Tombstone, Arizona
00:00:30.19\00:00:32.13
in the late
1800s, Law and Order.
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What was it like?
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I take you to tombstone
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and we notice first
the Bird Cage Theatre.
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The Bird Cage
Theatre was probably
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the most famous landmark
in this little Arizona town.
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The New York Times
referred to it in 1882
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as the wildest,
wickedest nightspot
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between Basin Street
and the Barbary Coast.
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During the 9 years
of its lusty career,
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it never closed its doors.
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It was site of 16 gunfights
and suffered a 140 bullet holes.
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The Bird Cage was named
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for the 14 bird
cage crib compartments
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that are
suspended from the ceiling
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overlooking the
gambling casino and dance hall.
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In these compartments,
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the ladies of the
evening plied their trade.
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Quite a strange place.
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A lot of wild things
went on in that Wild West.
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We often tell
stories and even watch movies
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about the taming
of the Wild West,
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but it wasn't the west
that needed to be tamed as much,
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as it was the people that
were trying to do the taming.
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The symbol of Law and Order
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in the Wild West was a
gunslinger with the badge.
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Enter Wyatt Earp.
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Wyatt Earp was a
compulsive gambler.
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He was opportunistic.
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He left his wife
for another woman.
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There were few
things that he wouldn't do
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if it meant a profit.
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And his best friend
was a notorious killer
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whom he may
have lied to protect.
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He was a hard man
living in hard times.
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But he was on
the side of the law.
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The most famous scene
outside of the Bird Cage Theatre
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of course is the O.K. Corral.
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The O.K. Corral was
not a structure really,
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it was really just
a empty lot or a space
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between a couple of
buildings, but it became famous
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when Wyatt Earp and his
brothers confronted the cowboys.
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Most witnesses seem to agree
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that the firing
started almost simultaneously
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and then the
shooting became general
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and lasted all of 30 seconds.
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As you see in the picture,
this is actually how close
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the cowboys and the
Earps were to each other.
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After the firing stopped
three cowboys lay dead or dying.
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Virgil Earp had been
shot through the leg,
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Morgan in the back,
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and Doc Holliday had
been grazed on the hip.
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Only Wyatt Earp himself
was completely unscathed.
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In this Wild West environment,
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the law was
whatever could be enforced
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by a gun slinging
Marshall or a sheriff.
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The west was won by
whoever had the most firepower
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and luck on their side.
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But what about God's law?
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How does God win the universe?
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Is God some kind
of cosmic gunslinger
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who comes into
the earth guns blazing
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and subdues all of His enemies
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and then rides
of into the sunset.
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How does God enforce His law?
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We're going to take a
new look at the law today,
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maybe the kind of look
that you've never taken before.
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So let me begin by
asking you a question.
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Which of God's Ten Commandments
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would you chose to
omit if God allowed you too?
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All right, just
think in your mind.
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Now the rules of
these games are follows.
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You can chose one commandment
out of any of the ten,
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any commandment you want.
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And let's say
that you would like God
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to give your free
pass on that one, okay?
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Now we know God
doesn't actually do that,
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but this is just a
hypothetical game, okay?
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Whatever it is let's just say
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you get to chose one
commandment out of the ten.
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And, you just,
you have a free pass.
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God is not going
to punish you for it.
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Everything is gonna be okay.
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You can have that
one commandment to break.
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But according to
the rules of this game
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you have to break it continually
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and to its full
extent the rest of your life.
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Now with that in mind let's
go through the Ten Commandments.
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And let's do it in reverse order
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because as you'll notice
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it creates a rather interesting
progression of thought
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as we get down to number one.
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So let's start at number 10.
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"Thou shalt not covet," okay?
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Let's say that you
chose "Thou shalt not covet"
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as your free pass.
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God's not gonna punish you
for breaking that commandment.
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You can--You have to
break that commandment
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now and for the
rest of your life.
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What will happen to you?
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Well, I'll tell
you what will happen.
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You will not value what
you have only what others have.
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You will never be
satisfied or content.
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And for you, life will be unfair
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because of what others have.
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See that is the natural result
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of breaking the
Tenth Commandments.
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Well, you might think,
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that doesn't really
sound too attractive.
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Life doesn't sound all
that attractive anymore,
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if I keep on breaking
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the "Thou shalt
not covet" commandment.
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So, well, let's go to number 9,
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"Thou shalt not
bear false witness."
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What is the natural
result of bearing false witness?
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Well, first of
all, you will get ahead
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by destroying the
reputation of others.
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Secondly, you will have
trouble dealing with reality
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because you live in
a world built on lies.
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And third, you
will live in the fear
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that someone will
destroy your reputation.
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So what are the natural results
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of breaking the
ninth commandment,
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"Bearing false witness?"
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Maybe that doesn't
seem so attractive.
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Maybe I'll pass on
"Thou shalt not covet."
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"Bearing false witness"
doesn't sound so good either
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because after all if I destroy
somebody else's reputation,
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I have to live the
rest of my life in fear
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that somebody is gonna
do the same thing to me.
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Well, let's
move on to number 8,.
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This is the
commandment against stealing.
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If you continually
break the eighth commandment
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the rest of your life,
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you will take
whatever you can get away with.
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You cannot value what you have
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because after all
you did not earn it.
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Third, you will be afraid
of what will be taken from you.
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And finally, you will never know
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the joy of accomplishment,
just the pain of loss.
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Well, that doesn't
sound so attractive either.
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Stealing the rest of your life
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just doesn't have the
attraction that maybe it did,
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once you realize the full
extent of the natural results
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of breaking that commandment.
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Well, here is the popular one.
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Number 7, "committing adultery."
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Let's take a free
pass on that one, shall we?
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What are the natural
results of committing adultery?
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First of all, your
most intimate relationships
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will never be permanent.
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Secondly, you will live
without real love or acceptance.
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Why? Because you're
unfaithful to everyone.
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And finally, you will
be lonely and betrayed.
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It's funny how what you give
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has a tendency
to come back on you.
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The natural results
of committing adultery,
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well, maybe that's
not so attractive either.
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Let's go on to number 6.
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"Thou shalt not kill."
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The commandment against murder.
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The results of
being a murderer are,
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you will be a predator.
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By cheapening
the lives of others
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you will cheapen your own.
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You, the hunter, will
also become the hunted.
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And the result of all that
is, you will live in terror.
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Well, I certainly,
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I don't want to
take a free pass on
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"Thou shalt not kill."
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So let's move back to number 5,
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"Honor Your Parents,"
00:09:03.91\00:09:05.28
honor your
father and your mother.
00:09:05.31\00:09:07.36
By the way this is
the one commandment
00:09:07.39\00:09:09.36
that includes within it
00:09:09.39\00:09:11.83
the description of
the natural results
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of keeping that commandment.
00:09:15.12\00:09:18.10
So what's the natural result
of not honoring your parents?
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You will cut yourself off
from those who gave your life.
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You will grow bitter and lonely
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and as a result die prematurely.
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And finally,
having given no honor,
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your children will not
know how to give you honor.
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Interesting isn't it,
how the next generation
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always continues and
sometimes even makes worse
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the sins of the
previous generation?
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It's the natural results of sin.
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Okay, the "Sabbath commandment."
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Certainly we could take a
free pass on that, couldn't we?
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What are the natural results
of completely and continually
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breaking the Sabbath
commandment not just in letter
00:10:04.10\00:10:08.26
but in spirit the
rest of your life?
00:10:08.29\00:10:11.22
Now first of all,
you will never truly rest
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even when on vacation.
00:10:14.62\00:10:16.63
Secondly, you will always
be anxious about doing enough,
00:10:16.66\00:10:19.96
getting enough,
and being good enough
00:10:19.99\00:10:21.84
for everyone especially God.
00:10:21.87\00:10:25.51
And finally, success
will lose its meaning
00:10:25.54\00:10:28.66
because of continual unrest.
00:10:28.69\00:10:33.08
Well, this seems to be
getting worst not better.
00:10:33.11\00:10:38.44
So let's move on to
commandment number 3,
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"The prohibition against
taking the Lord's name in vain."
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What's the result of that?
00:10:45.35\00:10:47.95
First of all, you will
make God's name a common
00:10:47.98\00:10:51.46
and even a filthy thing.
00:10:51.49\00:10:53.75
Secondly, you will
have no sense of awe
00:10:53.78\00:10:56.63
or holiness in God's presence.
00:10:56.66\00:10:58.91
Third, you will
fear and loathe anything
00:10:58.94\00:11:02.27
having to do with
God's holiness and love.
00:11:02.30\00:11:06.66
So the results of
breaking the third commandment
00:11:06.69\00:11:10.40
are not all that
attractive either.
00:11:10.43\00:11:11.80
So let's go to number 2,
00:11:11.83\00:11:13.66
"The prohibition
against graven images."
00:11:13.69\00:11:15.66
Now this seems
like a small thing
00:11:15.69\00:11:17.46
but have ever really
examined this commandment
00:11:17.49\00:11:19.62
to discover its depth also?
00:11:19.65\00:11:23.72
The natural results of
breaking commandment number 2
00:11:23.75\00:11:26.22
are that you will try to
create God in your own image.
00:11:26.25\00:11:31.19
Secondly, you will
serve but at the same time
00:11:31.22\00:11:34.95
hate this inferior God
because he is like yourself.
00:11:34.98\00:11:39.81
And finally, you will
sink to the level of your Gods
00:11:39.84\00:11:43.30
of superstition,
pride, vanity and lust.
00:11:43.33\00:11:49.68
And all of these is leading up
to the very first commandment,
00:11:49.71\00:11:54.90
the commandment that says,
00:11:54.93\00:11:56.65
"Thou shalt have no
other gods before me."
00:11:56.68\00:12:00.72
What are the natural results
of breaking that commandment?
00:12:00.75\00:12:04.72
First of all, you
will make things or people
00:12:04.75\00:12:09.05
your gods
instead of God himself.
00:12:09.08\00:12:12.29
Secondly, the Gods you
have chosen will disappoint you.
00:12:12.32\00:12:17.99
Third, you will have no savior
00:12:18.02\00:12:21.22
because you will
have to be your own
00:12:21.25\00:12:24.78
and you will
fail and you will die.
00:12:24.81\00:12:28.94
It's a terrible
thing when you realize
00:12:31.34\00:12:35.40
what is really in
these commandments.
00:12:35.43\00:12:38.38
What is God trying to
protect His people from?
00:12:38.41\00:12:43.30
What are the natural results
of ignoring God's commandments?
00:12:43.33\00:12:46.37
If we put all of that together,
00:12:46.40\00:12:48.39
what are the natural results
of ignoring God's commandments?
00:12:48.42\00:12:52.57
Discontent, fear, pain,
betrayal, terror, dishonor,
00:12:52.60\00:12:59.07
unrest, loathing,
degradation, and finally death.
00:12:59.10\00:13:05.93
I submit to you,
that the natural results
00:13:05.96\00:13:11.28
of breaking God's
law is God's punishment.
00:13:11.31\00:13:17.60
Psalm 81:11-12 said,
00:13:17.63\00:13:20.55
"But my people
would not listen to me,
00:13:20.58\00:13:22.95
Israel would not submit to me.
00:13:22.98\00:13:24.76
So I gave them over
to their stubborn hearts
00:13:24.79\00:13:27.88
to follow their own devices."
00:13:27.91\00:13:32.18
Does God become a
super natural gunslinger?
00:13:32.21\00:13:35.47
Does He come in with guns
blazing to try to keep us from
00:13:35.50\00:13:39.84
doing some things
that we'd like to do?
00:13:39.87\00:13:43.14
Is the universe one
because God is simply stronger
00:13:43.17\00:13:46.85
than everybody else
and has more firepower?
00:13:46.88\00:13:49.83
Is that how God's
law keeping works?
00:13:49.86\00:13:53.67
Is that the law of the universe,
00:13:53.70\00:13:56.65
that God is the
biggest bully around,
00:13:56.68\00:13:58.69
the biggest gunslinger,
he has the most firepower?
00:13:58.72\00:14:03.53
I submit that it is
exactly the opposite.
00:14:03.56\00:14:07.04
That God rather
than trying to force
00:14:07.07\00:14:10.52
His law on us is
trying to protect us
00:14:10.55\00:14:14.03
from the natural
results of our own inclinations.
00:14:14.06\00:14:18.83
And He is trying to
put a hedge around us.
00:14:18.86\00:14:21.74
Now I can hear
some people objecting,
00:14:21.77\00:14:23.26
"Oh, yeah, but what about
00:14:23.29\00:14:25.03
the destruction of the
wicked at the very end of time?
00:14:25.06\00:14:28.12
Isn't that finally when God
becomes the big gunslinger?"
00:14:28.15\00:14:33.94
Is the universe one
because God is stronger?
00:14:33.97\00:14:37.22
Does the second death
finally violate God's character?
00:14:37.25\00:14:41.12
Does the loving Jesus
finally get mean in the end?
00:14:41.15\00:14:47.59
I invite you to
look at the cross.
00:14:47.62\00:14:50.05
You see there's only one
time in all of human history
00:14:50.08\00:14:53.47
where the second
death was demonstrated,
00:14:53.50\00:14:55.58
the sinner's death.
00:14:55.61\00:14:56.98
That is the second death.
00:14:57.01\00:14:58.93
There has only been one
sinner's death in all of history
00:14:58.96\00:15:02.08
and that is Jesus'
death on the cross.
00:15:02.11\00:15:05.60
Mark 15:34 quotes Jesus
as crying out on the cross.
00:15:05.63\00:15:11.23
"And at the ninth hour,
Jesus cried out in a loud voice,
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'Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?'
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Which mean, 'My God, my
God, why have You forsaken me?
00:15:16.71\00:15:23.69
The symbol of Christ
victory is not a badge
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and a weapon rather
it is a lamb and a cross.
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Revelation 13:8 refers to
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"The lamb that was slain
from the creation of the world."
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Just as Jesus died
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from the natural
results of separation
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from God due to sin,
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so the wicked in the end
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will suffer the
natural results of sin.
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Now before you object and say,
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"Oh yeah, but what about
all the fire and brimstone."
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Oh, yeah, it will
be there. It's real.
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Revelation talks about
it. The cross was real too.
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Jesus really did
hang on the cross
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but the cross did not kill him.
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The weight of sins, not his own,
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but the sins of the whole
world are what killed him.
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And what does sin cause?
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It causes an eternal separation
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between God and the
person and the sinner.
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And in Jesus case He felt
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the actual real awful separation
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between him and his father
and that's why he cried out,
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"My god, my God why
have you forsaken Me?"
00:16:35.22\00:16:37.60
It was not the cross
the kill Jesus Christ,
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it was the weight
of sin and the ensuing
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separation from his father.
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In contrast, notice
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the words of
Revelation 22 versus 12-17.
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"Behold, I'm coming
soon my reward is with me,
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and I will give to everyone
according to what he has done.
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I'm the Alpha and the
Omega, the first and the last,
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the beginning and the end.
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Blessed are those
who wash their robes,
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that they may have
the right to tree of life
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and may go through
the gates into the city.
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Outside are the dogs,
those who practice magic arts,
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the sexually immoral,
the murderers, the idolaters
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and everyone who loves
and practice falsehood.
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I, Jesus, have sent My angel
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to give you this
testimony for the churches.
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I am the Root and
the Offspring of David,
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and the bright Morning star.
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The spirit and
the bride say, "Come!"
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And let him who
hears say, "Come!"
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Whoever is thirsty let
him come, and whoever wishes,
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let him take the free
gift of the water of life.
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You see, in this scene
out of the very end of time,
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when Christ comes
there will be two groups,
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only two groups,
no middle ground.
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On one side are the
lovers of falsehood.
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On the other side
those who answered
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the invitation of
the spirit and the bride.
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It's not about God
becoming a cosmic gunslinger
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and finally winning
the universe by force.
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It's about giving
His children choices.
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What kind of choices? The
choice for or against God.
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Is God the kind of
person we can trust?
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Is God the kind of person
that I would trust with my life
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not only in this life
but in the life to come?
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It's one thing to
trust someone for a year,
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it's another
thing to trust someone
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for all of this life as we do
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and we promise to love in
church each other and marriage.
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It's quite another thing
to trust someone for eternity.
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Is God trust worthy?
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The issue in the great war
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between Christ and
Satan is over trust,
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which is also translated faith.
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Who do you trust?
Who do have faith in?
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How do we know
that we can trust God?
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Remember the result of violating
those Ten Commandments?
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You remember the
awful consequences of going
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against the
principles of God's government?
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You notice that when
people break the commandments
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they suffer the consequences
not because God shoots them
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or zaps them or
takes revenge on them.
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People suffer those consequences
because that's a natural law.
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The moral law of
the universe is just
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as real as the
physical laws of the universe.
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If you were to
go outside and say,
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"Well, today I want to
break the law of gravity."
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And you climb up on a
tall building and you say,
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"You know, for today
anyway I'm just gonna forget
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about the law of gravity,
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I'll obey the law
of gravity tomorrow."
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And you jump out of the window.
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And there is a sense of freedom
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for a while
until you hit bottom.
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When we break God's moral law
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there's also a
sense of hitting bottom.
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But just as there are--
just as there are the results,
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the natural results of
breaking those commandments,
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there is on the other side
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a positive description of
what God's law really means.
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The opposite of that is what
God intends for His children.
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The law then becomes a
description of God himself.
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His commands are a
description of what He is like.
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He is the one who brings
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and notice this
list of ten things
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that are the positive
opposites of the natural
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results of
breaking the commandments.
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He brings contentment,
security, safety, love, peace,
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honor, rest, praise,
glory, and eternal life.
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That is what God wants.
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So how do we know
that we can trust God?
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Because this is a person
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who is described
by those ten things.
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This is a person who rather than
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being without us for eternity
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went to the cross and
validated those ten things.
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This is a person
we can trust with why?
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Because he does not want
all of the bad things for us
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described by the
natural results of breaking
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those Ten Commandments,
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he wants to give
us the contentment,
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the security, the
safety, love, peace, honor,
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rest, praise,
glory, and eternal life,
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which are the blessings
of the Ten Commandments.
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Now do we achieve goodness
or do we inherit eternal life
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because we follow
those Ten Commandments?
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Well, to a certain extent,
we will receive good natural
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results in this life by
obeying those Ten Commandments
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but our
salvation is not dependent
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on our law keeping.
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Rather our salvation is
dependent on the law giver.
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He is the one who
saves us not the law.
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The law describes at
least in a very feeble way,
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what kind of person
God is, but it can't save.
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We are only saved by
being attracted to the one
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that we know that we can trust.
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You see those who would
rather choose God over anything
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even their own lives
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will inherit
all of these things.
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No wonder sin
will never rise again,
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the universe will have
been won for all of eternity.
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You see it's not taking
the town by force as Wyatt Earp
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and his brother and
Doc Holliday had to do.
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It's not subduing evil by
putting all bad guys in jail
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although sometimes God has had
to do things sort of like that.
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What really wins the universe
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for all of eternity is
the universe trusting God.
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God wins the war
by being winsome.
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And finally the end of time,
when there is that lack of fire.
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God is not being
the cosmic gunslinger.
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God is being the
eternal lover of the universe
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who will weep over
the loss of His children
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who willingly and knowingly
and continually and rebelliously
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chose to go against His
principles of government,
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who willingly would rather
die then follow His government,
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who would rather
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have eternal
death than serve God.
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If we agree with God's
principles of government
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then we ought to start
heaven now, don't you think?
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And this is not a way of
earning merit for salvation,
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it's simply
accepting the free gift of God
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the salvation that
he wants to give us
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and then being so attracted
to him that we start taking on
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the characteristics of this
eternal lover of the universe.
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If we're going to do that,
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where there is
hatred let us sow love.
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Where there is injury, pardon.
Where there is doubt, faith.
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Where there is despair, hope.
Where there is darkness, love.
00:25:29.30\00:25:37.14
Where there is sadness, joy.
00:25:37.17\00:25:40.77
You see those are the things
00:25:40.80\00:25:42.17
that will really keep the
universe safe for eternity.
00:25:42.20\00:25:48.38
I turn again to
the Book of Revelation
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where Jesus says,
"Behold, I'm coming soon."
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Do you look
forward to that time?
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Do you yearn for that
time when God will cleanse
00:25:57.91\00:26:02.46
the universe of
sin and suffering?
00:26:02.49\00:26:06.14
He says, my reward is with me
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and I will give to everyone
according to what he has done.
00:26:08.03\00:26:10.46
That's not a
legalistic sentence to say that
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He's going to give to you
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because you've
given something to Him.
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What that means
is, if you chosen Him,
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if you've given
your life to Him,
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there will be evidence.
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If you are won by
him to such an extent
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that you want the
principles of love
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that describe His character
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then you will want to be
with Him forever for eternity.
00:26:37.05\00:26:42.03
And that's what He means by
00:26:42.06\00:26:43.72
"Blessed are those
who wash their robes
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that they may have the
right to the tree of life
00:26:46.38\00:26:49.26
and may go through
the gates into the city.
00:26:49.29\00:26:52.52
The spirit and the bride say
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come let him take the free
gift of the water of life."
00:26:53.95\00:26:59.24