WWUTT 917 Killing a Man Who Raises the Dead?

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Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead, and many people believed in Jesus, so the Pharisees wanted to kill not only

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Jesus, but also Lazarus whom he raised. They wanted to kill a guy who could raise the dead.

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How absurd, when we understand the text. Many of the

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Bible stories and verses we think we know, we don't. When we understand the text, as an online ministry committed to teaching sound doctrine and exposing the faulty.

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Visit our website at www .utt .com. Now here's our host, Pastor Gabe Hughes.

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Thank you, Becky. We continue our study of the Gospel of John chapter 12, and I will pick up where I left off yesterday, starting in verse 9 and reading through verse 19.

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When the large crowd of the Jews learned that Jesus was there, they came not only on account of him, but also to see

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Lazarus, whom Jesus had raised from the dead. So the chief priest made plans to put

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Lazarus to death as well, because on account of him, many of the Jews were going away and believing in Jesus.

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The next day, the large crowd that had come to the feast heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem.

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So they took branches of palm trees and went out to meet him, crying out, Hosanna, blessed is he who comes in the name of the

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Lord, even the King of Israel. And Jesus found a young donkey and sat on it, just as it is written,

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Fear not, daughter of Zion, behold, your King is coming, sitting on a donkey's colt.

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His disciples did not understand these things at first, but when Jesus was glorified, then they remembered that these things had been written about him and had been done to him.

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The crowd that had been with him when he called Lazarus out of the tomb and raised him from the dead continued to bear witness.

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The reason why the crowd went to meet him was that they heard he had done this sign.

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So the Pharisees said to one another, you see that you are gaining nothing. Look, the world has gone after him.

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So in verse nine, I had read this section yesterday, but ran out of time. We didn't get to talk about these three verses nine through eleven.

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When the large crowd of the Jews learned that Jesus was there, that he was where in Bethany.

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Jesus was with Mary and Martha and Lazarus. He was reclining at table with Lazarus. Martha made a big feast for him.

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Mary anointed Jesus with oil or with a with a fine perfume. And it was it's in Matthew and Mark that we read that Mary had anointed him from head to toe.

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But in John, it mentions only that she anointed his feet and then wiped his feet with her hair.

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And how symbolic that was is why John seems to just focus on the feet of Jesus being anointed with this perfume rather than his whole body, as Matthew and Mark do.

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And it's there that we learn also in the synoptics, in the synoptic Gospels, Matthew, Mark and Luke are the synoptic

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Gospels, which means the same. So it's in the synoptic accounts of this anointing of Jesus at Bethany, where we read that Judas decided there to betray

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Jesus. John doesn't mention that, but we know that from the other Gospels, that that was where he came to that decision.

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So then we move from that story of Jesus being anointed to this here in verses nine through eleven with the plot to kill not only

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Jesus, but Lazarus. We already know of a plot to kill Jesus, but now they're going to include Lazarus in that as well.

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The synoptics don't mention that because the story of Lazarus being raised from the dead isn't mentioned there. So verse nine, when the large crowd of the

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Jews learned that Jesus was there at Bethany, they came not only on account of him, but also to see

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Lazarus. This story is now spread far and wide, and Jesus is no longer doing things in such a way that that he's trying to avoid a lot of attention.

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You know, before it was kind of rumors of things that he did, and then he's attracting larger and larger crowds and he would perform miracles for some people in isolation.

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But tell them, tell nobody. But then what would they do? They would go out and they would they would tell people.

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So Jesus would kind of move to another place, more secluded, where people weren't looking for him. And he would do this because his time had not yet come.

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The Pharisees were always out to kill Jesus, silence him or put him to death if he wasn't going to be quiet.

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And so so now it's come about that he's done one of the most incredible miracles that he's performed over the course of his ministry.

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So now this is hastening what is about to happen on Friday, which, of course, is his crucifixion.

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So he's done about the most public thing that he's done, the most incredible miracle that's been performed so far in view of a watching public.

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He has raised a man from the dead who was in a tomb for four days. And so people are now coming not just to see

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Jesus, but also to see the one that he raised from the dead. They all want to see a man who was in a tomb for four days now reclining at table with Jesus and the

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Pharisees. Then in verse 10, the chief priests in particular, they made plans to put

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Lazarus to death as well. They're going to try to cover up the evidence.

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There's simply no denying here what Jesus has done. He has raised a man from the dead.

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There were dozens, if not hundreds of witnesses to it that knew that Lazarus had been in a tomb for four days.

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And here comes Jesus and just speaks a word and Lazarus comes out. The very people who buried him were there.

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We knew he was dead. We wrapped him up. We placed him in the tomb and put the stone in the spot.

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And yet here's Jesus coming up four days later, telling us to move the stone and saying, Lazarus, come out.

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And he comes walking out of the tomb. There's simply no denying what has taken place. Jesus has now raised a man from the dead.

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And how did the Pharisees respond to this? By trying to cover up the evidence. We got to kill Jesus and we got to kill the guy that he raised from the dead.

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This is a denial of the highest order. Like they themselves, the

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Pharisees can't deny the evidence either, but they don't believe rather they want to destroy.

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Remember what Jesus said just two chapters ago in John 10, 10, where he said the thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy.

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And that's what the Pharisees are going to do because they are under the influence of Satan. Jesus says, I have come that they may have life and have it more abundantly.

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And he is literally given a dead man life. And all who follow him receive life in abundance.

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It's in the book of Matthew and Mark, the books, it's Matthew 12 and Mark three that we read about blasphemy of the

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Holy Spirit. And let me read what Jesus says specifically, according to Mark, Mark, chapter three, verse 22, the scribes who came down from Jerusalem were saying he is possessed by Beelzebul and by the prince of demons.

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He casts out the demons and he called them to him and said to them in parables, how can

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Satan cast out Satan? If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand.

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And if a house is divided against itself, that house will not be able to stand. And if Satan has risen up against himself and is divided, he cannot stand, but is coming to an end.

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But no one can enter a strong man's house and plunder his goods unless he first binds the strong man.

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Then indeed, he may plunder his house. And this is a reference to Jesus having bound Satan.

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He was able to withstand Satan, Satan's temptations of Jesus in the wilderness back in Matthew, chapter four, and Satan being the prince of this world has been bound.

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And now Jesus is plundering his house. He is able to accomplish the things that he is accomplishing because he is bound the strong man.

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So Jesus goes on. Verse twenty eight. Truly, I say to you, all the sins will be forgiven the children of man and whatever blasphemies they utter.

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But whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is guilty of an eternal sin, for they were saying that Jesus has an unclean spirit.

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So here's what we have to understand by this. Now, oftentimes this is debated. What is the the unforgivable sin?

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And people will fall into great fear thinking that they've committed the unforgivable sin.

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Well, if you're worried about that, I can tell you that you haven't committed the unforgivable sin because the person who has committed it has a heart that is so hard that he's not even going to be asking that question.

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Was it have I done that? Have I done that before? The way that that I've taught this and the way that it's often taught is that as long as a person has breath in their lungs, we need to believe that person can repent and come to salvation in Christ.

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That person needs the gospel. Of course, it is God who grants repentance. Second, Timothy chapter two.

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But as long as that person is still alive, there is a chance that God will grant that person repentance and they will come to faith.

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So we shouldn't be looking at people saying that person's elect, that person's not elect, or we shouldn't look at anybody and say that person has committed the the unpardonable sin.

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And so therefore we can't preach to them. But that person over here has not committed that sin yet. We can't make those determinations when a person dies and stands before God.

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If in life they did not repent of their sin and respond to the gospel, the call of the

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Holy Spirit, then they've committed blasphemy of the Holy Spirit. And that's the unforgivable sin.

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And it is for that that they will be condemned. That's the way that this passage is most often taught.

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And I've taught it that way as well. And I don't think it's wrong to teach it that way. But I still think there's something more deeply implied here in that in life, a person can commit an unpardonable sin from which they will never return.

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Now, again, we can't know who that is, but God does. His spirit searches mind and heart.

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He knows the innermost thoughts of every person. And there are those who have committed a sin so deep that that their heart is so far gone.

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It is so hardened that they're never going to turn back from it. And they will continue to persist in that sin until their death, when they will fall under the judgment of God.

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Now, he continues to keep them alive because, as it says in Proverbs 16, for the

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Lord has made everything for its purpose, even the wicked for the day of trouble. So those who do wicked, who are even guilty of an unpardonable sin,

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God still has a purpose and plan for them to work out his perfect will as long as it is called today.

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But there are those who have committed these sins. Their heart is so hardened they cannot turn back.

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They have seen the evidence. They have seen the proof and they know it and they refuse to believe it.

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They have blasphemed the Holy Spirit. And in this particular story, in Mark three, Jesus is either indicating that the

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Pharisees are dangerously close to committing the unpardonable sin or he's saying that they already have at least these

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Pharisees right here that he is talking about. Those who said he is possessed by Beelzebul, these who are the teachers of Israel know the

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Old Testament scriptures. They know what the prophets have said. They know what the signs will be of the holy one whom

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God has sent. And yet now they're seeing those signs and they know matter of factly what is happening here is supernatural.

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And yet they're rejecting it. They are denying it. They're saying, no, no, no, it is supernatural.

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It is incredible. I acknowledge that this is something miraculous that's being done. But you know what? It's Satan. It's Beelzebul.

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That's who's doing it. Can't possibly be the son of God. Yes. Even though the prophets say this is what he is going to do, even though Moses said there's another that's going to come like me, but it can't be him.

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It's got to be Beelzebul. It's because they've committed the unpardonable sin. Their heart is so hardened that they refuse to acknowledge the evidence of what it is that is being done right before their very eyes and fulfilling the scriptures that they know they are educated in.

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They teach because they're the shepherds of Israel. They're supposed to be guiding the people in an understanding of what the prophets wrote down, who they're going to be looking for, the

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Messiah that is promised to come. And now here he is. And they're calling him Satan. Because they have committed the unforgivable sin.

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And so we have that going on here as well. And I would say in this instance that we have in John 12, it's even worse than what we read there in Mark chapter three, because here they are even acknowledging that this miracle has been done and we're going to have to do away with it.

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If we're going to keep the people from following after Jesus, we got to kill Lazarus. So now they're not only trying to kill

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Jesus, they're trying to kill Lazarus, too. These are wicked, evil men.

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And remember, back in John chapter 10, Jesus had said to those who were picking up stones to stone him, he said, is it not written in your law?

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I said, you are gods. If he called them gods to whom the word of God came and scripture cannot be broken.

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Do you say of him whom the father consecrated and sent into the world, you are blaspheming? Do you say of him you are blaspheming?

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Because I said, I am the son of God. If I am not doing the works of my father, then do not believe me.

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But if I do them and he's being he's, of course, being rhetorical here because he is doing the works of his father, it's evident that the miracles that he's doing are signs from God.

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If I do them, even though you do not believe me, believe the works that you may know and understand that the father is in me and I am in the father.

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And again, they sought to arrest him, but he escaped from their hands. So Jesus referring back to Psalm 82, which says you are gods.

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God was warning the wicked kings of the earth at that time who had let all their power and authority go to their head.

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And he called them gods sarcastically and then goes on to say, but like men, you shall die, reminding them that they are not gods.

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And so Jesus says that scripture cannot be broken. So these whom God referred to back in Psalm 82, that's you.

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You're accusing me of blasphemy when you are trying to kill the son of God, he whom the father consecrated.

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So this was a warning on Jesus part to these people. Do you understand what it is that you're saying?

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This blasphemy that they are committing, but giving them an opportunity to repent. Here we've got these men who whose hearts are so hardened they cannot turn back from it.

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They are committed not only to killing Jesus, but even trying to cover the evidence of of his supernatural authority over even death itself.

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They're trying to cover up the evidence of that. Now, it's incredibly absurd. Just think about what it is that they're plotting to do here.

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Lazarus was raised from the dead and they're going to go kill him. When Jesus could just raise him from the dead again, and if Jesus has the power to raise the dead yet, they're still foolish enough to think that they can kill

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Jesus. This is how absurd these guys are. But it's the same absurdity that we all have lived in at some point.

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All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. Sin is absurd. I mean, you think about sin, meaning that we are pointing the finger at God, the one who created heaven and earth, time and space, and holds all things in his hands.

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And we're pointing the finger at him and saying, I know better than you. I mean, how absurd is sin?

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And yet it is the Holy Spirit that has opened our eyes to see our foolishness, our ridiculousness, and our need for a savior.

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Because had we perished in that state, pointing the finger at God, then we would have died in judgment.

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But the Holy Spirit opens our eyes, quickens us to respond to the gospel of Jesus Christ when we hear it, so that with eyes to see and ears to hear, we may have faith in him who has died for us.

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And by faith, we are forgiven our sins and we have everlasting life with God.

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But these Pharisees' hearts are so hardened, they can't even see the truth right there in front of their eyes.

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And there are people that do this even now. They see the truth so evidently, so readily, but their heart is so hardened because they suppress the truth with their unrighteousness.

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Romans 1 18. Just yesterday, Alyssa Milano, the actress, made a statement online.

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Now, this is the actress who has pulled together that that boycott of Georgia because Georgia is passing or has passed, rather, just a couple of days ago, the fetal heartbeat bill.

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At the moment that a child in the womb has a heartbeat, they have person status and to abort them would be to commit murder.

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A heartbeat can develop even before a woman knows that she's pregnant as early as six weeks.

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And so Alyssa Milano has pulled together all these actors and actresses and said, we're not going to film in Georgia.

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It's a list of about 80 right now. We're not going to film our scenes in Georgia as long as this is going on.

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And in her high and mightiness, just yesterday, Milano made this particular statement.

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I love God. I believe in God, but I don't believe my personal beliefs, of which we can't confirm, should override scientific facts and what we can confirm.

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And then she quotes John 3 12. If I have told you earthly things and you do not believe, how can you believe if I tell you heavenly things, which is way out of context?

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That's the conversation that Jesus had with Nicodemus in which he was telling Nicodemus how to be born again.

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And Alyssa Milano actually condemns herself because she doesn't understand earthly things, that a child in the womb is a living person.

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So how can she understand heavenly things? The very passage she's using to try to condemn others she condemns herself with.

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But let's go back to the the first part of her statement. She says, I love God. I believe in God, but I don't believe my personal beliefs, of which we can't confirm, should override scientific facts and what we can confirm.

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Well, faith in God is is conformational, like we don't believe blindly.

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So let me put it to you that Alyssa Milano neither believes in God, nor does she believe the scientific facts, because this bill that's been passed in Georgia is based on scientific facts that a child in the womb has a beating heart as early as six weeks.

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And at that point, Georgia has decided that child in the womb has person status and they cannot be aborted.

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Alyssa would rather destroy the evidence. She wants to kill the child before it comes to knowledge that this is a child.

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She is wanting to put the evidence to death or give the woman a right to be able to kill the child that is in her womb.

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She is dangerously close to a heart so hardened that she is beyond repentance, having been turned over to a depraved mind if she hasn't been already now to a person like to almost call her

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Melissa Alyssa Milano. I would still preach the gospel, hoping that God indeed would grant her repentance because we can't know.

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As I said before, God will forgive even the murder of unborn infant children for those who repent and ask for forgiveness in Christ Jesus.

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But as the condition of Milano's heart stands right now, she wants to destroy the evidence. She wants to kill the thing that has life, just as the

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Pharisees want to destroy that which was given life. Lazarus raised from the dead and putting

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Jesus to death as well, which is absurd, thinking that you can kill the man who can raise the dead or thinking you could kill the man who was raised from the dead.

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So the chief priest made plans to put Lazarus to death as well, because on account of him, many of the

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Jews were going away and believing in Jesus, as Jesus will say, coming up here in John 14, six,

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I am the way, the truth and the life. So much for Alyssa Milano's statement of we can't confirm, you know, believing in God.

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She neither believes in God, nor does she believe in the facts, for the fact is that Jesus came and died and rose again.

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And only by faith in him does one have eternal life. He's not some myth or legend that we are hoping is the right way.

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We know matter of factly, Jesus came, he died. Only he who lived a perfect life and had power over death itself, whose tomb is empty, who sits at the right hand of the throne of God, who is coming back again to judge the living and the dead.

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Only Christ can save souls from death. So turn from your sin and worship him.

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Know that he is the truth and we are sanctified in his truth as we continue to grow in knowledge and holiness of him who was written about by the very men who were there and saw these things happen.

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The apostles. Let's conclude with prayer. Our wonderful God, we thank you for the testimony of your word that we may read and believe.

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For as it says in Romans 10, 17, faith comes from hearing the truth and hearing comes through the word of Christ that was given to us when your son came, that through Christ we might have fellowship with God.

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Grow us in this relationship with you day by day as we continue to grow in your word.

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In Jesus name we pray. Amen. Thank you for listening to when we understand the text with Pastor Gabe Hughes.

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