John 8 – Who Do You Obey?

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The following transcript is a direct copy from the Youtube automatic transcript. It may not be 100% accurate but it is being provided until we can produce a better and more accurate transcript of the sermon.

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Christ is and you know learn the word of God and have helpful tools to Endeavor

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down that road so anyway I won't take up any more time with that let me ask a couple of questions we're

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here in John 8 we've been in John 8 here for a little while John 7 and 8 are a conversation Jesus has been having with

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religious leaders for you know a long time in our minds because it's taking

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your pastor a few a few what a couple of months two or three months to work

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through chapter seven and eight which is important but it is one continuous

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conversation Jesus is having and so we're dealing with all of the minute details and all of the things he said

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and tracing them down in other parts of the scripture and all of that um you you may have lost sight of some

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of the conversation but hopefully we'll be able to press into this portion of

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scripture today and we're going to start in verse 37 and then work our way down

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to 47 and the primary focus is going to be what the title is and again Jesus is going to show the

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Jews who he's talking to these religious leaders especially that they aren't obeying God so they shouldn't consider

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themselves to be gods not not Gods themselves but belong to God

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and again I think it's something we wrestle with quite a bit is we think we're God's just because we

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pray to prayer or we did this or that or we went to church or our family was in church or

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we're going to wrestle with all that stuff today because the truth is and it's why I

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wrapped Matthew 7 in here it doesn't matter what you think about yourself it doesn't matter what your heritage is and

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again we'll wrestle with a lot of this but it only matters if you're obedient to

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God you believe what he says and you do what he says because of your belief

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so again I want to preface that and then I want to ask you a few questions before we pray

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so again the first question here it's along the exact same lines is what I was just talking about do you trust God

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now I know what many of you have started to think already well of course I do

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but again this is a loaded question and it's loaded with a lot of what I've already told you

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it's loaded because your perception of you trusting God may not be accurate

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it's a loaded question the question is genuine in that do you

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actually trust God in reality not just what you think in your mind

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because remember we're very good at self-deception all right

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if you do think that you trust God are you obedient to What God Says

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you knew that was going to be the next question didn't you that's an obvious one on the heels of everything I've

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prefaced even the title of the sermon do you do what God says are you obedient

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to God because again if you're not then your perception is wrong

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if you are praise the Lord third question

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and and this one really goes to whichever Camp you're in you could be in either of those two camps based on what

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we've just discussed do you consider yourself wise or foolish

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and you can kind of see how that Matthew passage really really chimes in here doesn't it

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and again this is another loaded question your own perception of this may

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be tainted it may be a self-deception

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do you consider yourself to be wise or foolish let's pray together

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and hopefully Lord willing we will talk about all of this I had next in there to read that passage but I already read it

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to you so it should be fresh in your mind let's pray

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father you are an amazing God we are humbled to come into your

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presence when we bow in worship like this when we vow to talk to you and speak to

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you we are we are aware that father you are the almighty God

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you are the God who has created the universe you are The God Who has loved us enough

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to send your own son down into the world to pay for sin to pay for our rebellion

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and our wickedness so father your love is not in question

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we often question it in our Behavior but your love cannot be questioned it's

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clear that you would pay for sin yourself through the son of God

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and you would do the work of reconciling men to you through his blood

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father it is an amazing thing and we pray now asking father that you

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would change every heart who hears this message who hears the truth about Jesus and his sacrifice

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that you would change every heart and you would cause each of us to enter into a faith-based relationship with you

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one where we trust you and we believe your word to the point where we do it

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immediately we don't hear your word and dismiss it we don't hear your word and make up

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justification as to why we can't but we just simply submit

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so God help each one of us because we are all sinners some of us have trusted Christ and yet

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we are still sinners we still fail but the practice of sin

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is something you've been teaching us throughout the Book of John is not only wrong it is detrimental to

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our lives to the lives of the people around us it is detrimental to the plan of God

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father help us not to be sinful to practice sin give us hearts that are truly driven to

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your word to understand it and to live by it father I pray for each person here I

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thank you for them I thank you God that they have come out to hear from you to hear from your word and to worship you

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and bow their hearts and their minds before you into fellowship with the body of Christ your people

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God put it into our hearts not to be here only for selfish reasons but to be here for you to worship you to

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be here for others to help them to support them to encourage them and God we pray that you would be

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glorified in all of this this morning and that as we open your word you will be the one speaking through your Holy

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Spirit I'm just a mouthpiece father use me for your will and your

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purposes today God speak through me we praise you we praise you for our

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church and we pray that you would bind our church together in unity and in love allow us to be at peace with one another

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and not fighting and bickering and father help us to go out into the world

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where it is dark with the Light of Christ the light of life and share the gospel with all people

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we look for your spirit to do that in us as well and through us we love you and praise you in Jesus's

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holy name for your glory amen okay John chapter 8.

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we're going to start in verse 37. follow along as I read

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I know that you are Abraham's descendants but you seek to kill me because my word has no place in you I

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speak what I have seen with my father and you do what you have seen with your father

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they answered and said to him Abraham is our father Jesus said to them if you

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were Abraham's children you would do the works of Abraham

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but now you seek to kill me you seek to kill me a man who has told

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you the truth which I heard from God Abraham did not do this

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you do the Deeds of your father then they said to him we were not born

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of fornication we have one father God Jesus said to them if God were your

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father you would love me for I proceeded forth and came from God

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nor have I come of myself but he sent me why do you not understand my speech

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because you are not able to listen to my word you are of your father the devil

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and the desires of your father you want to do he was a murderer from the beginning and

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does not stand in the truth because there is no truth in him when he speaks a lie he speaks from his

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own resources for he is a liar and the father of it but because I tell the

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truth you do not believe me which of you convicts me of sin and if I tell the

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truth why do you not believe me he who is of God hears God's words

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therefore you do not hear because you are not of God

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that's harsh isn't it I mean in my sermon which is three pages long

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we aren't even going to deal with the final two verses but I think you and I

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can both recognize that Jesus is being very clear there whoever hears the words of God and what

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he means by hears is hears and obeys here's the words of gods they are of God

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but those who don't who won't listen to God they won't hear him and they won't

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obey him they're not gods you need to make sure you understand

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that Jesus said those words he drew that line the pastor is but a voice you can get as

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mad at me as you want for preaching that if you won't listen to the word of God and Obey it that you're not Gods you can

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get as mad as you want those words did not come from me I'm not your judge we've been over this

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lots of times haven't we both here and on Sunday on Wednesday nights when we've talked about judging you know the real

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use of judging and how God perceives judging and the right kind of judging these aren't my words do I believe them

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with all my heart I couldn't preach them to you if I didn't I wouldn't feel comfortable standing

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here lying to you about something I don't truly believe I

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I think you know me well enough that if I were going to say something that were untrue or I didn't believe I would be

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very nervous right now you would hear um uh uh and in the uh

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you don't detect any of that do you you don't detect that because I believe

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this stuff with all of my heart back to the beginning of this text verse 37.

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he says I know that you are Abraham's descendants and this is true we've we've talked

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about this a few times in this these sermons in these last couple of chapters the Jews are descendants of Abraham

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physically right Abraham begot Isaac Isaac begot Jacob Jacob is the guy whose

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name became Israel he has 12 sons and all 12 Tribes of the Israeli people

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generate out from a man named Israel or Jacob okay so they are Abraham's

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descendants there's no question and Jesus noticed he doesn't say you're not

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Abraham's descendants he says I know you are so that's important right

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but again all he's talking about there is they are physical descendants of Abraham

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the rest of what we've already read I think you know good and well he's demonstrating they do not belong to the

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household of faith they're seeking to kill him the Jews are the descendants of Abraham

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but they also believe that they're the spiritual descendants of Abraham

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now why do I bring it up and why do I press the point well it's in the text but also the questions we asked at the

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beginning about our own view of us our own view of self

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see the Jews believe they are gods they believe God is fine with them because they obey the law of God or at least

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that's their perception but the truth is they don't obey the law of God they don't follow God because

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they don't hear God's words the very Son of God the embodiment of the word of God

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is standing in front of them and they don't want to receive him they want him

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dead how about you do you like the application of the word

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of God in your life or do you reject it we're going to talk more as this goes on

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about that but you seek to kill me he says and we've seen this over and over they've

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picked up stones at different times they want Jesus dead his words do not land

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well with this Jewish religious group they don't land well

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they are not happy he's here they're upset they want him dead Jesus is claiming to

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them that people should follow him and believe his words because he came down from heaven God himself has God the

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Father himself has sent Jesus to share these words and to obviously

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what's going to come as he continues his ministry to go to a cross to pay for sin and he is trying to demonstrate and to

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Proclaim all of this and all they do is reject

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all they do is reject so Jesus makes a statement there look look what he says

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at the end of verse 37 my word has no place in you

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does any person who believes themselves to be a Christian or a Believer or a Jew back in that day do any of those people

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want to hear Jesus say my word has no place in you

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do you want to hear that is that something you would be happy Jesus saying to you

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you'd be happy with that no but they do not believe Jesus

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and so what he's saying is true my words have no place in you

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they don't believe that that's what Jesus is telling them their perception is skewed about who

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they are this is the same today all who reject Jesus God's word has no place in them

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you need to understand that it doesn't matter what you do believe or what your

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opinion is it only matters that you don't believe God

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when when the word of God is spoken to you what kind of heart does it fall on

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you know I started this illustration I think last week right Matthew 13 the parable of the sower A sower went out to

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sow what is he sowing well it tells us right in that passage which if you'll remember was read to us last week he's

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sowing the word of God and the word of God is falling on all four sorts of

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soils now there's one type of ground that is a path that path is tamped down over and

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over by horses and people and that path is really hard and Seed does not go into

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it it just lays on top of it right so the seed doesn't do anything it just remains seed and immediately it says the

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birds of the air come and what do they do they eat the seed that means it's stolen right out of the

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heart that it entered immediately there's a there's a quickness to it there's an immediate rejection God said

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that I don't care do you see I don't care what God Said

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that's one reaction the Same Heart may just be like it doesn't matter if I care or not because

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I don't believe it I don't trust God I don't trust him so I don't believe

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it's gone like that it's taken off the path well there's another kind of soil see

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right along the edge of that path there might be some Stony ground there there's some dirt there there's some

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topsoil but there's a lot of rocks and dirt in that so it falls in there now

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it's got some soil so that seed can start to take root that seed can start

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to grow and its roots can start to spread out but what happens to Roots When they hit Rocky and Stony soil

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they they stop or they have to find new paths around makes for a very low and shallow root

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system on that plant so that plant never matures and becomes what it can because it can't receive the nutrients from the

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ground it needs to grow right that's an unbelieving heart too

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and what does it say well it's a Stony heart it believes immediately oh yeah

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that sounds great but when the sun comes up and a little pressure is applied to that life little heat is added and that

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sun is backing down God said not to lie man if I if I don't lie here then

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everybody's gonna know I'm a phony everybody is going to know I'm a sinner everybody's going to know that I've been

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lying for years a little pressures applied

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I'm going to tell them a lie because I can't handle the feedback I can't can't handle people knowing that about me

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so you like you're not a Believer when you yield up to sin like this over and over and over

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so Stony ground doesn't matter how the word enters your head it only matters it

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it only matters when heat is applied to your life and to your walk

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we find out you're not real because you don't do wait I gotta go to church every

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Sunday every Sunday are you mad

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that's four days out of the month maybe five and some months

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are you on drugs you must be you must be smoking that

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wacky stuff the kids smoke four or five days a month and I gotta

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show what is wrong with you I got football to watch

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you see now it doesn't matter which scent I use or which I could mock all of them right but we all know we're like

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that we all know it's easy for sin to to happen imagine in the heart of an

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unbeliever who said oh yeah I like the word of God I'm not about to live it though

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Wednesday night bible study

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you're from planet Mars or something anyway you get what's being said those

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are just two types of soil now there's the third type of soil and I think it's really important for the conversation

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because this might be where you and I live sometimes even Believers I think

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live in this one sometimes the word is thrown and the ground is

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perfectly fine it starts to spring up and man a plant is growing full force but then what

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happens you gardeners what happens around that lovely plant that tomato plant or that lettuce or

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whatever you're growing out there God forbid you try to grow blueberries around here but that plant what happens

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all around it all these Weeds start coming up with it and what do weeds do

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to that plant well they choke it out in a couple of ways one they block light because generally they sprout up bigger

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and stronger and more bold than that thing but other otherwise they take the nutrients from the soil that that plant

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could be using they consume all those nutrients so you have a weak plant in

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the middle and what happens if you let those weeds just stay there

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they choke it out it never gets to the fruit part does it it's just a plant

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never yields blueberries and we tried a couple different times to glow grow

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blueberries Cherry did in our garden it didn't work for some reason we could not get those

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things to grow and again even but think of the illustration the weeds

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are choking it out now those weeds in that passage are called the cares of this world

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see a person cares a lot more about what's going on in their own life and their things and their hobbies and their

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stuff and their job and their money and them their their them them there you can

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hear it no matter what I say it's all about me it's all about us

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it's all about what we do and what we want has nothing to do with God or his kingdom

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and so again the fruit of that life is choked out and

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does not appear because of the cares of the world that is three soils out of the four that

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yield no fruit not a little bit of fruit none

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what is going to be fruit in heaven what is a reward laid up in heaven

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I mean most prominently based on everything we see in the Bible it's a soul saved

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so if there isn't some significant portion of your life going into saving Souls which again you can't save them

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personally but you can do ministry work with the gospel with discipleship

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if you're not doing a a good amount of that you're wasting your life even

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Believers you're wasting your life and you might as well just be another

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one of these weed ridden plants

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this is a big deal because Jesus is saying my word has no place in you see the fourth soil is the

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only one that yields fruit and put that in combination with Matthew 7 the fourth soil it yields a crop

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some 30 some 60. some a hundred fold

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imagine that you plant one seed and how much fruit do you get from it how many

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tomatoes do you get from one tomato plant is it is it one tomato

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is it ten tomatoes could be could be 30 tomatoes you know you may get a bumper crop and

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you may get 50 tomatoes out of a tomato plant because you can keep re-harvesting tomatoes for several months

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think about this that's your life if you're on good ground if the word of God

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hits you in the good place where you belong to God and His word has an actual

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place in you otherwise the fruit of your life is meaningless I don't care if it's the

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path the Stony ground or the weedy ground you don't bear fruit

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you're not a Believer plain and simple it's an easy interpretation

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and that's exactly what Jesus illustrates then he in Matthew 7 he makes the statement you will know them

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by their fruits how are you going to know what a life is

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like with what I think it has to do with over the Long Haul the

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course where is the fruit of their life I belong to Jesus great

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I'm gonna watch for the next five years and see what happens are you yielding fruit

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or are you staying stagnant is your life getting better every day for Christ or is it just staying in the

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same place are you more Kingdom focused today than you were yesterday see again there's

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another process in the scripture called sanctification where God grows a life from a new

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believer to the image of his son and if that process is not getting better and better along the way the

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problem is not with God

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Jesus says keep going back in the text I speak what I have seen with my father

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Jesus is speaking from personal experience in heaven remember from John

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chapter 1 Jesus came out of heaven in the beginning was the word and the

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Word was with God and the Word was God Jesus was with God in the beginning what's he referring to in the beginning

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because God doesn't have a beginning with the creation that we are part of it

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had a beginning Genesis 1 1 in the beginning God created

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the heavens and the Earth in the beginning Jesus was already there

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he's already there he's not new he didn't come into the world at a particular time and just start there

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he's speaking from what he saw and heard in Heaven from the father directly this

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is one of the Jews biggest issues with Jesus they believe he's a Man from Nazareth of Galilee

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they believe he becomes from a town of Nazareth and they're like we know you we

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know your parents we know your family your brothers and sisters we know where you grew up stop saying you came down

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from God this is one of their main arguments but Jesus is trying to tell them

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I didn't start there I didn't start there this is where faith is required by the

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way this is the place where faith is required in any person because could any Jew in that day or

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could any Christian in this day say for sure could you say and provide evidence

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that Jesus came out of Heaven before the foundation of the world before it was created

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now there is some evidence but again yeah exactly you'd have to raise this up and that would require

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that you believe God that you actually believe God's words

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but you only either believe what God's word says or you don't or you won't

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there is no gray area there's no middle line where you can believe some of what God Said and not other things either God

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is entirely true or God is a liar there's no middle ground

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so there is no justification for their behavior there's no justification for our bad behavior

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God is either true or he isn't it is that black and white

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he goes on to say you do what you have seen with your father now he doesn't identify who he is

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saying as their father here it's a few verses down in verse 44. hopefully you caught it while we were reading it he

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says very clearly that their father is not God it is the devil

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that's a strong statement how many of you would be okay if I said because you don't trust God you are following your

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father the devil now you might be okay with me preaching that but if you and I were having a

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one-on-one conversation and I look at you and say your father's the devil you'd get very uncomfortable very

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quickly and probably angry but notice Jesus doesn't shy away from that because the truth is the truth

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and and again if I said that to someone it might be an insult that I'm trying to make that's not good and that's not what

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Jesus is doing Jesus is dividing Humanity up into two categories

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and spiritually that's all there are you can look at people however you want

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you can have all the biases and bigotry that you want about everything it doesn't matter

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the truth of the matter is you're either God's God is your father through the

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blood of Jesus Through spiritual transformation that God has worked in you or you are of your father the devil

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you're his and you listen to what he says he's your father that's what they mean

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that sorry that's what he means your father who speaks to you from Heaven you either listen to him

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or your father who speaks to you here on the earth is Satan and you listen to him

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that's what he's saying they don't like that and they don't like it any better than we would

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we would not want somebody telling us that but does our Behavior reveal such a thing

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look at their look at their response Abraham is our father they insist that they are Abraham's

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children but Jesus is trying to show them that they do not follow God the way Abraham

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did do you notice that they don't do what Abraham did let me show you this is one

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of those places where I have to show it to you from the scripture so that you're clear on this illustration of what Jesus

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is saying to them Genesis 12 so this is the first place where we see

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God talk to Abraham in the Book of Genesis Genesis 12 right at the very beginning verse starting in verse 1.

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it says now Yahweh had said to Abram notice here his name is still Abram at this point

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this is when God is first coming down and talking to him now Yahweh has said to Abram get out of your country from

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your family and from your father's house to a land that I will show you God doesn't even tell him where he's going

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he just says get up and go and I'll eventually show it to you I will make you a great nation I will bless you and

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make your name great and you shall be a blessing I will bless those who bless you and I will curse him who curses you

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and in you all the families of the Earth shall be blessed and then listen to verse 4. this is why

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you know that Abraham is different than these people so Abraham departed as Yahweh or it says the Lord in the

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English translation has spoken to him and lot went with him and Abraham or

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Abram was 75 years old when he departed from haran notice this God said get up and go to a

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land that I'll show you and Abraham did not say why Abraham did not say well explain to me

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God what you're going to do no Abraham got up and he took his family and he left

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and he headed for Canaan a land that God was going to reveal to him later he just

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said get up and start moving and Abraham did it see you can listen to God's word and you

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can believe God's word and then a right heart will follow what God has said God

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said to do that so that's what I'm going to do oh yeah let me remind you guys Hebrews

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10 Mike brings this up a lot start in verse 24 and read verse 25

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after it and go look what it says to do do not forsake the assembling of yourselves

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together if you thought my whole rant about coming to church on Sunday was just oh that's just the pastor's opinion

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he thinks you should be a church so you'll hear him preach no I don't I want you to come to church

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because it's what God has told you to do I don't want you to forsake like some do

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because it goes on to say as is the manner of some who forsake the assembly they forsake

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the Gatherings shouldn't be doing that one you're supposed to be encouraging one another

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two you're supposed to be worshiping god corporately with the body of Christ three you need this

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you personally individually need this

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I need it we need it and there's a lot more to be said in

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Hebrews 10. but look what they say Abraham's our father they insist over and over so so

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we have Genesis 12 showing us exactly what Abraham did now let me read to you

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from the book of Hebrews also with the next chapter Hebrews 11 we call it the chapter of faith

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verse 8 in Hebrews 11 says by faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go

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out to the place which he would receive as an inheritance and he went out not knowing where he was going see I know

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somebody thought well he's just making this up no I'm not by faith he dwelt in the land of promise

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as in a foreign country dwelling in tents with Isaac and Jacob The Heirs

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with him of the same promise for he waited for the city which has foundations whose Builder and maker is

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God see Abraham was such a faithful man that

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he went to the place God told him was his inheritance and the guy believed so

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strongly that God would build it into what he was going to make it the man himself never lived in a house

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he dwelt for his entire life which by the way that man lived to be

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175 years old that means from the time he left when he was 75 he lived for 100

37:41

more years intense in a land as a pilgrim not even thinking

37:47

that it was ready for him to take the inheritance to himself but waiting on the city that God would one day build

37:55

and in one way we could say that was the city of Jerusalem but in another way some of us might say well that's

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actually the city that God has yet to build we're still waiting on the New Jerusalem to come down out of heaven

38:09

someday but however you look at that Abraham was faithful he went there dwelt as a

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pilgrim and obeyed God for 100 years are you that kind of a person

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are you now and have you been and will you moving forward obey the voice of

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almighty God or not are you his or are you not his

38:35

do you worship your father in Heaven and do what he says or do you listen to the voice of yourself and Satan and you do

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what you want this is Jesus's question

38:48

let's finalize this thought on Abraham from Galatians chapter 3.

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it's a wonder that the scripture talks so much about this isn't it

38:58

it's just coincidence I'm sure pure coincidence Galatians chapter 3 verses 5 through 7

39:05

says this therefore he who supplies the spirit to you and works miracles among

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you does he do it by The Works of the law or by the hearing of faith

39:18

now that's a big question because you might be asking yourself well Rodney you're saying over and over that we got

39:23

to do what God says yes but that's not where it starts see a heart that belongs to God first

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before they do anything they believe what God has said listen to the rest verse six just as Abraham believed God

39:40

and it was accounted to him for righteousness therefore

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this is verse 7 in Galatians 3. therefore know that only those who are

39:51

of faith are sons of Abraham now the Jews would have done well to

39:58

have that text wouldn't they they didn't that was written by the Apostle Apostle Paul many years after Jesus was in

40:06

conversation in John chapter 8 with these Jewish leaders but notice what the Apostle Paul through

40:12

the power of the holy spirit says there only those who are of faith meaning only

40:18

those who believe God only those who trust God they're the only ones who are

40:23

Abraham's seed in a spiritual sense I don't care what nation you came from I

40:31

don't care what nationality or religious system you come out of none of it means

40:36

anything I don't care if your parents were Christians your grandparents their

40:43

parents and on and on and on all the way back to the time of Christ if you

40:48

personally do not have faith in God and do not believe the word of God you

40:55

aren't his and you're not a descendant in the household of faith of Abraham because Abraham did what God Said

41:04

but he started with belief when God spoke he believed God God I

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believe you his actions came after not first

41:15

The Works didn't justify Abraham you noticed that don't you Galatians is really clear he's not

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justified by any work that he did Abraham going to Canaan does not justify

41:29

him but the fact that he believed God and what God had said that justified him

41:37

how about you When God says Thou shalt not lie and yes I memorized all this in the King

41:44

James so when I say the Ten Commandments I always do it with the D's and nouns but you

41:50

shall not lie do you believe God that you shouldn't lie

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so you're not justified by the action you're justified by your belief and if you continue on lying and you practice

42:05

lying you're saying I don't believe God I don't believe that lies are a problem

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I don't believe that lying is wrong and I'm using a very gentle

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you know we would all consider lies to be one of the gentlest of the sins wouldn't we

42:23

I mean it can lead to major problems but in our minds we all have the the idea that a lie is a little sin

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but to God no sin is little and we know what lies do they don't stop

42:38

with one lie it's kind of like Lay's potato chips right you can't eat just one you gotta keep adding more chips how

42:46

many of you can sit down and have one or two or maybe three chips and then stop

42:51

we got to sit there until like half the bag is gone sometimes we think to ourselves I don't even know why I'm

42:57

still doing this you stop being hungry you've already satisfied the flavor thing and you just

43:04

keep popping chips

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so again we all know the behavior and with sin it can be the same way if we're

43:16

not careful One Lie begets another lie begets another life it gets another lie if it

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gets a bad behavior begets you know how this goes

43:31

Jesus moves on moves on 40. but now you seek to kill me

43:38

a man who has told you the truth which I heard from God

43:43

Abraham did not do this notice notice what he's saying to them

43:49

look you're trying to kill me because I told you the truth I've revealed the truth of Who You Are

43:56

I've revealed the truths that I heard from heaven I'm telling you to believe the truth

44:01

that God has spoken you don't like it

44:06

and in fact you don't like it so much you want me dead you want to kill me

44:12

you know this has been one of the most tragic things in my life to be honest as a Christian in my Christian Life

44:19

is that sometimes the very people who claim to be gods the minute you share truth with them

44:25

about themselves they often get very angry about it I often get so upset that they they either

44:32

break the conversation off or call you all sorts of names or refuse to go any

44:38

further in a relationship with you because you've told them the truth

44:44

I've seen this over and over in my Christian walk and it is one of the saddest things

44:49

that I've had to deal with I expect an unbeliever to reject God

44:55

outright I expect it every time there there is you know I mean everybody

45:00

gets upset if somebody calls them names or something but if an unbeliever does that to me it doesn't strike at the very

45:06

soul of me because I know they're in darkness I know they don't believe the light but when somebody says I'm a

45:12

Christian and then you tell them the truth of something or you deal with something in their lives

45:17

the minute they start getting mad who are you to tell me what to do

45:23

they almost sound like their father don't they I don't know if he has a big deep voice

45:28

but I just assume Satan has a really you know raspy kind of deep anyway

45:34

people claim all the time to be something I don't think they are and it doesn't matter what I think I I

45:41

mean obviously by their life by their behavior they don't do what God says so

45:47

they can't to be his will God's spirit allow you to keep sinning over and over and over will he

45:54

allow you to just be comfortable walking in opposition to him as an ambassador of his kingdom God's

46:01

going to be okay with his Ambassador operating in Satan's world for Satan's

46:06

benefit instead of Gods none of that makes sense you and I both

46:11

know it but it seems like the angriest and the most hurt hurtful responses to God and

46:18

to God's word are from those who say I'm a Christian oh I believe God I love God

46:25

I love God really then why do you hate his people so much

46:30

why do you hate his word when we open it why do you get so upset when we try to deal with sin

46:36

we try to talk about good behavior why

46:42

it may very well be you don't belong to God if that's your case notice he says Abraham did not do this

46:49

Abraham believed God and did what God Said those who do not obey God's word are not

46:55

following God but the devil that's just plain and simple I've said it a couple of times now but that is plain and

47:01

simple Jesus made the exact same statement listen to this interaction with Jesus

47:06

and Peter because I think this hits home and every one of you are going to gonna recognize this most likely but I want

47:13

you to listen to a conversation between Jesus and Peter a man we know at one

47:19

point trusts God and follows God with all of his life even to the point where

47:24

history tells us the man was crucified upside down for the faith

47:30

okay listen to this conversation because at this moment in time

47:35

listen to what Jesus says to him this is Mark eight and actually this is

47:40

in in a few of the gospels but I'm going to read the one out of Mark Mark 8 starting in verse 31 and he began to

47:46

teach them that the son of man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes

47:53

and be killed notice that he's teaching his disciples that he must be killed and

47:59

after three days rise again so he's saying I'm going to be killed but I'm going to rise from the dead and he starts teaching his disciples this at

48:06

one point he spoke this word openly so he spoke it to all of his disciples not not just to

48:12

a few not even just to the twelve but all of his disciples that are following and Peter took him aside and began to

48:20

rebuke him could you imagine pulling Jesus aside

48:26

and rebuking him the Lord From Heaven the Son of God the

48:32

sinless one the Messiah could you imagine pulling him aside and saying Lord

48:38

Lord this is wrong let me correct you on something this is Peter

48:44

Peter ready fire aim Peter all right verse 33. but when he had turned around and looked

48:51

at his disciples he rebuked Peter saying look at this Jesus is facing Peter when

48:56

Peter tells him the thing the disciples must be back behind right remember Peter pulled him off to the side Jesus doesn't

49:02

keep facing Peter he turns around and faces the other disciples

49:07

and listen to what he says he turns around he rebuked Peter saying

49:13

get behind me Satan exclamation point this is Peter one of the greatest

49:20

apostles really a man that Jesus trusted relied on had lots of good things going on

49:28

get behind me Satan for you are not mindful of the things of God but the

49:35

things of men that's telling isn't it

49:41

Peter's a Believer guys but this means that you and I we can go

49:48

against God's word we can go against God's plan see Peter's saying Lord far be it from

49:56

you that you would die and Jesus is saying get behind me Satan because Jesus knew his mission

50:03

but you you are mindful of the things of the men when he had called the people to himself with his disciples also he said

50:09

to them whoever desires to come after me let him deny himself

50:15

take up his cross and follow me for whoever desires to save his life will

50:22

lose it but whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospels will save it

50:31

for what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and loses his own

50:37

soul or what will a man give in exchange for

50:43

his soul for whoever is ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful

50:50

generation of him the son of man also will be ashamed when he comes in the

50:57

glory of his father with the Holy Angels and you need to hear those words

51:04

that comes right on the heels of him rebuking Peter and calling him to his face well to his

51:12

back behind him Satan get behind me

51:17

you Satan that's a title by the way

51:25

did you hear all of that did you really listen I tried to read it very emphatically so that it would hit

51:32

you in a certain way but what I want you to note there is Jesus is not playing games with us

51:39

he is not playing games about salvation not at all

51:45

there is no part of Jesus that is okay with our hypocrisy even Believers he is

51:50

not okay with your hypocrisy he's not okay with the stuff that you get wrong or say wrong

51:57

and if he were right in front of you when you do it he would say the same to you get behind me Satan you're an

52:03

impediment to the kingdom of God you care about the world and the things in the world and not God's Kingdom

52:10

that's a big deal that is a big deal he teaches in this very serious manner that we need to

52:17

believe and obey the word of God Jesus had already told his disciples look I'm

52:24

going to suffer many things die three days later I'm going to rise from the dead and Peter couldn't imagine that

52:30

happening to the Messiah that's not what he was taught by the rabbis it's not what the Jews believe

52:36

they believed that Jesus that the Messiah would come and set up a kingdom the Messiah can't die

52:43

what you think what you've been taught none of it matters unless

52:50

it comes out of this unless it comes from the mouth of God

52:55

then it matters that's what you are to that is what you are to do

53:01

today he said look you do back here in John Inc you do the Deeds of your father

53:07

he reiterates there's only two fathers you can have God or the devil you're only on one of two sides you're on team

53:14

God and you you can put your shirt on like you do with you know many other things your team God or your team devil

53:22

that's it there are only two teams playing in the game of life and they say we were not born of

53:29

fornication we have one father and it's God see self-deception goes a long way to

53:36

keeping a lot of people away from the true God and his word

53:42

you might very well be deceiving yourselves as the Jews did and if you'll hearken back to Matthew 7 remember

53:48

there'll be lots of people it says many in that day meaning after judgment or in

53:55

the Kingdom in that day many are going to come Lord Lord we prophesied in Your

54:00

Name Lord we cast out demons in Your Name Lord we did many wonders in your

54:06

name and Jesus is not going to say oh you're right I was wrong

54:12

you've heard me use that illustration before oh I was wrong I messed up you were the

54:19

one person I forgot to put on the list no he's not going to do that he's going

54:25

to be honest with you and he's going to say look I never knew you you never actually followed me you kept

54:32

saying you followed me you kept doing works and proclaiming that this is from God this is in the name of Jesus Oh in

54:40

the name of Jesus I say this Mercedes is mine oh let me March around that house seven

54:46

times and claim it

54:52

I think that's funny but there are people out here doing it every day let me Proclaim what God is going to do

55:01

and Jesus is going to say depart from me you workers of lawlessness

55:08

or iniquity or sin whatever you want to in fact so that word in the Greek I looked at it

55:15

because it struck me in a very strange way I knew that the word for law in Greek was Nomas

55:22

that word is anomia in the Greek that he's using there in that word for

55:29

Lawless ah nomia and ah at the beginning of a word in Greek negates the word it

55:36

means the opposite of the thing so without law

55:41

lawlessness without law meaning they're a breaker of the law

55:46

they don't follow the law they don't do the law there's no law

55:52

and again that means they don't obey God they don't listen to God look at Jesus if God were your father

56:00

you would love me why do you not understand my speech

56:05

and and they can't hear it can they they can't hear it it's not that they don't

56:11

want to they cannot because again salvation requires that

56:17

God changed the heart salvation is only a matter that God can reconcile inside of a person

56:24

you can know or think or have a perception of anything you want but if God doesn't change your heart you're not

56:31

really his and you cannot and you will not hear God's word otherwise

56:38

Jesus makes this statement to them look what he says these next few statements

56:43

you are of your father the devil the desires of your father the devil you

56:48

want to do he was a murderer from the beginning he does not stand in the truth

56:53

because there is no truth in him he is a liar and the father of it

56:59

do you notice these statements I want you to hear this so what's he talking about go back to Genesis 3 you can

57:06

either turn there just listen I'm just going to read you verses one through five from Genesis 3. this is the

57:11

fall this is where sin enters the world now the serpent was more cunning than

57:16

any beast of the field which the Lord or Yahweh God had made and he said to the woman has God indeed said You shall not

57:25

eat of every tree of the garden can you imagine the nice astute British

57:31

voice Satan would have in that moment every tree of the garden

57:38

you know that's what he sounded like maybe verse 2.

57:45

and the woman said to the serpent we may eat of every fruit of the Trees of the garden I I should have given her a

57:51

California voice shouldn't I like a ditzy Airhead kind of thing but I won't

57:57

verse 3 but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden God

58:02

has said You shall not eat it nor shall you touch it lest you die so she says

58:08

back to him pretty much what God Said then the serpent said to the woman

58:14

they will not surely die

58:19

I mean you can imagine it can't you for God knows that in the day you eat of

58:25

it then I'll stop doing the voice your eyes will be open and you will be

58:32

like God knowing Good and Evil

58:37

now God didn't mean you've died just knows when you eat of that tree you're going to be like he is you're

58:44

going to know the true secrets of this world you're going to know good and evil which God knows and he doesn't want you

58:50

to have the knowledge he doesn't want you to have everything God is pressing

58:55

you down God is oppressing your life he wants to keep you down

59:01

how many people live their lives believing that very thing that God wants to oppress them but

59:07

notice that Satan he is incapable of telling the truth

59:12

because in fact that's exactly what God Said and the minute they sinned what happened

59:18

they died spiritually they died spiritually in fact they were

59:23

afraid to walk with God in the garden which they had already been doing for however much time they had been there

59:29

they had walked arm and arm with him in the garden in perfect Unity and then all of a sudden they hid

59:36

themselves God says why did you hide yourself because we were afraid

59:43

why were they afraid because now they knew they had done wrong and knowledge of Good and Evil had

59:49

entered their minds they knew they were naked they knew they were sinful they knew they had rebelled against God they

59:55

had done what God had said not to do but Satan he was incapable of telling

1:00:02

the truth consider that this is very much what Satan is

1:00:08

doing to people today I don't know how to make this any more clear to you but what Satan is telling

1:00:15

the world today is exactly the same thing don't listen to what God Said God wants

1:00:22

to keep you down if you're a woman and you want to be a man don't listen to what God Said God

1:00:28

created you as a woman but only in part you could be a man if you want go ahead

1:00:35

oh if you don't want to enter into a proper male and female marriage don't worry about it just say marriage can be

1:00:41

between any two people and a man and a man or a woman and a woman can and it's fine

1:00:49

it's the same thing Satan's doing today it's not true none of his lies are true

1:00:56

hey you don't need to go to church you can be a Christian and not go to church

1:01:01

isn't that great we don't have to go there anymore

1:01:07

I don't have to get up on a Sunday morning I could sleep in

1:01:12

all of his lies are just like that they're going to lead you away from God

1:01:17

but they'll always give you what you want I guarantee it you want more sleep on a Sunday morning just listen to Satan

1:01:24

you don't want to come to Sunday school or church hey it's fine you'll be all right be okay your life will be just fine

1:01:34

fine it's not true what is what God's telling the Earth what Satan's telling you

1:01:40

look at Jesus we're going to end here because I tell you the truth you do not

1:01:47

believe me Jesus tells them the truth not like Satan who isn't capable of telling the

1:01:54

truth the whole truth and nothing but the truth Jesus tells them the truth in all of it

1:02:00

all that he's seen and heard all that the father said to say and they reject it

1:02:06

we better learn to trust God's word and Obey God's word doing anything else will lead to God's

1:02:12

punishment in his chastisement and ultimately his judgment and his Wrath

1:02:19

if you for your whole life are disobedient to God's word and God himself about his son and the nature of

1:02:25

Salvation and the nature of who you are and how you should live you will suffer an eternal punishment

1:02:33

from God but you will also suffer punishment right here and now for your disobedience

1:02:40

again let me ask this question we ask it at the beginning who do you obey

1:02:45

God or the devil day by day action by action thought by

1:02:50

thought word by word who do you obey God

1:02:57

or the devil verse 47 7 tells us plainly God's people

1:03:02

hear his word but the ungodly do not which are you

1:03:07

if you did not hear the word of God with gladness and follow it you need to question your sincerity as a

1:03:15

follower of God you need to do that it's not for me to come to tell you that

1:03:21

you're off base now I will if I see you do actions that aren't Godly I will as a

1:03:26

brother in Christ come alongside you and say hey this isn't right and I expect you to do the same in my

1:03:32

life brother this isn't right when we get off track but I already know many times when I do

1:03:39

that it's going to be an argument it's going to be a fight it's going to be painful in fact it's

1:03:45

going to lead to some people not coming to church for a while or maybe not again

1:03:51

right in this very church I've had conversations that people did not come back after we talked

1:03:56

it did not come back was it because I told them a bunch of lies and I was mean to them

1:04:03

no but the truth the truth does something in the heart of a person who loves God it will unlock a lot of

1:04:10

freedom and a lot of joy and a lot of peace through the process of dealing with sin

1:04:16

but in an unbeliever rejection hatred

1:04:23

Jesus said they hated me they will hate you if you're you stand up as a person of

1:04:28

Truth people will hate you and they will hate everything you say that comes out of God's word

1:04:35

listen to this statement and then I'll pray Jesus died to pay for the sin of those

1:04:40

who follow him and he is working a process of sanctification in their lives so if you aren't better today than you

1:04:47

were yesterday God is not the problem I said that earlier you are challenge yourself with the teachings in

1:04:55

The Sermon on the Mount so today I wanted to give you something tangible that you personally can go and

1:05:02

do that doesn't have anything to do with me it doesn't have anything to do with your neighbor in the Pew or the seat

1:05:08

go home and take Matthew's Matthew chapters five through seven

1:05:13

and I want you to go through everything Jesus says in there write it down list every one of the do's or don'ts that

1:05:21

Jesus deals with in there and then I want you personally just by yourself you don't have to even share it with anyone

1:05:27

just do a checklist and see how you're doing which you obey and which you ignore day by day in your life

1:05:35

and I think this will answer the question for you if you're honest with yourself if you find that most of those things

1:05:41

you don't even care about or think about or spend any time on then I think the

1:05:46

answer is clear who you belong to because if you want to list out on another piece of paper the things you do

1:05:52

care about the things you spend your time on I think you're going to find that the two are in stark contrast to

1:05:59

one another some of you may find hey I do follow this stuff because I genuinely belong to

1:06:05

God and I genuinely believe what God has said now that's in your hands that's a

1:06:11

homework assignment but I don't need the answers that's a homework assignment for you to weigh with God and yourself

1:06:17

and if you'll do it I think you'll find more than you think you'll find let's pray together

1:06:25

father you are a good and gracious God father we pray each one of us knowing

1:06:31

that we're all sinners that you would help us to see the truth help us to know the truth help us to

1:06:37

believe the truth and then help us to live lives according to the truth

1:06:43

father allow us to see your word and hear it and believe it and then do it

1:06:48

help us grow us commit us to to a process of discipline

1:06:55

and faith and service and love help us to encourage one another to

1:07:01

build up one another and not cut one another down all the time father help us to do this work for the glory of the

1:07:08

Kingdom For Your Glory plus press us into the kingdom of God

1:07:14

press Us in in a good way that we might serve you in store of treasure for heaven and father we do all

1:07:21

this again willingly and For Your Glory we love you and praise you

1:07:26

we ask father that you would bless and keep blessing but for your glory and when we're

1:07:32

faithful we pray Jesus's holy name amen thank you very much