? (Theme Song) ? ?
Jesus is worthy... ?
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? oh yes, he's
worthy... ? ? worthy of all... ?
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? (Music) ? PB: Hello.
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I'm Dr. Carlton Byrd,
senior pastor of the Oakwood
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University Church, along
with the speaker-director of the
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Breath of Life television
ministry, and we're grateful
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to be live from the
Oakwood University Church on the
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campus of Oakwood University.
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In our words today we were
blessed by one of our sister
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institutions, the Norfolk
State University Choir under
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the direction of
Dr. Carl Haywood.
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And we're also happy that
our university president and his
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lovely wife are here today
and that is Dr. Leslie and Dr.
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Prudence Fowler.
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We're ready to go
to the Word of God.
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If you would take
your Bibles and go with me
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to the book of Exodus.
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What book did I say, everyone?
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Exodus, chapter
three is where we are going
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and we're going to verse 1.
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Exodus 3:1.
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If you have it, let
me hear you say Amen.
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The Word of God says to us,
"Now Moses kept the flock of
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Jethro his father-in-law,
the priest of Midian:
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and he led the flock to
the backside of the desert,
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and came to the
mountain of God, even to Horeb.
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And the angel of the Lord
appeared unto him in a flame
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of fire out of the midst
of a bush: and he looked,
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and, behold, the
bush burned with fire,
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and the bush was not consumed.
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And Moses said, I will now
turn aside, and see this great
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sight, why the
bush is not burnt.
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And when the Lord saw
that he turned aside to see,
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God called unto him out
of the midst of the bush,
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and said, 'Moses, Moses.'
And he said, 'Here am I.'
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And he said, 'Draw
nigh hither: put off thy
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shoes from off thy feet,
for the place whereon thou
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standest is holy ground.'
Moreover he said, 'I am the
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God of thy father, the God of
Abraham, the God of Isaac, and
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the God of Jacob.' And
Moses hid his face; for he was
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afraid to look upon God.
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And the Lord said, 'I have
surely seen the affliction of
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my people which are in Egypt,
and have heard their cry by
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reason of their taskmasters;
for I know their sorrows: And
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I am come down to deliver
them out of the hand of the
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Egyptians, and to bring
them up out of that land unto a
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good land and a large, unto
a land flowing with milk and
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honey; unto the place of the
Canaanites, and the Hittites,
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and the Amorites, and the
Perizzites, and the Hivites,
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and the Jebusites.
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Now therefore, behold, the
cry of the children of Israel is
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come unto me: and I have also
seen the oppression wherewith
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the Egyptians oppress them.
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Come now therefore, and I will
send thee unto Pharaoh, that
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thou mayest bring forth my
people the children of Israel
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out of Egypt.'" I don't
want to be long before you long
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today but we just want to
challenge you with a special
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subject and I want you to help
me today, so do me a favor and
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turn to your neighbor and say,
neighbor, take your shoes off.
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God, right now, as we go
into your Word, speak for your
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servants heareth.
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God, when the appeal is
made, I pray that men and women,
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boys and girls will
come running down this aisle
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saying, what
must I do to be saved.
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And I'll be able to say, you
only must believe on the Lord
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Jesus Christ and
thou shalt be saved.
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Hide me behind thy
cross, forgive me of my sin.
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God, I'm so unworthy to stand
here, but through your grace
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and your mercy and shed
blood I can stand here today.
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Thank you, Jesus.
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Bless us now we
pray in Jesus' name.
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Amen.
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Take your shoes off.
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Now, while the title of
our sermon may be catchy,
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captivating and perhaps
fascinating, I plead with you,
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please don't take your
shoes off, because if we all did
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we'd probably be surprised
at what we see or, worse yet,
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what we smell.
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Do I have a
witness in this place?
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Don't act like you don't
know what I'm talking about.
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When communion is on
the calendar and you know we
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participate in the ordinance
of humility, the foot washing,
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then if you make sure you wear
the right shoes, come on, say
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Amen, make sure your feet
are lotioned, your toenails are
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clipped and your
socks or stockings don't
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have holes in them.
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Come on, say Amen.
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Why do we wear shoes?
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Is it merely to cover
torn toes, callused corns or
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fatigued feet?
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Let me offer you some reasons
today of why we wear shoes.
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Number one, I
believe we primarily wear
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them for protection.
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The foot contains
more bones than any other
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single part of the body.
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The foot is vulnerable to
environmental hazards such as
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sharp rocks, debris and the
cold or hot ground, and shoes
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protect against these things.
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We also wear shoes, number
two, because it's a social
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custom, whether it's sandals,
tennis shoes, boots, Stacy
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Adams, ladies' stilettos,
open toe, closed toe or no toe,
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we all have on shoes.
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But shoes are not just
something of our modern world.
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Shoes have been worn
for thousands of years.
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The earliest designs,
they were simple, they were
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often mere foot bags.
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Everybody say foot bags.
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Foot bags of leather are there
to protect the feet from the
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elements of the ground.
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There are even
biblical applications to shoes.
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Paul says in Ephesians 6:15,
put on the shoes of the gospel.
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This is further
evidence that shoes were worn
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back in the day.
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The Roman soldiers wore
sandals that had nails driven
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through the bottom to
provide the soldier with sure
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footing on the battlefield.
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He didn't have to worry about
his feet slipping in the heat
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of the battle, for he
was always well grounded.
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The biblical application
today is that we have to be well
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grounded in the things of God.
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We need to know what we
believe, as I said last week,
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why we believe what we
believe and where it's found.
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We need sure footing when
we stand against the wiles
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of the devil.
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You can't fight
the devil slipping.
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Let me say that again.
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You can't fight the devil
slipping, and too many folks
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are slipping.
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You've got to be
able to grip the ground
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you walk on and stand.
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Do I have a
witness in this place?
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So, in the text Moses has
on shoes, but God tells him to
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take your shoes off.
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Now in the 21st century
culture, directing you to take
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your shoes off wouldn't sound
strange or abnormal, because
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people are told or
expected to take off their shoes
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in certain cultures or context.
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You walk into somebody's house
in an Asian or Arab country,
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you walk into somebody's
house in Sweden, Norway, Denmark
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or even Canada and you
better take your shoes off.
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But why would God give this
directive to Moses in 1400 BC?
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Moses, you will
remember, was the Hebrew baby
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that was set out on
the Nile river, who was
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rescued by Pharaoh's daughter.
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We know God orchestrated
all of this because Moses' birth
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mother, Jochebed, ended
up being his nurse mother in
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Pharaoh's privileged palace.
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But Moses didn't
forget where he came from.
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Moses didn't let a little
money, a nice house, a nice
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car, some nice
clothes and fine food to cause
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him to forget his roots.
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It was Moses who saw an
Egyptian soldier beating
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a Hebrew slave and in
a murderous rage Moses,
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remembering he was a
Hebrew and knowing his roots,
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killed the soldier.
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Despite this vicious act
of aggression Moses still led
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an entire nation out of
captivity, presided over the
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people as they embraced the
written covenant making them a
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nation, was the instrument
through which God provided
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the Ten Commandments.
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And then Moses, and this
is why he gets all the props
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from me, had to lead a
stiff-necked, amnesia-plagued
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people through the wilderness
when all they did, help us
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Holy Ghost, was murmur and
complain about having to eat
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fried manna, stewed manna,
baked manna, barbecued manna,
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curried manna, and maybe
even jerk manna, even though God
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had brought them
out of slavery, bondage,
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oppression and suppression.
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Don't forget
where you come from.
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Don't forget how the Lord
got somebody this morning up
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out of your sick bed of
affliction, when your body was
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racking with pain,
and when the doctors said,
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no, Jesus said yes.
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And where you had that
cancer, that cancer has now
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gone into remission.
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Don't forget
where you've come from.
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Don't forget how it used
to be that you didn't have two
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nickels to rub together.
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Or you didn't know where
your next meal was coming from.
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Come on, you say,
Pastor Byrd, you don't know
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anything about that.
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Oh, yes, I do.
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I was a student here
and college is a temporary
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state of poverty.
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Do I have a
witness in this place?
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Don't forget how you
didn't know how you were going
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to get in school.
00:10:06.96\00:10:08.10
Are you hearing what I'm saying?
00:10:08.10\00:10:09.66
But God made a way out of
no way and now you're eating
00:10:09.66\00:10:13.96
collard greens and cornbread.
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Now you're living in a
comfortable house or you're
00:10:16.30\00:10:19.46
sitting in class asking your
teacher when is the next test
00:10:19.46\00:10:22.50
going to be.
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Do I have a
witness in this place?
00:10:23.60\00:10:27.60
Don't forget that when you
were out there living it up,
00:10:27.60\00:10:30.00
doing it up, partying it up,
clubbing it up, drinking it up
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in places you had no
business, but God rescued you.
00:10:33.43\00:10:38.36
God got you out of that
scene, got you out of that
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environment.
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You didn't end up
with something or someone
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you would regret later.
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Somebody knows that a
few seconds of pleasure can
00:10:47.96\00:10:51.00
bring a lifetime of pain.
00:10:51.00\00:10:52.50
Don't you forget
where you've come from.
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Sitting up in here looking
cute, wise and other wise.
00:10:56.20\00:10:58.56
You haven't always
been Missionary Marvin or
00:10:58.56\00:11:01.63
Evangelist Emily.
00:11:01.63\00:11:03.20
Somebody was Lowlife
Larry or Heckled Helen.
00:11:03.20\00:11:06.30
Somebody here knows that if
it had not been for the Lord--
00:11:06.30\00:11:11.20
I feel like preaching
today-- if it had not been
00:11:11.20\00:11:14.43
for the Lord on my
side, where would I be?
00:11:14.43\00:11:19.43
The children of Israel
have forgotten where God has
00:11:19.43\00:11:23.26
brought them from.
00:11:23.26\00:11:24.66
Don't forget where
God has brought you from.
00:11:24.66\00:11:26.20
Do I have a
witness in this place?
00:11:26.20\00:11:27.93
Now, the years of Moses'
life are divided into 40.
00:11:27.93\00:11:34.03
The first 40 years he spent
as a prince in Pharaoh's court.
00:11:34.03\00:11:39.13
The second 40 years he spent
as a shepherd in Midian and
00:11:39.13\00:11:44.66
then the last 40
years he spent as leader
00:11:44.66\00:11:48.16
of the Israelites.
00:11:48.16\00:11:49.43
Now, in Exodus, chapter 3 we
kept up with brother Moses and
00:11:49.43\00:11:53.53
it has almost been 40 years
since he arrived in Midian.
00:11:53.53\00:11:58.66
He is now almost 80
years old, Exodus 7:7.
00:11:58.66\00:12:02.56
He's at the end of
this second set of 40 years.
00:12:02.56\00:12:06.26
The former prince wandered
in the desert caring for sheep,
00:12:06.26\00:12:10.00
and they aren't even
his own sheep, they belong
00:12:10.00\00:12:12.43
to his father-in-law.
00:12:12.43\00:12:14.66
But one day Moses led
his flock near Mount Horeb.
00:12:14.66\00:12:21.23
The Bible says it's the
mountain of God and on the
00:12:21.23\00:12:24.86
backside of the desert
he is stopped by a strange
00:12:24.86\00:12:29.36
and wondrous sight.
00:12:29.36\00:12:31.63
He saw a bush which
seemed to be on fire but it was
00:12:31.63\00:12:36.10
not burned up.
00:12:36.10\00:12:42.10
Now remember, as a shepherd
Moses was familiar with seeing
00:12:42.10\00:12:44.46
bushes burn under the hot sun.
00:12:44.46\00:12:46.83
To cook and keep warm at
night Moses would have been
00:12:46.83\00:12:50.76
familiar with
sources of fuel for a fire.
00:12:50.76\00:12:53.23
Burning bushes were common
sights in the wilderness and
00:12:53.23\00:12:56.96
Moses must have seen
hundreds of them before.
00:12:56.96\00:13:00.23
But something was
different this time.
00:13:00.23\00:13:02.83
A flash of fire catches
his attention and so he decides
00:13:02.83\00:13:06.76
to watch for a little bit,
because there was something
00:13:06.76\00:13:11.36
different about
this burning bush.
00:13:11.36\00:13:14.20
Though the fire raged,
it didn't consume the bush.
00:13:14.20\00:13:19.23
Let that be a lesson to
you and to me, that the bush
00:13:19.23\00:13:22.70
burned but it did not burn away.
00:13:22.70\00:13:27.36
Symbolic of God's church.
00:13:27.36\00:13:30.33
Satan will try to kill
the church any way he can.
00:13:30.33\00:13:33.96
The church will be persecuted,
the church will be mocked,
00:13:33.96\00:13:37.80
the church will be ridiculed.
00:13:37.80\00:13:39.30
The day is going to come
when the church will have
00:13:39.30\00:13:41.80
to go in hiding.
00:13:41.80\00:13:43.23
But the church in every
age, under the most severe
00:13:43.23\00:13:47.33
persecution will be
kept by the presence of God
00:13:47.33\00:13:51.00
from being destroyed.
00:13:51.00\00:13:52.06
Hallelujah, somebody.
00:13:52.06\00:13:54.16
Now, the Bible does
not give the bush a name,
00:13:54.16\00:13:59.70
does not give it a name.
00:13:59.70\00:14:01.16
Zion bush, holy bush,
redeeming bush, Julius bush.
00:14:01.16\00:14:08.23
We don't even hear of popular
places, persons or things
00:14:08.23\00:14:14.20
named for the
burning bush today.
00:14:14.20\00:14:16.60
You don't hear of a
burning bush SDA church.
00:14:16.60\00:14:20.76
You don't hear of a
burning bush university.
00:14:20.76\00:14:26.40
Burning bush community center.
00:14:26.40\00:14:28.20
Burning bush worship center.
00:14:28.20\00:14:29.96
It's just a bush on fire.
00:14:29.96\00:14:33.76
But that's just like God.
00:14:33.76\00:14:35.23
God often
manifests himself in fire.
00:14:35.23\00:14:38.16
In Genesis 15 he was
represented by a pot of fire.
00:14:38.16\00:14:41.93
In Exodus 13 he was a pillar
of cloud by day and a pillar
00:14:41.93\00:14:44.43
of fire by night.
00:14:44.43\00:14:45.83
In Exodus 19 he descends
on Mount Sinai with fire.
00:14:45.83\00:14:48.66
In Deuteronomy 4 Moses says
that God is a consuming fire.
00:14:48.66\00:14:53.20
In 1 Kings 18, God
sets Elijah's altar on fire.
00:14:53.20\00:14:57.93
Jeremiah said God's word was
like fire shut up in his bones.
00:14:57.93\00:15:03.63
In Act 2 on the day of
Pentecost, when the Holy Ghost
00:15:03.63\00:15:07.46
came, it was
described as tongues of fire.
00:15:07.46\00:15:10.26
In Revelation 1:14, Jesus
is said to have eyes of fire.
00:15:10.26\00:15:14.46
And in Revelations 20 it says
that the wicked will be cast
00:15:14.46\00:15:19.73
in the lake of fire.
00:15:19.73\00:15:22.23
The Bible says that no man
can see God's face and live, so
00:15:22.23\00:15:26.73
God appears in Exodus 3
in a way that conceals his
00:15:26.73\00:15:30.63
totality, but also
makes himself known.
00:15:30.63\00:15:34.33
For Moses this
was an ordinary day.
00:15:34.33\00:15:37.70
But on this day the ordinary
becomes extraordinary, the
00:15:37.70\00:15:42.93
usual becomes unusual.
00:15:42.93\00:15:45.40
A burning bush, a burning
bush that is not consumed?
00:15:45.40\00:15:51.66
And so, in verse 3 Moses says,
I will turn aside to see this
00:15:51.66\00:15:55.96
great sight, why
the bush is not burned.
00:15:55.96\00:16:01.33
The New Living translation
says that Moses said to
00:16:01.33\00:16:04.26
himself, amazing, I
must go over to see this.
00:16:04.26\00:16:07.46
The lesson here is that when
we turn to see God, God will
00:16:07.46\00:16:10.20
surely speak to us.
00:16:10.20\00:16:12.06
But all of a sudden, verse
4, the bush begins to talk.
00:16:12.06\00:16:18.40
Moses, Moses,
that's just like God.
00:16:18.40\00:16:23.30
God can speak to
anything or anyone.
00:16:23.30\00:16:25.66
If God can speak through
a donkey, if God can speak
00:16:25.66\00:16:30.60
through a bush,
then surely God can speak
00:16:30.60\00:16:34.63
to you and to me.
00:16:34.63\00:16:35.76
For the first time in the
book of Exodus God speaks.
00:16:35.76\00:16:39.16
God calls Moses
from a burning bush.
00:16:39.16\00:16:43.33
God calls his
people in different ways.
00:16:43.33\00:16:47.26
Samuel heard God call him by
name as a child in the temple.
00:16:47.26\00:16:50.90
Jacob wrestled with
the Lord all night long.
00:16:50.90\00:16:53.86
Joseph dreamed about God's will.
00:16:53.86\00:16:56.60
Jesus called Peter, Andrew,
James and John away from their
00:16:56.60\00:17:00.70
fishing nets.
00:17:00.70\00:17:01.86
Matthew left his tax
collector position behind.
00:17:01.86\00:17:04.66
Zachias was called
from a sycamore tree.
00:17:04.66\00:17:08.16
Jesus appeared to the
disciples in the upper room.
00:17:08.16\00:17:11.63
Paul met the Lord on
the road to Damascus.
00:17:11.63\00:17:15.23
How has Jesus called you?
00:17:15.23\00:17:18.50
Where were you
when Jesus called?
00:17:18.50\00:17:22.73
God calls Moses
from a burning bush.
00:17:22.73\00:17:26.43
God calls Moses from fire.
00:17:26.43\00:17:28.76
Why does God call from fire?
00:17:28.76\00:17:33.90
Number one, fire consumes.
00:17:33.90\00:17:35.73
Fire what, everybody?
00:17:35.73\00:17:37.26
Deuteronomy 4,
we said it earlier.
00:17:37.26\00:17:40.90
Moses says that God is a
consuming fire, which means
00:17:40.90\00:17:43.66
that everything God touches,
everything God has ownership
00:17:43.66\00:17:46.46
over he wants to consume.
00:17:46.46\00:17:47.56
Listen to me
carefully, challenge your mind.
00:17:47.56\00:17:51.16
God doesn't destroy.
00:17:51.16\00:17:53.90
God consumes.
00:17:53.90\00:17:57.33
That's why when Moses looked
at the bush it was consumed by
00:17:57.33\00:18:01.56
fire, but it was not destroyed.
00:18:01.56\00:18:05.33
That's the same thing
God wants to do with us.
00:18:05.33\00:18:10.16
He doesn't want to destroy
us, he wants to consume us.
00:18:10.16\00:18:15.63
This bush should have
been destroyed in less than 10
00:18:15.63\00:18:19.90
minutes, but the miracle here
is not the bush but the fire.
00:18:19.90\00:18:24.10
The fire of God kept
burning and burning and burning.
00:18:24.10\00:18:28.70
This blazing fire, my friends,
that sets the bush on fire and
00:18:28.70\00:18:33.03
kept burning and consumed
it, but it didn't destroy it and
00:18:33.03\00:18:35.96
then it shone through it, is
a sign and symbol for what God
00:18:35.96\00:18:39.36
wants to do to his church.
00:18:39.36\00:18:41.70
God wants to set
the church on fire.
00:18:41.70\00:18:44.80
God wants his spirit to
blaze in every area of our life.
00:18:44.80\00:18:49.40
God wants us to burn with
a passion for Jesus Christ.
00:18:49.40\00:18:53.20
God wants to consume us with
his fiery presence so we shine
00:18:53.20\00:18:56.70
with his glory, so that
the world might know that there
00:18:56.70\00:19:00.10
is God and there is none other.
00:19:00.10\00:19:03.06
But secondly, fire purifies.
00:19:03.06\00:19:08.00
Now, there are only
two ways, primary ways,
00:19:08.00\00:19:11.36
you can clean something.
00:19:11.36\00:19:13.16
Either you wash
it or you burn it.
00:19:13.16\00:19:17.10
That's why the Lord
showed Noah the rainbow sign.
00:19:17.10\00:19:21.23
He said it won't be
water, but fire next time.
00:19:21.23\00:19:27.23
He purified the earth once
by water at the flood and at the
00:19:27.23\00:19:32.00
end of the millennium he
will purify the earth by fire.
00:19:32.00\00:19:36.60
Now, when you burn a metal,
you heat it as hot as you can
00:19:36.60\00:19:41.03
so the impurities will
come to the surface and you
00:19:41.03\00:19:43.56
wipe it off.
00:19:43.56\00:19:44.40
In biblical times
that's what a refiner did.
00:19:44.40\00:19:47.70
They would put metal in a
furnace over and over again
00:19:47.70\00:19:50.76
until they knew the metal was
clean and the metal was pure.
00:19:50.76\00:19:53.46
And the way the refiner would
know the metal was pure was
00:19:53.46\00:19:56.86
once he looked at it, he'd
see the reflection of his face
00:19:56.86\00:20:01.83
in the metal.
00:20:01.83\00:20:03.70
You all don't
hear what I'm saying.
00:20:03.70\00:20:05.30
That's what God
wants to do in our lives.
00:20:05.30\00:20:08.50
He won't leave us
the same way we are.
00:20:08.50\00:20:11.86
He'll chase after
us until we change.
00:20:11.86\00:20:15.13
He wants our sins, he wants
our weaknesses, he wants our
00:20:15.13\00:20:18.50
bad ways, he wants our
bad attitude, anything that's
00:20:18.50\00:20:21.63
holding us back, he wants it
all to go through the furnace
00:20:21.63\00:20:25.73
of his presence so that all
the impurities of our hearts
00:20:25.73\00:20:29.53
will come to the surface so
that the reflection of Jesus
00:20:29.53\00:20:33.63
will be seen in
everything we say and do.
00:20:33.63\00:20:39.10
Number three, fire brings light.
00:20:39.10\00:20:42.53
Remember, God led
Israel, a pillar of cloud by day
00:20:42.53\00:20:46.76
and a pillar of fire by night.
00:20:46.76\00:20:50.70
Everything outside of the
camp was covered in darkness
00:20:50.70\00:20:55.86
but when others looked at where
the children of Israel were
00:20:55.86\00:20:59.10
all they saw was
fire reflected by light.
00:20:59.10\00:21:04.30
When God's church is on
fire, we can be the light that
00:21:04.30\00:21:09.63
shines in the
darkness of the world.
00:21:09.63\00:21:13.06
Darkness is defined as the
absence of light, but darkness
00:21:13.06\00:21:17.16
alone cannot dispel light
because the smallest glimmer
00:21:17.16\00:21:21.23
of light can dispel
the greatest darkness.
00:21:21.23\00:21:24.90
Which means, I don't care how
dark this world might be, just
00:21:24.90\00:21:28.30
a glimpse of light can
change this world and turn it
00:21:28.30\00:21:32.60
upside down.
00:21:32.60\00:21:33.73
We need God's fire.
00:21:33.73\00:21:36.00
We need God's light.
00:21:36.00\00:21:37.90
Light doesn't originate
with you, light doesn't start
00:21:37.90\00:21:41.30
with me.
00:21:41.30\00:21:42.23
You're just light
leading to the light.
00:21:42.23\00:21:44.36
Ellen White said, I'm
the lesser light leading
00:21:44.36\00:21:46.93
to the greater light.
00:21:46.93\00:21:48.03
The problem with many of us
is we're too busy trying to get
00:21:48.03\00:21:50.73
close to folks thinking
they're going to give us light.
00:21:50.73\00:21:55.63
But they're not THE light.
00:21:55.63\00:21:58.00
I don't care how deep they
are, how many scriptures they
00:21:58.00\00:22:02.13
can quote, how many
songs they can sing,
00:22:02.13\00:22:05.36
they're not THE light.
00:22:05.36\00:22:07.90
Jesus is the light
that shineth in me.
00:22:07.90\00:22:12.76
When the fire
comes, your light shines.
00:22:12.76\00:22:15.30
When the fire comes, people
will be drawn to the light.
00:22:15.30\00:22:18.26
Let your light so shine before
men that they may see your
00:22:18.26\00:22:21.23
good works and glorify
your Father which is in heaven.
00:22:21.23\00:22:25.03
Go be a light.
00:22:25.03\00:22:30.13
Verse 4, notice that
when Moses, look at your Bible
00:22:30.13\00:22:35.26
carefully, when Moses refers
to God as the Lord, the Bible
00:22:35.26\00:22:41.63
prints Lord, L-O-R-D, if
you notice, in small caps.
00:22:41.63\00:22:47.30
Now you look at verse 4,
notice he doesn't say capital
00:22:47.30\00:22:51.00
L, lower case o-r-d.
00:22:51.00\00:22:52.16
Capital L, capital
O, capital R, capital D.
00:22:52.16\00:22:56.03
Lord is in small caps.
00:22:56.03\00:22:58.46
Why?
00:22:58.46\00:22:59.33
What's the significance
and meaning of this?
00:22:59.33\00:23:01.76
It is translating
the Hebrew name Yahweh.
00:23:01.76\00:23:06.03
Yahweh is the personal name
of the one true God, the creator
00:23:06.03\00:23:10.23
of heaven and earth.
00:23:10.23\00:23:12.43
Yahweh is the name
which reveals his people
00:23:12.43\00:23:16.00
and his covenant.
00:23:16.00\00:23:17.53
Yahweh reminds us,
friends, that we are not dealing
00:23:17.53\00:23:21.03
with a generic
god, but we're dealing
00:23:21.03\00:23:23.60
with a specific God, the
God who makes himself known.
00:23:23.60\00:23:29.56
The God who sent a plague
of lice, frogs and blood to let
00:23:29.56\00:23:33.86
Pharaoh know who he was.
00:23:33.86\00:23:36.43
The God who parted the Red Sea.
00:23:36.43\00:23:39.73
The God whom the
Hebrew midwives feared.
00:23:39.73\00:23:42.26
The God who heard their
groaning to remember his
00:23:42.26\00:23:45.13
covenant with
Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
00:23:45.13\00:23:47.13
The God who
delivered the people of Israel.
00:23:47.13\00:23:49.53
Yahweh is the true God.
00:23:49.53\00:23:51.46
Yahweh is the God of
Abraham, of Isaac and of Jacob.
00:23:51.46\00:23:54.86
Yahweh is the architect of
the universe, creator of the
00:23:54.86\00:23:59.13
earth, captive freer,
soul seeker, way maker,
00:23:59.13\00:24:07.16
strong deliverer.
00:24:07.16\00:24:09.83
Yahweh, my God, your God.
00:24:09.83\00:24:14.46
Moses with a trembling, scared
voice said, Yahweh, here I am.
00:24:14.46\00:24:20.26
God says, don't come any closer.
00:24:20.26\00:24:23.00
Take your shoes off,
because the place where
00:24:23.00\00:24:25.66
you're standing is holy ground.
00:24:25.66\00:24:28.20
Notice, the text does not
say clean ground, the text does
00:24:28.20\00:24:32.90
not say comfortable ground,
but it says take your shoes
00:24:32.90\00:24:39.10
off, because you're
standing on holy ground.
00:24:39.10\00:24:42.86
Why was this ground holy?
00:24:42.86\00:24:45.30
First, any place where we
meet God, it's holy ground.
00:24:45.30\00:24:49.23
It can be on the mountain top,
it can be in the valley low,
00:24:49.23\00:24:52.06
any place where we
meet God is holy ground.
00:24:52.06\00:24:54.43
Holy means set apart, set aside.
00:24:54.43\00:24:58.06
And let me warn you, we talked
about holiness in the Sabbath
00:24:58.06\00:25:00.50
school lesson, but let me
remind you because everything
00:25:00.50\00:25:03.23
that looks like
holy is not holy.
00:25:03.23\00:25:06.50
Everything that talks
like holy is not holy.
00:25:06.50\00:25:08.93
Everything that walks
like holy is not holy.
00:25:08.93\00:25:12.93
Everything that acts
like holy is not holy.
00:25:12.93\00:25:15.53
Everything that
shouts like holy is not holy.
00:25:15.53\00:25:19.23
To be holy is to be set aside
and set apart for God's use.
00:25:19.23\00:25:21.60
The Sabbath is holy.
00:25:21.60\00:25:24.13
Remember the Sabbath
Day to keep it what? Holy.
00:25:24.13\00:25:26.86
The tithe is what? Holy.
00:25:26.86\00:25:28.43
All the tithes of the land,
whether the seed of the land
00:25:28.43\00:25:30.93
or the fruit of the tree
it is the Lord's, it is holy
00:25:30.93\00:25:33.53
unto the Lord.
00:25:33.53\00:25:35.50
The sanctuary is holy.
00:25:35.50\00:25:36.73
The Lord is in his holy temple.
00:25:36.73\00:25:40.96
God told Moses, Moses,
you're standing on holy ground.
00:25:40.96\00:25:44.90
God set the
ground aside for use.
00:25:44.90\00:25:48.13
We can not program, friends
of mine, where we will meet God.
00:25:48.13\00:25:50.73
We cannot program
when we will meet God.
00:25:50.73\00:25:52.93
We just have to
be ready to meet God.
00:25:52.93\00:25:54.96
Are you hearing what I'm saying?
00:25:54.96\00:25:56.33
The Breath of Life
gift offer this week is:
00:25:56.86\00:25:58.86
"Surprised by
Love" by pastor and
00:25:58.86\00:26:00.46
international speaker
Elizabeth Viera Talbot.
00:26:00.46\00:26:02.90
Find out how people in
the Bible were surprised
00:26:02.90\00:26:05.13
by God's love.
00:26:05.13\00:26:06.33
Adam and Eve were surprised,
the deceitful serpent and the
00:26:06.33\00:26:09.00
Pharisees were surprised.
00:26:09.00\00:26:10.56
It surprised the disciples
and even the heavenly angels.
00:26:10.56\00:26:13.30
And God's surprises of love
continue all around us today.
00:26:13.30\00:26:17.33
Journey with Elizabeth as
you get a fresh view of the
00:26:17.33\00:26:19.93
greatest story ever
told, from the kidnapping
00:26:19.93\00:26:22.60
of God's children to
the rescue, from the ransom
00:26:22.60\00:26:25.43
to the reunion.
00:26:25.43\00:26:26.43
"Surprised by Love" is
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00:26:26.43\00:26:29.90
Call our toll-free
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00:26:29.90\00:26:35.00
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00:26:35.00\00:26:38.00
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00:26:43.16\00:26:44.80
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00:26:44.80\00:26:49.93
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00:26:49.93\00:26:51.96
Be encouraged and
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00:26:51.96\00:26:54.53
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00:26:54.53\00:26:56.80
PB: Thank you very much
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00:26:57.36\00:26:59.20
Breath of Life today.
00:26:59.20\00:27:00.96
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00:27:00.96\00:27:03.70
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00:27:48.23\00:27:57.13
If God can speak
through a donkey...
00:27:57.13\00:28:00.96
If God can speak
through a bush...
00:28:00.96\00:28:02.76
Then surely God can
through you and through me.
00:28:02.76\00:28:05.46
God wants to set
the church on fire.
00:28:05.46\00:28:10.20
Put on the shoes of the Gospel
We need sure footing when we
00:28:10.20\00:28:14.93
stand against the
wiles of the devil
00:28:14.93\00:28:18.46
Take your shoes off
'cause the place that you're
00:28:18.46\00:28:20.83
standing is holy ground.
00:28:20.83\00:28:22.70
"Yahweh" is the personal
name of the one true God.
00:28:22.70\00:28:25.86