The Dividing Line (John 8:31-59 Jeff Kliewer)

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Sermon Notes: notes.cornerstonesj.org The Dividing Line

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For Louise if you cannot make that we are going to email out a link for the live stream
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To that as well, so you can check your email box if you can't be a part of that We have obviously there's no starting point today if you're in here you you wouldn't be trying to go to that anyway
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But that's postponed for a week because John is sick As far as prayer meeting tonight that is still a go
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Even though there's something else evidently happening at the same time now the prayer meeting is at 6 and that that will go till about 7 for those who can make it and For those who wanted to bring dinners to Dave Reynolds all of those spots are already taken
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So the church is rallied and that need has been met So praise the Lord and thank you so much for doing that and for your willingness to do it as well
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So with that I have three more announcements that I'm going to tag team this off to Jay And then
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Matt and then Sandy the last three announcements Good morning, everyone just a quick reminder next
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Saturday morning We will have a workday a work morning at church Something for everyone.
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We're going to be doing some deep cleaning some minor maintenance painting and spackling things like that but there is one need for high high technology effort and equipment
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We need a couple people with irons to come and help get the wax out of the carpet and the chairs left over from Christmas Eve so if you are so inclined that would be very much appreciated, but we'll start at 9
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We'll we'll have doughnuts and coffee just to get everybody moving and we'll be out well before noon
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I think so if you can make it that would be greatly appreciated. Thank you very much Morning everyone.
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I'm mad. This is my wife Jess. We wanted to come up here just to share An important announcement the
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Biddle's are starting another marriage couples class And we were blessed a few months ago to go through that with them
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And the class really did a great job at just bringing God back to the center of marriages It's about a 13 -week course and it really just bring
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God's for God first But also just gives practical items for you to sort of break down walls of your normal routine
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And to really reconnect with your spouse It is a book study so you will be given a book
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There is a little bit of homework involved each week But we did we found that doing the homework together actually brought us closer together and gave us a lot of great discussion points to talk about throughout the week
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You do some scripture memory. It's a 13 -week study like you said on Tuesday night They have space left for two maybe three more couples, so if you're interested definitely see them
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I was really impressed just to be in the company of other couples that wanted to strengthen their marriages
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It's not necessarily people that are that are struggling although it could be but we were
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The couple that was married for the shortest amount of time so we had couples that had been married for 20 30 40 years and we were able to gain some wisdom from them and even get some insight into some things that they had struggled with or had come and encountered with that we now have some scripture and Some backing and some wisdom to go forward with Which I thought was great a lot of takeaways, so there is homework.
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You'll do some work It's a ton of fun so connect with the Biddle's. I think their phone Numbers going out in the past the grant, but I also think you can touch base with them
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You know throughout here, so if you have any questions you can talk to us or talk to them We really encourage you to kind of step it.
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Thank you You Were digging yourself a hole there about the gluten thing
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All right well we have a very special Time right now before we begin to sing and to worship the
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Lord it is called Extending the right hand of fellowship anybody heard of that before well in the book of Galatians Paul and Barnabas had come back from a mission trip, and they went and met the
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Apostles Peter James and John those reputed to be pillars and the Bible says that these pillars of the church extended the right hand of fellowship to Paul and Barnabas, so what does it mean to extend the right hand of fellowship well you shake hands
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We still do this to this day as a sign of agreement and well fellowship
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That you have koinonia that you are one in agreement and in purpose and that you are together
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And so what we do is when people have become new members of the church They've gone through starting point
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And they've also been examined in a sense by the elders to make sure that they are genuinely born again
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We acknowledge as born -again brothers and sisters that they're part of the household of the faith
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And so what we do then on a subsequent Sunday is we invite those who have recently become members
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To come to the front and we will literally extend the right hand of fellowship
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But symbolically what this means is we're recognizing that we are one in koinonia one in fellowship in the
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Lord So at this time first of all ask the elders to come forward those who would extend the right hand of fellowship
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We have Matt and Michael and myself Or anybody who's been an elder you're still an elder at heart, please come on up Eric.
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I see you there Now when someone has been an elder This is a good teaching moment
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When someone has been an elder they remain an elder they still shepherd the church
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There's still an example to the flock It's just that they're not on session at that moment on the board But it's they still function as an overseer and and someone who cares for the flock all right so with that Why don't we just ask those who are being introduced as new members, and we haven't done this for about a year
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So there might be quite a few Come on up to the front and we will extend the right hand of fellowship if you've never been welcomed in this way before come on up and Then we'll just gather up in the front here
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All right, well we have a couple new members. It looks like yeah praise the Lord All right, let's give a hand clap.
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I Praise God let's pray for those who have come into membership and for us as a congregation to be one in koinonia
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Gracious Heavenly Father we thank you for what you are doing here at this church. It is not our church
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It is your church Christ you are the head of the church and we thank you that you have welcomed us in and Grafted us in and made us members of the household of faith
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And so Lord we pray for these who have come as members that you would bless each one Lord that you would give them gifts of your
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Holy Spirit spiritual gifts to serve in the body of Christ We pray that you would fan those gifts into flame
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Lord give them opportunities for the gospel and for building one another up Thank you
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Lord for each of them And we pray for the congregation Lord that you would help us to be one as you are one
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We think of Jesus's high priestly prayer in John 17 Help us to have unity in the spirit in the bond of peace
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Thank you for this church family of which you have made us apart We thank you
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Lord for the body of Christ Help us to serve within it and we love you and praise you and give you all the glory for it in Jesus name
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Amen. Thank you guys We are excited
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We're gonna sing some songs together this morning if you're comfortable standing stand with us
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And please remember that as Jeff said we can be excited about a football game or a sporting event and I know you can probably imagine how stadiums will roar with excitement
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But we have such a better Purpose in praising our
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Savior and our Lord by singing songs together So that's what we're gonna do this morning with all of our hearts and all of our voices, let's sing together this morning
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And my heart grows faint with it when the darkness
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And my fears are Pressing in I will trust in you.
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Oh Lord in the silence I will wait
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I will stand upon your word You're my solid rock and my salvation
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My steadfast hope that won't be shaken. My soul will wait my soul
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You're my stronghold In the midst of every threat
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Though the wicked never They will vanish like a breath
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Yes, I know the outcome sure Satan's evil plans will fail in your power.
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I'm secure Oh You're my solid rock and my
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Salvation my steadfast hope that won't be shaken. My soul will wait my soul
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You're my comfort when I feel forsaken my refuge and my sure
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Foundation my soul will wait my soul will wait for you
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This is love I can't explain This is mercy
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Unreserved through your sacrifice So great
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I have peace that's undeserved For the battle has been won
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And I fear no shame or loss Now the sting of death is gone
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You're my solid rock and my salvation My steadfast hope that won't be shaken.
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My soul will wait my soul For you
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You're my comfort when I feel forsaken my refuge and my sure
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Foundation my soul will wait my soul will wait for you
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Pouring out our hearts Hearts before you
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We will trust in you
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Perfect Your strong Defender we will trust in Pouring out our hearts before We We will trust in you
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We pour out our we pour out our hearts this morning
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Before the Lord who is worthy of our praise our Savior our Defender our rock and our salvation
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Let's continue to sing about his love and how it endures forever Magnificent marvelous matchless love too vast and astounding to tell
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Forever Ever -existing in words above now offered and given to all
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Fountain of beauty eternal the father the spirit the son
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Sufficiently endlessly generous Magnificent marvelous
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Creation is brimming with thankfulness The mountains exultant they stand the seasons rejoice in your faithfulness
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You crown every matter with color you paint every shade in the sky
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Each day the dark wakes as an encore Magnificent marvelous
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How great how sure his love
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Endures forever More Magnificent marvelous
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Matchless What grace you have entered our brokenness you came in the fullness of time
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How far we had fallen from righteousness But not to the mercies of Christ Your cross is our door to redemption
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Your death is our fullness of life That day
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How great how sure
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And marvelous
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Matchless United in your resurrection
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You lift us to infinite heights Could anything sever or take us from Magnificent marvelous
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How great How great how sure is
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For This and marvelous
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How great how His love
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For ever Magnificent marvelous
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Let's pray together Lord we are So grateful that we can stand before you our
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Savior our Defender and our Redeemer Standing here and praising your name because you are worthy
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You are worthy to be praised from the beginning into the end Let the earth
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Hear the sounds of praise to you To God be the glory
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For everything that he has done to God Be the glory great things
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So loved the world that he gave us
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His son Did his life at home for sin
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Life gave that all may go Praise the
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Lord praise the Lord Let the earth hear his voice praise the
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Lord praise the Lord Let the people rejoice
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To the father through Jesus the son
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The glory great things he has done
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Thanks redemption the purchase of blood
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We believe Who truly believes that moment from Jesus a pardon receive praise the
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Lord praise the Lord Let the earth hear his voice
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Praise the Lord To the father through Jesus the son
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And give him the glory great things he has
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Let's sing that chorus again praise the Lord praise the Lord praise the
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Lord Let the earth hear his voice praise the
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Lord the people rejoice
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Come to the father through Jesus the son
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And give him the glory Great things he had done
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Amen Amen, let's pray our gracious Heavenly Father We come now to open your word and As your word is read and preached
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We ask that it would be sweet to us sweeter than honey
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Like honey from the honeycomb To Others Lord in this building or listening.
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We pray that it would be a hammer The hammer of Jeremiah 23 that it would smash to pieces our lies and false conceptions so to some make it honey and to others make it a hammer as Needed Lord and we pray
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Lord that as we go from this place Your word would be honey to us that we would love it that we would abide in it
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That we would find place for it That we would live in it in Jesus name we pray amen very sadly last
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Monday 27 ,000 lives were lost in the earthquake in Turkey.
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This was the largest natural disaster since 2010 when in Haiti probably five times that lost their lives.
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I Was in this region of Turkey a number of years ago on a mission trip
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We flew into Ankara and then headed down south and to the east
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To a number of places. I remember in Palatla, Beledisi the image that is in my mind is
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In a town where there's no known Christians there was a boy at this makeshift zoo and in the zoo was a wolf and The zoo was just like along the side of the road
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It was really just not like you would imagine at Busch Gardens or at the Philadelphia Zoo It was just this makeshift thing and the boy just stood there staring the wolf in the eye
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Didn't break his stare and it just captured my attention to think that there are so many wolves in this land and so few sheep
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Headed south and Spent time in Kayseri a city that was shake was shooken.
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How do you say? What's the the past shaken? Got to go back to grammar school here by the earthquake and We went to an underground church
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Now by underground, of course, you understand it means that Christians are not openly identifying there they're in hiding because of persecution, but in this case the church was physically underground a
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Business operated on the first floor and I won't tell you the name of the business because this is going online
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But underground the basement floor was a cleared out space where on Sunday mornings
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Christians would gather. I want to tell you there are more Christians in Turkey than reported
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We went to another church, which was above ground. It had glass walls the glass storefront and they had pilings concrete pilings in front of that glass because there was danger that a
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Jihadi would drive his car right into the church building on a Sunday morning. That's how intense the persecution was there
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But there were many faithful believers I got to see baptisms while I was there so it breaks my heart that The buildings collapsed and 27 ,000 lives were lost
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I was reading some articles on behold Israel Which is a website by Amir Safari and he had the option to click on some links
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Where you could you could hear the screams of people under the rubble and I tell you
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I did not have The the will to click on those links. I don't want to hear that.
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It was such a troubling thought to imagine being crushed under the rubble
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But it's not as though the 95 % of people who are Muslim when they died entered into paradise
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Because these are a people who by and large Reject the Word of Christ They do not believe that he is the
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Messiah and so we are told that they do not enter into Paradise but into eternal suffering let that hit you for a moment
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There was a time in Jesus's ministry Where he was approached and someone asked him if he had heard of the current event
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Because people talk about current events This one was where Herod had mixed the blood of worshipers with the offering on the altar in other words
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Somebody worshiping was killed murdered and their blood spilled on the altar
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Jesus heard that report and then he said did you hear about the
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Tower of Siloam that fell and crushed 18 people And you would expect a moment of Compassion and surely our
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Savior was compassionate, but the way he expressed love here was very unexpected Referring to the 18 people who were crushed when the
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Tower of Siloam fell. This is Luke 13 Jesus said and unless you repent
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You will likewise perish His love was a call to repentance
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That if they will repent they can have life but as it is they are dead in their trespasses and sins
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There is a major difference between the living and the dead But on the other side of death the chasm
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Widened still further in Luke 16. Jesus tells a story I don't know if it's a parable or actually real people the story of Lazarus and the rich man
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The rich man was comforted in this life Lazarus was very poor and he would lay at the gate of the rich man and he longed to eat the scraps that fell from the rich man's table and The dogs would come along and lick the wounds of Lazarus.
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So he suffered greatly But when he died he entered into paradise and he was comforted at Abraham's side
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Conversely in the great reversal this one this rich man was in hell and From the flame of fire
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He called out to Abraham to send Lazarus to just dip his finger in water To cool his tongue because he was in anguish in the flame
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But Abraham said I cannot send him Because the great chasm has been fixed between there and here a
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Gorge a deep valley and in they there was no crossing it. It was insurmountable and So the man begged that that Lazarus or some other would would be sent to go tell his brothers about this place called hell and warn them and Abraham said they have
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Moses and the prophets and they won't listen and They wouldn't listen even if one rose from the dead
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Which of course is prophetic of Jesus rising from the dead. They don't listen to the prophets or the one who rose from the dead
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Their hearts are hardened When the earthquake took place in Turkey Do you realize that along the ridge of that earthquake the pressure between the
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Anatolian plate and the Arabian plate underground had become so great that when the plates slipped across each other it
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Moved the land 10 feet to the west along that Ridge not through the whole country of Turkey, but along the
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Ridge and it opened a gap of 10 feet in some places a Giant Gorge separating some on one side and others to the opposite side imagine heaven and hell in this way a
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Gorge that no one can cross Eternal life and joy in paradise
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Or eternal suffering in darkness and in flame and in torment in a chasm that separates the two
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Now we may think because we're raised in America which has been identified as quote -unquote a
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Christian country Or perhaps because you were raised in a Christian family and you've heard the
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Word of God That you are on the right side But the great and important teaching of the book of John is that you must personally believe in Christ and Continue believing in order to be saved the thesis statement of the book comes from John 20 31 these things are written that you may believe that Jesus is the
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Christ the Son of God and Believing you may have life in his name
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It doesn't say that you once and for all believe and then move on with your life.
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It says and believing a continuing belief You have life
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My desire in preaching John 8 31 and following today Is that everybody who hears these words?
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Would believe and continue to believe and abide in the Word of God and have eternal life and that none would be lost
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So turn with me to John 8 verse 31 and Realize that this theme from John 8 31 and following is a major concern for John Some people have said that the book of John is an
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Evangelistic book and it is it's meant that people would believe But that book is also very importantly directed to the church
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It is directed to people who gather in the assembly who hear the
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Word of God and they taste the powers of the coming age and the goodness of the word and They have fellowship in the spirit powers of the age to come in the words of Hebrews 6
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These are people who assemble yet are still in danger Look back a couple pages to John 6 66 a very memorable verse because of its reference number
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John 6 66 Jesus said this is why
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I told you I'm sorry after this many of his disciples turned back and No longer walked with him after a hard teaching
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Some did not continue to follow but it says some of his disciples some who had been following him
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Turned back and no longer walked with him in the same way John 8 31 So Jesus said to the
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Jews who had believed him if You abide in my word.
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You are truly my disciples so this concept of an abiding faith
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Is very important God's Word is
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Like a massive earthquake and when you read the words of Christ in John chapter 8, let it shake you to the core
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It shakes and changes everything When God spoke to Moses on Mount Sinai it shook the mountain
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So that Moses himself said I tremble with fear and the people were afraid to even touch the mountain or go near it
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Because the glory of God that was present that day and the earth was shaking We're told in Hebrews 12 once more shall
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I shake the heavens and the earth So that everything that can be shaken will be and all that remains is the kingdom that cannot be shaken
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His word shakes things up and it separates things this passage in John 8 31 through the end of the passage shakes us up and It separates two groups.
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I decided to take a large chunk of Scripture today a Lot of verses because each section is saying the same thing
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And I don't want you to miss the thrust of it as We go through it. The thrust comes from verse 31 if you abide in my word
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Then you are truly my disciples This idea that the one who abides and continues in the word is a true disciple
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Not a false convert, but a true genuine disciple will continue to love the word continue to hear the word have ears to hear so follow along That this concept of abiding or keeping the word repeats again and again look at verse 37
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You seek to kill me because My word finds no place in you
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John 8 40 A man who has told you the truth
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That I heard from God his word is the truth from God verse 43
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It is because you cannot bear to hear my word You see this is the theme that runs through look ahead to verse 47.
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Whoever is of God hears the words of God The reason that you do not hear them is that you are not of God Again in verse 51 and 52 truly truly
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I say to you if anyone Keeps my word. He will never see death and then the
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Jews will repeat that back if anyone keeps my word He will never taste death verse 52 and finally in verse 55
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If I were to say that I do not know him, I would be a liar like you, but I do know him and I Keep his word you see that the theme runs through and it travels across three descriptions of a false convert
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Now the Pharisees here are the false converts They not only claim to believe the word
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They came claim to be the keepers of the word. They're the authorities They're the true believers and Yet, in fact, they are false converts and they will be described in three ways.
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First of all as a slave as slaves secondly as offspring of Satan and thirdly as dead
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All three descriptions are saying the same thing. They think that they have life because they're identified outwardly as being
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Jews and believers of the word But in truth, they are not converted so let's take it verse by verse and we'll move quickly today
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Verse 31 is where we begin Jesus said to the Jews who had believed him
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Now notice if you're reading the ESV or any other translation besides the
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King James version that this says believe him The King James here is weaker at this point
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Because it translates this phrase believed on him But that misses a distinction in the
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Greek which should be picked up in a translation Look at verse 30 as he was saying these things many believed in him or on him that preposition in the
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Greek is ice ice out oh This this is the word for faith and the root of that believing in Him or on him it means to trust into or to throw oneself entirely upon to rely on Christ to believe
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It's the same word that we have in John 3 16 for God So loved the world that he gave his only
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Son that whoever believes ice on him in him Genuinely trusting but notice in verse 31 the language is slightly different and That's key
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Jesus said to the Jews who had believed him. That's a weaker expression
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Why is it weaker? Because they're simply accepting what he just said
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But they haven't fully committed themselves completely thrown their their lives into him to abide in him
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And he in them It is a weaker expression to say they believed him. They might only think that he's a prophet
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They think that he's speaking for God Verse 27
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He's been speaking about the father many of them didn't understand it So he makes this comment in verse 28 when he's lifted up Then you will know that I am he
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Some are believing in him in other words, they're believing that he is God I am a go
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I mean others are only more broadly accepting some of his teaching And that is very instructive for us from the book of John because of 666 and now 831 and then again and again
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John 15 is about abiding in him and his word abiding in you to remain
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To stay to keep his word. That's the test if you're a genuine disciple
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Notice, it's not to be born to the right religious family It's not to have walked in aisle or signed a decision card or prayed a prayer
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Or even to come to church on a regular basis There is a dividing line that runs right through humanity and The separation between those who are on one side and the other is the
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Word of God The question is do you abide in that word? Do you believe it and continue to keep it in everything that he has to say?
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Colossians 1 23 Says if we continue the previous verse speaks of being reconciled
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To God and you are reconciled if you continue in the faith
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Hebrews 3 verse 6 and also 3 3 14 refers to the same reality we are
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God's house if we continue and Abiding continue to believe continue to trust you see it in verse 31
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Jesus does not accept a profession of faith and a vague general believing in him or believing him
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I should say as evidence That someone is genuinely saved
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He says quite the opposite if you abide in my word You are truly my disciples this doesn't refer to discipleship as some higher
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Christian life as If you are born again, and then you become a disciple the more you study and you reach the higher heights of Christian No, that's not what it means to be a disciple.
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Remember John 6 66 some of the disciples departed Because they weren't true disciples the idea here is a disciple indeed a
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True disciple a genuine Convert you are that convert if you continue in the word
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You abide in it and he clarifies in verse 32 and you will know the truth and the truth
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Will set you free the true
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Christian is the one who has been set free Set free from lies from the deceit of false religion
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Eyes open to see the light Truth is what sets you free
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Believing it from the heart and continuing to believe there are many
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False offers of freedom There are many false religions that claim to offer freedom
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But they deceive the convert into a false belief some of the more emotional churches
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Whether it be a hyper Pentecostal or charismatic church that is so relying upon experiences someone might feel a warm tingly sensation and feel moved by the power of the music and Assume that because of that They are genuinely a child of God, but is that the test given to us in the scripture?
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It's not it says you will know the truth and the truth will set you free genuine freedom comes by the word
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By abiding in scripture that the word is in the believer and the believer is abiding there
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Staying there. We're witnessing out at Princeton this week and one of the students
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Was objecting to the teaching of heaven and hell and he said well his
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Catholic priest told him that after he dies he would be given the opportunity to repent and This goes hand in hand with the teaching of purgatory and this young man
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Did not believe that there was a God He was an atheist a physics major He did not believe that there was a
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God But he supposed it was possible and his strategy was to die at whatever time he was called to die
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And if it so appears that there is a God and he's standing face to face with him. He'll repent then
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Because this is the doctrine of Rome that there is such a thing as purgatory. He was trusting the wrong priest
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This human priest No priest at all was telling him lies and the lies of this priest had him bound behind bars of a prison
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He thought he was okay Only to find that if he dies in his sins as Jesus refers to it earlier in John 8
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There is no purgatory. There is no chance apart from this life
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It is appointed to man to live but once then to die and face judgment the words of Christ Give light and they expose that Roman Catholic doctrine as a lie
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You shall know the truth and the truth will set you free There is a progressive
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Christianity which bears the name Christian but doesn't deserve it it rejects the parts of Scripture that it finds intolerable it deconstructs those things and Takes only the parts that it regards as sweet and acceptable it will tell a person who persists in any manner of sin that God accepts that as Long as they simply believe
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But Ephesians 5 1 to 7 regarding sexual immorality Says that the sexually immoral will not inherit the kingdom of God The same is said in Revelation 22 that outside are the dogs and the liars and the sexually immoral
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Progressive Christianity comes along with this lie that says you can be a gay Christian Giving people the false.
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Hope that they can continue with the sins that they walked in prior to meeting
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Christ and Mary the truth with a lie according to John 8 32 it is only the truth
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That sets you free. What I'm trying to say is that there are many teachings which are nothing but lies that imprison people and make them slaves to sin and What is needed is the sharp edge of truth of God's Word God's Word According to Jericho Jeremiah 23 is like a hammer
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It shatters lies And the only way that you can be set free from a prison if you are behind bars is to shatter those bonds
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To break those bars apart to bring down the prison that the prisoner can go free
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God's Word is like a hammer It is an earthquake that shakes men and women loose and sets them free you will know the truth and the truth will set you free and There are many
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Christians who have been set free who can testify Alongside Paul as he speaks of those in 1st
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Corinthians 6 11 such were some of you But you were washed you were clean
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You were justified The truth actually sets people free.
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What is the stronghold in your life that you think is? Unbreakable is it a certain sin pattern in your life a way of thinking
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You're believing a lie It is the truth that shatters these lies and breaks the prisoner free
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You will know the truth and the truth will set you free now as the rest of the passage unfolds We're going to move quickly because each description as a slave an offspring of Satan and a dead man
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Each of these is the rising of temperature as the conflict between Jesus and the false convert is
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Exposed and each one is a picture of a false convert Let's look at them verses 33 to 37.
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They answered him We are offspring of Abraham and Have never been enslaved to anyone.
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How is it that you say you will become free? Jesus answered them truly truly
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I say to you Everyone who practices sin is a slave to sin
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The slave does not remain in the house forever. The Sun remains forever So if the
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Sun sets you free you will be free indeed. I Know that you are offspring of Abraham Yet you seek to kill me because my word finds no place in you
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So there in verse 37 is the thrust of the passage the main idea They're claiming to be believers in God children's of children of Abraham But there's an inconsistency
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They desire to murder the Son of God their life doesn't match their profession notice the parallel between verse 34 and earlier in verse 32
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Everyone who practices sin is a slave to sin in bondage
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But verse 35 the slave does not remain in the house forever The Sun remains forever verse 36 if the
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Sun sets you free you will be free indeed So who sets you free?
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It is the only free one the only one who is not a slave to sin Who can set others free?
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The slave Became a slave by sin The Sun is the only one who never sinned so it is
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Christ himself Who set sinners free? He is the only one who died the death of the sinner in the sinner's place
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He's the only one who died on a cross. He's the only one who rose from the dead
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So he's the only one who can give you new life The Sun will set you free.
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So what does the truth have to do with it? back up in 32 You will know the truth and the truth will set you free.
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Jesus is the truth So, which is it who sets you free or what sets you free?
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Well, it is Christ who himself sets you free but the Word of God is how we know him
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Notice in verse 32 you will know the truth and in verse 31 abide in my word
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So my word there does not refer to he himself but to what he has said
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It's what Christ has said and this is how you know the truth the genuine disciple believes the word and the word is what sets us free so If someone is not believing what
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Christ says regarding himself and everything to which he speaks That person is not free
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To be genuinely born again is to be submitted to the Word of God. It's to continue in it
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It's to take God at his word to believe what Jesus says By contrast these
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Pharisees these Jews are Not believing and so they show that they are slaves
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The second illustration is the offspring of Satan Versus the offspring about look at verse 38 here.
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He hints at where he's going, but they don't get it right away. I speak of what
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I have seen with my father and You do what you have heard from your father
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They answered him Abraham is our father Now pause there for a moment
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What are they trusting for their salvation They're trusting in their religious heritage their family their genealogy
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That they descend from Abraham and it's true They descend from Abraham, but they are not believing the way
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Abraham did nor living the way Abraham did Justin Martyr wrote a book called dialogue with Trifo in the first century
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He was an apologist for the Christian faith. Trifo was a Jew and the two of them debated
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Christianity Justin Martyr presenting the truth but the Jewish man in the story
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Trifo said that Abraham stands guard at the gates of hell and If a
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Wicked Jew is on his way to hell if he's a murderer or a liar or a fornicator and Completely rejects
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God if he's on his way to hell Abraham is there to snatch him and rescue him and Send him to heaven because after all though, he's a wicked man
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He's a descendant of Abraham. You see the thinking in the first century
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Look back at the text. They answered him Abraham is our father To them that settles it
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They're children of God because they descend from Abraham Jesus said to them if you were
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Abraham's children, you would be doing the works Abraham did But now you seek to kill me a man who has told you the truth that I heard from God This is not what
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Abraham did Although they have the right genealogy
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They do not abide in the word and they don't do the works that Abraham did they're false
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Inwardly they're not Jewish They're only a Jew outwardly verse 41.
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You are doing the works your father did And they take him here in the sense of the physical as if he's doubting whether they genuinely come from Abraham You were doing it the works your father did they said to him we were not born of sexual immorality
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We have one father even God We genuinely come from Abraham and Abraham was the child of God we're legitimate
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Jesus said to them if God were your father you would love me For I come from God and I am here.
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I came not of my own accord, but he sent me Why do you not understand what
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I say? It is because you cannot Bear to hear my word that cannot idea from John 6 44
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John 6 65 again earlier in 7 and 8 chapter 7 and 8 again and again the inability of The sinner who is dead in sin to see they cannot why because they're a slave to the sin that they commit and Here he'll take it a step farther.
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Look how Jesus brings it to the next level. He says
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You verse 44 are of your father the devil and Your will is to do your father's desires.
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He was a murderer from the beginning back in the Garden of Eden. He murdered all of humanity
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When Adam and Eve obeyed him they believed the lie They died spiritually in that moment.
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He murdered the whole human race And he does not stand in the truth because there is no truth in him when he lies
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He speaks out of his own character for he is a liar and the father of lies
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He lied in the garden and he's been lying ever since it's the only thing he knows how to do
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It's his native language and Jesus is here saying that that is their father and that is their nature like their own father
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When he lies he speaks out of his own character for he is a liar and the father of lies
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But because I tell the truth you do not believe me Which one of you convicts me of sin?
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He's innocent of sin the only innocent one If I tell you the truth, why do you not believe me?
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Here's the phrase again. Whoever is of God. Here's the words of God The reason why you do not hear them is that you are not of God.
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So the problem is They are offspring of Satan Genesis 3 15
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They're offspring of the serpent. They're not offspring of the woman through Christ the seed of the woman
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They're slaves and they're offspring of Satan lastly They are dead
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The Jews answered him are we not right in saying that you are a Samaritan and have a demon
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Those are strong words they looked at the Samaritans as dogs half breeds and Wicked and vile and they considered themselves so much better But wasn't it the
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Samaritans in John 4 who heard the word of Christ and believed in him? And they say you have a demon all they can do is
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Accuse him of the very things that they do and are I think
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I've seen that before Seen that in the media seen that by those who oppose all that is good and right they accuse people who walk in the truth of the very things that they do and Here they accuse
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Jesus. You have a demon In truth, he just told them you are offspring of Satan.
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They are satanic If you watch the Grammys You'll see Satanism on display the worship of Satan but what
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Jesus is saying here is that there is an ordinary looking Satanism and That Satanism is to reject
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The Son of God to have a murderous heart to be a liar
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These Are the more ordinary and acceptable in The eyes of the world versions of Satanism.
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That's what these men are. They're satanic Now Jesus will say that they're dead
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Verse 50 yet. I do not seek my own glory. There is one who seeks it and he is the judge Truly truly
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I say to you if anyone keeps my word He will never see death
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He'll never see death that means he is alive with eternal life
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The believing one is alive spiritually and nothing can kill that life.
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Nothing can snuff it out He'll never see death Of course the
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Jews being dead Cannot accept this teaching verse 52 now. We know that you have a demon
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Here's their evidence Abraham died as Did the prophets?
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Yet you say if anyone keeps my word he will never taste death
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Are you greater than our father Abraham who died and the prophets died? Who do you make yourself out to be?
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Jesus answered if I glorify myself, my glory is nothing It is my father who glorifies me of whom you say he is our
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God You see the false profession They think that they're alive they think they follow
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God But you have not known him Beware false conversion.
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You don't know him. He says I know him If I were to say that I do not know him,
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I would be a liar like you Wow But I do know him and I keep his word.
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I'm abiding in the word He is the word verse 56 Your father
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Abraham Rejoiced that he would see my day. He saw it and was glad When did
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Abraham see Jesus When did he see Jesus his day?
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Well as early as being called out of Ur of the Chaldees. He was told from your seed a seed of Abraham Israel and all the world would be blessed
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He was told that he would have a son though he was old in age and he believed
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God and that faith was credited to him as righteousness and Then in Genesis 18, he was visited by three strangers
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Two of them were angels and one was the pre -incarnate Christ The two angels departed to destroy
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Sodom and Gomorrah, but that ain't the one who was more than an angel Yahweh called down fire from Yahweh in heaven in Genesis 18 a
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Pre -incarnate Jesus Christ visited Abraham and he saw him and he believed in him and he saw the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah and Then a few chapters later in Genesis 22
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Abraham was called to take his son his only son his beloved son and go up that mountain and there
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Abraham saw a ram caught in the thicket a substitute for his beloved son and in that Ram is a substitutionary picture of Jesus Christ and then
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Abraham came down from that mountain with Isaac his son Figuratively having received him back from the dead and in that picture he saw
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Jesus Risen from the dead on the third day all of this in picture in prophecy
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Was Abraham seeing that day? The book of Hebrews chapter 11 says that Abraham saw it from afar.
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He knew Christ He accepted the Son and these particular
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Jews were doing exactly the opposite They were murdering him at heart
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And they're ready to do it now. We'll finish with this So the Jews said to him you are not yet 50 years old and have you seen
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Abraham? They're indignant And here Jesus says to them
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What he's been saying all along but now in unmistakable Fashion truly truly
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I say to you before Abraham was I Am I am who
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I am Moses at the burning bush heard God say I am tell him
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I am sent you The eternally existent one. I am Yahweh Jesus here claims ego.
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I mean I Am you think the Jews missed what he was saying? Look in the next verse
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They picked up stones to throw at him They fully understood what he meant by I am
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Before Abraham was born the eternally existent one without a create a creation
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He has always been he's self -sustaining He's not dependent on anything in creation he's outside of it he is who he is
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I am They picked up stones to stone him, but Jesus hid himself and went out of the temple.
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I don't picture him there cowering Trying to sneak out No, it was just like when they pushed him to the edge of the cliff in Nazareth And then he just walked right through their myths.
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He restrained their evil intentions as he's always capable of doing His hour had not yet come the very day and hour of his crucifixion was prophesied in Daniel chapter 9 verses 24 to 27 and nothing could hurry that time as Jesus put it no one takes my life
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I give it willingly at the time of the father's appointing He would go and lay down his life for the sins of the world.
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This stoning was not that time He is in control and so he went out of the temple and where does that leave us in closing
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Don't miss the thrust of John 8 31 to 59 It is a passage about abiding in the word
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It is a warning to the Pharisee Who thinks that he's saved but he's only falsely converted
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It's not enough to pray a prayer or to be raised in the right kind of home
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Here are four questions to ask yourself to see Which side of the chasm are you on if the the earthquake happens right now if the sense of security that we all feel
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If that's an illusion and and the building falls right now and There's no more chance.
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There's nothing after this but heaven or hell which side are you on? Isn't that an important question to answer?
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We're gonna ask answer it with four questions you see in Turkey it was a false sense of security They were living on that fault line for a long time
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Before the buildings collapsed. So here are the questions number one
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Did you merely assent to some? teachings of Christianity Or are you abiding in the word still loving to hear it?
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So easy to come in contact with some teachings of Christianity and say yeah I like that love your neighbor as yourself do unto others the golden rule
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Forgive your enemies. This is great teaching and many people accept that but they do not accept every word that Jesus speaks.
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I Think that the ones who gather on Sunday morning by and large gather here because you love the
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Word of God Right now you're listening I can tell you're listening why because you love the word that's a good sign
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It's possible that some might not love the word And that's why we preach this way number two.
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Are you entertaining lies? Throughout the day or are you living in the freedom that comes from knowing the truth?
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If the truth sets you free have you been set free? And I don't say that Christians never struggle with sin but here's what you do if you have some struggle you go to the
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Word of God to be set free and if you you're Not getting that freedom go to a Christian counselor a biblical counselor new fetid counseling
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Comes from the word for exhort in the Greek It's where someone takes the word and exhorts you
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Regarding the lies that you're believing because the things that entrap you and ensnare your mind
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They're lies and they're broken by the power of God's Word But the one who just goes on living in sin
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Be very well a pretender. Are you free or?
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Are you enslaved number three? Are you trusting in your religious pedigree as?
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In your parents bring you to church or you're here because your wife really wants you to be But you're really just appeasing her and that's why you come on Sunday Or some other situation like that.
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Are you trusting your moral credentials? Think you're a good person or are you believing in the words of Christ for your adoption into God's family and Lastly, are you dead in your trespasses and sins?
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Picking up stones against the bearer of God's Word Are you a liar and murderer at heart when you hear
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Jesus say ego a me? I am does your heart leap for joy you agree and you love to hear that and That he is the way the truth in the life.
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No one comes to the father, but through him. Do you delight in that or? Do you bristle and Do you hate the preacher who says such things and that's the test.
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Are you continuing to abide in the word? Do you take God at his word, whatever he says or do you reject the
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Word of the Living God? Are you living in the light joyfully receiving the testimony of Christ about himself?
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That's the test. I Hope that you pass the test If not, let this word be like a hammer to you
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To break up the idols of your heart And come into the light. Let's pray Heavenly Father we thank you so much for your word.
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You love us too much to leave us dead in our sin Jesus I thank you for how you spoke to the
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Jews in your day. I Thank you for the bluntness of your speech the directness your word like a hammer.
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I Pray Lord that none of us in this room would be found slaves to sin offspring of Satan Dead in trespasses and sin
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Rather Lord, our prayer is that you would bring us into the light and give us the new birth genuine new birth
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Which will show us The way of life that we would walk in it and do everything as you have written
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Help us to walk in the light and abide in your word These warnings in Hebrews 3 and 6 and 10 and 12 and here in John 8
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Let them be a means by which you keep us But if there's any here that we're thinking of leaving and departing like John 6 66
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That your word would be a means to keep them and preserve them Lord we believe in the perseverance of the
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Saints because it's you that keeps us So keep us in your word
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Pray that every person here would renew their hunger for your word and delight to hear it preach
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To read it on their own Help us to abide in your word.
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Your word is true And God we want to say that we love your word
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It is like honey to us like sweet drippings from the honeycomb
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Life to our bones I Believe in Christ Risen from the dead
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He now reigns victorious His kingdom knows no end
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Through his resurrection Death has lost its hold.
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I Know on that final day. I'll rise as Jesus rose
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On that day We will see you Shining brighter than the
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Sun on that day We will know you as we lift our voices one till that day
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We will praise you for your never -ending Grace and I will keep on singing on that glorious day
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What a blessed hope Though not tired and warm We will spend eternity
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Around our Savior's throne Though we grieve our losses
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We grieve not in vain For we know our crown of glory waits beyond the grave
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On that day We will see you Shining brighter than the
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Sun on that day We will know you as we lift our voices one till that day
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We will praise you for your never -ending And we will keep on singing on that glorious day
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Hallelujah, what a day it will be For at home with you my joy is complete
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As I run into your arms open wide
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I will see My father who is waiting for me
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Hallelujah, what a day it will be For at home with you my joy is complete
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As I run into your arms open wide
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I will see My father who is waiting for me
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My father who is waiting for me On that day
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We will see you Shining brighter than the Sun on that day
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We will know you as we lift our voices one till that day
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We will praise you for your never -ending Grace We will keep on singing on that glorious day
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On that day That day
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We will know you Lift our voices one till that day
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We will praise you for your never -ending Grace We will keep on singing on that glorious day
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And we'll keep on singing on that glorious day
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See that you do not refuse him who is speaking
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For if they did not escape when they refused him who warned them on earth Much less will they escape if we reject him who warns from heaven at that time his voice shook the earth
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But now he has promised yet once more. I will shake not only the earth, but also the heavens
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This phrase yet once more indicates the removal of things that are shaken That is things that have been made in order that the things that cannot be shaken may remain
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Therefore, let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken and this thus let us offer to God Acceptable worship with reverence and awe for our