It's certainly not the first thing that comes to my mind. So why would the Bible say to rejoice when we experience affliction?

What could possibly be gained by such a thing?

Tune in this week to hear a "different kind of good news" to find out why. 

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That is a great question.

And so much of this growth is unseen because to be seen as a Christian in China will expose you to ostracization at best, persecution on a consistent basis, often imprisonment, and possible death.

Like what we discussed last week with the mustard seed, Jesus talks about small beginnings leading to great growth in His Church, even if it is hidden.

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There is an inspirational American movie called “Rudy.” It is about a young boy who has wanted to play American college football for the most renowned college football program in the world, the University of Notre Dame, for his entire life.

However, there is a challenge. Rudy is slow. Rudy is small. Rudy has dyslexia. Notre Dame recruits only the fastest, biggest, and strongest athletes, and they do require that their athletes come to school and go to class and not just play football. Rudy would definitely be considered the runt of the litter and someone who could never make it into Notre Dame as a student, let alone be able to play on the field for the “Fighting Irish” as they are known.

So, spoiler alert: Rudy, through all of the challenges and tribulations he has to go through—and I recommend that you watch the movie—ends up playing on the field for Notre Dame and records a sack in the last game of the season. Not only that, but he goes on to become a motivational speaker, where he has made hundreds of thousands of dollars per year.

In our following of Jesus this week, Jesus gives us a parable that tells a similar story, but this time about the kingdom of God. He gives us a picture showing that “The Mite is Mighty.”

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So we are going to play a slightly different variation of this game.

The photo in this email shows two stalks of what is supposedly wheat, but only one of them is truly a stalk of wheat. Do you know which is which?

…

I know I wouldn’t have known for sure except for preparing for this message and studying the different weeds that look like wheat. So all of you who chose the stalk on the right, are incorrect. That is called Wall Barley and the stalk on the left is Wheat. They look very similar and they are fully grown. Imagine how similar or almost identical they must look when they are still growing.

Jesus’s latest parable reminds us that not just for stalks of grain, but for people, “Looks Can Be Deceiving.”

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I found it a fun game when I was young, and I would probably find it fun now, but I would probably pull a muscle or wrench my knee now. There was an urgency in the game where you had to find that open chair or you were out of the game and you didn’t want to be out of the game.

I believe so many people in this world are playing a deadly type of musical chairs. Where they are going through life with the music playing thinking that when the music stops they believe there always will be a chair for them. Because they are playing a musical chairs game where they see a chair for everyone.

As we will learn from Jesus today, “You Need to Be in the Chair While the Music is Playing.”

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The gospel spread through these many years of upheaval. Although the conflicts created terrible suffering, they made the Church more mature. The wars scattered Christian refugees throughout the country, so even through suffering the good news spread. Churches formed in places and among peoples that previously had no Christians! Praise God that this growth occurs across many denominations. Pray for them to find unity through Christ. The Islamic government bombed churches and other Christian buildings in the South, and specifically targeted Christian areas for attack. But many believers kept their faith, and even took the gospel to other ethnic groups during these hard times!

Why has real growth occurred in the midst of devastation and upheaval? Kind of crazy right. The church in Western Europe is disappearing even though there wasn’t persecution. There are still some countries where there is a religion recognized by the country, but the amount of Christians is still decreasing every year.

Look at Spain. The country still allows a percentage of the personal income tax of the people to go to the Catholic Church, but from 2013 to 2023 the amount of people who consider themselves Catholic has dropped from 73% to 53%. And even less, only about 27% meet with the church on a consistent basis.

What’s the problem?

Because believe it or not “Opposition Produces Growth.”

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If they answered all the questions, I would get paid. I got paid if I went to their door and they slammed it in my face. If I opened the gate to their yard to go to their front door and then got chased by their dog and had to hop the fence, I got paid. My job was to share the information, but the results were not my responsibility.

This remembrance helped me this week as I was studying the latest parable from Jesus, where I need to remember, “Just Share the Information.”

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As a brokerage company, EF Hutton advised people who wanted to make money from investments. So, supposedly, EF Hutton was so good at helping anyone make money that you needed to stop whatever you were doing and listen to them.

If a company or someone is really good at helping people make money, people would stop all that they were doing and listen carefully to them. But what if there was someone who spoke about things that were way more valuable than money, way more valuable than gold, or diamonds, or anything you could ever have on this earth? Wouldn’t that be someone we would stop whatever we are doing and have the desire to listen to everything they would ever have to say?

Well, that person exists, and His name is Jesus. Today, I want to share with you why you should “Love listening to the Lord.”

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21 And he said to them, “Is a lamp brought in to be put under a basket, or under a bed, and not on a stand? 22 For nothing is hidden except to be made manifest; nor is anything secret except to come to light. 23 If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear.” 

-- Mark 4:21-23

For those of you listening to me on audio only, we are showing a small clay lamp used during the time of Jesus. This lamp will be filled with olive oil, then a wick will be added to the oil and lit. This lamp would give light to the single living area of the home.

When you look at this lamp, it looks so small, how can that give enough light to a living area so you can see? I have a question for you. Have you ever been in a room that was pitch black? I mean it was so dark, you put your hand right in front of your face and you couldn’t see it. 

I have. And we brought in a little lighter. One of the small ones that people use to light a cigarette. We lit the lighter and we were amazed at how that little light gave us the ability to see so much. 

Today as we follow Jesus of Nazareth he talks about this type of lamp and “The Purpose of the Light.”

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If you have been following us for the past few weeks you know we have been discussing Jesus’s parable of the soils and we have finally reached the last soil. The first three soils were not good. They represented people who didn’t know Jesus even though they looked like they did.

How do we recognize people who Jesus would refer to as “Good Soil?” How do we self-evaluate ourselves who claim to be Christians to know we are that “Good Soil” that Jesus is talking about?

That is what we will discuss today as we finish the Parable of the Soils.

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Gardening is not my area of enjoyment. I did grow some corn in my backyard when I was a kid and that was pretty cool, but that was it as far as the enjoyment of gardening has gone for me. Now did I have chores growing up which entailed gardening? 

Oh yes I did and I never enjoyed it.

So even though I am a super novice when it comes to gardening I do know that having thorns in your garden will hurt whatever plants you want to grow. I remember having to get the tools of the trade out of our shed and go in the dirt and dig out all of the thorns and weeds that were growing with the vegetables, plants, and flowers that we had. It was hard work. Made harder since I didn’t enjoy it at all.

Today Jesus is warning us that we must constantly “Recognize and Remove Our Thorns.”

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Have you ever been super excited to do something that you thought would be great?

I know I have.

One of my most looked forward to experiences in life was when my Dad would give me the opportunity to cut the grass. Ever since I was in the single digits, I have watched my Dad cut the grass and asked him when I could do it. He would say I wasn't old enough, but my day came when I was thirteen.

It was wonderful!

Maybe even better than I imagined, and the next week was just as good. However, as the weeks went on, something happened. I was slowly losing my enthusiasm for mowing the lawn each week. So much so that by the time I was 14, I was petitioning my Dad to let my sister start cutting the grass even though she was only 11 (they say females mature faster than guys by three years, so she really was 14).

So what happened to have this dramatic shift from pure joy to dislike in less than a year?

Well, that is what we are going to talk about: how this grass-cutting adventure mirrors what we will be studying from Jesus today. Because "Did I Really Want to Mow the Lawn?", is similar to "Do We REALLY Want to be a Christian?"

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Have you ever been on a dirt path or road that feels just as hard as an asphalt or cement road. I know I think I have definitely fallen down on such a road and it seemed like it hurt my knee just as badly if not worse.

As we continue to stay with Jesus as He is going through the parable about the farmer, the seed, and the soils, we are going to talk about each soil one at a time and today's soil is as hard as a rock.

This analogy used by Jesus explains why a group of people receive His teaching the way that they do. It is because their hearts are as "Hard as Pavement."

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So when we find out that to accomplish something, we have absolutely nothing to do with it, we do not like it. Well in our following of Jesus we have come to such a situation where we shall see that unless God gives us a gift we will not be able to accomplish understanding who He is.

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We discussed the Gift of Tongues last week because many people have been taught differently about it. When preparing for this week's sermon, I thought I was going to continue our following of Jesus, but my thoughts went to another topic where people have been challenged: the Law and Faith. 

Where do these critical components of our Christian faith intersect? What is primary and which is secondary? Or are they both primary? Does what is written in the New Testament essentially nullify the Law? Again we have many new people from a number of different countries, so I was getting to do another topical message that hopefully will provide clarity on the subject of "The Intersection Between Faith and the Law."

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Have you ever heard the saying “Blood is thicker than water?”

The first known use of the phrase is from the 12th century. German philosophers used it to mean that family is more important than anything.

We see that here in America and I am assuming in other areas of the world as well, when people say:

• That’s your blood man, you have to take care of him
• She’s blood. She’s family. There isn’t anything I wouldn’t do for her
• I know they messed up, but blood is thicker than water.

Now the question before us today with this phrase is if this is what God wants? 

If we look at the Old and New Testaments, we see verses that bear that out:

12 “Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long in the land that the Lord your God is giving you. – Exodus 20:12

… and this Scripture was part of our Scripture Of The Day:

8 But if anyone does not provide for his relatives, and especially for members of his household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever. – 1 Timothy 5:8

However, if you have been with us for any time you know we cannot look at just one verse to understand what God is telling us. We need to look at verses in context and the Bible as a whole to get a proper understanding.

I am excited to follow Jesus with you today as He provides the clarity we need to understand that  “HIS Blood is Thicker Than Everything.”

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The saying "Nature abhors a vacuum” is attributed to the Greek philosopher Aristotle. It expresses the idea that empty or unoccupied spaces are likely to be filled eventually. This concept stems from scientific theories asserting that a complete vacuum, a space utterly devoid of particles, simply cannot persist for an extended period. The main message is: any empty space, real or imagined, tends to attract things that will fill it.

This includes human nature. Humans crave stimulation on many different levels. We do not consider ourselves fully alive if we aren’t doing something physical, mental, emotional, social, or spiritual. So if we feel empty or there is an emptiness, we feel bored, antsy, anxious, irritable, lonely, or even depressed. We definitely don’t want to feel like this, so we will fill ourselves with something. 

The question is, what are we going to fill ourselves with? 

Today, Jesus discusses what happens when we are clean on the inside and what will happen if we do not consciously commit to filling ourselves with what is good. We will not remain empty emotionally, mentally, and spiritually because “Human Nature Abhors a Vacuum.”

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For those of you who are watching us live or on-demand, we are showing you a picture that looks like people going up to see Mickey and Minnie at supposedly the most magical place on the earth, Disney World’s Magic Kingdom. Well, it’s not that, but a place that has shown over the years to be even more powerful.

The reason we are talking about this place today is that in our chronological following of Jesus, we see the scribes and Pharisees demanding a miracle from Him to prove to them that He is who He says He is. Their hearts and Jesus’s response are one of the areas we will focus on today.  

Are we like those Pharisees and scribes from 2000 years ago?

"Where We Demand a Miracle”

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I know I have.

And the reason people are looking at you kind of funny is because I made a comment based on the little bit of information I knew, which didn't make sense if I knew the entire conversation. 

This is a challenge we have with Scripture. There are many times when a Scripture is read and we interpret the Scripture without taking into account the context that surrounds that Scripture. There are times when a verse means exactly what it says, and the verse is the entire conversation, so to speak. However, there are many times that verse is just a part of the conversation and treating it like the entire conversation can lead us to incorrect conclusions which can impact our lives negatively.

So today, we are going to take a break from following Jesus chronologically and learn how to ensure that when we read Scripture, we "Know the Entire Conversation." This is not just a suggestion but a crucial skill that we must all develop.

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I will never be mistaken for an outdoorsy person. Well, unless you equate being on a golf course with hunting, fishing, or hiking. Well, maybe it can kind of be hiking. And on a golf course I do see some of the pteridophytes, gymnosperms, and angiosperms that Jesus will be discussing today. For those of you who don't know, those are different classifications of trees.

The pictures above show two trees that, to the untrained eye—and my eye is definitely untrained—look very similar. But they are actually quite different. One produces fruit that people love to make into jams and jellies, while the other is a big favorite for silkworms to eat. Not quite the same.

That is why Jesus shows us today that we cannot just look at what a tree (or a person) looks like. We must also analyze and note the fruit they actually produce.

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• "You shall not murder"
• "Do not neglect to do good and to share what you have, for such sacrifices are pleasing to God."
• "To speak evil of no one, to avoid quarreling, to be gentle, and to show perfect courtesy toward all people."

These Scriptures are clear and easy to understand.

However, there are times when you have Scriptures where you understand what it is saying, but understanding what it actually means is not that easy, and the impact of what it means is profound.

In our following of Jesus, that is where we are today. A topic that is unlike anything else written in the Bible. Hope you can join us today at 10:45 Eastern Daylight Time for Jesus tells us there is a place we can go, “Where We Cannot Be Forgiven.”

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We are following Jesus chronologically through the Bible, and if you have been with us for the last month or so, you know that there is a war going on between Jesus and Satan. Now, when we think of war, there are not only two sides but there are often three.

There is a country or countries on one side battling against a country or countries on the other side. However, there is a country in Europe that is always neutral. Do you know the name of that country?

It is Switzerland. Switzerland isn't the only country in the world that chooses not to take a side in times of war, but they are the oldest and best known. Here is a brief history of how the Swiss became neutral (from the History Channel):

The Napoleonic Wars were a turning point in Switzerland’s history, sealing its place as a neutral nation. Despite being invaded by France in 1798 and later made a satellite of Napoleon Bonaparte’s empire, Switzerland's determination to remain neutral was unwavering. After Napoleon’s defeat at Waterloo, the major European powers recognized the value of a neutral Switzerland as a buffer zone between France and Austria, contributing to stability in the region. This was affirmed during the 1815 Congress of Vienna, where a declaration was signed, affirming Switzerland’s “perpetual neutrality” within the international community.

Switzerland and other countries like Austria, Ireland, and Costa Rica are often praised for their commitment to neutrality. However, in our journey of following Jesus, we must understand that there are no neutral territories, for there are no 'Switzerlands' in Christianity.

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When I used to watch sports a lot. I would watch almost anything. One of the sports that I didn't watch often, but I did watch was the world's strongest man. 

These men are amazing. Lifting weights that are the size of two American Football players who play on the line (for those of you not familiar with American football, each of those type of players weighs over 300 pounds). Crazy stuff like pulling a bus with their teeth. Strength beyond my understanding.

Now today we are going to be talking about a very strong being where many people act as if this strong being is in competition with this man that we know.

But folks we need to know, that despite what the current circumstances may look like "This is NEVER a Competition."

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Have you ever been in a discussion with someone, that no matter what you say to them, they will not believe you?

You use logic. You bring them verified documentation. You show them videos of the event. You bring witnesses to corroborate what you are stating. The witnesses you bring are even members of their own family and they still will not believe you. And their reasons for not believing you are as ludicrous as them saying a square peg fits in a round hole.

As we follow Jesus today, we will see Jesus perform another miracle, and we will see the Pharisees using "Square Peg" logic to refute what Jesus has done and is doing.

We need to remember that we are going to experience what we see Jesus experiencing today; many people will just "Refuse to Believe."

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Today we see Jesus breaking tradition again as he did with the woman who came and washed his feet with her tears.

We are still at the beginning of Luke 8. We discussed the truth about demons because, according to this passage, a number of women had been released from evil spirits. But now we shall discuss another revolutionary concept that Jesus brought to the Jews and the world of the first century.

“Ministry is NOT Men Only”

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Last week, Dr. John MacArthur discussed two of the three categories of demons: those in permanent chains and those temporarily chained until they are released to battle against Jesus.

However, there was the third category of demons we didn't get to discuss last week. That is the category of demons that Dr. MacArthur is going to talk about today. These are the demons that are here right now on the earth, and we, as Christians, must be Prepared to Battle them!

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Similarly, I believe the developed world, who sees themselves as more sophisticated and advanced has deemed this five-letter word passe' and for the uneducated, but we will see today, that Jesus didn't think so.

Jesus Knows that Demons are Real, Too

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A couple of weeks ago, we were introduced to a woman who had many sins, but she knew that because of Jesus, she was changed. She was changed in such a way that her gratitude had no bounds. This led her to crash a fancy party where Jesus was. She washed his feet with her tears, dried them with her hair, and anointed them with expensive oils.

The important people there believed that Jesus couldn’t be a prophet. If he were a prophet he would know that the woman was one of the worst sinners. And a true prophet would never let “that sort of person” touch him.

But as we shall find out today, that Jesus is much “More than a Prophet.”

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Last week, we discussed how we must know our sins to truly show our love. At the end of last week’s message, I believe the Lord put on my heart that one way we can help ourselves really know the depth and breadth of how awful our sins are is to understand the place where we will go if we are not in Christ. That place is Hell.

Regretfully, multitudes of churches in the post-Christian era in the United States and many developed countries skip over the clear doctrine of Hell. Pastors and teachers act as if no one in the Bible ever mentioned Hell. The unbelievable truth is that the person in the Bible who talked about Hell the most was Jesus!

So today, we will make it clear to anyone who has ears to hear that Jesus Knows that Hell is Real, Do You?

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Worship Music for the Week: tinyurl.com/240526aciw

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Angelique and I just finished watching “Schindler’s List” again. It is hard for me to believe that the movie is over 30 years old now. If you have not seen it, it is a great movie. I don’t want to give too much away if you haven’t seen it, so this is a little of a spoiler alert.

Oskar Schindler was more of a playboy than a businessman. He wanted to make a lot of money so he could have a good time. On his way to making a lot of money during World War II, he did an amazing thing in Kraków, Poland. He saved over eleven hundred Jews from the gas chambers.

In 1933, there were almost 3 million Jews living in Poland. There are currently around 4,500 Jews living in Poland. The number of Schindler Jews currently living, these are the survivors Oskar Schindler saved, and their descendants is over 6,000 people.

Think about those numbers. Can you imagine the love those Jews have for Oskar Schindler? Even though they know he is a playboy, and he has many faults, can you imagine what they would be willing to do for him?

Their love for him to this day is great. Because they understand what they were saved from. When you truly understand the depth of the awfulness you have been saved from, your love for the person grows astronomically.

Do we understand the depth of the awfulness all of us put ourselves into? I don’t think we do. I know I don’t act like I should in this area. Furthermore, I know it in my head, but not my heart. Today, as we continue following Jesus, our Lord gives us a picture of someone, who because she truly sees her sin for what it is, she is able to abundantly show her love to the Lord.

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A city boy like me does not know a lot about farming. I know you need rain, sunshine, and good dirt and that is the extent of my knowledge. So, if I saw the picture that you are seeing now back when I was growing up, and for those of you who are on audio, we are showing a picture of two oxen and there is some wooden thing on top of the necks of both of the oxen. And that is what I would have called it, a wooden thing. However, it has a name. It is called a yoke.

In our following of Jesus (Matthew 11:28 – 30), our Lord talks about a yoke today. It is the difference between His yoke and the yoke of men. And there is a huge difference. For with men, the yoke is a burden but with Jesus, it will become our joy. 

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Worship Music for Today: https://tinyurl.com/20240512aciw

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All of us have at one time or another, tried out for a team, auditioned to be a part of a performing arts group, or applied for a job. In all of these situations and others similar to them, we had to show that we could perform at a level for us to be accepted into the team, group, or organization. This is what we are used to.

We bring this sort of thinking to the idea of becoming a Christian. We have to meet certain performance requirements to become a Christian. 

However, as we journey with Jesus, we discover that his acceptance criteria are unlike anything we've encountered in the world. He is the one who decides who joins Their team, and His standards are unique. For there are "No Tryouts for Team Jesus."

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Worship Music for the Week: https://tinyurl.com/20220717aciw

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They finish each other's sentences when you listen to them talk inside a group. They anticipate the topic the other person wants to talk about. How they talk is similar. Their voices may differ, but the tone and the cadence seem similar.

I'm telling you that if you look at the photos that will be there from when they got married and follow the photos over their lives, you would swear that they now look more alike. It is a special and beautiful bond that points us to the supernatural and beyond-understanding bond that God the Father and God the Son have.

As we follow Jesus, we stay in Matthew 11:27 for another week as we explore this bond that has been from eternity past and will continue forever into an eternity future. It is a relationship and a bond where "They Know Each Other Like Themselves." 

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Worship Music of the Week: https://tinyurl.com/20240428aciw

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What you see here is a soundboard. A really big soundboard. The soundboard is the supreme lord of all sound.

When music is being created by artists or for a soundtrack of a movie or for anything sound related the soundboard is king and in full control of all sound. The singer can sing as loud as they want or the trumpeter can blow as hard on her trumpet as she wishes, but if the person in control of the soundboard turns the knob that controls their sound off, what they do will not be heard, no matter how hard they try.

The master of the soundboard is the master of sound.

Today as we follow Jesus, He makes a claim of not just being the master of sound, but the master of all. Is that true? And if so what difference does that make in the lives of His followers?

Well, we hope you can join us today as we dig in to see if Jesus is the Master of All.

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Worship Music for the Week: https://tinyurl.com/240421aciw

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So, husbands, have you ever tried to do something for your wife? I mean you were really trying your best to please her with something. You thought you had done everything. You went through your checklist and double-checked your memory banks of what you remembered her telling you in the past. So you know you are good; however, when she returns, your whole world is turned upside down.

You were wrong.

This same scenario works for children thinking they have done what their parents wanted them to do, but they missed it somehow. It may be something they have told us about many times, but somehow, our brains process it differently. I know you husbands definitely know what I mean.

We are going back a little bit and looking at Joseph. He was a husband, and we are going to see that he was wrong about something, but what he did was actually correct. I know that sounds weird or counter-intuitive, but I hope you join us today as we talk about “We Were Wrong, but Also Correct.”

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Worship Music for the Week: bit.ly/240414wotw

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‬This is a photo of Richard Dawkins signing one of his books. In preparing for this sermon, Richard Dawkins came to my mind because he was in the news this week for a comment he made about Islam and Christianity. I don’t want to get sidetracked, but Richard Dawkins is one of the most famous atheists in the world. His book “The God Delusion” has sold over three million copies since its release in 2006. In the book, Dawkins argues that belief in God or gods is a delusion akin to other mistaken beliefs. He presents scientific evidence and philosophical arguments to support his case.

This week also got me thinking about the statistics on high school students who, when they graduate from high school, say they are Christian, but after they finish college, they have moved away from Christianity. The data from Lifeway Research from 2017 indicates that 66% of high schoolers stopped attending church regularly for at least a year after turning 18. Actually, this number is better than the 70% number from 2007.

What about higher education leads people to turn their back on God? We know that the Bible says knowledge is actually good:

Psalm 18:15

An intelligent heart acquires knowledge,

    and the ear of the wise seeks knowledge.

So, what is happening here?

Well, guess what? Jesus has a little bit to say about that today as we continue following Him in His earthly ministry chronologically. Where He will make the point this week that we can have “Knowledge With No Understanding.”

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‬ 

We want to be able to share the Hope of Christ with everyone the Lord puts in our path who is open to at least asking a question or listening, but many times we are not prepared to be able to provide answers besides saying “It’s in the Bible, so it’s true.” That is a very unsatisfactory answer for people who do not hold the Bible as credible.

My heart is to help Christians be prepared to answer questions from the skeptical world and with today being the celebration of the resurrection there is no event greater that we need to be able to give answers to the world on.

So today is an attempt to give you a tool to help on this topic. Please send us any questions that you may have while you are watching. We will do our best to answer them. When you engage with material you retain so much more of what you are hearing.

He is Risen!

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‬

As many of you know, I am a high school teacher, and one of the challenges we now must deal with is our students having earbuds in their ears all of the time listening to music or watching their latest TikTok fave.

They are doing it while we teach, and then they get an attitude when you tell them to stop. They listen to them in the hallway, so they are oblivious to anything you say or do when you are trying to get their attention.

This is a challenge because if they cannot hear you, something bad could be happening in the hallway where we are trying to protect them from it, and they will never hear us, and they could get hurt.

As we continue following Jesus, he is talking to a large group of people who are like my students. They all have in their earbuds, listening to music so loud that they cannot hear anything else. They cannot even hear Jesus imploring them to listen to Him so they can save their own lives from destruction.

I pray that the Lord uses me today so you do hear him because you don’t want to be one of those with earbuds in their ears who do not hear the Lord and will have it “Worse than those from Capernaum.”

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Most of us know that the Bible sells the most copies of any book each year. However, we forget another book that beats all the other books sold yearly.

For example, the best-selling book in the United States in 2022 was ‘It Ends with Us’ by Colleen Hoover. The book sold just under 2.73 million copies. Now, girls and boys, that is just over 25% of the number of copies this book sold.

And that book is ... the Dictionary.

Over 10 million copies of the dictionary were sold. People cannot put the book down. An absolute page-turner, with something new and different not just on each page, but on each line. There is nothing like it.

However, we are not excited when reading the dictionary page after page. We will explore a part of the New Testament that feels as riveting to read as the dictionary, but I think you will be surprised to find out that "The Dictionary is More Exciting than You Thought."

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I had a life-altering experience over 40 years ago. It was before I was a Christian, but to this day I can remember it like it was yesterday. Actually I think it is almost 50 years now.

My life was saved by a stranger. Someone I never met and still have not. I didn't deserve it. Just like none of us deserve the saving grace of God, but "He Saved Us Too!" 

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Have you ever been somewhere where there are a lot of children around with their parents? It could be a playground or at a beach or an amusement park. 

Have you ever witnessed children not listening to their parents?

You will have the mom trying her method to convince the child to do what is right, but she won’t listen. Then you see the dad try his method and the child is not willing to change. The child wants to do what they want to do.

Well today keep that picture in mind as we continue following Jesus because Our Lord will be discussing how many adults who are listening to him are saying “I Don’t Hear You Jesus.”

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Worship Music for the Week: https://bit.ly/aciw240303

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Have you ever heard a dog whistle?

I have seen a dog whistle, but I have never heard it. That’s because a dog whistle has a sound that most humans cannot hear. Its sound is too high for most humans.

As we pick back up in following Jesus chronologically, Jesus talks about people hearing what He has said about John the Baptist and, in turn, what that means about Him. The question for all of us is, “Can We Understand What Jesus Says?”

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There are traditions or ways of doing things in a family in the world that are not bad and not harmful, but if God has communicated a path for you, that is the way you are to go even if family and friends are against it.

For example, in a family, you may have the fact that everyone was in the military. This becomes a tradition in the family and an expectation that every child growing up will go into the military at some time in their life. This becomes an expectation and the children are pushed in this direction. And for different families, it may be where everyone is supposed to be a lawyer, or a plumber, etc. All of the professions I mentioned are honorable, but does God want us to follow in those traditions without seeking Him first?

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...

I am around mainly coffee drinkers, so I thought it was probably coffee. What do you think?

...

Well you are going to have to listen to the message to get the answer (that is what is called a "tease"), however your favorite beverage or food or activity is a tool that you can use for evangelism.

It is.

And that is what we are going to talk about this morning and that is what I like to call Triple I, "Intentional Initiated Interaction."

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That’s where we are today, following Jesus step by step through His ministry. We have a verse, just one verse where it is not clear as to what is the correct meaning.

Matthew 11:12

"From the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven has suffered violence, and the violent take it by force."

Sometimes, what Jesus is saying is not as clear as we would like and will require additional prayer, work, and study.

I hope you can join us today as we “Breaking Through the Opposition.”

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Worship Music: http://tinyurl.com/aciw-240204

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Here are the FREE resources for Bible study discussed in the message:

* Bibles: https://www.biblegateway.com/

* Parallel Translations: https://www.biblestudytools.com/parallel-bible/

* Interlinear Bibles: https://www.biblehub.com/interlinear/

* Concordances: https://www.biblestudytools.com/concordances/

* Lexicons: https://www.biblestudytools.com/lexicons/

* Dictionaries: https://www.biblegateway.com/resources/dictionaries/

* Commentaries: https://biblehub.com/commentaries/

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Who are some of the superstars of the Old Testament:

• Abraham
• David
• Moses
• Elijah

If you had a Mount Rushmore (the mountain in the United States where the faces of George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln, and Theodore Roosevelt are carved in stone) for the Old Testament, those gentlemen might be on that mountain. So, what I will share with you today might be a little shocking to you. A follower of Christ who is as unknown as any person could possibly be is greater than Abraham, David, Moses, Elijah, Esther, Joshua, Miriam, Hezekiah, etc.

Greater than anyone you can name from the Old Testament.

I know. Sounds crazy. And the reason is so simple and so profound at the same time.

“The Kingdom is Better”

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‬Have you ever been in the midst of a lot of people, and all of them are talking at the same time? However, there is one voice that stands out. There is one voice that is clear, that is distinct, that has something special about it. You can't put your finger on it exactly, you just know that what that person is saying resonates with you in a way that no other voice in the room does.

Today, as we continue following Jesus, we focus on the voice in the midst of everything going on at this time in Israel. This is the special voice that millions of people have been waiting to hear for a very long time.

That voice was there in their time, but not everyone who heard the voice believed what he was saying. In a sense, that voice is still speaking to us today.

Do you hear it?

Do you believe it?

Today, we hope to share with you and show you that “The Voice is Here.”

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-- Matthew‬ ‭11:7-9‬

What do you go out to see?

What do I go out to see?

Do we think about it?

Does it make a difference?

Let's talk about that today.

I hope you will be able to join us.

-- Coach

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Have you heard the term, "It looks darkest before the dawn?"

Well, right now, it's looking pretty dark for John the Baptist. We see that John has been put in jail, so he is starting to question if Jesus really is who John said He was.

Have you ever been there?

You were sure about something, but then it didn't happen or worse, not only it didn't happen, but your life started going downhill and sometimes fast. Did you start wondering, did I hear correctly? Did I read that correctly in God's word? It sure does not look like that is happening for me.

This is where John is right now, and we are going to talk about how if God actually said it, then He will Do it.

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Staying with the Christmas theme, we look at someone from Bethlehem (and not who you think) with the correct perspective knowing it was never them.

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Worship Music: http://tinyurl.com/aciw231231

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Oh baby, don't it feel like heaven right now?

Don't it feel like something from a dream?

Yeah, I've never known nothing quite like this

Don't it feel like tonight might never be again?

Baby, we know better than to try and pretend

Honey, no one could've ever told me 'bout this

I said yeah, yeah (yeah, yeah)

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah

The waiting is the hardest part

Every day you see one more card

You take it on faith, you take it to the heart

The waiting is the hardest part

The first question of the day … “Who is that band?”

Yes, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers. I know, I know, you never know where I am going with a message. Honestly, when I am preparing, I don’t either many times, but in preparing this week, this song popped up earlier in the week, and I kind of brushed it off. Then it came back yesterday, and I thought a little more about it and then one more time, so I started preparing to use it, asking the Holy Spirit, “Am I really supposed to use this song,” well I am talking about it now, so I guess I got the go ahead.

The song's title is “The Waiting is the Hardest Part,” and with Christmas, there are so many people, young and old, looking forward to Christmas Day. Did you ever think about how many people in the world are looking forward to Christmas? I did some research this week, and there are 160 countries that officially celebrate Christmas, and another 20 have Christmas celebrations. There are only 195 countries worldwide, so that is over 92%.

Now, a question I have is this: are we waiting for Christmas for the right reason? I agree that waiting for something you want is hard, and if it takes a long time to come, it is really hard. But what is worse is waiting for something that you really want, and when it finally arrives, it is not as exciting or fulfilling as you had hoped.

Today, we will talk about waiting, but waiting for something that will exceed our expectations, thoughts, and dreams … and so the waiting may be the hardest part, but “The Waiting is Worth It.”

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Today’s sermon is a surprise to me. I didn’t plan on speaking on this today. I had a different plan for about two weeks. I had done my background research and started writing, and sometime yesterday afternoon, I believe the Spirit of God showed me that the first verse of the six verses I was going to cover was the only verse I should focus on today.

I had already done the video for our Scripture of the Day and the Scripture showing where Jesus is at this time, but I was getting that I needed to make a pivot, which is never fun, especially with me having to give the sermon in less than 18 hours. And then, at about 7 pm today, I got confirmation, which I didn’t realize was confirmation at the time, but I do now.

It was a powerful and poignant reminder of what we will discuss today as we follow Jesus, “We Need to Teach the Children Well.”

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This was my Mom’s Dad, who is one of the kindest and nicest people I have ever met. I still remember to this day being such a brat when I was thirteen, and he was so kind and caring, and I was terrible to him. I still regret that memory to this day.

This was my first loss of a loved one of someone very close to me. There had been a few other relatives who had died before Pop’s passing, but no one of his magnitude. The loss, the crestfallenness of losing someone you loved so much, is incalculable. Jesus understands pain and emptiness, and He has compassion for His people when they are walking through this type of valley.

As we follow Jesus today, we shall see how “Christ has Compassion for the Crestfallen.”

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The battle is close; you don’t know who will win because you see that one wins some of the battles and the other wins some of the battles. So whether it is a movie, mini-series, books, or tv shows, you will see good v. evil battles with God v. Satan. And the challenge with what is shown is the perception that Satan is somehow on God’s level, which is not close to the truth.

As we continue following Jesus from Scripture, today we will see clearly that “Satan is NOT on God’s Equal."

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Growing up in the 70s, even though we were pretty much an agnostic family, still meant that we would go to church every once in a while and there were definitely televangelists on TV. Now there were a certain type of televangelists I definitely remembered, and those were the ones I would see talking about healing people. And one of the phrases I remembered was "Be Healed in the name of Jesus."

Now back in that time I laughed at what was being done because I thought it was silly and was not true. However, as I studied the Bible in my journey to becoming a Christian, I did see that there were healings that were done in the Bible and when I became a Christian I was open to that being a possibility in the here and now.

However, I heard of stories and even experienced firsthand with people being told someone was going to be healed and they weren't healed, they actually died from the disease that the person was saying they would be healed from. And they were saying they believed that God was going to heal them.

If God says He is going to heal someone, will He then not do it? Or are there times He is not able to do it?

That's the topic for today as we continued following Jesus and He performs His first healing miracle in His earthly ministry. For from what I see in Scripture is that God Heals Those He Heals.

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There is so much war/conflict in the world today:

• Yemen
• Myanmar
• Israeli / Palestinian
• Ethiopian
• Russo-Ukrainian

… and the list goes on.

Depending on which side of the divide you were brought up in, you are most likely going to hate or at least distrust whoever is the opposition. You will have built up stereotypes of what that sort of person is like, and generally, in your experience with “those” people, your picture of who they are has been correct.

However, what happens when the model you have created in your mind and seen played out over the years is challenged? Are you open to being open? Are you available to have your mind changed and see each person as an individual and not as a category?

That’s where we are today in our following of Jesus, as our Lord shows us that “Our ‘Enemy’ May Be Our Brother.”

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Walking out the Christian life is not easy. And part of a successful walk with Jesus requires us to individually and actively in a sense block a shot of a player. Not just once, but as often as it takes. The challenge is the player whose shot you will need to block.

I hope you join us to find out who that person because “Denial is Active!”

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I have recently had to make a lifestyle change and cut down on my carbohydrates. Which for someone like me who really enjoys waffles, french toast, brownies, french fries, homemade rolls, fried rice, … and I am just getting started, it has been quite painful. So one of my new staples has been boiled eggs.

It has a lot protein and no carbohydrates. And I like them. Always have. Takes me back to my childhood and road trips in the car. It also takes me back to me trying to make my first boiled egg.

Do you remember the first time you boiled an egg?

I don't know if I totally remember my first time, but I definitely know there were a number of times that I didn't do it right. Either I did not give it enough time and it was runny or much time and it was a hard hard-boiled egg.

And then there is the point that not everyone likes their boiled egg the same texture. I think my love for hard-boiled eggs came from my Dad, but his timing for his egg, was not my timing.

What I want to share with you today as we continue following Jesus chronologically is that all of us have to “Know Our Time” --- “Know Our Time”

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Growing up, I remember when there were cleaning projects in the house to be done there was only one product that we could use ... and that was Mr. Clean.

My grandmother swore by it.

It didn't matter whether it was dirt, mildew, grease, fungus, slime, or the Blob from the science fiction movie, Mr. Clean would get rid of it. If we ever got anything else, she would use it and then let us know in no uncertain terms, that this product is not as good as Mr. Clean (my grandmother had colorful language, so I am cleaning this up for the children. You get it "cleaning". Ha! Ha!).

Well, in our following of Jesus, Jesus has come down from the mountain and is immediately met with an uncleanliness challenge. A little different than what my grandmother had to deal with back in the day and something that Mr. Clean definitely could not handle. But thankfully our Lord, "Makes Us Clean."

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For those of you who are new to aciW, I like sports. Near where we live is a sporting goods store called the Sports Authority. Now why are they the authority on sports? I don’t their competitors such as Dick’s Sporting Goods and Modell’s would consider them the sports authority. Is Sports Authority the authority on sports just because they say so?

What makes something or someone the authority on anything?

That’s a question we will be answering from Scripture today because now that the Sermon on the Mount has concluded the people who were there started talking afterwards. And they were talking about authority. And they were saying, “HE has Authority.”

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We are at the conclusion of Jesus's Sermon on the Mount and He gives us a powerful word picture to make it very clear as to how one should build their life. He is very specific on the type of foundation that someone's life should be built on and what it should look like.

The foundation we choose to build on will have ramifications forever. It is that serious. It is that important. We do not want to build our lives on the Forever Failing Foundation.

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There are some verses in the Bible that will be transformative for you. It may be immediate, and sometimes it takes some time before you have that aha moment. We are at that point in Jesus’s Sermon on the Mount for me.

This is a continuation of what Jesus discussed about false prophets last week, and you will know them by their fruit (Matthew 7:15-20). This week, we will unpack three verses that cleared up an area in my Christian understanding that had baffled me for years.

“How can so many people say they are Christians and even do ‘Christian-like’ actions, but when you get to know who they really are, they do not follow what Christ has said?”

William Shakespeare has a line in Merchant of Venice that provides clarity to this conundrum, “All That Glisters Is Not Gold.”

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It is fascinating sometimes the things you can remember from decades ago, and I cannot remember what I ate for lunch yesterday. Now, I cannot remember what I remembered. That’s hilarious 😂.

It was some song from over 30 years ago that I had not thought of in decades. I could remember many of the lyrics and ask my family; I generally don’t remember lyrics.

The reason that has come to mind today is that back in the late 1970’s or early 1980’s, I remember seeing a commercial for cubic zirconias. Diamonds are super expensive, and this cubic zirconia, which looked like a diamond to me, was being sold on this infomercial for just $39.99 USD. Why would someone want to pay thousands of dollars for a diamond when I can get something that looks just like it for orders of magnitude less?

I did a little research this week and found a two-carat CZ for less than $31 USD. Yes, the prices have decreased since the late 70’s / early 80’s. I found a similar two-carat diamond ring for about $8,000 USD. Can you tell me if The engagement ring you see right now is the $31 CZ or the $8,000 Diamond? And is there any difference between having a fake diamond and a real diamond anyway?

That relates to what I would like to share with you today. As Jesus is winding down his Sermon on the Mount, He is talking about what is false and what is true when it comes to people who are supposed to represent Him to the world. He gives us a template to follow for identifying who is a true communicator of who He is and someone who looks good but is just a Cubic Zirconia. I call the template “How to Know a Diamond.”

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Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—

I took the one less traveled by,

And that has made all the difference.

Robert Frost

When given a choice between what is easy and what is difficult, which option do we usually choose? Especially if the easy choice represents more fun, popularity, and immediate success.

That’s a pretty easy answer.

Today as we follow Jesus, He tells us about a choice that we must make. One is easy and the other is difficult, and today we shall see, “That Will Make All The Difference.”

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There are certain verses in the Bible which almost everyone knows, even if they don’t know that it came from the Bible. One of those verses is where we are today in our following of Jesus. That is the Golden Rule.

“Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.”

This is from the Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy. However, we need clarification of what this Golden Rule really means, especially when we look at it from the perspective of other worldviews.

So, today is the day when I share my thoughts on the “The Iridium Rule”

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I remember when I was around 6, maybe 7 years old, getting cotton candy at an amusement park. I had a lot. And I ate all of it and wanted more, but my parents said “No”. But I wanted more. I believed that I should have more, but my parents were steadfast in not letting me get more.

Now, would it have been terrible if I had eaten another huge amount of cotton candy? Probably not, but have you ever read the ingredients in cotton candy?

Sugar, Artificial Flavor, either Red dye #40 or Blue dye #1, and calcium silicate

Basically sugar with artificial coloring. Definitely not the breakfast, lunch, or dinner of champions. However, for children like me who enjoyed cotton candy, if it were our choice, we would make it our breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

We are still in the same place with Jesus in Matthew 7, but this week, we are going to focus on verses 9-11, where Jesus talks about how someone who cares about you will not give you something bad for you, but what is good for you. However, there is a challenge for us mere mortals, because, in comparison to God, we are but children.

So the question is, “Do We Really Know What is Good For Us?”

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Oh Lord, won't you buy me

A Mercedes Benz?

My friends all drive Porsches

I must make amends

I worked hard all my lifetime

No help from my friends

Oh Lord, won't you buy me

A Mercedes Benz?

These are the first lines of a famous song by Janis Joplin. Quite appropriate for where we are in following Jesus in Matthew chapter 7. For in verses 7 and 8 it states:

7 “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. 8 For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened. 

So if this is true, then "Lord Won’t You Buy Me a Mercedes Benz?”

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Some information about pearls:

Pearls are made by marine oysters and freshwater mussels as a natural defense against an irritant such as a parasite entering their shell or damage to their fragile body.

The oyster or mussel slowly secretes layers of aragonite and conchiolin, materials that also make up its shell. This creates a material called nacre, also known as mother-of-pearl, which over years, encases the irritant and protects the mollusk from it.

After many, many years of diving for pearls, divers have made natural pearls so rare; some say they are close to becoming extinct. Therefore, they are hard to find on the ocean’s surface these days. Because of this rarity, natural pearls are generally much more expensive than cultured pearls.

Recently one natural pearl was sold for 1.5 Million dollars. Pearls are precious. We give them as gifts to those we love. They are not given to just anyone. 

You have heard the term “Pearls of Wisdom” before. Today we hope you join us as we explore the depths of God’s ocean as He shows us who should receive His Precious Pearls of Wisdom.

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If he could see through the propaganda which has been instilled into his mind under the pretext of education, if he would fall in love with his own people and begin to sacrifice for their uplift — if the "highly educated" Negro would do these things, he could solve some of the problems now confronting the race.

—Carter G. Woodson, The Mis-Education of the Negro (1933)

Miscommunication lead to complication

My emancipation don't fit your equation

—Lauryn Hill, The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill (1998)

If you are taught something long enough, and everyone is espousing the same “truth,” you shall own it as your own, even if it isn’t true. 

—Kyle McGlotten (2023)

As we leave the beauty of heaven and return to life on the ground of following Jesus through the Gospels, we have hit a passage that is arguably one of the most miseducated and miscommunicated “truths” in the Bible. This “truth” is so popular that non-Christians spout it back to Christians, telling them they are not following their own Bible.

Strap in for today, folks, as we strive to clean up the mess, we Christians have created in the “The Miseducation of Judging.”

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The last few weeks we made sure that we showed from Scripture that we will be ourselves and we will be our best selves. Unique and precious to God.

So as we conclude our series on Heaven, we want to show from Scripture some of what the Bible discusses about our activity on the New Earth. 

Because believe me, "Boredom is not an Option."

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First off, let me apologize to all of our email subscribers. I forgot to send out the Sunday Worship Service email last week. Please forgive me.

Last week’s Heaven series message was “Know Thyself.” We covered topics on whether we would be capable of sinning, free will, male & female, and other topics. However, I ran out of time, and I wasn’t able to cover everything that I wanted to get to, so we will be doing Part 2 this morning.

Today we are going to spend our time correcting a common misconception that we will not be ourselves when we get to Heaven. So in knowing thyself, we shall see from Scripture not only will we be ourselves, but better than we ever have been.

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That is ancient Greece and the Oracle of Delphi. The Oracle of Delphi is also known by Delphic oracle, Pythia, and Pytho. She is considered the most famous ancient oracle who was believed to deliver prophecies from the Greek god Apollo. One of the things the Oracle of Delphi did was force travelers to investigate themselves before asking any questions of the Gods. Because this, and nothing else, was considered the starting point for understanding the world.

The sibyls were wise women who’d trained since childhood to reveal the message of the oracles. In their room, the following inscription was written:

“I warn you, whoever you are, Oh! You who want to probe the “Arcana of Nature”, that if you do not find “within yourself” that which you are looking for, you shall not find it outside either! If you ignore the excellences of your own house, how do you pretend to find other excellences? Within you is hidden the treasure of treasures! “Know Thyself” and you will know the Universe and the Gods.”

Aristotle also said: 

“Knowing yourself is the beginning of all wisdom.”

Hmmmm… that sounds very familiar:

Psalm 9:10

“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom: and the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.”

Knowing who God says you are and who you will become is critical. Therefore this week, as we continue our study of Heaven, we will focus on Knowing Thyself, from the perspective of who we are now as Christians and who we are becoming.

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19 The foundations of the wall of the city were adorned with all kinds of precious stones: the first foundation was jasper, the second sapphire, the third chalcedony, the fourth emerald, 20 the fifth sardonyx, the sixth sardius, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth chrysoprase, the eleventh jacinth, and the twelfth amethyst. 21 The twelve gates were twelve pearls: each gate was of one pearl. And the street of the city was pure gold, like transparent glass.

Revelation 21:19-21

The Scripture for today is hard to get your mind’s eye to even imagine the picture. All those precious stones are on the foundations of the wall of New Jerusalem. There are twelve separate gates to the city, and each gate is one pearl. Not pearls in each gate, but the gate itself is a pearl. To help us understand the value of each of these “gate” pearls, let’s look at one of the biggest pearls in the world. 

One of the most famous pearls ever is “La Peregrina.” It is about the size of a pigeon egg, about 4 centimeters or 1.5 inches. This pearl was appraised at over $11 Million USD. Now if we go back a couple of verses, we see that the walls around New Jerusalem are 144 cubits high. That means the gate needs to be 144 cubits. Now that is a challenge because we don’t know how long a cubit is. Well, let me help us out there. 

A cubit is 18 inches. That means the pearl is taller than a 20-story building. It’s a gate, so it has to be wide enough for transportation to get through. At least a chariot. We know that exists because from earlier in the Heaven series, we saw Elijah was carried off into heaven by a chariot with horses. The Bible doesn’t say how many horses, but since it is plural, we know there had to be at least two. I researched that the width of a chariot for a single horse is a little over 4.5 feet, so with two horses, that would be 9 feet. 

So this pearl is over 20 stories high and 9 feet wide. I don’t want to bore you with the math, but just one of those pearls would be worth over 123 Billion USD. Yes, 123 Billion. And I haven’t even mentioned the see-through gold streets. Not golden, but gold.

Amazing, Remarkable, Stupendous, and any other group of words you want to put together do not do justice to what we will see, touch, feel, hear, and smell when we are with the Lord in “Our Tomorrowland.”

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You may have noticed the background image is a little bit different this morning. I re-watched Wakanda Forever this week and it reminded me of a point that we will be talking about today.

The fictional country of Wakanda is a kingdom. In preparing for this message I found out there are around 43 monarchies in the world, but over 30 of them are ceremonial. This means the monarch doesn’t have any real power. However, twelve of the monarchies still gT absolute power to the monarch similar to what Queen Shuri of Wakanda has.

This is the power where whatever the monarch decides is what shall be done. And she or he gives power to whomever they choose. For example, and this is a spoiler alert, so if you haven’t seen Wakanda Forever yet, please turn the sound down and make sure you cannot read lips. Queen Shuri at the end of the movie chose to give the power to rule the kingdom of Wakanda to another person. Where that person would be the monarch, that person would be royalty, that person will have the chance to rule.

There is another royal person, the Greatest Monarch of all who has the ability to bestow royalty on whomever He pleases.

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Most of you watching or listening to me now have lived in more than one place. I have a question for you. In your life up to this point, where was your favorite place to live?

The last time we talked about Heaven I used the analogy of Extreme Home Makeover. I want to carry on that theme for today. One of the most important things about looking for the right place to live is finding the right neighborhood. How the neighborhood looks, are there good schools, are there recreational activities nearby, etc.

I know for me what really makes a great neighborhood are the neighbors. Are they easy to talk to? Do they care about you? Do they look out for the property you steward while you are away?

So when you are thinking about the best neighborhood you have ever been in with the best neighbors, do we realize in heaven, God will be our neighbor. I know, hard to conceive, but that is what we are going to be talking about today.

God Will Be Our Neighbor

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I have a very good friend who is excellent at flipping houses. He finds houses that are in disrepair and buys them at a low price and then fixes them up so they can be sold at reasonable prices that ordinary folks can afford.

The picture above shows the before and after of a property. The challenge for many of us, myself included, is we are much closer to that before picture than the after picture. And not just ourselves, but people around us and even the environment we live in.

The whole earth needs a makeover in the worst way, but we forget who has the power to make it happen. Today we are going to take the time to search through the Bible to see there is a carpenter who is The Ultimate Extreme Home 🏠 Makeover King!

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I was born and grew up about 20 miles west of Manhattan. Since my Dad had tickets to the New York Jets football team and I was a New York Mets fan, I ended up in New York quite a bit growing up.

Then I went to college at the State University of New York at Stony Brook which is about 60 miles east of Manhattan. It probably wasn't the case, but it seemed that everyone I knew at Stony Brook lived in either Brooklyn, Queens, the Bronx, or Manhattan. So I have been around many New Yorkers and the mindset of a New Yorker, I am not saying all New Yorkers, but I would say the majority I have met is a little different.

Me being from New Jersey was almost like I was from another continent instead of the state right next door. For so many New Yorkers, New York is the universe and they are doing you a favor if they acknowledge where you live exists. They love New York and they love letting everyone else know that New York is the best.

This mindset we are going to explore a little bit today along with the mindset that the follower of Christ shows to the world. Because do Christians show the world a "Resurrection State of Mind?"

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I uploaded my first YouTube video about seven years ago. It was an excerpt from Angelique Kerber’s speech after she won the Australian Open. Since then I have uploaded videos I have done excerpts from other interviews, education, trainings, teachings, sermons, etc. Also, personal content of sermons I have done, quick thoughts, and educational videos on Algebra, Geometry, and Computer Science.

So now I have uploaded over 300 videos and the one that is far and away the favorite with over 100K views is the ending scene from the Wizard of Oz. This is where Dorothy speaks glowingly of Home.

Home resonates so strongly with us and for good reason. In all of us there is a longing for home. We are going to spend this Sunday morning talking about why “There is No Place Like Home.”

Hope you will join us.

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1. Extremely light or delicate.
2. Of the celestial spheres; heavenly.
3. Spiritual or otherworldly.
4. Of or relating to ether.

Right? You have to admit. It’s growing on you.

As it says in definition #2, heaven is thought of as ethereal. It’s there, but not quite there. It’s real but kind of … you know the right word to say … ethereal. And as we mentioned last week, the heaven we are talking about now is the current heaven, not the new heaven and new earth heaven. So is that heaven, like ether, otherworldly, kind of there, but untouchable, or can we actually ‘touch heaven?’

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What do we picture?

Where do we actually go?

We have talked about that a little over the past four weeks of our study about heaven. Well, today we are going to go into a little more detail about where we actually go when our time on this current earth is done.

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Did you know that the Los Angeles Times did a survey and over 99% of the people surveyed believed they were going to heaven. That is a very interesting statistic, because that doesn’t seem to quite line up with what the Bible says about heaven. So that leads us into today’s conversation. 

“Is Heaven Actually Our Default Destination?”

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Thought I would use an English colloquialism since I was going to be quoting from C.S. Lewis:

"A continual looking forward to the eternal world is not (as some modern people think) a form of escapism or wishful thinking, but one of the things a Christian is meant to do.

It does not mean that we are to leave the present world as it is.

If you read history, you will find that the Christians who did most for the present world were just those who thought most of the next.

The Apostles themselves, who set on foot the conversion of the Roman Empire, the great men who built up the Middle Ages, the English Evangelicals who abolished the Slave Trade, all left their mark on Earth, precisely because their minds were occupied with Heaven.

It is since Christians have largely ceased to think of the other world that they have become so ineffective in this.

Aim at Heaven and you will get earth ‘thrown in’: aim at earth and you will get neither."

The photo is of Nate Saint—one of the five missionaries who the Auca Indians murdered. When it happened back in 1956, people might have made that heavenly-minded comment about him. He was so focused on heaven; what did that get him or the kingdom? Well, now that we look back we can see that the martyrdom of those five missionaries has impacted millions and inspired thousands to become missionaries.

Hope you can join us today as we chat about how Being Heavenly Minded is of the Greatest Earthly Good.

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"I suppose I shall enter eternal bliss, but please don’t bring up such depressing subjects."

A vicar would be considered a pastor or a minister in the United States. So here is a representative of the church, someone who is a professional theologian who feels it is depressing to talk about heaven. 

And that is the problem.

So many of us Christians do not know about Heaven, so we don't even look forward to it. Well, we got our toes wet last week with a prequel to the series on heaven, and today we start our journey.

I hope you'll join us!

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Women received back their dead by resurrection. Some were tortured, refusing to accept release, so that they might rise again to a better life. Others suffered mocking and flogging, and even chains and imprisonment. They were stoned, they were sawn in two, they were killed with the sword. They went about in skins of sheep and goats, destitute, afflicted, mistreated— of whom the world was not worthy—wandering about in deserts and mountains, and in dens and caves of the earth. And all these, though commended through their faith, did not receive what was promised, since God had provided something better for us, that apart from us they should not be made perfect.

In last week’s sermon titled “The Cure For Anxiety” we read these verses wanting to emphasize that when we seek the Lord here on this fallen planet, we will suffer, and we may suffer in such a way that we are removed from this body without seeing temporal rewards on this side of the Jordan. 

These unknown heroes of the faith knew what they were promised, and they knew it was better than desiring and striving for the trinkets that this current world has to offer. They knew their mission here on this world, do we?

They knew who they were, why they were here, and where they were going. They knew it. They did not doubt, to the point of death. Do we?

Christians: Do We Know Our Mission?

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Anxiety is very different from fear. This statement was made by psychiatrist Margaret Distler, director of the Anxiety Disorders Clinic at the Jane and Terry Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior at UCLA. “When you see a bear in the wild, that’s fear — versus worrying that you might encounter a bear, which is anxiety,” she says. In other words, we aren’t just dealing with today’s stressors; we’re getting ourselves worked up thinking about all of the terrible things that may still be in the offing. For nearly 1 in 5 U.S. adults, it goes beyond even that. Diagnoses for anxiety disorders — most commonly phobias, panic attacks, social anxiety, obsessive-compulsive disorders, and post-traumatic stress — are all on the rise.

An article from February of this year from Forbes magazine says:

"Massive Health Wake-Up Call: Depression And Anxiety Rates Have Increased By 25% In The Past Year."

The World Health Organization (WHO) has advised all global leaders to increase their attention to mental health and well-being, given the rising rates of depression and anxiety. Reasons cited are loneliness, earlier isolation, deaths of family members and friends, financial worries due to economic dynamics, and off and on again recession dynamics.  

Anxiety is a massive problem in our world today. Maybe you are experiencing it, and even if you are not, you know someone who is. As mentioned in the articles above, there are numerous reasons for anxiety, and people propose many ways to treat it, but there actually is a cure for anxiety. 

Full proof. Will always work. Works for anyone, from any background, in any situation. I know it sounds hard to believe, but it’s true.

I hope you can join us today because Jesus shares this secret with us in His Word. Today as we continue going through the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus shares, “The Cure for Anxiety.”

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Have you ever had belief in something that was going to happen even though it was taking a long time or it looked like there was no way it was going to be accomplished? Also, an extra caveat on this, what you believed would happen was not up to you but depended on someone else. Have you ever had that knowing?

The reason I say “knowing” and not “feeling” is that it is more than just a feeling. Feelings get us in trouble, as Jeremiah states:

The heart (emotions) is deceitful above all things,

    and desperately sick;

    who can understand it?

Jeremiah 17:9

It’s more than that. “You just know it’s going to happen.” Whatever it is.

One of these times for me was when my Dad was working on his doctorate. He worked full-time and came home from work most of the time after 8 pm. This is back when working 9-5 is what people did, so coming home that late on a consistent basis was unusual. As I got older, I realized that it was taking a lot longer to get his doctorate than he anticipated. As the years went by, I didn’t have a worry that he wouldn’t complete the task. Even after more than ten years, I knew he would get it done. I had total belief.

That doesn’t mean there weren’t moments of doubt, but they evaporated quickly. I knew my Dad’s commitment. I knew his toughness. I knew his perseverance, but most of all, I knew his character, and with that, I had a peace that everything would be completed at the right time.

Do we have that sort of belief in God for what He has promised in His Word? No matter what everything looks like, no matter how long it takes, we know our God is going to come through. Or do we worry? Do we doubt?

We will hear from Jesus today as he addresses how Christians question God in the area of providing for His people and how that causes a stressor that we should not have if we really Believe in the Power of God’s Provision.

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I know this is kind of a strange question, but I am going somewhere with this question, so stick with me.

How do we know that Plato was influenced by the Pythagoreans? I know. Kind of out of nowhere, but remember, please stick with me for a little bit longer.

This happened about 2400 years ago, based on what historians say, but how do we know it is true?

We take it as true, though. This information is from the Encyclopedia Britannica and the History Channel. These are the gold standards for historical facts in the United States. However, how did the Encyclopedia Britannica and the History Channel verify that this is true? What is their proof? Is there a process that's followed? and if so, is that process applied evenly to all of ancient history? I never thought about that when I was reading my Ancient History book in high school. 

Did You?

What makes the statement about who Plato hung out with more true than Jesus’s resurrection? Why do 100% of the people I know would say that the information about Plato with the Pythagoreans is true while only about ⅔ of the people in America would say that Jesus was raised from the dead, according to a Rasmussen poll taken in 2021. And in Europe, where Plato actually lived, less than 14% of the people believe that Jesus rose from the grave, according to a report from Pew Research done in 2018.

Is there more proof for Plato than for Jesus? Are the historians who say Jesus rose from the dead using faulty historical methodology or unverified documents?

Well, in a little different Resurrection Day message, we are going to take a look at what goes into the belief that some writings from the past are considered true, and others are not. 

And this is important. Because if we believe in history, we should believe His Story.

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He is serving money. That is his god and it has been his god his whole life. Not only his god, but the god of his family as well.

We are at a point in following Jesus where He communicates to His audience that serving money is not serving Him, and that all of us have to make a choice of who we are going to choose. Because "You're Gonna Have to Serve Somebody."

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Relatively recently, I was reminded about how much of a gift that is. I had a tear in my retina about a couple of years ago and needed surgery on my left eye where the tear was. I had to go back to the doctor about a week ago to look at it.

The eye is doing fine after 2 years after the surgery, but I am reminded that I have these objects called floaters in my eye, which I do see from time to time. The doctor told me that they will not go away. It is something I will have to live with. They will not go away, but I know they're not supposed to be there. They are obstructions in my vision, but I realize it.

However, what if I thought that was normal? What if it got worse (which it can) and there were larger floaters. I could see less and less, but I thought that was actually me seeing clearly? I will go through my life thinking I can see clearly, and as it worsened, I would injure myself and not only myself but others.

We are at the part in the sermon on the Mount where Jesus talks about being able to see and being able to see clearly. Knowing the difference between what is truly light. For if we do not know the difference, the Darkness Will Be Our Light.

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Is it just me or had no one outside of Silicon Valley in California ever heard of this bank?

Over $200 Billion dollars of assets are now in serious trouble and probably most of it will be absorbed by the United States taxpayer. Uggghhh..., but that is a subject for a different day.

I have a question for you. Let's go back to the pandemic when SVB was almost at $750 per share and I told you that in less than a year and a half, they will be out of business. I had ironclad proof that showed it was definitely going to happen.

Would you have still invested money in them?

Even though at that time in November of 2021 your money had quintupled in the 18 months before? Would you have invested more money, knowing that you were going to lose all of your money?

Believe it or not, today in our following of Jesus, our Lord is going to ask us why we keep investing in the SVB's of this world. You may be thinking, what am I talking about?

Well, I hope you can join us this morning or on-demand later on because we will be discussing how We Know the Bank is Going to Fail, But We Keep Investing There Anyway.

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We don't hear the word "abase" too often. It is kind of out of fashion in our 21st-century western lingo. However, as we return to the mountain following Jesus, it is a word that we need to understand.

Abase is from the Latin and Old French word abaissier which means "to lower." So in English, it means to be lower in rank, office, prestige, or esteem.

It was a popular word at the very end of the 18th century and the beginning of the 19th century and has been pretty much been going down in usage ever since. Lowering themselves before others as you know is not something that is really promoted in 2023.

On top of that Jesus is not only teaching about abasement but also not broadcasting to the world what you are doing. You know, when you do something good, keeping it private. Your TikTok followers will not be too excited about that.

As usual, Jesus has a lot to teach us which is definitely different than what is patently promoted in the world today. I hope you will join us as we discover how we need to learn what it is to Secretly Subdue Ourselves With the Supreme.

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You have heard of the term "Catching a Cold." How do you catch a cold? We have all been there, especially if you have children attending school. One of the children at school gets sick, and since kids share everything, those germs go from one child to another until the child the Lord has blessed you to steward brings home the "cold" prize for you to experience.

So we easily spread germs. We do it without trying. My challenge for me is spreading Jesus to all I come in contact with, where it is as easy as breathing. Do you have a challenge with that as well as myself?

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Today we will be taking communion as a family. We have many new people in our family in different parts of the world, so I thought this was a good time to go over some of the points on the Lord's Supper.

So we will talk about how Christian traditions believe differently about what happens when we come to the Lord's table. These are secondary issues, but it is important to know why we as Christians can read the same Bible but sincerely come away with different interpretations.

However, more importantly we will talk about how we should come to the Lord's table. All Christians, no matter what we may believe happens to the bread and wine when we come for the Lord's Supper, what is of top importance is how we as people come to the table.

So we will not only share in the Lord's meal together today, but we will take time to understand this blessed and holy event that the Lord commanded us to always remember.

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In June of 1956, the practical television remote controller first entered the American home. Do you remember television before the remote control? Now I am definitely dating myself, but let me describe the difference between BRC (Before Remote Control) and ARC (After Remote Control).

You were comfortable in your favorite comfy chair or sofa with your delectable snacks and refreshing drink enjoying the end of a wonderful show. Your next show is on a different station. You had to get up from that perfectly form-fitting lounge accouterment and walk on the floor to change the channel. You had to then turn the knob to find the right station, and sometimes you would overshoot the station and have to take even more energy to turn it back. And what was worse is that over time with all of the turning, the knob would eventually break, and you would have to find pliers to change the channel. Some of you old-timers like myself know what I am talking about.

I didn’t even mention the danger of getting up and possibly knocking over your food. This was clearly the Stone Age.

The Stone Age in the McGlotten household lasted longer than most. All the way until 1980 (thanks Marc for the actual date). But in 1980 our Dad relented and got us a TV with a remote control. The newfound joy of being able to instantly change to the station of your choosing without having to bother your leg muscles one bit. But what was the best was the POWER.

You were in control. The instant gratification. This enjoyment that we have with this is dangerous. Satan tried to entice us to desire this. To cultivate these feelings. We will talk about this today as the devil will tempt Jesus one more time with the ultimate temptation, offering Him power and control immediately. No waiting or suffering is involved.

Will Jesus choose to take control of the remote?

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That cutie pie is Mae Mobley Leefolt.

Elizabeth Leefolt is her mother, but not her mom. Let me explain.

Elizabeth fits this definition of a mother:

'give birth to'

... but doesn't fit this definition of the same word:

'a female parent'

Where parent means "a person who brings up and cares for another." That definition for Mae Mobley belongs to Aibileen Clark, her nanny, who truly is her mom.

I know. Kind of confusing. But it's an example of something being true but not actually the truth. This will help us today because Satan, during his continued temptation of Jesus, will surprise many people today when they will learn that the tempter will speak what is true from the Word of God.

However, we need to know the surrounding context of the situation and all of the Word of God to determine if what is actually being said is The Truth.

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Last week we started our study of Jesus's temptation in the wilderness by Satan. We focused more on who Satan is. This week we start discussing the specific temptations that the tempter uses to stop Jesus from completing His mission.

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Sometimes I will get a question from someone that initiates a change of direction where I believe the Lord would want me to discuss a particular topic. For example, I have done that before with our Heaven and Finances series.

This week Pastor Joshua Gutwa from the Riamaina Fellowship Church in Kissi, Kenya, was talking to Angelique and me about Jesus's temptation in the desert by Satan. And I realized that while we were chatting with him, we have so many new people from when I talked about our accuser (the Greek word διάβολος, which is translated into 'devil' means accuser) almost eight years ago when we were back in Matthew 4.

There are so many misunderstandings about who the accuser is. How he operates. What he can and cannot do. And in different parts of the world, some misconceptions are the same, and some are different.

Therefore, we will take the next 3 - 4 weeks to go back in time and do a deep dive into Knowing Our Enemy.

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Most of you have heard the story of Hansel and Gretel. Their parents (especially the stepmom) took them to the woods to fend for themselves because there wasn't enough food for everyone. Definitely not the self-sacrificing parent types.

Hungry, the siblings find a house made out of gingerbread and candy. So they start eating and are tempted by an old woman with promises of nice warm beds and delicious food. This ends up being a trap where Hansel is put in a cage and Gretel becomes a slave.

Hansel and Gretel were tempted by the beautiful treats and a cushier life. To a certain extent, this is understandable since they were abandoned by their parents and they were very hungry. However, one of the rules parents always tell children is to beware of strangers. No matter what the stranger may say or promise, do not go with any stranger. EVER!

Life is difficult. There are times when due to circumstances we are tempted to do actions we know we should not do. This leads to us ending up in situations we should not be in.

We are at the point in the Lord’s prayer where Jesus talks to us about temptation and evil. When we are stretched, we are most susceptible to being tempted like Hansel and Gretel. Jesus knows this and today we will learn more from Him on how not to follow the candy.

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This Clint Eastwood movie is probably tied for my favorite western film of all time with Tombstone. Not to give away the movie too much for those of you who haven't seen it, a significant part of the story is someone who has many sins, but has changed his life for the better. However, he still sees what he has done as someone who can never quite be forgiven.

We are at the part of the sermon of the mount where Jesus talks about sins and forgiveness. So many people, even non-Christians know:

"Forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us"

Matthew 6:12

However, there is more here than we realize when we not only consider the here and now of that moment, but also looking back with our Holy Spirit enlivened eyes.

Unlike Clint Eastwood where he does not see that his sins can be forgiven so his world is not what it could be. Our challenge is when we don't remember all of the sins our Lord has forgiven us, we are not the people the world needs to see.

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That time for New Year's resolutions. That time we make commitments to better ourselves where many times it falls by the wayside before we get through the first month. I know. I have been there.

I want to start a New Year's resolution that I pray will carry on for the rest of my life. Maybe not perfectly, but hopefully better than I have done up to this point.

We are at the point in Jesus's model prayer in Matthew 6 where He outlines requests to make of Him and this one I continually seek improperly. Going forward I truly want My Desires to be for What I Need.

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Do you know how when movies do very well at the box office they will make a sequel for that movie? Continuing the story. And if it’s really good they make it into a trilogy, which oftentimes is the end of the movie series. However, there are then the movie franchises where the outcry for more leads to not a sequel, but a prequel. The story before the story. Whether it is Star Wars, …, how painful those prequels were, or The Hobbit which was before The Lord of the Rings, which was much much better.

If you have been with us you know that we are in the Beatitudes and we are now up to verse 7 in Matthew:

“Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy."

Well before I can address this verse, we need to go to the prequel so to speak, because the “blessed are the merciful” would not be merciful without knowing the prequel of the story where "Mercy Came Before the Merciful."

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Doctors say we can live for up to 60 days without food, but only a maximum of 21 days without water. We need water. We have to have water. But today we will see a statement from Jesus which elicits a question:

Do we desire righteousness like we need water?

I have to acknowledge I do not. Does Jesus call us to desire righteousness this desperately?

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Well in our following of Jesus we are at the point where Jesus says in the Beatitudes:

"Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth."

Matthew 5:5 ESV

What?!?

Even when I look up the definition of meek, in multiple dictionaries I am going, that's not the person I want to be. What am I missing?

Well, you need to be with us this morning online with our worship music starting @ 10:45 AM (EST) with the service starting at 11 AM, because we need to remember that Clark Kent is Superman.

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Even though I have seen this picture (https://bit.ly/3HNQFoq) so many times I only see the woman. Does anyone see anything else? I get a headache trying to see the other thing. I always need help seeing the other picture in the picture. I still don't see it.

I was actually looking for a picture that shows three separate images. I know there is one out there, but I couldn’t find it. The reason is we have reached the point in following Jesus, where our Lord says something where for many, many years I was taught and I heard just one way how this verse was to be understood. However, there isn’t just one meaning of what Our Lord is saying, but multiple meanings.

Maybe in the past, other teachers and preachers did explain these other meanings, but as with these types of pictures, I couldn’t see it even when people showed me. Or maybe the teachers are like me with the picture, I saw what I saw and that was it.

That is the absolutely amazing beauty of the Bible. The Bible is so rich and deep and if you are willing to take time to study, ponder, and meditate there is so much richness there. However, we sometimes don’t want to peel back the layers for the additional richness, because what we find will not make us look or feel too good. And that is definitely what happened with me this week as I delved into “The Many Layers of Mourning.”

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1 a: lacking material possessions

b: of, relating to, or characterized by poverty

2 a: less than adequate : MEAGER

b: small in worth

3: exciting pity

// you poor thing

None of those definitions are anything that anyone wants to aspire to or desires to have. But today I want to talk to you about the fact that we all need to desperately desire to be poor.

I know. Kyle, what in the world are you talking about?!? I know you are a little different, but this is even out there for you. Well, I hope you give me a chance this morning to explain myself because I want all of us to discover together, “We Need to be Poor.”

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Ephesians 1:4

He chose us in Him means that the Father chose Christians in the Son (Christ), and this took place in eternity past, before the foundation of the world. This is a foundational truth which brings such comfort to those who are His children and such hope to those who do not know Him yet.

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We finish our three part series on the mission statement of aciW addressing this question and what that acting out should be for the followers of Jesus of Nazareth.

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In those days John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness of Judea, 2 “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” -- Matthew 3:1 - 2

From that time Jesus began to preach, saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” -- Matthew 4:17

Repentance is not a favorite discussion in the world. Not even in the Christian body. It gets glossed over, when it is what the prophets and Jesus said must happen first. Let's go through Scripture and see that this is true.

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