Confident in the Day of Judgment | 1 John 4:17-18

ThornCrown Covenant Baptist Church

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Okay, welcome beloved once again to another beautiful Lord's Day. Before I dive into today's message,

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I did actually have some some more thoughts about the the recent, the recent, lost my place here sorry about that, yeah regarding the recent public violence and and murders because as many of you can tell and I've seen in social media and things like that Charlie, especially

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Charlie Kirk's assassination in particular triggered a very strong polarizing reaction on our side, on the

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Christian side and as as well that I had not quite seen before and to the to the extent that some

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Christians and pastors started claiming that if your pastor does not address

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Charlie Kirk's assassination you should just leave, leave the church and basically making this a hill to die on, an ultimatum and and it just kind of really concerned me as why now and why this time?

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What is it about this event, Charlie Kirk's murder that all of a sudden people are getting so triggered and wanting to make this a hill to die on?

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And it is very concerning because even though I actually did preach a sermon on this last week, my main goal was for us to consider how to deal with events like these in general from the scriptures and from the whole counsel of God but these types of initial reactions are often hasty overreactions.

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They're emotionally charged, they're rash, brash, premature, immature reactions with no regard for consequences.

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When you say things like that and oh well I'm just going to leave my church then and it's like well that has, there are consequences there that can be far more negative than positive and they reveal a lack of balance in the people pushing for these drastic triggered reactions.

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And many of these Christians have never prepared or delivered a sermon themselves and don't realize the time and the effort it takes to do it right, to really prepare a sermon properly.

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So just because a pastor does not address issues like these immediately does not necessarily mean that you should leave the church.

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It's not, doesn't have to be a hill to die on. Some pastors, they don't even pay attention to social media all that much.

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It can take time to even receive the news even though we have these assumptions that we make about well everybody should know the internet and all this stuff and everybody should know everything right away and should have a tailored response to everything that happens or at least to this one thing that happened.

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And it just, it doesn't seem to make any sense like why this and why not something else because there's plenty of evil going on as I mentioned last time.

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And we also need to remember that there is a time to speak and there is also a time to be silent right, like Ecclesiastes tells us.

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And our initial reactions to traumatic events like these can often be wrong or imbalanced, emotionally charged, misguided, misdirected, especially when the official investigations are still ongoing and they take time.

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This stuff takes time to sort out. You know there's a lot of doubt being cast.

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You know the fact that this the shooter was caught and everything very conveniently showing his proof and his motive just very conveniently started popping up and it's just it's very strange and it's causing suspicion,

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I think rightly so, about what's really going on. And we just need to keep those things in mind and be careful.

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And you know I didn't mention this last time but the fact that there appears to be a transgender motivated motive for killing

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Charlie Kirk because the shooter's lover was transitioning to becoming a woman supposedly and all these things and a lot of the recent public shootings are transgender, were from transgender shooters.

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So that's a disturbing thing that we also need to think on and consider carefully.

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But there's a lot of suspicion being cast on these on what's really happened and what's really going on.

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And so we need to take time. There is wisdom in taking time to reflect, to pray, and to mourn in silence, especially before making drastic public statements and ultimatums, if at all.

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Maybe we shouldn't do that at all. And we should lean on our brothers and sisters in the

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Lord as well as our elders and pastors for counsel and and encouragement and guidance.

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And we should, this is one of the most important things, we should continue, we should continue to receive

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God's Word and means of grace in corporate worship. And this is one of the most important things for us, not to isolate ourselves but to continue fellowshipping.

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That's one of the the most important things that gets us through tough times, difficult times. Because the

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Bible says, let us bear one another's burdens. Amen? So we also should, we should take time for initial reactions and emotions to cool down, to settle, instead of spewing out polarizing frustrations and ultimatums on social media and stuff like that.

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And really potentially doing more harm than good to the church.

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Because we are called to be patient, to be long -suffering, to be slow to anger.

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Because God himself is patient, long -suffering, and slow to anger. Right? That attribute is very plainly revealed in Scripture numerous times.

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But you, O Lord, our God, compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, and abundant in loving kindness and truth.

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This is the divine patience of God, the forbearance of God. Turn with me to James chapter 1 verse 19.

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And we'll see some more Scripture here that I think is really helpful for us to consider and apply in light of these circumstances.

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James chapter 1 verse 19. So in James chapter 1 verse 19,

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God's Word speaks to us and says, Know this, know this, my beloved brothers, but everyone must be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to speak, and slow to anger, and slow to anger, especially during troubling or difficult times.

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For the anger of man does not achieve the righteousness of God. Therefore, laying aside all filthiness and all that remains of wickedness, in gentleness rather receive the implanted

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Word, which is able to save your souls. Amen. Amen.

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Rather than be quick to anger and to react on social media and these kind of gifts, ultimatums, and stuff like that, we should rather in gentleness receive the implanted

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Word, the means of grace, which is able to save our souls and sanctify us.

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Because we are called, God calls us to a higher standard, a higher standard, not to a standard that just caters to our every whim and emotion and frustration, but to a higher standard, to the upside down kingdom that Christ taught repeatedly, that the

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Scripture reveals to us repeatedly, where the first will be last and the last will be first, where our weakness is perfected in God's strength.

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This is a call to the theology of the cross, to the cross -oriented life of lowliness, humility, suffering, patience, the cross -focused life, the cross -centered life, right?

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So not addressing Charlie Kirk's murder, his particular murder, should not be the only reason for leaving a church.

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Again, we need to ask ourselves, we need to think rationally, script biblically about these things.

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Why does the pastor all of a sudden have to address his death and not the countless other

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Christians who have been and continue to be persecuted and martyred throughout the world? Why all of a sudden?

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And some people have been saying, well, this is a turning point. This is a turning point for people, in America at least.

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It's like, well, yeah, but is it a turning point for the better or for the worse? Is this based on truth and biblical conviction or just whims and emotions, right?

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That is why I also made it a point in my sermon last week to note that his murder is but a small sample of the evil being committed all over this wicked world, right?

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Including the untold evils being committed on persecuted Christians regularly, regularly.

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And if you want to dive more into that, you can go look into plenty of Christian ministries like Voice of the

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Martyrs, where every magazine that they come out with shows you how some family, some church was persecuted, burned down, torched, tortured, all kinds of things.

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So while, yes, it is important, it is important for elders and for pastors to address issues like these in a timely and responsible manner, because you have other pastors saying dumb things like saying that, you know, they celebrate

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George Floyd's death, who was a very wicked, has a very stained life testimony, and then condemn

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Charlie Kirk for making strong political statements, conservative political statements at that.

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So that we need to address these issues in a timely and responsible manner, but there are more biblical reasons for considering when to leave a church.

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If, for example, the pastor consistently ignores current issues and events that are affecting everyone in the real world, and especially the church, in this last and evil day, and fails to apply scripture to our modern day and to his hearers, that could be a sign of serious compromise, or even cowardice, and of neglecting the biblical command for elders to declare the entire counsel of God, all of it, like Acts chapter 20, 27 says, and which

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I've preached on before many times. To all matters of faith and life, right, all of Christ for all of life should be our motto, and to disciple and to teach

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God's people everything, not just some things, but everything that Christ has commanded us in the

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Great Commission, right? So, but we must not lose our balance because of strong, vehement, emotional, initial reactions, although it is nevertheless, that's not to say that there isn't a problem in many churches today, and it's a sad reality that many churches are reluctant to speak out on current and political issues, because of this corporation 501c3 problem, even these issues that affect

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Christians in the church regularly, and that is one of the reasons why we are a free, unincorporated church, because the church does need to be a prophetic voice, a prophetic voice to the world, much like John the

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Baptist was, in the culture, in society, because our

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Lord calls us to be salt and light before the world, amen?

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Turn with me now to the Gospel of Matthew chapter 5, and Christ's Sermon on the Mount, in verse 13, the

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Gospel of Matthew chapter 5, verse 13, and while you're turning there, you know, if you keep observing what happens, this will eventually die over.

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People will move on to something else. People will just find something else to complain about, or to make a public ruckus about.

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We can be very fickle at times, and we have to be careful not to become imbalanced that way, but in the

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Gospel of Matthew, Christ's Sermon on the Mount, verse 13, chapter 5, verse 13, our Lord tells us, you are, you believers, are the salt of what?

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The salt of the earth, the salt of the earth for all to see, but if the salt has become tasteless, how will it be made salty again?

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It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out, to be trampled underfoot by men.

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You are the light of the world, the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden, nor does anyone light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house, to the whole world.

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Let your light shine then before men, all men, in such a way that they may see your good works and glorify your

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Father who is in heaven. Amen. This is so important for us as God's people to live by.

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These are words to live by and live according to, because also remember that salt and light expose darkness, so we are also called to expose darkness and the evil going on in the world and in society.

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Antichrist and anything that opposes God and his word. So those are some more thoughts there, beloved, for us to consider in light of this very intense public reaction and polarizing reactions that we are seeing from many people on different sides, on the unbelieving side, on the believing side, and so on.

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So with that said, beloved, I want us to now turn to our text for today in 1

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John chapter 4. I want to go ahead and read the passage and get us re -established here in 1

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John chapter 4, and I'll read it from verse 15. I love, this is such a powerful passage, and today's sermon and verses will show us still even more gospel confidences that the

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Lord gives us and supplies to us. In 1 John chapter 4 verse 15, whoever confesses that Jesus is the

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Son of God, God abides in him and he in God, and we have come to know and have believed the love which

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God has in us. God is love, and the one who abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him.

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By this, love has been perfected with us, so that we may have confidence in the day of judgment, because as he is, so also are we in this world.

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Amen. And I'll read verse 18 as well.

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There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves punishment, and the one who fears is not perfected in love.

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Amen. So if you recall from the last time

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I preached on this passage, we saw that from verse 15 that faith, our faith requires content.

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It requires us to know the faith, an object, something to grasp, something to hold on to, and it also seeks a deeper understanding of the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints, of God's words and doctrines, of which there are several which compose a system of doctrine, and which call us to be to consistently think, live, and speak in light of that system of doctrine, of truth.

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And you'll also, as we focus in on verse 17 here, verse 17 has a long chain of several clauses, one after the other, and they refer to several doctrines, to the doctrines of assurance, of sanctification, of glorification, and of our final state in the day of judgment, right?

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So the eschatology, in other words, last things. And notice also the word world again.

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This is a word that John uses very prominently all throughout this letter, and he's going to continue to use this word, the word world, in verse 17.

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And I'll reread it for us so we can focus in on it. By this, love has been perfected with us, so that we may have confidence in the day of judgment, because as he is, so also are we in this world.

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So this, the word world, we need to keep track of how the

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Apostle is using it throughout, and including here, because the meanings change. They often change depending on what the passage is about.

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But here specifically, the word world is referring more to everything that belongs to it.

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It is everything that is hostile to God, lost in sin, wholly at odds with God, ruined and depraved.

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It is referring really to this fallen world, in contrast to the heavenly realm, to heaven, and heavenly things.

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So it is this world that we live in, this evil fallen world that we live in, cursed world.

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And so this is important to note, because it's similar to what Christ told us about being salt and light before the world, the earth.

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That is our mission as believers. We are ambassadors of Christ and his gospel to the unbelieving world.

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So we are to bear witness in word, deed, and truth, action, in our behavior, in all things, to the unbelieving world.

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And so in light of that, notice the beginning of verse 17, which says, by this, by this, love has been perfected with us.

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By this, love has been perfected with us. Now, what does by this mean?

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What does it refer to? If you look carefully, you'll see that it points to the preceding clause of the previous verse.

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Okay, so let's go back to verse 16 and read that to get the full context. God's Word says in verse 16, and we have come to know and have believed the love which

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God has in us. God is love, and the one who abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him.

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So that preceding part of the mutually abiding love of God and man, that we are in God and God is in him, that we are in God and God is in us, by that, by this, by virtue of the sanctifying, mutually abiding, loving fellowship, doctrinal unity of God and his beloved, his people, believers, by which our minds are married to God's mind, in a marriage of minds, so that we have the mind of Christ, as 1st

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Corinthians also tells us, by this, God's love, God's love, who is the source of love, has been perfected, has the past tense, has been perfected with us, already, already completed, that they look that the

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Laotai, similar to what Christ said on the cross, it is finished, the Telestai, it has been completed, fulfilled, perfected, in us, already, and so that, so take careful note of that, because something has been perfected in us already, here and now, and so that, as a result, like verse 17 continues to tell us, beloved, we have confidence now, both now and in the day of judgment.

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Now why is that? Because as he is, as who is, as Christ is, now in heaven, so also are we in this world, in this world.

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There you see that contrast again, as Christ is in heaven, so are we in this world.

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Now, this is a really powerful gospel assurance, as well.

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Now, let's focus on that. What does this mean? What does it mean that the love of God, God's love, has been perfected with us already, since we are still in the already not yet stage of our

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Christian life, right? We are still being perfected and sanctified, that process has not finished yet.

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It's not been completed yet. We are not yet resurrected and glorified.

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Not yet. That's not until Christ comes back. Even though, so even though Christ himself is already in his resurrection power and glory, he is already glorified and resurrected, we ourselves are yet there.

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So this verse is pointing to something else, specifically to Christ himself being confident and having no fear, having no fear.

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Remember in the garden, Christ was greatly distraught at the burden that he had to bear for us.

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Father, if at all possible, let this cup pass from me. Yet nevertheless, not my will, but thy will be done.

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Amen? So Christ had lots of dread, dreadful expectation of having to suffer

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God's wrath, like the gospel of Isaiah tells us, Isaiah 53 and so on, and on all throughout the scriptures, that Christ had to give his life a ransom for many and suffer and die on our behalf.

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But now, Christ is confident and without fear, confident and without fear.

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And he remained fully resolved, became obedient to the point of death, as the

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Carmen Christie tells us in Philippians 2. But as Christ is now confident, because that's what the verse tells us, confident, we have confidence in the day of judgment.

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And Christ himself is confident and has no fear, and thus as he is both confident and without fear, so also are we now being united to him in love and in truth by faith, by believing the same things as God teaches and holds, we are confident and without fear in this world.

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Amen? So now, notice there's a similar passage here in 1

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John chapter 3, in the beginning of 1 John chapter 3. Let's compare and contrast what this says with what 1

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John chapter 3 verse 1 through 3 says in the previous chapter. So in 1

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John chapter 3 verse 1, we see here, God tells us, see how great a love the

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Father has given to us, that we would be called children of God, and we are.

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Amen? For this reason, the world, there's the world again, the world does not know us.

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Similar meaning to what John says in 1 John chapter 3, in today's passage. Because it did not know him.

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Beloved, now we are children of God. And listen carefully, it has not yet been manifested what we will be.

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There's the already not yet there. We know that when it is manifested what we will be, this is not talking about Christ, but when our manifestation of what we will be is happens, we will be like him.

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We will be like Christ. In the future, we will be like him.

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In a different sense from what 1 John chapter 4 tells us. Because then, in the future, we will be resurrected and glorified.

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Because we will see him just as he is. We will know him just as he truly is.

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And everyone who has this hope fixed on him, purifies himself.

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Now purifies himself when? Now, just as he is already pure.

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So that's pointing now more specifically to a similar parallel to 1

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John chapter 4 17. Because as he is in heaven, so also are we in this world now.

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Because God's love has been perfected with us or towards us now.

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And gives us confidence now and in the day of judgment.

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And no fear. Without fear. Without fear. Amen. So now the next question that this naturally flows from this is, without fear of what?

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Without fear of what exactly? Without fear of, is it without fear of persecution?

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Is it without fear of, what is the fear referring to here? Well, notice what the verse specifically points to.

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That we have confidence in. Confidence in what? The day of judgment. Of whose judgment?

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God's judgment. The day of the Lord. When God will settle all judgments and satisfy all of them.

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In the great white throne judgment. That revelation points to. So this is without fear of God's judgment.

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And this ties, this also ties into verse 18. Right? If you follow along with me in verse 18, we will see very specific references to fear.

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And fear being contrasted with love. There is no fear in love. But perfect love casts out fear.

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Because fear involves punishment. And the one who fears is not perfected in love.

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Is not perfected in love. Notice the contrast then.

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Those who have been perfected with God's love towards us, who have

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God's perfect love, are confident in the day of judgment. Will be confident in the day of judgment.

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Because we are without fear of God's judgment. I like how the Amplified Bible renders verse 18.

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It says, there is no fear in love. Dread does not exist anymore.

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But perfect or complete, full -grown, mature love drives out fear.

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Because fear involves the expectation of divine judgment. It fears

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God's judgment on them. So the one who is afraid of God's judgment is not perfected in love.

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Has not grown into a sufficient understanding of God's love for them. Right?

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Because the words of our Lord and Master so plainly tell us in the

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Gospel of John. This is a very powerful memory verse that we all need to internalize and reflects who we are in Christ.

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Now and in the day of judgment. Such that those who believe in Christ shall not come into judgment, but have passed from death into life.

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They shall not come into judgment. That is why we have confidence in the day of judgment.

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Because not only will we ourselves not be judged. Because why? Christ has already been judged on our behalf.

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It has been finished on the cross. And so now we will be the judges on judgment day.

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Alongside Christ. Kings and queens and judges amongst the those who did not obey the gospel and did not believe

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God. This is a powerful reality beloved.

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That I think we really need to focus ourselves on. In light of all of the turbulence and things going on.

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Evil still happens every day in this world.

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Including to unbelievers. I mean to believers. To both believers and unbelievers.

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And yet we have confidence. Now and in the day of judgment.

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Because Christ has satisfied everything on our behalf. Everything.

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God's perfect reformative love. Remember his reformative love.

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Reforms us conforms us to the image of his son. Perfects us and has been perfected towards us now.

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Which makes us confident then and without fear in the day of judgment.

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And to sum up all of this. I love the

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Baptist larger catechism. The the reformed larger catechisms explain this beautiful truth for the believer.

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This is such an amazing powerful truth from scripture. Question 82 of the

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Baptist larger catechism says this. What shall believers receive at the day of judgment?

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What shall believers receive at the day of judgment? The answer is this.

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At the day of judgment. Believers will be caught up with Christ in the clouds and placed on his right hand.

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Where they will be publicly acknowledged and acquitted. Publicly acknowledged and acquitted.

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They will join Christ in the judgment of reprobate angels and men.

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Did you hear that beloved? Know ye not beloved, that the Saints shall judge the world.

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The world. Know ye not that we will judge angels.

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And but that's not all. And we will be received into heaven. There they will be completely and forever free from all sin.

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Without fear. Wipe every tear from our eyes. And misery filled with unimaginable, inconceivable joy.

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And made perfectly holy and happy. I love that phrase too.

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All of these phrases. Both in body and soul. In glorified spirit and body.

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In the vast company of each other. Of God's people. And the holy angels.

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They will be particularly blessed. In the visual presence and enjoyment of God the

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Father, the Lord Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit. Forever. Forevermore.

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Amen. Amen beloved. I love this powerful, powerful truth.

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Numerous doctrines from God's Word. Now there is something to take into account.

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I don't have that much time to get into it now. But you can go back and listen to my sermon on Revelation 20 regarding this matter of the millennial reign.

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The millennium. Because this question implies an amillennial perspective of the last days.

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Here it conflates Christ's return with the final judgment. Because the

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Reformed confessions and standards, they essentially deny a literal thousand reign of Christ on earth.

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And so personally I believe that there will be separate events.

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That Christ will first return. There will be a first resurrection of the just, like Revelation 20 says.

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And then there will be a thousand year reign with the saints on earth. And then at the end of it there will be a second resurrection of the unjust.

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And that is when the great white throne judgment will happen at the end of Revelation 20. Like it describes.

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But all of these things that are being described are nevertheless true. They are realities for each and every one of us who has been saved by God and the work that He has completed on our behalf.

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That is what gives us confidence now and in the day of judgment, beloved, without fear.

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Because perfect love, God's perfect love, casts out all fear in us and perfects us with this confidence, this hope.

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It's this hope that 1st John chapter 3 points to, which purifies us, continues to purifies us by God's spirit and means of sanctifying grace.

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That's an amazing reality, amazing powerful reality.

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So to sum up all of these amazing truths in our lives,

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I appreciate how Gordon Clark comments on this and sums things up for us.

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He says, the union of God and man in love brings God's love to fruition, to completion, so that we may have confidence when we shall stand before His judgment seat.

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Because as Christ has no such fear, we also, being in Him, have no fear either.

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We have no fear either. That is a beautiful thing, beloved, a powerful, amazing truth.

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And this is something that I, when

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I, when I, there's many, in many churches today, there's, there's, there are imbalances, and we see this even in recent events, how there's so many believers struggling to find a balance, a balance between the natural and the spiritual, and between holding the the truths of God's entire counsel in proper balance and perspective, and knowing how to discern when there is a time to speak and when there is a time to be silent, and so on and so forth, a time to love and a time to hate.

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But when I better understood the law and gospel distinction and moved away from an imbalanced zeal that led me into many legalistic imbalances and dangerous imbalances, like those of lordship salvation, my assurance and peace of mind was greatly, greatly strengthened, because, like this passage says, it is

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God's love that has already been perfected towards us. That love is what gives us confidence in the day of judgment, beloved.

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And now, because we will no longer face God as judge, but as loving

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Father, because we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous, now he sees us as sons and daughters, and he will take us alongside him in judgment of the world and angels who do not believe and do not follow

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God. This is an amazing, precious truth, but this is why it's so important for us to seek a church that declares the whole counsel of God and a proper balance and distinction between the law and the gospel.

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Because, yes, there is a terrible great white throne judgment, but that judgment is for unbelieving, reprobate men and angels.

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Not for us. It is not for us. That is law gospel distinction.

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God's law, the severity of God's law, like we saw last week, that judgment is for unbelievers, because the gospel has satisfied that judgment in Christ, fully and finally, such that we are no longer under wrath and judgment.

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We have passed from death and from condemnation and from judgment unto eternal life.

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Beloved, the love of God and our mutually abiding union with him assures us and gives us confidence in the day of judgment, but also in the here and now.

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Because as he is, as Christ is, confident and without fear, so also are we in this world even now.

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Even now. How amazing God's love is, because he knows that we are weak and the spirit is willing and the flesh is weak.

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All of these weaknesses that we struggle with, he gives us confidence now and in the day of judgment with the love that perfects us and it continues to perfect us until that day.

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It gives us confidence to live without fear and to have the mind of Christ.

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And even though, yes, we still struggle, we may still struggle with fear and with doubt.

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Even like men, even great men of God, like John the Baptist, the greatest of all the prophets, even he struggled when he was persecuted by Herod.

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Yes, we can still struggle with fear, but we do not remain in fear because God's love perfects us and prevents us from utter despair, beloved.

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That is God's precious promise to us here and now, as well as in the day of judgment.

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I love how the precious hymn puts it that we sang last week, that's

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Lord's Day. The night is dark, the night is dark, evil is all over us, even going after us, but I am not forsaken, for by my side the

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Savior, he will stay. I labor on then in weakness and rejoicing, for in my need his power is displayed, in my weakness his power is displayed.

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Like Paul says in Corinthians, to this I hold, my shepherd will defend me, because he is my advocate, he is all our advocate, for through the deepest valley he will lead.

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Oh, the night has been won, and I shall overcome, yet not

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I, but through Christ in me, and his perfect love for us.

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No fate I dread, not even the evil that may befall us, on us.

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No fate I dread, why? Because I know I am forgiven, I know

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I am forgiven. The future sure, we have confidence in the day of judgment, the future is sure, because the price it has been paid.

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For Jesus bled and suffered for my pardon, and he was raised to overthrow the grave, to satisfy the judgment that we all deserve, beloved.

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Amen and amen. And with that, let us now bow our heads, as we approach the throne of grace boldly now, not in fear, but boldly, to our beloved

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Lord and Savior. Our precious Lord, Heavenly Father God, we thank you so much for all your precious truths, for your law and your gospel, and for giving us your perfecting and perfect love, which perfects us,

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Lord, and is perfecting us, and gives us confidence, now and in the day of judgment, because of what you and your

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Son, and your Spirit, has done for us, Father. It has been perfected in us,

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Lord. We thank you so much for that, Father. We ask that you help us, though our flesh may be weak, and we may struggle with doubts and fears, and be swayed by emotional upheavals, and turbulence, and all of these different things going on in the world,

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Father. We can hold fast to you, because your perfect love casts out fear and doubt, and gives us confidence,

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Father. We are confident, and we have confidence to approach your throne of grace.

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No longer is it a throne of judgment for us, Father, but a throne of grace, boldly.

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The boldness that you have given us, Father, and also to be salt and light to the unbelieving world.

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We thank you, Lord, for all of these precious truths. We ask, Father, that you help us to be this salt and light that you have called us to be, to fulfill those good works that you have prepared before us, beforehand, and to have that mind that your

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Son had on this earth. That mind of your Son, like your precious

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Word tells us, who emptied himself, took the form of a slave, and humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross, even as we ourselves may suffer persecution,

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Lord, as your Word guarantees us these things. But we know that our circumstances do not affect our standing with you,

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Father, because you are the one who determines our right standing,

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Father, and has given us your perfect love through your precious gospel.

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We thank you Father, and we ask these things in Jesus' almighty name. Amen. Thank you for listening to the sermons of Thorn Crown Covenant Baptist Church, where the

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Bible alone, and the Bible in its entirety, is applied to all of faith and life. We strive to be biblical, reformed, historic, confessional, loving, discerning

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Christians who evangelize, stand firm in, and earnestly contend for the Christian faith.

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If you're looking for a church in the El Paso, Texas area, or for more information about our church, sermons, and ministries, such as Semper Reformanda Radio and Thorn Crown Network Podcast, please contact us at thorncrownministries .com.