WWUTT 2342 None Greater than John (Luke 7:28-35)

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When somebody says they are a follower of Jesus, you should expect to see something in their life that evidences that, right?

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They don't go after the passions of the world. Instead, their desire is for godliness.

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When we understand the text. This is when we understand the text, studying

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God's Word to reach all the riches of full assurance in Christ. Find all our videos online at www .tt

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.com As well as links to follow us on Facebook and Twitter. Here's your teacher,

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Pastor Gabe Hughes. Thank you, Becky. In our study of Luke's Gospel, we're looking at chapter 7 this week.

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And we've been in the portion where Jesus is teaching on John the Baptist. What the crowd should understand about John.

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So let me pick up where we left off yesterday. I'm starting here in verse 28. We'll go through verse 35.

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Hear the word of the Lord. I tell you, among those born of women, none is greater than John.

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Yet the one who is least in the kingdom of God is greater than he. When all the people heard this, and the tax collectors, too, they declared

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God just, having been baptized with the baptism of John. But the Pharisees and the lawyers rejected the purpose of God for themselves, not having been baptized by him.

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To what then shall I compare the people of this generation? And what are they like?

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They are like children sitting in the marketplace and calling to one another.

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We played the flute for you, and you did not dance. We sang a dirge, and you did not weep.

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For John the Baptist has come eating no bread and drinking no wine, and you say he has a demon.

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The Son of Man has come eating and drinking, and you say, look at him, a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners.

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Yet wisdom is justified. By all her children. So, to kind of recap the scene here, remember that Jesus has been performing great miracles.

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And John, who is in prison, and he will be martyred there eventually, Herod will have him beheaded.

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But being in prison for proclaiming the truth, speaking it boldly, even calling out sin.

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John tells his disciples to go to Jesus and ask him, are you the one we're expecting, or should we be looking for another one?

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Are you the fulfillment of the Old Testament prophecies, or are we waiting for someone else?

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It could be that while John is in prison, he's beginning to question these things. Jesus had said he would set the captives free.

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That's what Isaiah proclaimed about the Messiah as well. And here John is in prison after preparing the way of the

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Messiah. So, is Jesus the one, or should we be looking for another one?

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And Jesus said to John's disciples, go and tell him what you have seen and heard.

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The blind receive their sight, the lame walk, lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, the poor have the good news preached to them, and all of this in fulfillment of what the prophet said about the

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Messiah. Blessed is the one who is not offended by me, Jesus said. And then yesterday we looked at Jesus saying to the crowds, what did you go out to see when you went out to see

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John the Baptist? And then spoke again of what the prophecy said about him. Behold, I send my messenger before your face who will prepare your way before you.

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And we pick up there in verse 28 where Jesus says of John, I tell you, among those born of women, none is greater than John.

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That is quite a statement. And remember that Jesus and John are related to one another.

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When the angel Gabriel appeared to Mary and said she would be with child, the angel said to her, your relative

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Elizabeth who is old in age is also with child, and it is about the sixth month with her.

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So Mary journeys to Elizabeth to visit her. We read about that in Luke where John the

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Baptist in Elizabeth's womb left with joy When Elizabeth heard Mary's voice because John knew that Mary was carrying the

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Messiah And here those two were in close proximity with one another for the first time

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Mary who had just recently conceived and had a son in her womb and John the

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Baptist who was about six months along But they're relatives. It's often said that Jesus and John the

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Baptist were cousins But even though being cousins, we don't know what kind of close relationship they would have had

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They wouldn't have been first cousins. It would have been distant cousins, distant relations of some kind But certainly they would have been related.

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And what kind of relationship did they have growing up? It was unlikely a close relationship because Jesus grows up in Nazareth, which is way up in the north and John the

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Baptist lived with Zechariah and Elizabeth in the hill country of Judah So they they weren't neighbors it's not like they went over to each other's houses and played along but they

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They would have had occasions in which families or tribes would have gotten together Jesus and John the

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Baptist may have met one another and played together as children perhaps It could also be

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That they had never met one another Until Jesus came to be baptized by him

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Now I tend to think that it was a little closer than that because On all the accounts that we have in the gospels of Jesus being baptized by John It appears as if John recognizes him knows him.

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It's not like Jesus has to introduce himself or somebody has to tell John This is he this is

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Jesus of Nazareth When Jesus approaches John to be baptized It's as if John immediately knows who he is at least in all the all the gospel accounts that record

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Jesus Baptism, it seems to paint that kind of picture so they knew each other in some kind of capacity prior to Jesus being baptized, but it wasn't like they were close cousins.

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I was never really close to my cousins growing up either We loved each other whenever we got together

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But did not spend a whole lot of time together because we were often states apart from one another

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Always loved getting together had lots of fun made all kinds of memories But I I didn't really grow up with them and even to this day if I came face to face with them

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I think we would recognize one another But it would still be kind of like, you know, i'm closer to my neighbors

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I'm, definitely closer to the people that I attend church with on a regular basis than I am my own flesh and blood brothers and sisters and and even cousins

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So jesus and john had this relationship with one another a familial relationship with each other more than just Uh being two theological figures, right?

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Jesus makes this statement of john According to what the scripture says about him not because jesus had a close relationship with him in their in in their blood relationship it was because Of the way that john is proclaimed in the scriptures and what he fulfilled in his ministry

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Among those born of women none is greater than john John gave up everything

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For the cause of the messiah gave his entire Life for this came of a certain age left his mother and father goes out to the wilderness

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And it's there he has spent his life preparing the way of the messiah

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John loved god's word and his law to such degree That even his proclamation of it and calling out sin and calling to righteousness

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Has resulted in him being arrested and thrown in prison where he's eventually going to be martyred

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So john is given everything for the cause of christ and he's the first one to do so in the ministry and time

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Of the messiah's arrival so jesus says of john among those born of women

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None is greater than john. That's probably a present tense statement It may have something to do with those who have come before But it is it is definitely in the present tense that of everybody who is alive now who is alive today

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There is none greater than john Yet the one who is least in the kingdom of god is greater than he now, what does that mean?

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How does that apply? The one who has believed in jesus And has therefore become a member of the new covenant kingdom

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Has become greater than even john The one who is least in the kingdom of god is greater than he he does not enter into the kingdom of god for himself

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But he enters glorifying god he too will be exalted in god's kingdom

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And he won't have the kind of recognition that john the baptist had John, the baptist has has had recognition now for 2 000 years

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He is one of the most prominent persons in the new testament in the gospels after jesus christ

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And the one who comes to jesus in faith and is not known And is not recognized nobody knows this person's name

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They serve humbly not looking for any recognition. They are meek They are poor in spirit

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Jesus is saying of them Those who are least in the kingdom of god. They are greater than even john the baptist verse 29 says

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When all the people heard this And the tax collectors, too They declared god just having been baptized with the baptism of john so these people recognized

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According to what jesus said about john that the words john proclaimed

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Were right and good They called or sorry. John called them to repentance and they listened and repented

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And were baptized and now here is jesus saying he's He's the the greatest of all those who have been born of women

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And the one who is least in the kingdom of god is greater than he and so even these tax collectors who are hated by the pharisees by those who are higher up the

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The most influential people in judah at the time the sadducees even the herods these tax collectors are despised

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Because they are collecting taxes for rome so it's as if they've sided with the enemy And yet they have recognized their sin.

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They came to john to be baptized and here's jesus saying The one who's least in the kingdom of god is greater than he it's as if a tax collector is thinking of themselves

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That's me That that can be me I'm least in the kingdom of god I am not valued or loved by anybody.

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Nobody's coming to me to hear me say anything And they just humbly come into the kingdom recognizing that they are sinners in need of a savior

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And they have their sins forgiven by this baptism that has cleansed them So that they may be looking for the messiah who is to come

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And everything that john preached was right. He called to repentance. I repented

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I received his baptism So the tax collectors are rejoicing at this the people who were baptized by john, especially those tax collectors

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Luke makes a particular point To single out the tax collectors all the people heard this and the publicans too

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That's what they would have been called the tax collectors were publicans. They declared god just They glorified god

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They declared god right to send this man. John to preach to us

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That we would be prepared and we might be cleansed of our

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Transgressions so that that we might be prepared For the lord who is coming

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But then in verse 30 it says the pharisees and the lawyers Rejected the purpose of god for themselves

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Not having been baptized by him. So they did not believe that john came speaking the word of god fulfilling

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What the scriptures said about the one who was the forerunner to the christ the pharisees the lawyers

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All those who were purposed with teaching the scriptures to the people did not believe that john was the fulfillment of the isaiah prophecy or any other prophecy from Those prophets that spoke of john the baptist malachi malachi 3 1 was what we had

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Had read from when we were back in verse 27. That's what jesus quoted behold I send my messenger before your face who will prepare your way before you

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So the pharisees did not acknowledge that the old testament scriptures were about john the baptist or even that jesus was the fulfillment especially jesus

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That they refused to see that. He was the one That god was sending john the baptist sent ahead of the messiah jesus being the messiah

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So jesus says in verse 31 to what then shall I compare the people of this generation and what are they like?

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And he's going to be referring here primarily to the pharisees But anybody who would also listen to the pharisees were not baptized by john would not listen to the words of christ

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What are they like? Jesus says they are like children sitting in the marketplace and calling to one another

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We played the flute for you and you did not dance. We sang a dirge and you did not weep in other words

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We sang these happy joyful songs We did it for you so that you would come out and play for you would come out and play with us

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But you didn't come play we sang the happy songs you wouldn't come play and dance a happy dance

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We sang a dirge a funeral song a sad song for you. Okay, fine

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You don't want to come out with us and dance joyfully Well, maybe you'll come out with us if we play a sad song for you.

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Here's a dirge come out and weep They didn't come out for that either For john the baptist has come eating no bread and drinking no wine

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And you say he has a demon So he has accepted the humble position

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The one who would be more along the lines of you know, singing a dirge Kind of seems like he's he's of the more sorrowful kind So he comes not eating or drinking

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And you say of him that he has a demon He doesn't exhibit any Wild or crazy behavior.

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Yeah, even though john the baptist was out there in the wilderness. He wasn't crazy People didn't necessarily think of him as crazy

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The uh when the chosen depicts john the baptist You know the chosen the popular tv show about jesus and his disciples and whatever

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I hate their depiction of john the baptist I mean absolutely hate it. Of course. I hate all kinds of things about that show

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I don't like their depiction of jesus either But the the depiction of john the baptist is just wretched they're constantly

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Referring to him as like crazy john. I can't remember what weird john Anyway, they had some sort of term for him back in season one

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And and that's not the way that they would have perceived him. They were amazed by him people were intrigued

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They went out to him not to see the crazy guy out in the wilderness. He spoke soundly

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He didn't speak like he was nutso He spoke like he knew what he was talking about And it was the authority

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And the boldness in his preaching That attracted so many people to what it was that he was saying

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So john the baptist comes in soundness of mind Eating no bread drinking no wine

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And you say he has a demon The son of man has come eating and drinking

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So jesus comes with a more celebratory nature Yes, he was a man of sorrows as talked about in isaiah 53

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But remember that this ties back into a previous account that we had here in luke of jesus going to matthew's house

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Levi the tax collector and a big feast was held and the pharisees see this and they're like He's he's a drunkard.

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He's eating and drinking with tax collectors and sinners So the son of man comes eating and drinking well, are you going to be happy now?

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Now, are you excited that jesus has come eating and drinking? No, because what do you say look at him a glutton and a drunkard a friend of tax collectors and sinners

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These guys can never be satisfied It doesn't matter if the person coming comes with such humble means

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They won't be satisfied with it Because their hearts are not really for god

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But jesus says in verse 35 Yet wisdom is justified by all her children in other words

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Wisdom will be shown to be right now What's interesting is we have that word justified twice in this particular section that we're looking at here

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It was also back in verse 29 when the people heard this and the tax collectors, too They declared god just they're seeing the fulfillment of god's scriptures in john the baptist

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So the word of god has been justified through what has been accomplished in john the baptist and here you have it being said

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Again in verse 35 wisdom is justified by all her children Those who were baptized by john

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Demonstrate the authenticity the legitimacy of the ministry of john the followers of jesus

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Are going to justify They will verify the legitimacy Of the ministry of jesus wisdom is justified by all her children

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Listen to what john gill says about this particular phrase That is christ who is the wisdom of god and who acted the wise part

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In behaving in such a free manner with all sorts of men and even with publicans and sinners

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Whereby he became useful to their souls Called them to repentance Converted and saved them

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And these are his children which were given him by the father for the for for whose sake he partook of flesh and blood and whom he redeemed that they might receive the

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Adoption of children and to whom believing in him. He gives power to become the children of god

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And these justify him from all such Scandalous imputations and by their lives and conversations show

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That the doctrine of christ is not a licentious one or leads to and indulges men in their carnal sensual lusts and pleasures but on the contrary

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Teaches them to deny ungodliness and worldly passions and to live soberly righteously and godly

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You might recognize that as being quoted from titus chapter 2 So you see in the fruit of people you you see in the lives of those who claim to be followers of jesus

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That their faith is genuine It's real. They have been justified before god because you will see in their lives not that they are led to indulge in their carnal passions and pleasures

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But they deny ungodliness and worldly passions And they live upright godly

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Lives in the present day following after christ our savior

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So let it be seen in our lives as well as genuine followers of jesus

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We are not going after the world or the passions of our flesh, but we desire the righteousness of christ and would walk in it

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Listen to the call that john the baptist made Listen to the call that jesus makes to us now and through his holy spirit

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That we would be convicted of sin and we would turn from it to the lord jesus christ and walk in his ways until the day of the lord

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Heavenly father we thank you for what we've read and I pray that as jesus makes this explanation here of john the baptist

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We understand how this applies That we would turn from our sin to the lord. Jesus christ and live that we would not desire to walk in this sin anymore

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But being baptized in christ We have been cleansed of our unrighteousness

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And clothed in his goodness So teach us to walk in the holiness of christ that we have been given

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And we would continue to be shaped and formed in his image Until the day that we join him in glory.

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It's in jesus name. We pray. Amen Pastor gabe keeps a regular blog sharing personal thoughts alerting readers to false teachers and offering commentary on the church and social issues