Sermon
The Revelation of Christ in All - pt. 7
Publisher transcript
Transcript
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Before time had a name there was a garden a place
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where heaven and earth Walked as one This is
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the echoes of Eden Where we rediscover ancient
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roots and awaken to our eternal purpose Well,
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hey guys, hey we are back week seven of the revelation
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of christ in all what i thought i had notes for
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was just for six weeks and i found two additional
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weeks when i got to the end of that last week's
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message um so we're going to continue this for
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two more weeks if you're mad stop the video i
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don't know what to tell you let's stop listen
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to the podcast i don't know what to tell you
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we're going to continue week seven the revelation
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of christ and all this is going to be fun i love
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this series This is a passion of mine. Who knows
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I may turn this into a book. I don't know. Anyhow,
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but this week I want to talk about no separation
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in Christ. Yes, there is absolutely zero separation
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in Christ. And again, I go back to Colossians
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where Paul tells us that we were alienated in
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our own mind. Separation was never on the Father's
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end. It was always on our end. So, by now most
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of the big theological objections have been addressed
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but there's still there's probably going to be
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more than one of course with some people out
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there but there's one that still lingers beneath
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the surface and that's what we're going to talk
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about today and it's this if christ is in all
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why does scripture talk about people being lost
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why does it say the world is in darkness and
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why evangelize at all And these, again, my friend,
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they're fair questions, and we're gonna let scripture,
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not tradition, answer these. Most of Western
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Christianity is built on a single assumption,
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and that assumption is humanity is separated
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from God, and salvation's purpose is to fix that
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separation. So in the year 2026, But a lot of
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people are still separated from God and they
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need to repeat a prayer or do some Magical formula
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or say they're do something to get back in his
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good gracious To not be separated. But here's
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the problem If separation is real in Christ,
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then the cross failed to accomplish Reconciliation
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and these are the things you have to wrestle
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with these are the things that I had to wrestle
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with These are the things that there's still
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leaven in me of religion that I have to allow
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Holy Spirit to work out within me. But again,
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if separation is real in Christ, then what we
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are ultimately saying is the cross failed to
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accomplish reconciliation. That Jesus actually,
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when he said it is finished, actually failed
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his mission. Again, it goes back to... to the
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whole notion of if you can point out, I believe
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it was last week I talked about this, if you
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can point out the one who's not holy, who's not
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faithful, then the next question becomes what
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did you do to become holy? And if you can answer
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that question and say there was something that
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you did in order to gain the status of being
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holy, then we're back to a transactional gospel
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and we're back to a works -based salvation. That's
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what we're back to. You're saying that you had
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to do something in order to gain something. And
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my friend, that's not the gospel. The gospel
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is all inclusive. The gospel is that all is saved,
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all is redeemed, all are forgiven. And that includes
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the Muslims, that includes jihadists, that includes
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LGBTQ plus. community members. That includes
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the neighbor that you go outside and talk to.
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That includes the atheist. That includes all,
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everyone that you come in contact with is already
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saved, redeemed, restored, and forgiven. They're
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just blinded and deceived in their own life.
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And it takes my personal statement, it takes
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you and I to become and to live out being the
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light of the world in the world around us, to
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awaken them to their status as a son or daughter,
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to awaken them to their status of sonship and
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daughterhood. Scripture never speaks of reconciliation
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as being partial. as being, well, it's almost
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reconciled. The rest of the world is almost there.
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Yes, you repeated the prayer, so you're fine.
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The rest of the world, they're kind of reconciled,
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but they gotta do some steps in order to be fully
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reconciled. So again, we need to ask a different
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question. What if separation is not a reality,
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but it's a belief? It's a mindset that we have
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been taught especially here in the western part
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of the world So let's look this This week at
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Acts chapter 17 This we have Paul here in this
Acts 17 chapter mention
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story. He is in Athens So Paul is not in a church
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Paul is not speaking to a group of believers
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Paul is not addressing covenant type people.
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What Paul is surrounded by in Acts chapter 17
Acts 17 chapter mention
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are going to be people such as idol worshipers,
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as philosophers, as pagans. He's going to be
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addressing people that have no biblical framework.
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If there was ever a moment, and again, let's
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think about our message about no separation.
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If there was ever a moment to emphasize separation,
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this would be it. This would be the moment where
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Paul would have to discuss, hey, you guys are
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actually separated from God. Think about what's
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being said. Again, who's he talking to? Pagans,
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philosophers. people who don't have biblical
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framework. This would be the moment, Paul, that
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if you're going to talk about separation, this
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would be the story, this would be the moment
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in which to do that. To tell these people how
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messed up they are, how wrong they are, how much
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they need Jesus, how much they need to repeat
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a prayer, and they need to be reconciled back
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to God because right now they're not reconciled.
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that they are far away, they are separated. This
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is the moment Paul needs to do this for this
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logic to set in. And I wanna read beginning in
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Acts chapter 17 verse 22. It says, so Paul stood
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in the middle of the leadership council and said,
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respected leaders of Athens. So we already see
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Paul was coming being very respectful. It is
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clear to me how extravagant you are in your worship
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of idols. Dr. Simmons in the Passion Translation
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has a note here that says, as translated from
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the Aramaic, which can also be translated, you
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excel in the worship of demons for idols. The
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Greek is how very superstitious you are or extraordinary
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religious. Pick up on the notes here. So he says,
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Whom you worship without even knowing anything
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about him again, that's Jack chapter 17 verse
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22 and 23 I'm reading out of the passion Here
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again, we see Paul. He is not He does not begin
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this with that you are separated from God He
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does not talk start this whole Conversation this
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dialogue off talking about how messed up worthless
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sinners. They are And again, he's not talking
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to church people. He's not talking to believers.
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He's talking to pagan worshipers. They worship
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these idols. Again, even what the Aramaic says
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is you excel in the worship of demons. This is
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the kind of people he's talking to, and he's
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not beating them over the head talking about
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you worthless sinners. You are so separated from
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God. You are so lost in your whatever. He doesn't
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begin in any sense of the way like that. He begins
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actually with honor. He acknowledges their hunger.
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Go back and read it. It is clear to me how extravagant
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you are in your worship of idols. And then when
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it says that, he said he even found an inscription
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on one altar that read, to the unknown God. I
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have come to introduce you to this God who you
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worship and you don't even know who you're worshiping.
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That's the God I'm coming to introduce you today.
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So he acknowledges their hunger. He recognizes
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that they are seeking. He's recognizing their
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passion in this moment. But they don't have a
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problem. Their problem is not worship. They're
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worshiping an unknown God. And Paul says I've
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come today to help introduce you to this God
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that you're worshiping that you don't even know
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who it is. I see all the great things here. I
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see how you um how extravagant you are in your
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worship. I was captivated by the many shrines
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and objects of your worship. I took note of them.
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I caught it and then I caught the one over here
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that says to the unknown God. And I'm coming
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to introduce him to you and introduce the God
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who you don't even know who you're worshiping.
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So he sees and recognizes that they're seeking,
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that they're passionate in worship. And then
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he says something radical. When what you worship
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is unknown, this I proclaim to you. Paul does
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not bring a new God into this mix. No, Paul.
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Believe partners with Holy Spirit in this moment
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and he reveals the God that's already present
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Paul is coming to this group of people he finds
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He founds one with an inscription on the altar
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that read to the unknown God so instead of introducing
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a new God Paul comes in I believe with with wisdom
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and mystery he says I've come to introduce you
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to this God whom you worship without even knowing
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anything about him he says I'm not coming to
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bring you a new God you're already worshiping
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this God let me introduce you to the God who's
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already present among you and within you so let's
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continue Acts chapter 17 verses 24 through 28
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It says the true God is the creator of all things.
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He is the owner and Lord of the heavenly realm
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and the earthly realm and he doesn't live in
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man -made temples. He supplies life and he supplies
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breath and all things to every living being.
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He doesn't lack a thing that we mortals could
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supply for him for he has all things and everything
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he needs. From one man Adam, he made every man
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and woman in every race of humanity, and he spreads
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us over all the earth. He sets the boundaries
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of people and nations, determining their appointed
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times and history. He has done this so that every
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person would long for God, feel their way to
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him and find him, for he is the God who is easy
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to discover. Listen, listen to what Paul is saying.
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Paul is saying for he is the God who is easy.
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God is not difficult to find. In fact, you're
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already worshiping him in all your shrines. You
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have one over here that says to the unknown God
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and I'm here to introduce you to him. He is that
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easy to find that he's already here among you.
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You're already worshiping him. Let me introduce
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you to this God because this God trumps all the
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other ones in the building. Sets the boundaries
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of people and nations Where was I at? He is the
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God who is easy to discover it is through him
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catch this it is through him that we live and
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function and have our Identity just as your own
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poets have said our lineage comes from him. So
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let's Break some of this down. Paul was declaring
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here that God does not live far away He is telling
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this group of pagan worshipers that God is not
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distant God is not contained in temples He says
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in him we live and move and have our Being our
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he's talking to a group of people and using this
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term our He's talking to them and saying guess
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what guys you're included. This is the God that
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we live and move and have our being This is not
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a poetic encouragement. This is ontological reality.
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And then Paul goes even further. He says, we,
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talking to the room of pagan worshipers, we are
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his offspring. Pause right there. Don't check
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your brain at the door. Listen to what is being
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said. How is Paul talking? Put yourself in a
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room full of people. Put yourself in Paul's shoes
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talking to them and he's using phrases such as,
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in him, we live and move and have our being.
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We collectively are his offspring. Paul does
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not tell them you are a bunch of worthless sinners
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and you could become his offspring. That's not
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what Paul says. Paul does not say you will be
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his offspring if you would just repent. You can
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be his offspring if you would say this prayer
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and repeat these words after me. No, Paul was
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saying, in him we live, move, have our being
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and we are his offspring right now. We are. And
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again, he's talking to pagans, people who are
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worshiping idols. And he doesn't come in He doesn't
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come in worship. He doesn't come in introducing
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a new God he brings a God that's already in the
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midst the unknown God and Saying hey guys that
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one that you're worshiping. This is the one that
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actually gives you life We are we are his offspring
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In Him, it's how we live, it's how we move, it's
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how we have our very being, it's how we find
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our identity. Our identity is rooted inside of
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this God that you're worshiping and don't even
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know who you worship. So again, who is Paul talking
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to? Because this is the critical question that
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needs to be answered in this dialogue. He's not
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talking to Christians. He's not talking to the
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church. He's not talking to a room full of believers
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He is speaking to people who worship idols who
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have no concept of Christ and who do not believe
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the gospel and Yet he has the audacity to sit
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here and tell this room full of people. We are
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his offspring Because this is not evangelism
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as recruitment This is evangelism as revelation
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He's revealing to them in this moment that this
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God who you've been worshipping all along and
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you don't even know who it is This is the God
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that your identity is found in this is the God
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that gives you the reason How can I say this?
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This is the God that that is the the the the
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What is the good way to say this to help me Holy
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Ghost You were breathing because of this God
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The very breath that you are taking right now
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began in this God. Your life began in this God.
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Your life is being sustained in this God. This
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one over here, the one that says to an unknown
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God. My friend, this reminds me as I'm talking
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about this, it reminds me about going through
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the gospels and reading the gospels and how Jesus
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interacts with certain people. And about how
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he would heal people and the person he healed
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will not even know who healed him who healed
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them Think about this Because we live in a society
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where we need the credit. We need to make sure
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people know Jesus did this and yet Jesus did
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not have that mentality Jesus is healing people
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without them knowing who actually healed them
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Now he would come and introduce himself later
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But there were multiple stories this happening
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and then being asked by the Pharisees who healed
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you I have no idea I don't know the man I Just
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know one says I just know I was blind and now
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I can see Think about this That's the unknown
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guide This he Paul is unpacking revelation right
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here in the middle of all these pagan worshiper
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these demon worshippers that have all these different
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shrines and all these different things that they're
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worshiping, participating in. And it has the
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audacity to reveal this truth to them that, hey,
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this unknown God that you are in fact worshiping
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without even knowing the person of which you're
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worshiping, man, this is the one that we live.
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We move and we have our being and we are his
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offspring. Show me in this story where Paul is
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talking about separation. Because in this whole
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thing, Revelation, not recruitment, Paul does
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not present God as being absent. He presents
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God as misunderstood. Now let that one sink in.
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I've heard this quote from Damon Thompson before.
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I want to say he gets it from Bill Johnson. Be
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careful of anything that you believe about God
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that you cannot find in the person of Christ.
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Because my friend, we believe a whole bunch of
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BS about God that Jesus comes to restore and
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say that you have my father wrong. If there is
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anything, again, how can I say this? if there
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is anything as a dad that i can say i do better
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than god does the number one if i can ever say
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that i'm a better father than he is then either
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um how can i properly say this to make it make
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the most sense If there's any action that I have
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that I can begin to ask the question, am I a
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better father than God is or do we have God wrong?
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Option two is gonna be 100 % of the time the
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answer. Because I do not believe that I'm a better
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father than he is. No, I believe that we have
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misunderstood and in many cases misrepresented
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God to the world around us. He does not say that
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they need God to come near. He says God is already
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near and God always has been. So the issue here
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for Paul, as he's speaking to this group of people,
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the issue is not distance. No, the issue is still
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the same issue we have today. The issue is ignorance,
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which is why Paul later says, God overlooked
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the times of ignorance, but now commands all
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people everywhere to repent. And again, what
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is the word repent? Because it's not about being
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sorry. In fact, even my own children sometimes
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will say, I'm sorry. And I tell them, no, you're
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not because my kids are not sorry. Now I need
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to do a better job of teaching this, but they're
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not sorry. Does that mean they should never apologize?
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No, certainly. Apologies are part of life. Being
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able to apologize, but I don't want them to ever
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get that mentality and begin to declare over
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them that I'm sorry. Because they're not sorry
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people. Sure, there's room for apologies. But
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repentance has nothing to do with being sorry.
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Repentance doesn't have anything to do with apologizing.
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Repent is the word metanoia to come back to your
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senses to come back to your original design To
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to to come in line with your original blueprint
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Repentance here is not begging for closeness
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It is changing the mind about reality to come
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back into your the true identity only discovered
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in Christ This is what repentance is It's not
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begging for God to come close. It's coming into
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the realization, the revelation that you already
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are one with him. That you could not be any closer
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to God than you are right now. Let's talk about
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darkness. Darkness in scripture has nothing to
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do with separation. Darkness is deception. Again,
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the same thing we have running loose in our world
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and in our culture today. Darkness is about deception.
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Blindness does not mean that God is far. It means
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that truth is unseen. In fact, if you look at
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darkness in the natural sense, darkness is not
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even real. You can't study darkness. That's why
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I forget the scripture that talks about it, but
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he says he brought you out of darkness and into
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marvelous light Light gets an adjectives with
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it Marvelous light darkness is just darkness.
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It doesn't even exist. You can't study darkness
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Darkness by definition is simply the absence
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of light. Now do we experience darkness? Absolutely
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You go outside at nighttime and it's dark outside
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you can't see what do you need sometimes a flashlight
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so that you can see and what happens the moment
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that you put that flashlight on darkness disappears
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i have a light right here right here to help
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me with my video if i was to turn it off i do
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have other lights in here so didn't really make
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that much of a difference but anyhow you can
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see it got a little bit darker and the moment
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that i turn it back on darkness doesn't argue
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There was no fight there. The moment light shows
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up, darkness disappears. So the moment that you
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and I realize that we are as Christ is, we are
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as Jesus is, we are the light of the world as
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He is the light of the world, that it's His light
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shining through us. When we begin to realize
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that and we step into dark situations and dark
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circumstances the moment we show up everything
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just shifted in the favor of light why because
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light overcomes darkness 100 % of the time Think
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about this Stop checking our brains at the door.
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I know we've been taught because I've grown up
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in it and I had to do the wrestling match first
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before I began to proclaim and teach stuff like
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this I had to do the wrestling match first. I
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had to allow Holy Spirit to come in and to adjust
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my lens. Perfect example. Maybe. I may not be
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able to do this. Please hold just a moment. Here
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we go. Perfect example. My video. You can pause
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it if you need to move on, stop it, if you don't
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want to listen, anyhow. It's been several years
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ago that I was sitting in a church service where
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a pastor was ministering on something that Holy
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Spirit was teaching me something different on.
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And I was asking Holy Spirit, I said, why do
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you continue to allow this to be taught like
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this from your pastors if you're teaching me
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something different? Because both of us, can't
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be quote unquote right and he said son it's all
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about the lens and of course me in that moment
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was like huh and this is the picture that he
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gave me i don't know how many of you remember
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these this is the picture that he gave me right
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here and if you know anything about these you
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know that right now all that i can see looks
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red like everything is red around me Let me think
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something here. So I have a. So I have this right
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here that I'm sure you can tell the right color.
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I know the right color, but if you were to ask
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me right now, I'm going to say that the color
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of this is red, when in fact I know that it's
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not. OK, I personally know what color this is.
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But if you were asking me in how I am currently
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seeing through this lens, it is red. Does that
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make me wrong? No It just means that Holy Spirit
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has to come and adjust my lens And help me to
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see better These are my Amazon glasses here So
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that I can see notes actually yellow. I Wasn't
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this is why I don't believe the conversation
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is any more about being right and wrong. I think
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the journey is more important Holy Spirit just
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had to come and fix these He had to come to adjust
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my lens and sometimes that means taking this
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pair off and giving me something different to
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look through Is it making sense I hope it is
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So Paul was never said here Paul never says that
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you're separated from God. He says you you don't
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yet see clearly You don't yet see clearly and
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that changes everything Because when we understand
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that darkness is not That the issue is really
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ignorance and that darkness is not has nothing
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to do with separation This begins to change how
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we see things and how we understand things and
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how we see other people how we see ourselves
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So if Christ is already present why why preach
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Why continue doing stuff like this if Christ
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isn't everybody Chris, then what is the purpose
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of doing this? Because lies still destroy lives
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People are still ignorant today people are still
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deceived and I would say this I know it's gonna
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be a very strong statement Maybe a very controversial
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statement But I would go as far to say the church
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even is just as deceived and ignorant as the
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world is We don't know who we are And I'll tell
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you, it's not about politics, not about anything,
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but if anything, I think what we just had happen
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five -ish years ago proves that point. The church
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has no idea who she is. I'm talking about the
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big C word. The church has no idea who she is.
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During that season, I was at a church and they
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was beginning to sing the song, Great Are You
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Lord, and they were singing the part, It's Your
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Breath in Our Lungs. and i felt the holy spirit
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say he said son if it's my breath in your lungs
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how could this sickness ever take you out wrestle
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with this wrestle with this i struggle currently
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um i believe i'm healed um i'm waiting for symptoms
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to catch up to it but i struggle sometimes with
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type 2 diabetes But here's what I come to know
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as far as truth is if it's his blood coursing
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through my veins I have as much I am subjugated
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just as much to type 2 diabetes as is the blood
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of Christ, which is none I Tell people this You
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have about as much chance of continuing to struggle
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with anxiety as does Christ Think about these
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statements And I'm not taking light of your situation,
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of your story, but I'm helping you to understand
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the truth of who you are in Christ. That if Christ
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is actually in you, if it's the same spirit that
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raised Christ from the dead that lives within
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you and I, when does that stop becoming just
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a cute scripture that we repeat on a consistent
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basis, and when does it start becoming incarnational
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in our life? That I have within me coursing through
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my veins the same spirit that raised Christ from
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the dead Living within me When does this become
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stop becoming a fairy tale for us? Anyhow moving
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on So again why preach because lies to destroy
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lives because people live beneath their inheritance
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This still happens even in the church world because
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identity unrealized becomes bondage and how many
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people are in bondage how many Christians sons
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and daughters of God who go to church every Sunday
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every Wednesday every prayer meeting are still
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in bondage Again growing up in the church world.
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You would see the same people go to the altar
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week after week after week after week and this
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is not to condone uh condemn anybody for that
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i get it but at some point we have to become
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free so that other people can become free by
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god using us so that we can become uh the the
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manifest the christ within our own life so that
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we can start telling people hey I've seen the
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goodness of God. I know what it is to be healed,
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to be delivered. Think this stuff through. Again,
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I'm not condemning anybody. It's just when you
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see the same people week after week go up to
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prayer for the same issue, at what point do we
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grow up, mature? I hope this is helping somebody.
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We don't preach to bring God to people. We preach
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and proclaim the gospel to remove lies about
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God and about themselves. Because the gospel
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has not come to God. The gospel is wake up to
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God already present within you. Scripture says
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God was in Christ reconciling the world to himself,
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not counting their trespasses against them. You
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see reconciliation is not potential. Reconciliation
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is accomplished. Separation is not reality. It
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is a belief system sustained by accusation. And
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accusation has been canceled. And I believe this
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is where it takes you and I to proclaim and to
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release this gospel to the world around us. That
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Christ has defeated the powers of the enemy.
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Again, go back to Colossians chapter two. I believe
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it was Colossians chapter two. Let me get there.
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Might take me just a second to thumb through
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this thing, but I want to read that because I
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think it's important Colossians chapter 2 starting
Colossians 2 chapter mention
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in verse 15 then Jesus made a public spectacle
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of all the powers and principalities of darkness
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stripping away from them every weapon every weapon
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every means every all all means all their spiritual
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authority and power to accuse us and By the power
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of the cross Jesus led them around as prisoners
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in a possession of triumph. He was not their
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prisoner. They were his So again, if he has already
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stripped the enemy of every weapon and of all
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their power to accuse, maybe it's time for you
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and I to announce to the world the accusations
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have been dealt with and silenced. Maybe it's
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time for you and I to announce to the world that
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your sin has been defeated. There's a very well
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-known minister right now that I've even heard
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videos talk about. We've got to deal aggressively
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with our sin. Well, okay, here's the thing. You
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can deal aggressively with your sin or you can
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realize that he dealt aggressively with your
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sin. You can you can make that decision You can
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keep trying to crucify your flesh or you can
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realize that no you were as Paul said you were
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co -crucified with Christ and Now it is no longer
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I who live but it is Christ who lives within
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me So accusation has been canceled So what is
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our role as sons and daughters now? Here's the
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thing sons don't threaten people with distance
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No sons and daughters reveal nearness to people
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They begin to unveil partner with Holy Spirit
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and unveiling the eyes of people around them
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that they begin to understand You are in the
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party already You are already a part of the family.
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We're not trying to jump through hoops for you
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to become a son or daughter of God. No, you are
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a son and daughter right now. Sons don't preach
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exclusion. They announce inclusion. Sons don't
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argue people into truth. No, sons and daughters
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embody truth. Here's the thing. Goes back to
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my light and darkness thing. Light does not come
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to convince darkness. Light simply shines. And
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when light shows up, darkness ceases to exist.
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So I want you to think about this. There is no
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separation in Christ. God is not far from you.
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God is not far from me. God is not far from your
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neighbor. God is not far from the member of the
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LGBT. God is not far from the Muslim. In fact,
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we live, we move, and we all exist in Him. You
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are not trying to get close. You are awakening
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to what has always been true So at this point
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Everything has been established Christ in all
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No separation Darkness is equal to blindness
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Holiness is our inheritance Which leaves one
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final question? If this is all true, then why
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does scripture still speak about being born of
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God and the world lying in deception? And this
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will take us to week eight, the actual final
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message in this series. Born of God, kept by
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truth. I'll see you next time.