. So at salvation,
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we receive God. In Exodus, he said he would deliver
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them, right? And what? And bring them to himself.
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Exodus, Exodus chapter six, verse three. I am
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Yahweh, said I am God, right? Exodus chapter,
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he says, I've heard to Abraham and to Isaac and
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to Jacob as God almighty. But by my name, Lord,
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I was not known to them. Verse four, I have also
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established my covenant with them. to give them
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the land of Canaan, the land of their pilgrimage,
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in which they were strangers. Verse 6 now. Therefore
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say to the children of Israel, I am the Lord.
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I will bring you out from under the bondage of
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the Egyptians. I will rescue you from the bondage,
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and I will redeem you with an outstretched arm
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and with a great judgment. Verse 7. He said,
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I will take you. As what? My people. Praise the
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Lord. I will take you as my people and I will
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be your God. Then you shall know that I am the
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Lord, your God, who brings you out from under
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the bondage, under the burdens of the Egyptians.
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Praise the Lord. What? He will take them what?
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To himself. Right? I will take you as my people
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and I will be your God. Praise the Lord. And
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then you will know that he's the one that has
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brought you out of that place. Praise the Lord.
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So what they are inheriting, in essence, is God
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himself. Praise the Lord. He said, I will bring
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you, I will take you as my people and I will
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be your God. Then you shall know that I am the
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Lord your God who brings you out from under the
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burdens of the Egyptians. Right? So they are
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not going there to build houses. They are not
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going there to inherit some land. but that they
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are inheriting God for my people. You will be,
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and I will be your God. Verse 8. And I will bring
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you into the land which I swore to give Abraham,
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Isaac, and Jacob. I will give it to you as a
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heritage. I am the Lord. So what does God give
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us? He gives us himself. He gives us himself.
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So at salvation, We receive God, we receive God,
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right, as our possession, as our precious possession.
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He is our precious possession. So we said at
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incarnation, what do we have? We have what? A
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man like God, right? So he says that his name
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shall be Joshua. It means he will do this for
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his people and he will save his people. So at
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the name of a man, God will send, right? He will
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save his people. So he's God himself. So he will
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bear both the name of man and the name of God.
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Luke chapter 1, verse 31, verse 35. He said,
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Behold, you will conceive in your womb, bring
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forth a son. You shall call his name Jesus. He
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will be great and he will be called the son of
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the Most High. And the Lord God will give him
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the throne of his father, David. And he will
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reign over the houses of Jacob forever. And of
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his kingdom there will be no end. Then Mary said
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to the angel, How can this be, since I do not
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know a man? And the angel answered and said,
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The Holy Spirit will come upon you and the power
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of the Most High will overshadow you. Therefore
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also the Holy One who is to be born will be called
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the Son of God. Praise the Lord. So it means
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that the virgin conceiving is a sign that God
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is among us. Praise the Lord. God is among us.
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Praise the Lord. I know that I used to say that
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I have an orthodox background. Some of those
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still believe that she's a virgin. She has so
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many other children and they were not by the
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power of the Holy Spirit. Amen? Amen? Okay. So
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God with us. So what do we do? What is our response
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to knowing that God is with us? Right? What is
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our... What is our attitude going to be? That
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God is with us. That God is with us. Remember
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we started on Sunday by saying that one of the
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things that we need to do is to be what? Established
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in faith. Praise the Lord. We need to be established
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in faith. A man who has no knowledge, a man who
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does not know who he is, can be influenced by
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any and by every information. So we need to be
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what? Established in faith. Praise the Lord.
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To be able to benefit or walk like them that
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have God in the inside of them. Praise the Lord.
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And he also promised that what? He said, I will
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not leave you nor forsake you. Right? And we
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said that. It demonstrates God's eternal covenant
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or everlasting covenant, right? Of his presence
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with his people. That God is always with his
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people. And so when God is always with you, what
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do you do? How do you live your life? Praise
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the Lord. How do you live your life? I remember
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I was having this conversation with someone one
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time and he was just talking about many things
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that are happening in church. and this person
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is doing this. I mean, not this church, obviously,
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just talking about the body of Christ in large
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and talking about how people are not living as
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they should live, right? When you hear some stories
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about people and they're like, this person, I
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mean, if you know God, right? Or if you have
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any sense of being in the body of Christ, this
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type of behaviors should not be found in you.
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or should not be seen in you. Praise the Lord.
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Because what? God is with you. Praise the Lord.
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God is with you. And I was like, for me, I've
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been in church, I think all my life. There's
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never been a time where I've never been in church.
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Okay. Even in times where I was walking, I still
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try to find time to walk that demands that I
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be there on Sundays. Right. I still find time
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to come to church. So, My parents, they raised
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us to go to church every day. It was not, it
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was not even a conversation. It's not something
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that you rebel against. So you say, ah, today
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I don't feel like doing this, but you just go
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to church. You sit in the front row, you get
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quiet, you do as you're told. And I think over
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time, you begin to ask yourself the question,
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like, okay, this thing that we are doing, right?
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This thing that is happening, of what? benefit
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does it have to me praise the lord of what benefits
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does it have to me right so you you when you
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begin to ask those questions you now begin to
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question why you are in the place in the first
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place why you are going to church and then once
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you begin to discover what god has done for you
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right or the life of god that you have in the
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inside of you you will see that he wants a relationship
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praise the lord you will see that what He wants
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a relationship with you. And that relationship
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is such that He wants you to know Him for yourself.
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Right? It's not that somebody is going to be,
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maybe like your parents or let's say your pastors
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are going to be chasing you up and that's your
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behavior. You need to start. Do you understand?
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God in the inside of you transforms you. He transforms
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your character. You are not the same. The you
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that we see tomorrow should be more patient.
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Praise the Lord. The you that we see next tomorrow
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should be more patient and kind and more self
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-controlled. Praise the Lord. More patient and
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kind and what? Self -control. Praise the Lord.
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And that you're not somebody who brings shame
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or who makes people begin to say, ah, this Christian
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life self, what are we doing? Praise the Lord.
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Is it the way they are doing it? Why should I
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join them? Praise the Lord. So sometimes I say
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that you take seriously what we come here to
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do. Like we didn't come to waste your time. Praise
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the Lord. We didn't come to waste your time.
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We didn't become pastors because we were hungry.
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Or we didn't become leaders of church because
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we were hungry. Or there was nothing else that
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our life can become. Praise the Lord. So as you
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come to... the house of God, as you are a child
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of God, one of the things that your heart should
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be yearning towards is continual transformation.
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Praise the Lord. And how do you do that? By being
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established in faith, by being trained, by allowing
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yourself to be taught, by allowing the word of
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God to shape your thoughts and your patterns,
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that you see things come up in your mind and
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you ask yourself, am I supposed to think like
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that or am I supposed to behave in that way?
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Praise the Lord. And it does not inhabit you
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or stop you from doing your work. Praise the
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Lord. So you can be a nurse. It doesn't stop
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you from doing your work. Praise the Lord. It
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does not stop you from doing your work. So one
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of the things again that we said that God being
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with us is also understanding that as we preach
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the word, what we preach is God. That God is
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walking through his word. Praise the Lord. That
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God is walking through the world that we preach.
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So the gospel message we preach is God. So when
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you preach to a person, remember I said, the
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blessing that you're giving that person is God.
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So you will not be doubting, should I preach
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or should I not preach? That should not be the
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attitude you should have. Should I preach or
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should I not preach? God in the inside of you
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means that you should tell that person about
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God. Praise the Lord. You should tell that person.
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about God, because the word of God, it carries
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power in the inside of it. Praise the Lord. So
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lastly, one of the things that we do is that
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as knowing that God is with us, we do the things
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we do daily with confidence, right? That God
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is faithful. Praise the Lord. We do the things
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that we do. Knowing fully well that God is with
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us and we live our lives with the confidence
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of God's faithfulness. Praise the Lord. That
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God will not leave us nor forsake us. That you
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will not come to a point in your life and say
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that they all left me. Praise the Lord. You're
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not somebody who would, you're seeking for validations
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by the things outside of what people are saying
48:31
concerning you. Praise the Lord. That you find
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validation in God. That you find confidence in
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God. You're not looking for somebody to hype
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you up. You're not looking for somebody to tell
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you so many nice things. Praise the Lord. It's
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that you move with this confidence that God is
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in the inside of you. Right? And that joy comes
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from the inside of you. That you do not need
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to stand out things to be joyful. Can somebody
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find that place for us? I don't know where that
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is. That talks about... So he reads like this,
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be content with such as you have. This is Paul's
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writing, right? He said, for I will not leave
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you nor forsake you. Can you just find that scripture
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for me? So we move with this confidence that
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God is with us. There were not people that are
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wanting. We don't lack ideas. Praise the Lord.
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We don't lack ideas, right? We are not, we are
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not, we are both and we are not beneath. That
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God gives us wisdom. that the world cannot think
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about. Praise the Lord. That we provide solution
49:46
to our generation. We are people that provide
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solutions to our families. Praise the Lord. We
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are people that, he said, Hebrews, okay, let
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your conduct be without of righteousness, but
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be content with such as you have. For he himself
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said, has said, I will not leave you nor forsake
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you. Praise the Lord. So let your conduct be
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without covetousness, that you're somebody who
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is content with what you have. Praise the Lord.
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You're not looking for... Those are people, what
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they want is what is overshadowing them. They
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desire something that is not going to either
50:36
make their life any better. They just want it
50:38
because society demands that you should have
50:41
it. Praise the Lord. And they put themselves
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on undue pressure. Example, you know that you
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cannot afford certain type of laptops at this
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time of your life or certain type of phone, but
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in your heart, every time you see it, you're
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just, ah, God, when? Praise the Lord. Praise
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the Lord. He said what? To be content with such
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as you have. For he said what? He will not leave
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us nor forsake us. God will not leave you. Praise
51:09
the Lord. Nor will he forsake you. If somebody
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that is forsaken, I was like, ah, God, when?
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Praise the Lord. That's the thinking. The way
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that feels forsaken was like, ah, when would
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good things start coming to my life? Or maybe
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you see that somebody is, something good happened
51:24
to somebody, right? Rather than rejoicing with
51:27
the person, you start feeling envious or you
51:30
are angry. You don't become angry at your situation.
51:32
It's like, ah, when can I also give a testimony?
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Praise the Lord. And it's a beautiful thing to
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seek for good things, but it becomes a thing
51:41
of envy. It becomes a thing where, You no longer
51:44
know how to rejoice without which is good. Or
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when you begin to see the progress of your brothers
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or your sisters. Praise the Lord. So we move
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with this confidence that God is with us. We're
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not stranded. Praise the Lord. Hallelujah. Let's
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just rise on our feet and just pray. We appreciate
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you being here today. We hope you carry this
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word with you throughout your week. Don't forget
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to check the show notes for additional insights.
52:12
Stay connected with us through our website or
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follow us on social media. If you are encouraged,
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share this message with someone you care about.
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Until next time, stay blessed.