Sermon
Galatians Week 2 • Galatians 1:10-24
Publisher transcript
Transcript
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Hi, and welcome to the Willow Ridge Church weekly podcast.
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This is where you can find audio for our current and past sermons.
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We hope that you enjoy this week's installment, and be sure to check back next week to hear
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the latest message.
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Thanks for listening.
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Amen.
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Good morning.
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Glad that you guys are here with us.
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If you've got your Bibles, go ahead and open them up to Galatians chapter 1.
Galatians 1 chapter mention
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That's where we're going to be this morning as we are in week two of our series.
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We're going to kind of recap a couple of things, some foundations that we are building off of
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as we work through this series together.
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And as we work through Galatians each week, we're going to be building on a gospel issue
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that Paul is dealing with and that Paul is working through with the church at Galatia.
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As Paul has planted this church, he's now left this church, and he's writing back instructions
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for where they are in their growth as they journey in the walk with their walk with the Lord corporately
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together.
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There you are.
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Good to see y'all.
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Where they are corporately together is as they walk with the Lord as a family of believers.
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And the first thing that's going to kind of be this gospel truth that we center on, that
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we understand each week is this, that the gospel is how we enter into the kingdom.
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That's going to be a primary focus on understanding.
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And we talked about that last week, a lot about that last week.
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And if you weren't here, go back and listen to it.
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You can do that from our website or you can check out our podcast, right?
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We've got that as well now.
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And so you can go back and understand what we mean when we understand the gospel and what
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the gospel shows us about ourselves, what the gospel shows us about Christ, what the gospel
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shows us about God, and what a life saved by the gospel then begins to look like.
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So the gospel is how we enter into the kingdom.
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And the important primary aspect of that is that it is the gospel and the gospel alone that
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saves us.
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There is no other way.
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There is no other faith.
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There is nothing else that saves us other than Christ and Christ alone.
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And so that's what we preach.
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That's what we teach.
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That's what we share with our lost friends and neighbors is that it is centered in on that
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Jesus Christ is at the heart of the gospel.
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The biblical Jesus is centered into that.
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And if you remove Jesus from the gospel, if you remove any aspect about who he is, if you
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remove any aspect of what he's done, if there's any part of the gospel that is in void of Jesus,
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if there's any part that's void of the cross, if there's any part that's void of the blood,
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if there's any part that's void of his death, that's void of his burial, that's void of his
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resurrection, it is no longer the gospel.
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Jesus in a very plain way says that he says that I am the way, the truth, and the life.
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And get this, big words for us to understand as we talk about the gospel, that no one, no
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one comes to faith, comes to eternity, comes to salvation, except by him, through him, the
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power of Jesus in the gospel.
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And so this is the first foundation that the gospel is how we enter into the kingdom.
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But there's a part of this, a tension that Paul's going to address, that we're going to
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work together through as a church, is that we feel when we hear the word, or you say the
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phrase, who needs the gospel?
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Like if I were to ask us today, who needs the gospel?
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Like I hope we begin with a laundry list of lost people whose lives we are invested in.
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So side note, if all you're doing is hanging out with Christians, we're missing the point.
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That the gospel is the hope for lost people.
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But here's the reality for you and for me, that it's not just lost people that need the
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gospel.
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It's not just lost people.
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It's not just people who have, in quotes, backslidden.
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It's not just people who are wandering a different way, but that it is all of us who need the
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gospel.
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And so what we begin to understand is not only is the gospel how we enter into the kingdom,
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but the gospel is how we live as a part of the kingdom.
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And so it's the gospel that molds us and shapes us and changes us through the power of the work
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of the Holy Spirit, that I am dependent on the gospel.
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So I have been saved for 18 years, 19 years, and I need the gospel just as much today as I stand
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here before you and preach that I did the day that I got saved in Toccoa, Georgia, when God revealed
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his truth to me.
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I need it just as much right now as I did then, as I walked this journey with him.
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And so what we begin to find out with the gospel is that for us, the gospel sets the standard,
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that the gospel works in us now so that the gospel can work through us.
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And what we have to realize and what you have to look at your own life and examine, what we
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have to walk through with each other and begin to examine is this, is there tangible fruit of
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the gospel evident in your life?
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Like, Cain, when you look at your day, when you look at your thoughts, when you look at
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your words, what do you see?
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Do you see sin?
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Do you see religion?
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Do you see you?
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Or do you see a tangible working of the gospel in your life of where this has taken place?
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And so it's what Paul begins with.
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But then he also is going to continue on this morning in a neat kind of rare moment that
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we don't oftentimes get in scriptures as we get a snapshot into Paul's testimony, as we
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get a snapshot into his story of what's going on.
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And what we're going to find in this is a little bit of an echo of what we talked about last
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week, but this time in an aspect that's made personal in his life.
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And this week, what we're going to look at is the power of the gospel.
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The power of the gospel.
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Here's the problem that Paul's trying to address in the church.
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Here's very specifically of what is taking place in here is this division that is happening
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between believers over the gospels, between the Jews and the Gentiles.
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The Jews who have come to faith first and are Christians and trying to follow what God's
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called for them.
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But then as the Gentiles become a part of that, the non-Jews, a division that tries to
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take place.
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And here's where the division is centered around and what Paul's trying to try to correct and
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what Paul's going to show about himself is, yes, it was believed that the gospel is what
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saves you.
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But then there was this other part about the gospel that was being added to about, and then
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there are these things that you must do, not out of a transformed heart, not out of a
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desire to be obedient to the Lord, but that this must happen and must take place in order
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for you to be saved.
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And so Paul's going to kind of come down through as we go through this and say, no, no, no,
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we're missing it when we add anything to the gospel, is that it is Jesus, not Jesus plus
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anything, that it is through Christ and Christ alone.
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And what we're going to gain is this, not that we shouldn't be obedient to what God's
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called us to do, God does call us to that.
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But the obedience that comes from the gospel, the obedience that comes from walking with
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the Lord, the obedience that comes from Jesus Christ is our Lord and Savior, is the fruit
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that comes from the gospel, not obedience so that we might obtain the gospel.
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And so it's what Paul begins to lay the groundwork.
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Paul says here, for my now seeking the approval of man or of God, or am I trying to please man?
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If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant of Christ.
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For I would have you know, brothers, that the gospel that was preached by me is not man's gospel.
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For I did not receive it from any man, nor was I taught it, but I received it through a
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revelation of Jesus Christ.
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For you have heard of my former life in Judaism, how I persecuted the church of God violently
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and tried to destroy it.
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And I was advancing in Judaism beyond many of my own age among my people.
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So extremely zealous was I for the traditions of my fathers.
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But when he who had set me apart before I was born and who called me by his grace was pleased
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to reveal his son to me in order that I might preach him among the Gentiles, I did not immediately
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consult with anyone, nor did I go up to Jerusalem to those who were apostles before me.
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But I went away into Arabia and returned again to Damascus.
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Then after three years, I went up to Jerusalem to visit Cephas and remained with him 15 days.
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But I saw none of the other apostles except James, the Lord's brother.
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And what I'm writing to you before God, I do not lie.
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Then I went into the regions of Syria, of Cilicia, and I was still unknown in person to the churches
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of Judea that are in Christ.
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They only were hearing it said, he who used to persecute us is now preaching the faith
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he once tried to destroy.
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And they glorified God because of me.
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So Paul, in this section of this letter, there's two different sections that we're going to look at.
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He's going to encourage them of having a holy fear of God,
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but then he's also going to share his personal story of redemption.
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The first thing that we've got to look at, that we have to wrestle within ourselves
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as we understand the gospel is this.
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In our life, is it the fear of God or is it the fear of man?
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Here's personally what's going on in Paul's life.
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As Paul's speaking to the gospel and the gospel only,
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as Paul is acknowledging that he is bringing the hope of the gospel to the Gentiles,
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as he's breaking away from his race, as he's breaking away from his people,
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there's accusations that are being made against him,
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that he's changing the gospel, that he's changing the standard,
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that he's doing whatever he can to appease the Gentiles in order to bring them into faith,
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that Paul is being a people pleaser for them.
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And so the church begins to honestly do one of the things that the church does well.
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They begin to eat their own.
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They begin to sinfully begin to destroy each other.
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Unfortunately, it's what the lost world associates with many congregations and many denominations,
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as we seek to attack as opposed to unify,
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but that's a separate issue that we can talk about later.
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And so Paul seeks to set the record straight.
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The power of verse 10,
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for I am now seeking the approval of man or God, Paul asks,
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or am I trying to please man?
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If I were still trying to please man,
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I would not be a servant or this word literally translated slave to Christ.
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Paul says,
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no, no, no, you got to understand that I am not surrendered to man,
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but I am surrendered to the Lord.
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So when it comes to your life and mine,
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when it comes to our obedience and the transformation of the gospel,
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when it comes to the boldness of the words that we say,
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when it comes to,
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even for those of us now that are trying to figure out,
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is this gospel what we surrender to or not?
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The questions that I think we must ask ourselves is this,
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whose approval are you seeking?
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Who are you and I in our life trying to please?
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Because our approval and our goal to please
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will establish who we are seeking to obey
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and who has ultimate influence on our life.
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That when our life is lived with a matter and a desire
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to come before the Lord,
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to seek Him, to please Him,
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no matter what,
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then everything else gets pushed to the side.
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Because the reality is,
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if we live boldly for the gospel,
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there will be parts of us that are not pleasing to others.
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There will be parts of us that do not gain the approval to others
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because the gospel at the core within itself is offensive.
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The gospel at the core within itself tells me
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and tells others that I am not okay.
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And neither are you without the hope of the gospel.
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It's the part that we looked at and tried to understand last year,
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or last week,
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that we needed rescuing,
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that we were dead in our trespasses and sins,
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that we were incapable of anything good apart from Christ.
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And so when we begin to flesh this out,
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what does that look like?
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Now this isn't giving us permission to be offensive to everyone.
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This isn't giving us permission to walk into work tomorrow morning
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and be hated because of who we follow.
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In fact, Paul within his life has the desire to love everyone.
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In fact, in 1 Corinthians 9,
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he even talks about that he wants to be all things to all people
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in the hopes that some may come to faith.
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But the reality is when we live boldly for the gospel,
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when it comes to who we are going to please in this world,
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that the gospel does create a divide.
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Do we fear God or do we fear man?
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Because we can't fear both.
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Paul uses the word servant or slave in this.
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And the reality is what scripture teaches
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is that we can't serve two masters.
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It's Christ and Christ alone.
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So what does it mean to fear God?
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What does it look like to have this in our lives?
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I love what Joel kind of shared for the moment there
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as he talked about the beauty of that,
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of the awesomeness of the gospel,
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what the gospel does,
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that the gospel does cause us in our life
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to be filled with the awe of the wonder of God.
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That sometimes as we're in his presence,
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we can't speak.
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Sometimes within his presence,
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we're just overcome by who he is.
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To be in fear of God means that above anything else,
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that there's this attraction to his greatness.
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That it's what draws us,
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it's what pulls at our hearts,
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and that what comes from that
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is this holy desire to be obedient.
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And so Paul begins at the very beginning of this
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by establishing as we go through this,
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what we have to work out within ourselves
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is in your life, church, in my life,
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who do we seek to please?
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Is it Christ and Christ alone?
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Or is it anything else?
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But then what we're going to see
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is we're going to see the power of Paul's story.
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Now Paul's not,
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if you don't know the story of Paul,
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Paul's not this guy that was raised up in the church
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and this is all that he's ever known
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and he was molded and shaped for this
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and has been a dynamic leader of the Christian faith
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his entire life.
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Quite exactly the opposite.
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That he wasn't before a man named Paul,
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but before that he was a man named Saul.
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And as Saul, his goal in life,
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and this is what he alludes to,
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was to end Christianity.
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And here's what's important for us to know.
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His goal to end Christianity
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was not through conversions.
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He wasn't trying to take Christians
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and move them into Judaism.
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His goal to end Christianity
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was to destroy it.
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And he would destroy it.
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His means were through imprisonment and execution.
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Like we can call this Saul
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before he gets saved and becomes Paul
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a lot of different things.
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We can call him a bad man.
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We can call him a sinful person.
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We can call him evil.
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But I think a better explanation
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to resonate in our hearts
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who Saul was was Saul was a terrorist.
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seeking to create fear through death.
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A lot of the tactics
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and a lot of the things
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that we hear of
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happen in other parts of the country.
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This is what Saul lived out.
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You can read in the Bible
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where he orchestrated,
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approved,
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and empowered public executions.
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This was who this man was.
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But he had an encounter with Jesus.
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He had an encounter on the Damascus road.
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And when God saved him,
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God changed him.
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Everything down to even his name
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of who he is.
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And what we see
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of what Paul shakes out for us here
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is the power of his story.
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And what we're going to notice
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are some key aspects
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of what he focuses in on
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in his story
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as he seeks to share
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the power of the gospel.
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And the first thing
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that he shows us
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is the power of God.
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Let's reread
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verses 11 and 12.
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He says,
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Paul didn't get saved
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at youth camp.
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Paul wasn't talked
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into something.
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Paul didn't come
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to a worship service
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that his friends
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brought him to.
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Paul wasn't raised
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in the church.
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Now all of those things
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are how people get saved
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and I praise God for it.
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But what Paul
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is establishing here
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and at any point in time
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when anyone gets saved,
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that it happens
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only through
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the power of God.
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I appreciate so much
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how Chad prayed for me
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and how Joel prayed for me.
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And how Isaac prayed for me
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before the service.
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That the words
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that I speak
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that God may use them
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in his power
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if anyone needs
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to be saved.
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Do you see the difference
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of what's there?
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That it's not through
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the appeal of man,
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it's not through
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the cunningness of man,
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but it is through
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the power of God
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that salvation happens.
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And so Paul says,
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look,
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I didn't receive it
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from any man.
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It wasn't taught
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through me,
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but that salvation
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comes in power
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alone through God
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so that it is understood
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that in all of us
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when salvation happens,
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God saved you
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and God saved me.
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The power of what
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has taken place.
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We can't miss that.
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The same God
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that spoke the world
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into the existence
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is the same God
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who saves.
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The same miracle
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that took place
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as life was created
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is the same miracle
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that takes place
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when someone gets saved
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at seven or 77.
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That's the power
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of God
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of what's happening.
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But he also talks
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about this.
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He talks about
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the power over sin
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starting in verse 13.
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He says,
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for you have heard
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of my former life
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in Judaism,
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how I persecuted
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the church of God
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violently
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and tried to destroy it
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and I was advancing
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in Judaism
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beyond many
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of my own age
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among my people.
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So extremely zealous
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was I
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for the traditions
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of my father.
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But when he
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who had set me apart,
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focus on verse 15,
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this is what you want
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to underline,
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but when he
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who had set me apart
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before I was born
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and who called me
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by his grace
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was pleased
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to reveal
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his son to me
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in order
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that I might
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preach him
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among the Gentiles.
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There's two parts
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that we see here
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in the power
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over sin
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for the gospel.
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And the first
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is this,
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it's the power
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of the gospel
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over sin,
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not the power
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of the gospel
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in spite of sin.
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It's important
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of what the power
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reigns
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is over,
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not in spite.
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You see,
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because the struggle
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that you and I
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currently face
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is not because
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the weakness
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of the gospel.
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It's not because
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the weakness of God
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as we battle
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through sin
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in our life
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because the power
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of the gospel
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is the power
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over sin.
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But it's the power
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of our humanity
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that still wants
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to ring true in us.
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It's the power
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of the brokenness
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that we still
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try to hold on to.
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The reality is
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is that when God
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saves us,
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he gives us power
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not in spite of sin
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but that God
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gives us power
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over sin.
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And what we begin
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to see
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is the beauty
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of the battle.
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What we begin
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to understand
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is that's where
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the fruit of faith
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comes from.
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It's the power
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over sin
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that I see
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and that I recognize
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and that I'm
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repentant for
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and that I'm battling
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with the sin
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that's in my life.
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Does it mean
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I'm there yet?
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No.
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Does it mean
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I'm perfected?
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Absolutely not.
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In this side
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of eternity,
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I will never be.
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But it's the battle
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through it.
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It's the battle
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over it.
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And I think
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the struggle
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for many of us
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is when we see sin,
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when sin is examined,
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when sin is pointed
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out in our life,
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are we offended
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by it?
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Are we repentant
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of it?
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Or are we indifferent
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to it?
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And I think
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as the church
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we have to examine that.
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I think as the church
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we have to battle
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with that,
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you know the sin
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that's in your life.
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You know the struggles
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that are there.
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You know the battles
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that you face.
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The question is this,
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do you hate it
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or do you love it?
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Do you repent of it
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or do you excuse it?
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The battle over.
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But the second part,
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the focus there
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in verse 15,
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was we read that together.
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But when he who had set me apart
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before I was born
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and who called me
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by his grace
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was pleased to reveal
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his son to me
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in order that I might
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preach him
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among the Gentiles.
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Here's what Paul's
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talking about here.
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All that stuff
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that he did,
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all the executions
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that were there,
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all the persecution
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that took place,
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that through the power
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over sin,
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through the power
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of the gospel,
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that God's plans for him,
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that God's purpose for him
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had not changed
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and they are larger
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than the sin
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that's in Paul's life.
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And so what Satan
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would try to hold him back
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is you can never go
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to that church
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and proclaim hope to them.
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You persecuted them.
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You imprisoned them.
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You threw them in jail.
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What are they going
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to say about you?
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You had their loved ones
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executed.
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But Paul says,
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no, no, no, no, no.
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There's the difference
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of what's there
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because before I committed
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all of these sins,
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before I was even saved,
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God had set me apart
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for the hope
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of the gospel
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to bring faith
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to the Gentiles.
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Church,
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as we're in our world,
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as we're in our life,
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let me tell you this.
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There are a thousand
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different things
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you've done
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and I've done
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that Satan wants
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to tell us
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that we're disqualified
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for the gospel
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because of it.
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But because of the power
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that God has over sin
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because of who he is
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and because of the gospel,
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you are not disqualified.
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But the power
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of the gospel
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qualifies you.
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You see,
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if you can look back
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on anything
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that you feel like
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you've done in your past
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to qualify you for this,
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then you've missed
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the point to begin with.
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But it's through
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the power of the gospel
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over sin.
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We continue on
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in verse 16
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and we see
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the power
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of the Spirit.
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He says,
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I did not immediately
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consult with anyone
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nor did I go up
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to Jerusalem
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to those who were
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apostles before me.
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But I went away
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into Arabia
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and returned again
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to Damascus.
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Then after three years
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I went up to Jerusalem
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to visit Cephas
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and remained with him
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fifteen days.
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But I saw none
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of the other apostles
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except James,
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the Lord's brother.
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And what I am writing
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to you before God,
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I do not lie.
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So Paul gets saved
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and here's his journey.
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He wasn't immediately
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discipled.
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He didn't return
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to the home base
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of Christianity
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to go and study.
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What Paul did
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was he went away
-
and he spent time
-
with God.
-
And so what we see
-
as he begins to tell
-
of the work
-
that God's doing,
-
we see the fruit
-
of the relationship
-
of what Paul
-
is working through
-
between him
-
and God alone.
-
That Paul
-
in his need
-
to be discipled,
-
Paul in his need
-
to grow,
-
that his foundation
-
for both of those
-
rests in God
-
and God alone.
-
And here's what
-
I want to tell you
-
is this happens
-
through the power
-
of the Spirit.
-
It's not that we
-
don't need discipleship.
-
Absolutely
-
we need discipleship.
-
I need individuals
-
speaking into my life,
-
molding me
-
and shaping me
-
and working in ways
-
to help me grow
-
in my relationship
-
with the Lord.
-
But can I tell you
-
that my relationship
-
with God
-
can never be
-
solely linked
-
to a relationship
-
with an individual,
-
but the foundation
-
of my relationship
-
with God
-
must be connected
-
to my relationship
-
with him.
-
And within that,
-
there's a battle.
-
Within that,
-
that's a struggle.
-
Within that,
-
that's a working
-
through of maturity
-
of what we must do.
-
But church,
-
I want to tell you this,
-
there's beauty
-
in the struggle.
-
There's perseverance
-
that comes from
-
the struggle.
-
So when you dive
-
into God's Word
-
between you
-
and the Lord
-
depending on the power
-
of the Holy Spirit
-
and you don't understand
-
everything
-
or maybe you don't
-
even understand anything,
-
can I tell you,
-
don't set it down
-
and walk to someone else
-
to get their opinion
-
of what it might say,
-
but stick with the battle,
-
stick with the struggle
-
and watch through
-
the power of the Holy Spirit
-
what God is going to do
-
as God's Spirit
-
reveals to you.
-
It's the power over it.
-
Paul,
-
the greatest church planter
-
we know
-
got saved
-
and didn't run
-
to seminary.
-
Paul,
-
the greatest church planter
-
we know
-
got saved
-
and he ran
-
to the feet of God.
-
He said,
-
in your power,
-
teach me.
-
And then lastly,
-
and we'll conclude
-
with this,
-
what we see here
-
in Paul
-
is the power
-
of a story.
-
Let's start reading
-
in verse 21.
-
He says,
-
then I went
-
into the regions
-
of Syria
-
and Cilicia
-
and I was still
-
unknown
-
in person
-
to the churches
-
of Judea
-
that are in Christ.
-
They only were
-
hearing it said,
-
he who used
-
to persecute us
-
is now preaching
-
the faith
-
he once tried
-
to destroy.
-
Let's read that again.
-
Here's what they're saying.
-
He who used
-
to persecute us,
-
he who used
-
to try to kill us,
-
he who used
-
to,
-
has killed
-
some of us,
-
who used
-
to throw us
-
in jail,
-
who used
-
to have us beaten,
-
who used
-
to have our houses
-
burned down,
-
who used
-
to perform
-
public executions,
-
he who used
-
to do these
-
things is now
-
preaching the faith
-
he once tried
-
to destroy
-
and they glorified
-
God
-
because
-
of me.
-
The power
-
of
-
a story.
-
What makes
-
Paul's story
-
powerful?
-
What makes it
-
powerful?
-
I don't think
-
what makes
-
Paul's story
-
powerful
-
is his sin
-
because then
-
the glory
-
would be on
-
the sin.
-
I don't think
-
what makes
-
Paul's story
-
powerful
-
is Paul.
-
When you look
-
at the power
-
of Paul's
-
story,
-
of what it
-
comes from,
-
of everything
-
that it is,
-
it's because
-
the power
-
of Paul's story
-
is focused
-
on God
-
and the gospel.
-
And that's
-
the power
-
of his story.
-
That's why
-
for you
-
and for me
-
that we can
-
look at our
-
lives regardless
-
of our journey
-
to faith
-
and if we
-
focus in
-
on the big
-
title things
-
of what we
-
see Paul
-
focus in on,
-
there's the
-
same power
-
that's there
-
because it's
-
the power
-
of the Holy
-
Spirit
-
working through
-
us.
-
when I'd
-
gotten saved,
-
I'd been
-
saved maybe
-
two or
-
three months
-
and I was
-
riding back
-
from a,
-
we'd gone up
-
to Clemson's
-
FCA and I
-
got put in a
-
car with
-
somebody that I
-
didn't know
-
and he began
-
to talk
-
and he said,
-
hey man,
-
how about you
-
share your
-
testimony with
-
me?
-
I said,
-
sure.
-
And so we
-
began to talk
-
and I began
-
to lay out
-
my story
-
of what God
-
had done
-
in my life.
-
I began to
-
tell about all
-
of the horrible
-
things that I've
-
done.
-
I began to
-
openly confess
-
and I think
-
for a moment
-
the guy's kind
-
of sitting
-
there like
-
white knuckle
-
in the steering
-
wheel going
-
are good
-
grief,
-
right?
-
And I
-
talked about
-
the day
-
that God
-
saved me.
-
I talked
-
about what
-
God was
-
doing.
-
I talked
-
about what
-
it looked
-
like and
-
the call
-
for the
-
future.
-
I talked
-
about the
-
hope that
-
I had and
-
the opportunities
-
to share
-
with others.
-
And I
-
said,
-
what about
-
you?
-
What's your
-
testimony?
-
And he
-
said,
-
man,
-
it's nothing
-
like yours.
-
It's boring.
-
He said,
-
man,
-
I've never
-
not known
-
a relationship
-
with God.
-
From the
-
time that I
-
was very
-
young,
-
I trusted
-
my life
-
to Christ.
-
And every
-
day I've
-
tried to be
-
surrendered to
-
the gospel
-
and God's
-
plan for me.
-
He said,
-
I'm 22
-
years old
-
now.
-
He said,
-
I've tried
-
to walk
-
with faith.
-
I've tried
-
to run
-
from struggles.
-
I've slipped
-
and I've
-
fallen.
-
I've made
-
decisions that
-
I shouldn't
-
have and I
-
repent.
-
And he
-
said,
-
so I
-
kind of
-
feel like
-
my story
-
is void.
-
I kind
-
of feel
-
like my
-
story is
-
broken.
-
I kind
-
of feel
-
like my
-
story isn't
-
filled with
-
this great
-
aha moment.
-
And there
-
was another
-
buddy of mine
-
sitting in the
-
back seat.
-
And he
-
said,
-
you know,
-
when it
-
comes to
-
stories,
-
we try to
-
rank them.
-
We try
-
to rank
-
them through
-
the shock
-
factor.
-
We try
-
to rank
-
them because
-
let's be
-
honest,
-
some of
-
our stories
-
are G
-
rated,
-
some of
-
us not
-
so much.
-
And based
-
in our
-
sin,
-
in the
-
past,
-
we try
-
to determine
-
the power
-
and the
-
effectiveness
-
of the
-
gospel in
-
our life.
-
Let me
-
tell you,
-
church,
-
whether you
-
got saved
-
at seven
-
and all
-
you've
-
known as
-
the Lord,
-
or whether
-
you've
-
run from
-
him time
-
and time
-
again,
-
pursuing all
-
of the
-
things that
-
we're not
-
going to
-
talk about
-
in here.
-
It's not
-
the power
-
of your
-
sin.
-
It's the
-
power of
-
the gospel.
-
Whether you
-
talk about
-
Mary,
-
the mother
-
of Jesus,
-
or the
-
apostle Paul,
-
both came
-
from different
-
routes.
-
Both came
-
with different
-
stories,
-
but both
-
ended at
-
the same
-
throne,
-
the throne
-
of Jesus.
-
Would you
-
pray with
-
me?
-
God, we
-
thank you so
-
much for
-
this morning.
-
Lord, we
-
thank you for
-
the power of
-
the cross.
-
We thank you
-
for the power
-
of God that
-
works,
-
that the
-
power of the
-
gospel is
-
found in you
-
and you
-
alone, God.
-
And then it
-
gives power
-
over sin,
-
that in our
-
life that we
-
no longer live
-
as the
-
defeated, but
-
we live, we
-
stand in the
-
victory.
-
Lord, that you
-
give us even
-
in the
-
struggles, Lord,
-
the opportunity
-
to see and
-
to acknowledge,
-
to repent,
-
to be broken
-
of because of
-
the power over
-
sin.
-
But also,
-
Lord, that our
-
sin, our
-
past,
-
doesn't
-
disqualify us,
-
but you
-
qualify us,
-
that you've
-
chosen, that
-
you've appointed,
-
that you've set
-
into place for
-
all of us.
-
Lord, plans to
-
live boldly and
-
faithfully for
-
you.
-
Lord, we thank
-
you for the
-
power of the
-
Spirit.
-
Lord, the same
-
Holy Spirit
-
that lived in
-
Paul is the
-
same Holy Spirit
-
that lives in
-
us.
-
Lord, that's
-
hard for us.
-
Lord, I know
-
that's hard for
-
me so many
-
times, to
-
understand that
-
level of
-
connection that
-
I have with
-
you.
-
Lord, and I
-
pray that in
-
our foundation of
-
our faith,
-
Lord, I thank
-
you that you
-
give us so
-
many different
-
people who
-
step into our
-
lives to help
-
mold us and
-
shape us.
-
But, Lord,
-
before we bow
-
down, before we
-
become dependent
-
at the feet of
-
a pastor or
-
the feet of
-
an author, at
-
the feet of a
-
teacher, a
-
small group
-
leader, Lord,
-
that we become
-
broken and
-
dependent at the
-
feet of a God
-
who speaks to
-
us.
-
So, Lord, have
-
us struggle, have
-
us become
-
disciplined, have
-
us build the
-
spiritual muscle
-
that we need to
-
persevere
-
through, or so
-
that we can
-
experience the
-
sweetness when
-
you speak to
-
us, and that
-
we, we can
-
hear from God.
-
Lord, I thank
-
you for the
-
power of our
-
stories.
-
for every man
-
and woman and
-
child that has
-
been saved, where
-
there's power in
-
their story.
-
From the
-
addict that's
-
been pulled out
-
of the street to
-
the kid in Sunday
-
school, where
-
there's power in
-
every story.
-
with every head
-
bowed and every
-
eye closed.
-
I want to end
-
with what I
-
began with.
-
This morning,
-
whose approval
-
do you seek?
-
God's or man's?
-
If it's the
-
approval of God,
-
I'll tell you
-
where it
-
begins.
-
It begins at
-
the cross.
-
Jesus, if there's
-
anyone here, they
-
don't know you as
-
their Lord and
-
Savior, I pray
-
that today would
-
be their day of
-
life eternal, life
-
everlasting, or
-
draw their hearts
-
to you, speak
-
hope to them, or
-
draw them with
-
your spirit, bring
-
them to your
-
throne of mercy,
-
have them respond
-
in who you are
-
fully, so that the
-
power of the
-
gospel would be
-
made known to
-
them, Lord, and
-
they would run to
-
you, and they
-
would cry out to
-
you, Lord, and
-
they would be
-
broken for their
-
sin, Lord, they
-
would be set free
-
from their shame
-
so that they can
-
live in the
-
boldness of the
-
cross, and the
-
power of the
-
gospel.
-
It's in Jesus' name
-
we pray, amen.
-
thanks again for
-
listening to the
-
Willow Ridge Church
-
weekly podcast.
-
We hope that you
-
enjoyed listening to
-
this week's message.
-
If you'd like to
-
learn more about who
-
we are, or explore
-
additional resources,
-
visit us online at
-
www.willowridgechurch.com
-
or by searching for
-
Willow Ridge Church
-
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-
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