from It Is Written
International. It Is
00:00:01.30\00:00:04.93
Written International and It Is
Written Canada go back together
00:00:04.93\00:00:09.86
a great many years, all the way
back to George Vandeman and the
00:00:09.86\00:00:14.33
incomparable Henry Feyerabend.
Well, It Is Written Canada now
has a new speaker/director and
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he's a friend of mine. Pastor
Chris Holland will be joining
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you in your living room or on
your device, wherever you watch
It Is Written Canada each
00:00:25.33\00:00:28.93
week. And I know that you
are going to appreciate Chris'
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clear, simple, direct, and
powerful teaching style. Chris
has been an avid student and
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teacher of the Bible for a
great many years, and you'll
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appreciate the insights that he
brings to you from the Word of
God into your home as he joins
00:00:43.63\00:00:48.56
you week after week. Transitions
can be challenging. I want to
00:00:48.56\00:00:53.13
ask that you would pray for
Pastor Chris Holland, and
prepare to be blessed
00:00:53.13\00:00:58.13
again through his ministry
with It Is Written Canada.
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ANNOUNCER: It has stood the test
of time. God's book: the Bible,
00:01:16.86\00:01:23.66
still relevant in today's
complex world. It Is Written,
00:01:23.66\00:01:31.06
sharing the messages
of hope around the world.
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>>Chris: Ernest Shackleton was
born in Ireland, the son of a
00:01:44.20\00:01:49.13
doctor. Ernest was an avid
reader and as a result of that
reading developed a strong sense
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of adventure. While his father
had high aspirations of his son
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becoming a doctor, Ernest
had other ideas. The desire to
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explore led him to join the
merchant navy and by the young
age of 24 became a master
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mariner. Shackleton had a desire
to explore the poles of the
earth, especially the
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South Pole. In 1902, Shackelton,
along with fellow explorer
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Robert Falcon Scott set a record
for going the furthest south and
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coming closest to the south
pole. Shackleton had several
other explorations to the
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south, but the one most
famous is the Trans-Antarctic
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expedition of 1914. The goal was
to transverse the Antarctic The
adventure required two
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crews, one to make the journey,
the other to place the supplies
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for a successful journey.
Shackleton set out on that
fantastic journey in the
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boat, Endurance. As the
Endurance drew nearer and nearer
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to the Antarctic, the boat was
surrounded and eventually
totally blocked in by ice. They
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hoped to weather the danger and
wait it out until spring thaw to
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continue their journey. However,
the ice pressed in harder and
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harder on the Endurance until
it eventually breached the hull.
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Shackleton and his crew were
forced to abandon ship. The
Endurance sank. For two
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months the party camped on ice
floes hoping that they would be
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directed toward Paulet Island.
Paulet Island would provide
refuge and safety along a
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commonly used shipping route.
However those plans were dashed.
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The ice floe they were on began
to break up and the party was
forced into their life
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boats and they eventually found
themselves on Elephant Island.
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Because it was remote and away
from any shipping routes,
Shackleton knew that if
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his crew stayed on Elephant
Island, there would be no rescue
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and certain death. He knew that
he needed to take a risk, do
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something out of the ordinary to
save his men. He decided he
would take five men with him and
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set sail for South Georgia
island in a 6 meter boat hoping
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to get the help they needed.
Leaving 22 men behind, he left
them with a promise. He
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promised that he would
return to take them home. In a
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circumstance of complete
hopelessness, Shackleton
promised that he would return.
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Hopelessness. We live in a world
that seems to offer very little
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in the way of hope. We look
around the world today and see
that it seems to be falling
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apart. Wars and uprisings
all over this globe.Hunger and
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famines around the world still
going unsolved.An economy that
seems to be teetering on
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total implosion.The general
polarization of society. What is
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a person to do? This
hopelessness and despair reminds
me of an event in the Bible. In
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the book of John, the apostle
John shares the experience of
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the disciples just before Jesus
was arrested and eventually
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killed. The disciples had just
spent their last meal with
Jesus. He was trying to
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prepare them for all that
was soon to take place. In John
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13:31-35 it is recorded,
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This teaching left his disciples
confused, where was their master
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going? Why was He going to
leave? Why couldn't they go with
him? Then Peter, in his
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very aggressive style engaged
Jesus further in verses 36-38,
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Can you imagine what a crushing
blow this was for Peter to hear?
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Jesus was Peter's teacher, he
had spent 3 ½ years with Him. He
desired to be as close
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to Jesus as possible. He was a
part of Jesus' inner circle and
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now Jesus told him that he would
betray his beloved teacher. On
that night when Jesus was
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trying to prepare them for the
coming events, they were
confused and didn't
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understand. What could Jesus do?
He shared words of comfort that
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they could look back to and
understand the events that had
unfolded. Words that
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would bring security in the
midst of uncertainty.Listen to
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Jesus' words:
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Can you hear the loving voice of
Jesus trying to bring comfort to
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Peter and the rest of the
disciples? The disciples were
distraught over Jesus
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predicting His death and Peter
troubled by his predicted denial
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are given hope. What is the hope
that Jesus provides? Hope in the
second coming. Hope
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that even though Jesus was going
to leave them, He would come
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back for them. The second coming
of Jesus is the hope of every
person on this earth. The
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second coming of Jesus can
be your hope today. Through all
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types of turmoil and through
every challenge faced in life,
the hope for the helpless
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planet is the return of Jesus
Christ. The apostle Paul had
00:09:07.16\00:09:12.76
these words to
say in Titus 2:11-14,
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Notice that Paul refers to
the second coming as the blessed
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hope. Why does the second coming
give us hope? Well, let's first
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ask, what is hope? According
to the Random House dictionary,
00:10:05.23\00:10:09.73
hope is defined as the feeling
that what is w anted can be had
or that e vents will turn out
00:10:09.73\00:10:15.66
for th e best. Jesus wants to
assure us that things will turn
out for the best? How
00:10:15.66\00:10:22.13
so? John 3:16 contains that
answer, a verse that is well
00:10:22.13\00:10:28.00
known, But reading the next
verse brings even mor hope and
comfort -- Verse 17 of John 3
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Notice that Jesus was sent to
save the world not condemn it.
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Too often Christianity presents
the idea that God is out there
somewhere with a watchful
00:11:05.33\00:11:10.00
eye, waiting for you to make
just the wrong move and then
00:11:10.00\00:11:13.60
zap! He's got you. But no, Jesus
hasn't come with the intention
of condemning people, He did
00:11:13.60\00:11:19.30
not come to destroy people;
Jesus came to save you and He is
00:11:19.30\00:11:24.70
coming again to
take you home with Him.
00:11:24.70\00:11:28.23
Do you remember those words that
Jesus spoke in John 14?.Let not
00:11:29.26\00:11:33.96
your hearts be troubled. There
may be great disappointment in
00:11:33.96\00:11:38.10
your life, you may be facing
challenges very unexpected
challenges. Maybe you're
00:11:38.10\00:11:43.13
fighting through cancer, maybe
you're going through a divorce
00:11:43.13\00:11:48.90
or maybe, maybe life seems to be
overwhelming you from all sides.
00:11:48.90\00:11:53.76
Jesus draws near and says,
"Don't let your heart be
troubled." Why? Because Jesus
00:11:53.76\00:11:59.76
says you believe in God, believe
also in Him. Then Jesus promises
00:11:59.76\00:12:06.36
that in heaven there are many
mansions or some of the modern
versions of the Bible
00:12:06.36\00:12:11.63
translate it rooms. The promise
here is not based on
materialistic riches
00:12:11.63\00:12:16.96
but on proximity. Proximity
to Jesus. Jesus promises that He
00:12:16.96\00:12:24.16
has gone to heaven to prepare a
place for you. Not just a
general you, but for you
00:12:24.16\00:12:29.30
personally. In fact, when you
repeat the verse, why not use
00:12:29.30\00:12:35.50
the word.me. Jesus has gone to
prepare a place for me and for
you. That is where He lives,
00:12:35.50\00:12:41.33
you may also live there. This
was the whole purpose of Jesus'
00:12:41.33\00:12:46.23
first coming. That He would pave
the way for us to be reunited
with Him forever. But we all
00:12:46.23\00:12:53.06
face a huge
problem. Romans 6:23 states,
00:12:53.06\00:13:01.90
"For the wages of sin is death"
and then Romans 3:23 further
00:13:02.73\00:13:13.70
emphasizes that problem, "For
all have sinned and fall short
of the glory of God."
00:13:13.70\00:13:21.26
This does not give us good
prospects for the future. The
wages of sin is death
00:13:21.26\00:13:25.23
and all have sinned. Our destiny
seems bleak. But you know, I
00:13:25.23\00:13:31.53
didn't read the latter part of
Romans 6:23, it goes on to say,
00:13:31.53\00:13:39.03
This is why Jesus is coming
again, to give us the full
00:13:48.86\00:13:53.83
fulfillment of that promise of
eternal life. This is why Jesus
can say in John 14, "and
00:13:53.83\00:13:59.10
if I go and prepare a place,
I will come again. Do you hear
00:13:59.10\00:14:05.70
those words? I will come again.
00:14:05.70\00:14:09.40
Now, let me share with you
some insight on those words that
00:14:10.46\00:14:14.16
bring an even greater depth of
hope. As we read, "I will come
again," we know that in
00:14:14.16\00:14:18.93
the English language that phrase
is in the future tense. However,
00:14:18.93\00:14:23.80
in the original language it was
not. As you may already know,
the New Testament of
00:14:23.80\00:14:27.90
the Bible was originally written
in Greek. And in Greek, it is
00:14:27.90\00:14:32.70
actually written in the present
tense. You see, when John wrote
00:14:32.70\00:14:37.13
these words he employed a
grammatical technique - now I
know, grammar may not have been
00:14:37.13\00:14:42.10
your favorite subject, but just
stick with me - he employed a
00:14:42.10\00:14:46.23
grammatical technique called the
futuristic present. What does
that mean? An author
00:14:46.23\00:14:52.23
would write something in the
present tense but have a future
00:14:52.23\00:14:57.16
meaning to convey that the event
was so sure, was so definite
that it was to be written as if
00:14:57.16\00:15:03.16
it was already happening or
had happened. John lays out the
00:15:03.16\00:15:09.30
assurance that Jesus is coming
again. And remember He is coming
for you, He is coming for me -
00:15:09.30\00:15:15.66
in fact He's prepared a place
for you, He's prepared a place
00:15:15.66\00:15:19.56
for me. What does this all mean?
Well friend, Jesus loves you so
00:15:19.56\00:15:25.70
much that He wants to spend
eternity with us, but the
question is, do you want to
00:15:25.70\00:15:30.53
spend eternity with Him? It's a
choice He freely gives to you.
But what will you decide?
00:15:30.53\00:15:35.83
Jesus wants you there.
00:15:35.83\00:15:38.73
But, today many people
have discounted the words of the
00:15:39.83\00:15:45.23
Bible. Some poke fun of this
Book. And numerous people have
discounted the promises of
00:15:45.23\00:15:50.06
His second coming. But this
shouldn't surprise us. Peter
00:15:50.06\00:15:55.30
warned us almost two thousand
years ago, in his second letter,
in chapter three and verses
00:15:55.30\00:16:00.13
three and four,
00:16:00.13\00:16:06.36
A scoffer is someone who
ridicules things and doesn't
00:16:24.80\00:16:30.00
believe. Peter warns that there
will be people who will ridicule
those who believe in the
00:16:30.00\00:16:33.93
second coming of Jesus.
They will say that the earth has
00:16:33.93\00:16:37.60
always existed and it will
continue to exist without any
interruption. They will
00:16:37.60\00:16:41.93
say, Jesus isn't coming, you're
silly to believe in such fairy
00:16:41.93\00:16:46.96
tales. But friends by just
reading or listening to the
news, we realize the
00:16:48.06\00:16:52.90
turmoil of this earth. Paul
wrote these words in Romans
eight verses twenty
00:16:52.90\00:17:00.23
to twenty-two,
00:17:00.23\00:17:07.26
The whole earth itself was
subject to the curse of sin and
00:17:36.70\00:17:41.56
all the upheaval in the world we
see is the very earth itself
groaning to be freed by the
00:17:41.56\00:17:47.10
coming of Jesus. Everything
happening around us points to
Jesus' soon return. But
00:17:47.10\00:17:53.26
wait, don't those scoffers have
a point - it has been 2000 years
00:17:53.26\00:17:57.83
from the time when Jesus gave
that promise. But notice again
what Peter says in that
00:17:57.83\00:18:04.50
second letter in chapter
three and verses eight and nine,
00:18:04.50\00:18:07.76
For God, time is irrelevant. He
is not confined by our rendering
00:18:34.06\00:18:39.23
of time. But more importantly,
the Bible says that Jesus isn't
00:18:39.23\00:18:44.03
slack or relaxed concerning the
promise of His return. But He is
00:18:44.03\00:18:49.10
longsuffering. A very special
word that conveys an
extraordinary patience.
00:18:49.10\00:18:55.96
Why is He so patient and hasn't
returned? Because He doesn't
00:18:55.96\00:19:02.26
want any to perish, Jesus came
to this earth so that no one had
to die eternally but that
00:19:02.26\00:19:09.10
all would come to
repentance and be saved.
00:19:09.10\00:19:13.40
Ernest Shackleton and his five
men left Elephant Island for
00:19:14.50\00:19:18.43
South Georgia. Aware of the
great difficulties they would
00:19:18.43\00:19:22.86
face on their 1800 nautical mile
journey, Shackleton packed only
4 weeks of supplies. He knew
00:19:22.86\00:19:28.50
the crew wouldn't survive
any longer that that. Through
00:19:28.50\00:19:33.50
treacherous seas and a storm
that produced winds strong
enough to sink a five hundred
00:19:33.50\00:19:38.86
ton boat, that crew finally made
it to South Georgia Island. Once
00:19:38.86\00:19:44.73
arriving on the shores of the
island, Shackleton and part of
his crew still had to hike
00:19:44.73\00:19:49.26
over 50 kilometers to get to the
whaling station. He knew that
00:19:49.26\00:19:55.16
many lives depended upon him and
the whaling station was the only
00:19:55.16\00:19:59.16
part of the island that was
inhabited. After finally
arriving at the whaling station,
00:19:59.16\00:20:03.83
Shackleton gathered another crew
for the rescue mission. Now,
00:20:03.83\00:20:08.83
came the most daunting task of
returning to Elephant Island for
00:20:08.83\00:20:13.13
that promised rescue. Four
months after leaving Elephant
island,Shackleton returned
00:20:13.13\00:20:19.16
to save his men. At times, some
of those men may have wondered
00:20:19.16\00:20:23.86
if he was really returning. They
may have wondered if he would
keep his promise. However, not
00:20:23.86\00:20:30.63
one of Shackleton's crew was
lost, each one was saved. While
00:20:30.63\00:20:37.90
they lost the ship Endurance,
each one of them endured to the
end.Shackleton delivered
00:20:37.90\00:20:43.73
on his promise. Shackleton
was proclaimed a hero.
00:20:43.73\00:20:49.13
Jesus has made a promise. He has
promised that He is coming
again. He is coming
00:20:50.20\00:20:57.00
to take His children home. That
home, which is pictured in the
00:20:57.00\00:21:01.56
book of Revelation chapter
twenty one verses one through
00:21:01.56\00:21:09.46
five, No more suffering, no more
pain - all things new.
Everything working the way
00:22:10.40\00:22:17.50
that it was originally intended
to be. Perfect. Perfect harmony.
00:22:17.50\00:22:24.06
Perfect peace. This is what
Jesus wants for you and He wants
for me. It is what He
00:22:24.06\00:22:31.43
promised. Today, do you want
to ask Jesus into your heart and
00:22:31.43\00:22:36.26
make a decision to follow Him
fully. Jesus desires to take you
00:22:36.26\00:22:43.10
home. He says these words as
recorded in Revelation three and
00:22:43.10\00:22:51.36
verse twenty, Jesus knocks
today, will you let him in?
00:22:59.26\00:23:03.03
The apostle Paul also gives us
comfort and hope in describing
00:23:03.03\00:23:08.10
the day Jesus returns in his
first letter to the
Thessalonians in chapter
00:23:08.10\00:23:13.20
four and verses
fifteen through eighteen,
00:23:13.20\00:23:22.33
We shall always be with the
Lord. No wonder that we are to
00:23:59.60\00:24:04.56
comfort one another with these
words. Whatever your situation
may be today, Jesus wants
00:24:04.56\00:24:09.00
to encourage you - He wants to
give you hope. Are you facing an
00:24:09.00\00:24:13.53
illness, Jesus says do let your
heart be troubled? Are you
facing marital challenges,
00:24:13.53\00:24:19.30
Jesus wants to give you
assurance? Are you facing a
problem in the work
00:24:19.30\00:24:23.53
place, Jesus reaches out to
encourage you? Whatever you face
00:24:23.53\00:24:29.26
today, in this hopeless and
helpless planet Jesus gives you
hope. Today, I invite you
00:24:29.26\00:24:36.73
to cling to that hope of Jesus'
soon return. Today is your
00:24:36.73\00:24:41.73
opportunity toinvite Him into
your heart and commit yourself
to Him. Jesus invites you
00:24:41.73\00:24:48.13
today, in His words
of Matthew 11:28-29,
00:24:48.13\00:24:53.06
Let's Pray. Oh father in heaven,
we live in a hopeless and
00:25:12.46\00:25:17.23
helpless planet. Things are
happening all around in the
world and we wonder,
00:25:17.23\00:25:23.83
what are we to do? In our own
lives, we are struggling, facing
00:25:23.83\00:25:29.53
great issues. But today you've
given us a message of hope. And
00:25:29.53\00:25:36.10
so let us live with that hope in
our heart. Let us be encouraged
00:25:36.10\00:25:40.10
to follow you because there is a
day soon coming where you will
bring all things to an end
00:25:40.10\00:25:45.16
and we will live forever with
you. Keep us strong to follow
00:25:45.16\00:25:51.23
you, that we would be ready
for that day. We pray in Jesus'
00:25:51.23\00:25:56.30
name, amen. Maybe the subject
material we covered today is new
to you or maybe you're simply
00:26:12.00\00:26:16.53
looking for additional study
on the subject of the hope of
00:26:16.53\00:26:20.93
Jesus' soon coming. I want to
offer you today the Discover
Bible guide. The Discover
00:26:20.93\00:26:25.76
Bible guide is a wonderful
resource that will help you in
00:26:25.76\00:26:30.83
your spiritual growth. Here's
the information you need to get
00:26:30.83\00:26:35.76
that guide. >>Chris: The second
coming of Jesus Christ provides
great hope. Maybe you'd
00:27:18.20\00:27:23.20
like to see this program again
or maybe you'd like to show it
00:27:23.20\00:27:26.46
to one of your friends. I'd
invite you to go to our website,
itiswrittencanada.ca, or
00:27:26.46\00:27:31.06
to our youtube channel,
youtube.com/iiwcanada. There you
00:27:31.06\00:27:37.10
can watch archived broadcasts
over and over again. I thank you
so much for watching
00:27:37.10\00:27:43.00
this week and I invite you
to come back again next week to
00:27:43.00\00:27:47.46
watch the program. Until then,
it is written, "Man shall not
live by bread alone, but by
00:27:47.46\00:27:54.20
every word that
proceeds from the mouth of God."
00:27:54.20\00:27:58.56
$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$
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