Isaiah Lesson 55

Cornerstone Church

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Lord God, we are privileged to be here because we are worshipping and hearing from the one true

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God. There is a message that you have for us, there is truth that you give us while the world at the same time is trying to lead us astray, and idols and false gods that seek our attention.

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Lord, we pray that our focus would be, without compromise, on the true God. Be with Pastor Jeff as he brings us into this passage in Isaiah.

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We pray in Jesus' name, amen. Amen. So we pick up this week where we left off last week.

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You'll notice your notes are actually the same, because I only made it halfway through so I figured I would just continue with where we left off last week.

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Made it easy on me this week. But does anybody remember the

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Hebrew and the Greek for I am? Ego. Ego.

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Ego. Ego. Ego. Ego. Ego. Ego. Ego. Ego. Ego. Ego. Ego. Ego. Ego. Lego my ego.

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Lego. Any who. Any who. Any who.

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Any who. So it's like any who. Let's move on. And then Lego my ego, that helps you remember ego a knee.

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Now why would we want to be learning obscure Hebrew and Greek phrases like that?

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Is it really worth our time? I mean couldn't we be watching football? Well, they represent the text of the primatron which is the self -existing god...

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It derives from Exodus 3 .14, the tetragrammatron, YHWH, the name which means

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I am. Well, here's a practical reason. If you study this carefully and add this tool, you know how we've studied in Hebrews that you would be equipped for every good work, this will be equipment to fight theologically every

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Muslim and Mormon and Jehovah's Witness and secular humanist that says that Jesus was, you know, just a good man.

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Every form of heresy about the person of Christ is refuted from what we study today.

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That's some pretty good ammo to have, right? Wouldn't it be great to just have knowledge from the scripture that if it's a

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Jehovah's Witness knocking on your door. So what you're really doing is you're teaching apologetics. This is apologetics.

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That's very well said. And apologetics, of course, is a defense of the faith. We need to defend and have a reason for the hope that is in us.

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We had a lady in our church who was approached before she had come to faith or had a strong knowledge of the faith in any case, and that person was a next door neighbor and gave her a

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Bible. And she had that as she started to come to Cornerstone. Well, when I saw her with her

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Bible, I didn't encourage her to keep it. I told her to throw it away because that Bible was a

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New World translation. And it doesn't translate, ego, I am.

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It simply says I have been, which is something sort of different.

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Because the claim is different. A Jehovah's Witness New World translation does not believe that Jesus is

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God, the only God. But the book of John introduces him that way.

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John 1 -1? In the beginning was God and then he put an indefinite article in there.

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Notice that? They say, and was a God. It's not there. So they mistranslate John 1 -1, not knowing

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Greek scholarship how to do that. There is actually a definite article there, the ha, the rough breathing ha, which means he's the

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God. Yeah, so that's there in John 1 -1. John 1 -18, the only

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God, he has made him known. Jesus is referred to as the monogamous

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Theion, the only, the unique God who is at the

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Father's side. He has made him known. The only subject of John 1 -18 is

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Jesus. So John introduces his epistle by calling

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Jesus the Word of God, who is not only with God, he is

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God. And then he says he's the monogamous Theion, the unique God. Jesus is identified as God.

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But the strength of our argument comes through the book as that's expounded from the very words of the mouth of the

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Messiah himself. And he doesn't just draw from Exodus 3 -14.

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Sometimes we say, well, you know, Tetragrammaton, I am, that's enough for us. No, actually,

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Isaiah 40 -48 gives us the context of why we identify him as God.

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This section of the book of Isaiah we have called the trial of false gods.

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Again and again, the false gods are put on trial and the true

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God, the unique God, is set up over against them as better and the true, and we're able to identify who that true

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God is because he can tell us the former things and the things to come.

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So we come into Isaiah 43, beautiful section in verses 1 -7, where we saw the uniqueness of the

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God of Israel and his special love, his unique love for his people.

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Verse 1 said, fear not, for I have redeemed you. I have called you by name.

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You are mine. That's pretty comforting, isn't it? And then we see his special love for his people and he's the only savior.

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We pick up where we left off last week at verse 8. So John, would you read for us verses 8 and 9,

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Isaiah 43, 8 and 9. And here again, it's the trial of false gods. So see how he puts the false gods on trial and he condemns the idolaters and then the people of Yahweh are exalted as belonging to the true

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God. So verses 8 and 9. Bring out the people who are blind, yet have eyes, who are deaf, yet have ears, all the nations gathered together and the peoples assembled, who among them can declare this and show us the former things.

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Let them bring their witnesses to prove them right and let them hear and say it is true.

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The Jehovah's Witness claims his special standing before Yahweh as a witness from these very verses and especially verse 10.

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Isn't that interesting? Did you ever wonder where the JWs got their name? Isaiah 43, 9 and 10.

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And yet ironically, let's do what the text says and let's put that God to the trial because that's what

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Yahweh is doing. He's putting false gods on trial. Look at verse 8. Who are the blind and the deaf?

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Are they the physically blind and deaf? The Jehovah's Witnesses. Well, yeah, that would be an example.

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But here, it's kind of anachronistic because they wouldn't even existed back then because the

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Jehovah's Witnesses come later in time. Although they are actually early in church history because Marcion, I'm sorry,

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Arius was Jehovah's Witness, essentially, anachronistically. Yeah, Arius was claiming that Jesus wasn't the true

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God. He was some lesser deity that the true God made, which is the exact opposite of this passage.

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In any case, it says in verse 8, bring out the people who are blind. That's spiritual blindness because it says yet have eyes.

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So these are those who are spiritually blind. They think they see. And they're deaf yet have ears.

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They think they hear. Do you guys think that Muslims genuinely believe that they're right?

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Yeah, they do. You're right, John. A lot of them were forced by the sword.

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Sure, yeah. And a lot of it, you know, the church and I ran and screamed like crazy.

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Right. So we're coming, yeah, praise God. Well, the reality, too, is if you go to the

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Crusades, I mean, Christianity tried to spread Christianity by the sword.

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So not as bad as Muslims, but yeah, but Muslims don't have their own. You cannot force faith by violence.

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Faith comes by hearing and by grace. Now, they unfortunately, I think you're right, Jeff, they are convinced what they know to be true.

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Yeah. Retrained since childhood, since the Middle East. Right. Yeah, absolutely. I was watching a documentary yesterday, not to get off the subject, but they were saying the hatred that we teach our children is sacred.

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That's what they say. A hatred for the Jews that we teach the children is sacred. Yeah. And that is the case with many in the

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Middle East is trained from birth to hate the Jewish people. They're going to be sorely disappointed. Yes.

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Yeah. And yet the point here in the text is they think they see the Mormon in Utah who's raised a certain way and has this quote unquote experience of the burning in the bosom.

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So they think they've experienced something from the true God. The same with the

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Jehovah's Witness who's next door to the lady in our church and giving out a New World Translation. She thinks and she is convinced that we are pagans and celebrate

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Christmas because of our paganism. She's what religion? Jehovah's Witness. But we don't even have to go that far because there are small e with quotes around evangelical churches that are compromised away from the truth and convinced that they're right.

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Yeah. They have eyes, but they don't see. Yeah. Absolutely. True. Yeah. Very good.

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So bring them out. The test is not whether you sincerely think you're right.

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That's not the test. Sincerity is not the test because people who think they see and they think they hear and yet they're blind and deaf.

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So verse nine, all the nations gather together and the people's assemble.

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Who among them can declare this and show us the former things?

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Now this is a repetition of what has been repeated through the trial of false gods beginning

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Isaiah 40 and we'll go through 48. It's this idea that the true God is identifiable because he has a purpose, a plan that explains everything that's happened.

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Why the Assyrian came against Jerusalem and then why the

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Assyrians were vanquished. Everything that's happened in the past and he can declare the future things.

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So he uniquely knows the future and we're going to see in John 13 with Jesus explaining what

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Judas Iscariot will do. He tells the future in the very claim where he goes to verse 10 and claims, ego,

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Amy, we'll get to, we'll get to that, but just noticing here declaring the future things and showing us the former things.

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Let them bring their witnesses and prove them right.

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You prophesied in our culture today, maybe the greatest danger is the abject rejection of rationality that things can't be proven that whatever a person believes is true simply because they believe it.

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But the Bible does not hold that test of faith. The Bible actually holds that there are provable, rational, evident truths that must be accepted and if rejected, you break yourself against them.

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It's not a matter of sincerity. Daniel 2 prophesied, you know, that Babylon, Greece, you know,

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Perseverum, it was so precise that Porphyry, 2nd century Porphyry, said it had to be written after the fact.

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Right. Can I still say that now? Yeah. Yep. Until the Dead Sea Scrolls proved that they were dated earlier.

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Yeah. That's their only explanation for the prophetic element of the scripture.

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Okay. Now, let's get into the meat of this. So, let them bring their witnesses to prove them right and let them hear and say it is true.

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That's an objective truth. Okay. So, here is then the crucial verses for refuting a

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Jehovah's Witness or a Muslim or a Mormon who believes that there's three separate gods.

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Let's look at it. Somebody want to read that? How about you, Bob? Where are we reading?

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Let's just do 10 to 13, that block of… 10 to 13. Yeah. You are my witnesses, declares the

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Lord, and my servant whom I have chosen so that you may know and believe me and understand that I am he.

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Before me no god was formed, nor will there be one after me. I, even I, am the

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Lord, and apart from me there is no savior. I have revealed and saved and proclaimed.

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I am not some foreign god among you. You are my witnesses, declares the Lord, that I am

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God. Yes, and from ancient days I am he. No one can deliver out of my hand.

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When I act, who can reverse it? Beautiful. So, there is a repetition here, as it has already been the case, beginning back in Isaiah 41.

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Flip back to verse 4. Do you recognize this language in the trial of false gods?

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It says, who has performed and done this? Calling the generations from the beginning,

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I, the Lord, the first, and with the last, I am he.

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Somebody tell me how to say that in the original Hebrew. Anyhoo.

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Anyhoo. Very good. We are going to learn this. Anyhoo. Anyhoo. Anyhoo. We move on.

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Anyhoo. So, anyhoo, and the reason I stress this though is because it is very important for the claim that is going to be made.

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Now, raise your hand. Don't blurt out. If you know, what is the

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Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible, which was written at least 100, maybe 300 or more years before Christ came,

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I am going to call him Bob. Septuagint. Were you going to say that? Septuagint. The LXX, the Septuagint. Okay. The scholars, supposedly 70 scholars, we don't know about the historicity of this, but the etymology of the term

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Septuagint is that 70 rabbis, scholars, went and took the Hebrew Bible and translated it into Greek.

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And miraculously, their manuscripts all came out word for word exact. If God did that in his providence, that would be a strong symbol.

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But whatever the case is, they translated from Hebrew to Greek. And how was anyhoo rendered in the

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Septuagint? Ego Ami. Ego Ami. You see where this is so important.

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Now, what translation of the Bible did Jesus and the apostles work from?

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Hebrew. The Septuagint, actually. Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, anytime they quote, they're quoting from the

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Septuagint. They're writing in Greek, Koine Greek, and they're using the Septuagint as their reference.

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So when John uses the language of Jesus 24 times, saying

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Ego Ami, there is a reference to this repetition,

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Ego Ami, in the trial of false gods. Let me show you the first strong one. And you're going to even see, it goes beyond the word itself to the particulars.

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Check this out. Isaiah 41, 4. This is amazing.

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Who has performed and done this, calling the generations from the beginning?

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I, the Lord. That's the tetragrammatron, YHWH, the name of God from Exodus 3 .14.

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The first and with the last, I am He.

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Now, what's so significant with that is any who in the Hebrew or Ego Ami in the

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Greek finishes the sentence. There's no predicate.

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It's not saying, I am the living water.

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I am the bread of life. I am the good shepherd. I am something else, the door or the gate.

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It just ends, literally, it's just I am in the

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Greek. So I am He is implied, that this is the He. But recognize what

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I'm saying. This verse actually ends with Ego Ami. It's a strong, forceful conclusion that has no predicate.

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It ends in and of itself. It's a claim, I am. You see that? That's how it reads in the

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Hebrew and in the Septuagint. Now, turn with me, if you will, to John 13, verse 19.

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And Barbara, when you get there, would you be willing to read that for us? John 13, 19.

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Let me set it up while you find it. Jesus is the speaker.

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He says that a servant is not greater than his master, nor a messenger greater than the one who sent him.

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If you know these things, blessed are you if you do that. Now, in John 13, 18, he says,

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I am not speaking of all of you. I know whom I have chosen, but the scripture will be fulfilled.

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He who ate my bread has lifted his heel against me. Who's he referring to there?

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Judas Iscariot. He's prophesying a future event, something that's yet to come.

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Now, who knows the future and is able to prophesy the future? God himself, right?

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But look at verse 19. Barbara, you got it? I am telling you now before it happens, so that when it does happen, you will believe that I am he.

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Wow. You see it? The very test of the true God, future telling, and the very expression,

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I am he. And not only that, there's no predicate. There's no ending.

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Here, he's already made major claims to deity, and the Jews were catching what he was saying.

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You know, to claim to be the bread of life, the living bread. Can just anybody make that claim?

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Only Jesus. Not the Lord today. No. Because, I mean, what would that mean?

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That you're living bread? That if you eat my flesh and drink my blood, then you have a part in me?

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And that this bread sustains you and gives you life? But it's still got a predicate.

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It's still saying, I am this. And then it's an analogy to explain who he is. Now, it's such a strong analogy that only

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God could say it. But what I'm telling you here is in that John 13, verse 19.

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It's also true of three verses in John 8 and three verses in John 18.

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There's no predicate in John 8. Before Abraham was.

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Ego eimi. I am. He just leaves it there. Just claiming the sentence itself.

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I am. That's a reference to Isaiah 43, 10. Here in John 13, 19.

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I am telling you this now. Before it takes place, that when it does take place, you may believe that ego eimi.

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Do you see it now? What a claim. That's the name of God. That's the test of the trial of false gods.

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Only the true God can say ego eimi in that sense. They knew. And in John 8, they pick up stones to stone him because they totally get what he's saying.

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That's why it's such a forceful claim. John 8, 58. Before Abraham was born, ego eimi. They're ready to kill him.

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They try to stone him to death. He's claiming to be God. They know the book of Isaiah. What's the

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JW answer to that? They wouldn't have one. I don't think many. Many people from the

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JW side would even be able to engage at that level of the Greek. To be honest with you.

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I'm sure there's some that would make a pretense to it, but there's no answer to it. You know how the new world translation.

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Oh, yeah. Well, they're false. Translation is I have been the NWT. I have been like just saying that.

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God made him and he had been there. But no, he's claiming according to Isaac. They don't know that the connection with Isaiah 40 to 48 and how this had been the test of the true

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God. I have a new world translation. Right? I said, you should throw that away. Well, the lady in our church trashed hers, too.

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So do you see the force of that? When they came to arrest Jesus, they asked for him.

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Who are you looking for? But how does he answer it? Right.

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But in the Greek, I am. And the very force of claiming ego and me knocks the soldiers over.

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Do you see the force of what John is presenting from this? It comes. Let's go back to from Isaiah 43, 10.

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So Isaiah 41, 4. You saw it already. And that has that same parallelism with the context of John 13 verse 19.

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So look at this. Now we're in Isaiah 43, 10. You are my witnesses, declares the

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Lord. Someone may claim to be a witness. Jehovah's Witness.

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But they're not. If they deny the ego, Amy, the true

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God. Right. And my servant whom I have chosen. That you may know and believe me and understand.

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That any who that ego Amy. I'm just going to keep repeating this till it's in our brain.

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Any who ego Amy. Do you see how he finishes the sentence again?

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It's just it's just pregnant. With this meaning that I am.

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And there's no predicate. There's nothing more. It's just left so full with this statement.

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I am. And what does that pregnancy of the sentence imply?

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This is God speaking. He is who he is. The self -existent one. The one who always has been.

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The one that Moses saw in the burning bush and asked, who shall I say sent me?

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And God simply says, I am who I am. And from then on, his personal name,

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Yahweh, Jehovah. Was made known to Israel as John brought up on Sunday.

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They wouldn't even speak it right now. He says in verse 11 beside me. There is no savior.

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Right? Yeah. Yeah. Right. Jesus. Yep. Now, if you're ever dealing particularly with a

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Mormon. This is the first verse to go to. Okay. Because Mormon theology says that Jesus is not

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Elohim. The father. He's the son of God. And in truth, Jesus is the son of God.

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But by that, they need an offspring between a heavenly father and a heavenly mother.

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And this offspring Jesus would then be kind of the God over a planet.

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And there would be other gods that come from him. Namely the Mormon. Who will be resurrected and be the

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God over another planet. So Elohim comes from Kolob. But before Elohim was at the planet

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Kolob. His parents. Jesus' grandparents. Were gods over another planet.

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Do you see how they have a council of the gods? And there's an infinite regression. As far as we know.

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That before the grandparents, there were great grandparents. Do you see the idea of God? That the

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Mormons hold? And why as God is. We shall become.

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And as he was. That's how we elevate. The same way

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Elohim became a God. We can become gods. So look at the verse.

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Before me, no God was formed. Nor shall there be any after me.

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That right there is the death now of Mormonism. Because the true

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Jesus. Is not the spirit brother of Lucifer. He's the one through whom the world was made.

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He is one in essence in being with his father. Sharing all the attributes of deity.

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Always existing. He is the I am. So when Jesus comes in the book of John.

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And 24 times uses that expression. Eggo Amy. Sometimes with the predicate.

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That only would describe God. As in I am the bread of life. I am the way.

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I am the truth. I am the life. Who could claim to be the life. I am the resurrection in the life.

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All of these eggo Amy's. That have a predicate. But even more forcefully. The seven times.

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John 8 three times. John 13 19. John 18 three times. He just leaves it pregnant with.

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Eggo Amy. I am. You cannot miss. The reference.

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To Isaiah 43 10. He's claiming to be God. One. Not just in purpose.

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But ontologically. Unified in one being. One essence. With the five.

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This is the basis of the Trinity. Did Christians make up the doctrine of the Trinity. In Nicaea.

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In 325 AD. No. No. They refuted a heretic. Named Arius. He was finally.

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Bringing a false teaching against. What was always believed from the Bible. So Jesus himself.

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Said he will send another. Counselor. Who will be with you. And he's called. The spirit of truth.

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He is. The paraclete. The helper. Another. Member of the Trinity. Which is easy for us to understand.

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Once you have. Father and son. It's not. Hard for us to recognize.

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Jesus's authority. In revealing. The third member of the Trinity. But the Trinity is built. Right from this passage.

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Ultimately. It's revealed. When Christ. Walks among us. The word made flesh.

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And like C .S. Lewis says. Lord liar or lunatic. He makes the claim.

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To be the Lord. To be. And by Lord. We mean. Capital L. Capital O.

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Capital R. Capital D. The tetragrammaton. Yahweh. He claims to be.

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God. I am. That's the claim. That changes everything. Now.

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God. In the flesh. That's the claim. He makes. Now. He's either the Lord. He claims to be. Or he's a lunatic.

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Or a liar. And of course. He is. C .S. Lewis. Yep. What does a

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J .W. Say. About the verse. Where Jesus says. I am the father. R1. Okay. Very interesting.

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That's John. 1030. And if you read the context. Of John. 10. He actually.

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Is. And this is why. We have to be careful. In our apologetics. And as John said. We're studying apologetics.

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This morning. He is talking. About purpose. In John. 1030. He is saying.

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In the context. There. That the father. And the son. Are perfectly. United. In purpose.

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So. Yes. I would not use. John. 1030. To prove the Trinity. However. I would use it.

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To fight against. A modalist. Like Geno. Jennings. Because. If you actually.

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Look at the Greek. Of. I and my father. Are one. That it reads.

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More literally. I and my father. We. Are. One. Isn't that interesting.

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Because that plural. For we. Indicates. Two persons. In the sentence. I. And my father.

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So. Geno. Jennings. And other modalists. These are. So. Sinians. These are. Those who. Believe.

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That God. Only exists. In different modes. Right. So. The father. Jesus. Was a modal expression.

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Of Yahweh. In the flesh. But he's not. The son of God. From eternity. Past. So. I'll. Go to Hebrews.

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One. Two. And show. That the world. Was made. Through Christ. Jesus. As the son. Through the son. The son.

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Was the son. From eternity. Past. Hebrews. One. Two. But I'll also. Go to John. Ten. Thirty.

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I. And my father. We. Are. One. So. There is. A distinction. Between the persons.

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Father. Son. And Holy Spirit. You. Distinct. Personhood. Right. And in John.

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Ten. To answer your question. Directly. He is referring to. Oneness. And redemption.

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That the father. Has planned. And elected. A people. For redemption. And Jesus. Has the same will.

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And accomplishes. That redemption. In his blood. And there are. One. In that. Redemptive purpose. And so.

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If you study the context. And the Mormon. Does the same thing. Well. If you look at it. It looks like. They're talking about. One in purpose.

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Absolutely true. But. That. Purpose. Of saving.

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Is. A divine purpose. So. That itself. Proves. The deed. Because. Who brought this up.

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Just a minute ago. Look at the next verse. Verse eleven. I. I am the Lord. And beside me.

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There is no savior. So. In that saving purpose. Father.

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Son. And spirit. Are perfectly united. As the one God. And there's no God. Besides.

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God. This is why we're monotheists. We're not polytheists. We don't believe that there are three gods.

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That's anathema. According to this scripture. And so. The only answer. Is the

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Trinitarian conception. One God. Three persons. Right?

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Just according to what the scripture says. So. Verse eleven. I. I am the Lord. And besides me.

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There is no. Savior. So. The Jehovah's Witness says.

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Well. Jesus is the savior. But. Jehovah. Is God. You look at verse eleven.

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I. I am. God. And besides me. There is no savior.

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No other savior. Yeah. Or no savior. Yeah. Or no

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God. Right. No God. He is the one and only savior. When Jesus comes as the savior of the world.

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He is God. In flesh. The Trinity. Father. Son. And Holy Spirit.

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One God. Jesus is the second member of the Trinity. And a distinct person from the father.

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Think about it. He prays to his father. So there's distinction in communication.

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There's distinction in love. There's an object of love. My father has loved me. And I have loved my father.

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There's a distinction in sharing glory. The glory which the father has given me. Before the foundation of the world.

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So there's communication between. He's not a ventriloquist. Right. There's a distinction in the persons of the

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Trinity. Father. Son. And Holy Spirit. But a unity of essence. Of the being of God himself.

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Is one. In nature. All the attributes of deity are shared. In other words, the spirit is omniscient.

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And omnipresent. And omnipotent. And the son has those same attributes. And the father shared this deity.

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As the one true God. And yet there's distinction. That's the Trinity. And we get it right here.

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Yeah. I believe the early Greek. The saying was.

34:09

Right. Yeah. Gonna bring some Latin in here too. We've got some

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Greek. We got some Hebrew. And some Latin. And some Latin. Or the hypostatic union.

34:21

Yeah. The idea is the hypostasis. The person. There's in that one person.

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The unity of Christ. There's two. No. Two natures. So you have the divine nature of Jesus.

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And the human nature. In the hypostatic union of that one person. Is Jesus Christ.

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So when you say substance. That's one substance with the father. So father, son, and spirit.

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Are one substance. One essence. One being. Okay. But the hypostatic union refers to the person of Christ.

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One person. With two natures. Did I get that right? Yeah. You went before the ordination council.

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You got it. Yeah. So. By the way. Does that blow your mind? Oh man.

35:08

Yeah. Almost the opposite. It fills it to the edge. It fills it to the edge. You know. I've had people ask me.

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In fact. They ask you at this council. Explain. You know. The trinity. I don't think there's any.

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Analogy. That you can use. To explain the trinity. Right. The closest I could possibly come.

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Is that I am a. I am the father. I am a son. And I am a husband. I felt the same thing.

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And it's all me. Now. It's not a good analogy.

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Because it. It tries to do something. To God. It's just to demonstrate. That you can have one

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God. And you can have a trinity. Within that one God. And it's still one God. Now.

35:56

There's. The modalism. Is a dangerous. Right. Path to go down. It's one

36:02

God. And one purpose. But.

36:08

There are. There are three. There are three persons. All. All with a fullness of deity. And. It just blows my mind.

36:15

Right. Yeah. I am excited about the concept. Of eternity. Never growing tired.

36:23

Of learning more about. God. Yes. When. We were Catholic school. They said. God. Always was.

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And always will be. I can understand. Always will be. But not always was. Yeah. Yeah. Eternity.

36:35

Doesn't blow your mind. In verse 13. It says. Also. Henceforth.

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I don't even have to read it. In English. Because you guys know. Right. Everybody together.

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Hey. Go. Hey. Me. Henceforth. I. Am. He. Do you see the repetition here.

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That's why it's so significant. When you have that repetition. In the book of John. Right.

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You see that. Because. The trial. Of false gods. Throughout. Isaiah. 40. To 48. He repeats this same thing.

37:07

Over and over again. And then. The author of John. John. Will repeat. Quoting Jesus.

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The same. Exact. Phrase. Even. In the case of John. 13. 19. Using the same context.

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As Isaiah. 41. For. So. You have this repetition. That's supposed to drive it.

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Home. When Jesus shows up. Saying. I. Am. He. When he's saying ego. He's claiming.

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To be Yahweh. There's no other. He's claiming. To be God. You can't miss it. If you've studied the book of Isaiah.

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Now. We're in lesson 55. Very few. Christians. Sadly. Will ever even read.

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The book of Isaiah. Closely. So. I commend you. That you guys. Would dig.

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This deep. To notice. But. It's equipment. To fight. Any heretic.

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And I wish. Every Christian. Were equipped. With the teachings. Of Isaiah. 40. 48. Particularly.

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For the purpose of apologetics. So. There is none. Who can deliver from my hand. I work. And who can turn it back.

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So. We'll stop there. But let's just reiterate. This then. An application. Make use.

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Of the trial. Of false gods. Especially. Isaiah. 43. 8.

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To 13. What we studied today. When contending. With people.

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Who deny. The Trinity. Some of you probably think. I'm not contentious.

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I don't want to contend. No. Contend. For the faith. Once and for all.

38:38

Delivered to the saints. Jude 1. 3. And it's good. To have the desire. To be constantly in unity.

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With people. Right. Because Jude says. I wanted to write to you. About our common salvation.

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But I felt. That it was necessary. That I write to you. To contend. For the faith. Once and for all.

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Handed down to the saints. So. We need. To gain. This understanding. This apologetic strength. Because. Sadly.

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If that Jehovah's Witness. Keep saying. That Jesus. Is the Archangel Michael. According.

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To. These. The very. Seven passages. That we looked at. The IM passages. She will die.

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In her sin. Because. Unless you believe. That ego. A. Me. You will die.

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In her sin. The Trinity. Is. A life.

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And death. Heaven. And hell. Is. Those. Explicit. Now. Doesn't mean. You have to.

39:31

Understand. The fullness. Of how. Does. The. Ontological. Unity. In the. You know. The distinction.

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Of persons. In. Hypostatic. Union. And all. Of the. You know. The heresies.

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That have. Shot off. From it. You know. You don't have to have. This comprehensive knowledge. Nor do you. Do I. You know.

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Have a full understanding. But the person. Who did not. Any of the explicit teachings.

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About who Christ is. Like saying. He's a created God. Or he's. One of many. Spirit children.

40:00

Mormons. Or Muslim. He's just a prophet. An ordinary man. Not God. Anybody. Who denies.

40:09

Ego. A. Me. Dies. In their sins. That's heavy.

40:16

Isn't it? They are Unitarians. Unitarians. Exactly. Right. Yep. Die in their sins.

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That is a. A. A. Strong and important point. So we need to. Be ready. For the.

40:29

Those who would. Come knocking on the door. Anybody have Jehovah's Witnesses. In your life. Before you do that. To. A couple of quick observations.

40:36

One is. If you get that. Knock on the door. From a Jehovah's Witness. They're. They're equipped.

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With their theology. And. Almost. To our shame.

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They are equipped. More so than. Perhaps. We are. Now.

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If you get equipped. With your theology. And you're able. To. Lovingly.

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But with authority. Talk scripture. Get ready for the next door. Because they're going to bring an elder. With them.

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Yeah. And all that is to say that. As. Pastor Jeff is teaching. We need to go beyond.

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The elementary things. And become mature. And eat the meat. That. There's a reason for that.

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And that's. That's not that we become. Better. Sons of God. It's that we become.

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Stronger. Witnesses. Salt and light. In a world. Because they're equipped. So we.

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We need to be equipped. I guess. If we open the door. And say. Ego and me. Nice.

41:40

Ego and me. It's right off the bat. I had. It's. It's been a long time. Since I've had a visit.

41:46

But when I had. Jehovah's Witnesses. Come. I. I immediately started. Talking about the finished.

41:51

Work of Christ. Yes. Complete. In my salvation. While I recognize. You are.

41:56

Need. In being here. Is working. For your salvation. Yes. And those elders. Pull those people.

42:03

Off my porch. Well done. They were. They were very like. Okay. Where our conversation. Here is over.

42:08

Thank you for your time. But it was. Surprising to me. Because I didn't really understand. Anything of their theology.

42:15

But that was a very. Simple. Personal testimony. Absolutely. And it chased them away.

42:20

Really quickly. Yes. Yeah. They knew they weren't. Going to get to you. And then you. Would get through to them.

42:26

Or their. Their student. Yes. Interesting. But you didn't just appeal. To personal testimony.

42:31

Experience. You appeal to the finished. Work of Christ. That's theology. Because the other half of.

42:37

The. The downgrade. One thing is. Every cold. And false religion. Will downgrade.

42:42

The person of Christ. That's what we're talking about today. The other is. They'll elevate. Their own work. The. And add something to grace.

42:50

So. What you did. Is you. You hit this side of it. The gospel. Right. So it's like.

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Corinthians 11. It says. If anyone comes preaching. Another Christ. Or another spirit.

43:00

Or another gospel. You put up. With it well enough. And he's. He's saying.

43:06

That's not. You shouldn't. But what you did. Is you hit. The gospel. Aspect of it. The finished. Work of Christ.

43:11

So that's the other. Way that we go. So if you're debating. With the Mormon. You show them. Ephesians 2. 8.

43:16

9. The gospel. Because. Their book of Mormon. Says. After. So you're saved.

43:22

By grace. Through faith. After all. That you can do. They add. Your own work.

43:28

And then. Christ. Just makes up. The difference. So they have works. Plus faith. And so you can hit.

43:33

Him with the gospel. That's what you did. You hit him. With gospel. Truth. And that's what drove them. Away. One time. We had Jehovah's Witnesses.

43:39

Come. About two years ago. And Timmy. Came out on the porch. With me. And. Was witnessing.

43:44

To these two. And he was. Able to refute. Everything. That they said. For rain.

43:49

It was. It was. Tindale. That had said. You know. After we get this. Bible. In the English language.

43:56

Even a plow. Boy. In the field. Will know more. Than the popes. And priests.

44:02

Yeah. Of Rome. And you know what? It's true. Children. Today. Raised in our church.

44:08

Have more knowledge. Of the scripture. Than the priests. Of Rome. Because.

44:14

They have a false. Knowledge. And that's also. The case. With those. Who come knocking. With the false gospel.

44:19

We have the genuine. So we don't need. To be afraid. You just brought. Gospel truth. And it fought the lie.

44:25

Be willing. To just step out. And open the word. And open the door. And God. Will give you the strength. To do it.

44:31

I studied. And then just say. Ego. I mean. I studied. The woman. To some extent. And all.

44:37

Peoples. Are non -existent. Right. No historical evidence. At all. Not like the Bible. Right.

44:43

Complete historical evidence. Very true. Yeah. These made up. Fictitious peoples. In the

44:48

Book of Mormon. It's hilarious. You have to be out of your way. I gotta get going. Will you close this in prayer? Lord God.

44:54

We. We can only rejoice. In the truth. Of ego. I mean. Yes. Any who.

45:00

Any who. We know Lord. That. You are God. And you are sovereign. And. You created all.

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And Lord. Because of your love. And your grace. You have. You sent Christ to die.

45:14

For sinners. Like us. And that work. Is completed. We don't have to add to it. It is completed.

45:20

Your grace. Leads us to faith. And by faith alone. We come to you.

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And so Lord. Give us. Wisdom. In. Recognizing. Those false.

45:32

Gods. That are out there. Give us. Courage. To call upon you. With the power of your

45:37

Holy Spirit. When we're confronted. By those. False. Gods. Who believe in these false. Gods. And let us stand firm.