Jesus Meet Mr Self Righteous (Part 3)

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Welcome to No Compromise Radio, a ministry coming to you from Bethlehem Bible Church in West Boylston.

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No Compromise Radio is a program dedicated to the ongoing proclamation of Jesus Christ, based on the theme in Galatians 2, verse 5, where the

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Apostle Paul said, But we did not yield in subjection to them for even an hour, so that the truth of the gospel would remain with you.

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In short, if you like smooth, watered -down words to make you simply feel good, this show isn't for you.

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By purpose, we are first biblical, but we can also be controversial. Stay tuned for the next 25 minutes as we're called by the divine trumpet to summon the troops for the honor and glory of her

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King. Here's our host, Pastor Mike Abendroth. Welcome to No Compromise Radio, a ministry.

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My name is Mike Abendroth. And the last couple of Wednesdays, I was fairly discombobulated, but I think

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I've got my elocution back, or something back.

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Well, today's a good day because I'm doing the radio show, and my dog is in the studio. And she's got a little bit of energy still left in her.

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She's still wandering around, smelling everything. But she'll soon lay down probably at my feet, and Jetty will be the mascot.

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She's the official No Compromise Radio mascot. She is a Jack Russell, but not an ordinary

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Jack Russell. She's the long -legged version. That's called a Parson Jack Russell. And of course, if you are a pastor, a parson, a reverend, high holy father, then you have to have a

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Parson Jack Russell. Anyway, great dog. She's nine or 10 years old, something like that. And I don't know,

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I haven't seen a cat in the studio. You would be glad to know that when my neighbor said she lost her cat, and we helped her and all that stuff, that we were kind to her.

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And you know, I joke around about cats a lot on No Compromise Radio, but I want to be concerned for people's beasts.

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Okay, she's almost got to the point where she's going to lay down. Let's see, what else can I announce on No Compromise Radio?

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You can watch some videos, if you'd like, on the No Compromise YouTube channel. Worldview Weekend carries the

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NoCoTV show, and the number to call is BR549.

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Later this year, Lord willing, on NoCoMedia, there'll be a new book that's released that I wrote a few years ago, but just have not pulled the trigger yet on releasing it, and it will be called, the working title is,

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Sexual Fidelity, No Compromise. So we're going to do a series of No Compromise books under that theme, you know, about parenting, men's discipleship.

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I have another one, I don't know if it'll be out later this year or early next year, that I'll have to announce at another time.

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I have to get it copyrighted first. So dumb. Sitting in front of me is

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Burglar's The Juvenalization of American Christianity, and so, this is

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NoCoJuvie. Remember when they used to say, you know, oh, I had to go to juvie. I never went to juvie, because I was a good, moral, upright, self -righteous student.

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Well, self -righteousness, speaking of that topic, was leading me a few weeks ago on Wednesdays, instead of having interviews, of course it's summer now, it's just harder to do interviews if I'm not around the studio,

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I thought about John 3. In John 3, here we have pretty much the epitome of a man who is self -righteous.

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Nicodemus, he has his own righteousness, so he thinks with his Phariseeism, and with his

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Judaism, and with his goodness, in terms of relative goodness compared to others.

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And then Mr. Religion, that is Nicodemus, meets Jesus. And we were just looking at some counterintuitive truths, and so, we're going to continue that when we come back from a commercial break.

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This is what happens when you don't get enough sleep, right? Counterintuitive truth number, who knows what number, number 30 out of 6, how about that?

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Christianity, that is biblical Christianity, sounds ludicrous to the unbeliever, or at first blush, if you'd like that.

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I mean, it just sounds strange. Nicodemus said to him,

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John 3, 4, how can a mother, here we go again, how can a man be born when he is old?

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He cannot enter a second time into his mother's womb and be born, can he? Jesus answered, remember the theme,

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I think three times in the original Greek and in English. Jesus answered, truly, truly, amen, amen,

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I say to you, unless one is born of water and of spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.

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And we looked at that last time a little bit, number 4, where you've got Nicodemus operating from a material perspective instead of a spiritual perspective, and he doesn't really get it.

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You know, what are you talking about? R .C. Sproul says in his commentary on John in Reformation Trust, page 38, what are you talking about?

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Are you suggesting that a man has to enter a second time into his mother's womb to be born? What a ridiculous idea that is, as Sproul tries to get the tenor of Nicodemus' comment.

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D .A. Carson said that Nicodemus did not understand what Jesus was talking about at all.

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His amazement at Jesus' words that he must be born again may indicate a degree of bewilderment.

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And he goes on to talk about an incredulity. He said incredulousness, and so I just switch it to incredulity, which prompted him to answer with a crassly, excuse me, crassly, literistic interpretation of what

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Jesus said to express a degree of scorn. So what are you talking about? What's happening here?

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This cannot be a response of Nicodemus that basically says, well, you know,

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I'm just wondering if I can now have some spiritual help. This sounds odd to Nicodemus.

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This sounds odd to people who are swimming in the sea of self -righteousness and works righteousness.

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Excuse me. Jetty, are you going to lay down? Huh? Are you going to lay down? Are you a good girl? Can you speak?

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Speak. Woof! See, we're proving it. It's proven.

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She should, Jetty, she can go a little softer. Can you softer? Softer. There you go. Softer speak.

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Shh. Speak. Speak. Woof! Not so loud. Softer. 1

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Corinthians 1 .18, for the word of the cross is folly, or foolishness. It's moronic to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved, it is the power of God.

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And so this cross, from the perspective of Paul in 1

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Corinthians 1, doesn't come across to your friends as something that would help them in their upward mobility.

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This is an instrument for hardened criminals, and for rebels, and for the bad people.

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It's an embarrassing thing. It's shameful, a disrepute it causes. Cicero even said the very word cross should be far removed not only from the person of a

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Roman citizen, but from his thoughts, his eyes, and his ears. I mean, think about it.

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As Nietzsche would say, this metaphysics of a hangman, he can't even save himself, let alone anybody else.

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And so the idea of sin -bearing substitution, it just doesn't work for people.

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You can't save yourself though, so God has to do it, born of water and of spirit. We pretty much picked up this left off here last time.

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Jesus is talking about an inward purification that has to be done, produced by the Holy Spirit. There has to be a cleansing from the inside.

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I will give you a new heart. Jesus was referring to Ezekiel 36. Put a new spirit within you, remove the heart of stone from your flesh, and give you a heart of flesh.

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There has to be an inner purification. This is not a New Year's resolution list. This is not a list of resolutions of Jonathan Edwards.

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This, I was reading George Washington's, what would be the equivalent of his resolutions that he wrote when he was about 16.

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You're not to kill ticks in front of people. That was one of them. It was true. Speaking of ticks, where's

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Jetty? Where's the kitty? Kitty? You hear a little chain dangling.

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Gee, where's the kitty? Where's the kitty? Can you bite? She would get whacked by the cat.

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I mean, just a couple of those paw whacks. You have to have inner cleaning by the

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Holy Spirit, because you can't make yourself clean. What is born of flesh is flesh, and that which is born of spirit is spirit.

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Ethiopians can't change their skin. Leopards can't change their spots. Jeremiah 13 .23,

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then you also can do good who are accustomed to doing great evil. I mean, you can't do it.

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There's none righteous, Romans 3, not even one. No one seeks after God. No one does good for whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles at one point.

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He has become guilty of what? All, James 2 .10. Galatians 3.

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Cursed is everyone who does not abide by all things written in the book of the law to perform them.

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Jesus then said in John 3 .7, do not marvel that I said to you, you must be what? Born again.

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And he changes it to second person plural. And if you're listening, you have to be born again as well.

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We continue with these counterintuitive truths on No Compromise Radio and John 3. God is in control of your destiny.

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Now, we, Christians, you, if you're a regular listener, would know that God is sovereign.

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And you would understand that he's sovereign over weather. He's sovereign over your age.

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He was sovereign over your DNA, who your parents were. He's sovereign over your death.

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He's sovereign over world leaders. He's sovereign over history. Sovereign at the cross.

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Jesus, we get all that.

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But sovereign over our own destiny? I mean, don't we believe in, hey, we have to take the bull by the horns and we make things happen?

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You have to, you know, live by the maxim that God helps those who help themselves.

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If you can't save yourself, and if you need inner cleansing, it's going to have to be at the

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Spirit's pleasure. His own goodwill. Because he doesn't owe you anything.

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He doesn't owe you a cleansing. Does God owe the treasonous rebel pardon?

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The answer is no. But here, we see the sovereignty of God as Jesus continues in John 3.

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And you hear the sound of it and do not know where it comes from and where it is going. So is everyone who is born of the

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Spirit. And so we have the Holy Spirit. By the way, the word Spirit is pneuma, pneuma, pneuma.

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And the word wind is the same thing. And so Jesus plays off of that. And can you control the wind?

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Can you guide the wind? Can you suppress the wind? Can you anticipate everything that the wind is going to do?

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And similarly with the Holy Spirit. If it's hard to control the wind and understand what's going on there physically, materially, then how can you control the

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Spirit, the Holy Spirit? I have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I have compassion on whom

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I have compassion. Right? So you have to rely on the sovereignty of God.

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And Jesus states this fact in Nicodemus answers and says to him, how can these things be?

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I need help. You're going to have to teach me. And Jesus says, you know, aren't you the teacher of Israel?

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You're the teacher and you don't understand this? It's not a matter of intellectual understanding. It's a matter of morally understanding.

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And Jesus said, if you don't understand simple things like regeneration, how are you going to believe heavenly things?

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That's John 3. 12. Well, let's move on to number 6, 5, 4, 3.

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Where's Jenny? There she is. She's still not laying down yet.

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She's got that Jack Russell in her. Counterintuitive truth. The next one.

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The response to God's salvation is believe, not do. And again, for our listening audience, we understand that.

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We understand indicatives and imperatives. We understand law, gospel. Whatever paradigm you'd like to use. You can't work your way to heaven.

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It has to be God's work. And then you just take God at His word and you believe what

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He says. And what He's provided for you as a way of escape, as a way of atonement, as a way of forgiveness.

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And so, the response to the cross work of Christ is belief.

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You might want to think you have to do something, but it's belief. And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness,

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Jesus said in John 3, 14, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in Him may have eternal life.

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Jesus says, using an Old Testament illustration here in John 3, referring to Numbers 21, that there's belief.

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The response is belief. When the Son of Man is lifted up, the response is belief.

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This is the first of three times lifted up is used in John. Chapter 3, chapter 8, chapter 12, talking about the crucifixion of Christ, Jesus.

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He says in chapter 12, when I am lifted up from the earth, I'll draw all people to myself.

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And so this Son of Man, He must be lifted up. It's a divine imperative. It must be done under necessity.

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Because, of course, the Father has sent the Son, and the Son must do the

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Father's good pleasure in all that the Father has planned for the Son to do. So what is happening as Jesus is talking to the

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Teacher of Israel about this situation that was, of course, well known in the Old Testament? Israel's on the threshold of the promised land, as one commentator says it, and belief has set in.

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There's going to be some bad trouble with these snakes. Numbers 21, it says in verse 4, people became impatient on the way.

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There's no food, no water. We loathe this worthless food. And so the Lord sent fiery serpents among the people, and they bit the people so that many of the people of Israel died.

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These are the snakes that produce burns. It's not, they're fiery snakes, but what they do, you know, burns.

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It feels like fire when one has bit you. And the people came to Moses and said, we've sinned.

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We've spoken against the Lord. Pray for us. And so the serpents go away, and Moses prays.

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And, you know, the people are still getting bit, of course. And Moses says, make this fiery serpent sit on our pole.

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And we were talking about that a little bit last time. And what they're going to have to do is look at the serpent and live.

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This is not anything but God's provision, and they respond to that provision with not doing anything.

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Oh, now you all make your own snakes. No, but just take God at His word, and that is what faith is.

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Just look at the bronze serpent. Now, if you're going to get bit by a snake, what do you do?

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I mean, what's the remedy, either today or back in those days? As a matter of fact, I just found a snake bite kit the other day.

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I've got a flint and a snake bite kit, and I never really go away from paper, and I'm just, you know, always at home, so that's not going to help me.

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But it just seems counterintuitive, doesn't it? You get bit by a snake, and so what's the remedy? To look at this bronze serpent.

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That's weird. Pay attention to this bronze serpent, and you're going to be healed, right?

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I would imagine, I guess, when they stared at it or looked at it, they might be praying or thinking or repenting or something like that, but they just have to look.

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We have a snake bite that's going to be fatal. Not too many people die from snake bites, but this particular snake bite, they all die from.

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Now, I have studied protocols for snake bites, and here's what it says on one particular website.

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Stay calm. This is after you've already gotten bit. Get safely away from the snake and have someone call 911, so don't get bit again.

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Have the victim lie down with the affected limb lower than the heart. Isn't that interesting?

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Keep the limb immobilized. Treat for shock. Remove rings and bracelets and boots and restricting items because these extremities will swell.

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Apply a light constricting band about two inches above and below the bite. See how that works?

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And get some medical care and get some anti -venom. What you're not supposed to do is cut the bite.

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Use my little snake bite cutter thing. I don't think it does a thing. It just has a suction. Do not apply a tourniquet.

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You're going to lose the limb. Don't suck the venom out by mouth. Do not apply cold or ice packs.

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It makes the injury worse. And if you're a holistic, nuts and grain kind of person, you want to soak the limb for six hours to slow down the venom.

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Drink lots of water. It said pure water. Powdered iced tea.

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Powdered vitamin C. Aloe vera, fresh leaves, and concentrate. You want to get some milk thistle.

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That will help your liver. Echinacea. Echinacea and golden seal.

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That's for your immune system and detoxification of the body. What you need is some

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Chinese pie yao pills. It gives a good center. It was tough.

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Castor oil to address the wound. Fresh red grapes and red grape juice.

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That's immune. Fresh pineapple. Where do you get all this stuff if you're out in the middle of the

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Sinai? Peninsula. Sea silver and colloidal silver 5.

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PPM solution. That will help as antibacterial. Prunes. Natch.

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Chicken broth. And prayers. That's what you do if you're the nuts and grain people.

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None of that is going to help. How's that going to help? What will help?

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Look. Believe. Now, wait a second.

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I've got to look at an unclean snake. Because remember back in those days, in Leviticus 11, whatever goes on its belly and whatever goes on all fours, it's unclean.

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This is an unclean thing, so I have to look at an unclean thing. Yeah, that's right.

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Well, what if I like to do some Latin? Or what if I have a magic formula?

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What if I want some incense? What if I need some dominus sanctus spiritu? No, you need to look.

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Yeah, but what if I look over there? That seems like that's a nice artifact over there. I'll look over there.

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No, here's exclusive looking here. Do I have to look like three or four times?

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Perfect number seven? No, just look. What if I can't really look myself?

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Can I send somebody else to look for me? My parents already looked. No, you have to look. I don't really get the connection between the brass serpent and healing.

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Well, you need to take God at his word and look. This is a supernatural remedy.

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And isn't that a great tie -in here with salvation?

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The gospel is a divine remedy. And the Father treats the

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Son as if he were accursed, as if he were unclean. Yeah, but I'm looking at the snake right now, as the

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Israelites would do, and I don't really see how it can heal.

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I don't understand all the details. Well, it's a supernatural remedy.

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As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, and whoever believes in him may have eternal life.

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Lifted up as a sacrifice, as a substitute. Jesus. I mean, okay, let's put it this way, to use some

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S. Lewis Johnson terminology. You, every listener, you've been bitten by the serpent or the snake of sin, and you've been affected.

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Of course, we go back to the Garden of Eden and see how Satan deceived the woman, and then the man followed.

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And we have sin, and we need a solution to this, and tourniquets won't work, and echinacea is not going to work.

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But God has come up with a plan in his wisdom, and the antidote for the serpent of sin is to look to the

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Lord Jesus Christ lifted up at Calvary. And, of course, we know he's alive.

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He's conquered sin and death. And it may seem crazier than bloodletting, but as Spurgeon said, this is the glorious gospel type.

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Jesus, numbered with the transgressors, hangs before us on the cross. A look to him will heal us of the serpent bite of sin, will heal us at once.

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Let every reader who is mourning his sinfulness note the words, everyone that looketh upon it shall live.

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Do you see the parallel of the brazen snake lifted up? In the wilderness, look and live to the

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Lord Jesus Christ. You can't come up with your own snake bite kit of works to get rid of sin.

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God provides the remedy, and you must respond with faith. I'm believing you.

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You don't need to put together, as Donald Gray Barnhouse said, the extermination of fiery serpents, the

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S .E .F .S., and get badges and coat lapels and cards for district workers and secretaries of organizations and pledge cards and mass rallies.

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You need to look. You don't need to pray that God would give you some relic.

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No, you're to look to Christ's cross, and you'll be saved.

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Isn't that amazing? That is amazing. Well, my name is Mike Abenroth, this is No Compromise Radio, and on behalf of Jetty the

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No Compromise Dog. And for Pastor Steve, hey you, and for all the

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Heno listeners out there, you can write us at info at nocompromiseradio .com. We're going to look one more week,

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I think, at John Chapter 3, because we don't want to miss out on the next verse, the most famous verse in probably all of the

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Bible, John 3 .16. See you next week. No Compromise Radio with Pastor Mike Abenroth is a production of Bethlehem Bible Church in West Boylston.

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Bethlehem Bible Church is a Bible teaching church firmly committed to unleashing the life -transforming power of God's Word through verse -by -verse exposition of the sacred text.

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Please come and join us. Our service times are Sunday morning at 10 .15 and in the evening at 6. We're right on Route 110 in West Boylston.

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You can check us out online at bbchurch .org or by phone at 508 -835 -3400.

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The thoughts and opinions expressed on No Compromise Radio do not necessarily reflect those of WVNE, its staff, or management.