Praise the Lord
everyone. Welcome to
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Imperative Life Lessons.
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I'm Pastor Ryan Johnson.
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My notes told me he was
20 years younger than I,
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but as I sat across from
him looking into his eyes
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he seemed much, much older.
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Life had been hard,
circumstances had been dire,
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choices had been poor,
rough and tumble my grandmother
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would have said. As I gripped
my Bible and leaned forward
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noting the needle marks on
his arms, I thought about Jesus'
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declaration in Luke
chapter four verse 18.
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I know it won't
be easy I told him.
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At times, it will feel
like torture as you recover
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yet with
Christ, you can be free.
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But the young man nodded to me
and he said my momma, my daddy
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my grandparents, they
were all addicts pastor.
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I appreciate your words, but
sir, I'm pretty sure I'm cursed.
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How can I be
saved when I am cursed?
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Cursed. What does
Jesus teach us about that?
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You know what,
let's look and find out.
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Father in heaven, we
are all cursed, but you are
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the great emancipator,
be with us as we study.
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In thy name we
pray. Amen and amen.
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It was the time when kings
go into battle according to
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II Samuel
chapter 11 and verse one.
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The winter weather in the region
was cold and rainy, and thus
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unsuitable for chariot
wheels and unsuitable for
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hungry soldiers so they
would mostly wait, and as
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spring approached the military
campaigns would commence
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and kings would go to war.
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And when the previous chapter,
chapter 10, we see King David
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going to battle with his
soldiers, but as we settle into
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the fighting season of II
Samuel chapter 11, right there
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at verse one, look at
what the Bible says. It says...
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I've heard it stated that
the trouble beginning in the
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next verse stems from the
fact that King David of Israel
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stayed home rather than
going to fight for his Lord.
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Verse two...
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David is walking on the roof
of his home when in the distance
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he encounters a woman bathing.
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Now there are two words
used in this verse that indicate
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what happens with David's eyes.
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The first one is that
he saw, he sees a woman
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but then the verse continues
to say the woman is beautiful
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to look upon.
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Hey, you can't
always help what you see,
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but what you look at
can certainly be controlled.
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David went from seeing to
looking and then to inquiring
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after the woman and
verse three states...
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The woman is...
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Now, textual evidence suggests
that David may have been friends
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with this woman's father.
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But it's super clear in
the text that he's friends with
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her husband, Uriah the Hittite.
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Don't believe me? Keep your
finger in II Samuel 11 and turn
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over to II Samuel 23...
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In this chapter, David is
close to death and as part of
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the formal process of a dying
king, they list his brothers
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in arms, all of
his fighting companions
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Let's read verse
eight... It says...
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and 36 other men are
listed as David's mighty men.
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but look at the very last verse
of chapter 23, look at this.
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Where a 37th man is listed...
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Verse 39...
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Uriah was a loyal
friend, yet there on the rooftop
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David sees his wife and
coveting her, he takes her.
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The 10th Commandment
states "Thou shalt not covet."
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is the one commandment
that tells us what to think
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for God knows what evil thoughts
can lead to and coveting
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lead David to betray
his friends and his family.
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And was the woman
Bathsheba a willing participant?
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We may never know, but
one has to imagine that
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when the king himself called
for her, it may have seemed
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unwise or even unsafe
to decline, I don't know.
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But let's return to II Samuel
chapter 11 and verse five.
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Uh oh.
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Ohh, now there is real
trouble. For by the mosaic law
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adultery is punishable by death.
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And here are two
adulterers but believe it or not
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there may even be a bigger
issue here, and to appreciate it
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you gotta think like an
ancient Middle Eastern person.
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See, their value system
was very different than ours is
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in our modern
hierarchy of values we place
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self-preservation and
success above everything else
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our own person comes
first and then we may have our
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country, then community, but
in ancient Palestine, the top
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values were honor, hospitality,
the community, family, self...
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I like to joke that a game
show such as Who Wants to be
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a Millionaire might have
been very unpopular back then
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because they would rather
have honor among the brethren.
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Greed and
selfishness were frowned upon.
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When the woman
Bathsheba became pregnant
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Davis's honor as king was at
risk for surely all would know
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that the reclining
king had betrayed a friend,
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a national hero, and when
we realize this, we then see
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that everything that
follows in this story is David's
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attempt to
restore his own honor.
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II Samuel chapter 11
states that David called Uriah
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from the battlefield under
vague pretenses and tried to
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get Uriah to go home to
his wife so that the baby
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might appear to be
Uriah's and David's own honor
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might be
restored, but Uriah refuses.
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Look at verse 10...
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verse 11...
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You know, even today, some
soldiers do not wish to leave
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the field of battle or to
be given special accommodations
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while their brothers and sisters
are still out there fighting
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for their lives and country.
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Sometimes war survivors don't
enjoy the little pleasurers
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of life because it feels
dishonorable toward their
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brothers and sisters who
were not fortunate enough
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to survive. And Uriah is
such a soldier and one imagines
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that Uriah's honorable
nature is a slap in the face
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of the dishonorable king.
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Verse 12... Verse 13...
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Even after getting Uriah drunk
and full, David could not get
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him to go and lie with his wife
and this may have infuriated
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the king, who then felt
justified in doing whatever he
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needed to do so that as
kingly honor might be restored.
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So verse 14 tells us that
David sends Uriah back to the
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battlefield with a letter
for Joab his commanding officer
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and this letter instructs the
commanding officer to put Uriah
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on the front lines close to
the siege-wall so Uriah could be
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killed. Let's take a moment
to appreciate how messed up
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it is that Uriah is forced
to carry his own death warrant.
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The awful irony almost forces
a question to the forefront.
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Though the Bible gives
no specific indication,
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one has to wonder, did he
know? Did Uriah choose valor
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as his vindication? The
amazing thing is that both Uriah
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and David are
going to be in heaven.
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The victor and the
perpetrator and we can ask them
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for ourselves, I plan to.
But David has Uriah killed to
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protect his dingy honor.
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And then read
verse 26, it says...
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Verse 27...
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This is the situation created
by the cowardly covetous king
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and God, being displeased,
sends His prophet, whose name is
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Nathan to David. II Samuel
chapter 12 verse one, look at
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this. The story of a wealthy
man who robbed a poor man of the
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only thing he
loved made David angry.
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Whoever did this dishonorable
thing is worthy of death
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he proclaims,
but in verse seven...
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The story's about you,
David and everyone knows of
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your dishonor. Verse nine.
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As the anointed king of Israel
David has misrepresented God
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and now, it's leaning to
the word friends, notice this
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next part, because here
like Adam and Eve experienced
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in the garden, David
will hear the pronouncement,
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the stated result of
his sin. Look at this.
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Verse 10.
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There are a number of places
in the text where David endures
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curses and pronouncements
of doom. But this one which
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continues through verse 11
is special because it's so crisp
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so easy to understand
and it's brought on by
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David's own actions,
David cursed himself.
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You know what, let's
look at it, let's look at it.
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The sword, the prophet Christ
shall never leave your house
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What's a sword, a sword is a
weapon, it is a cutting blade
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designed to impale
people, it indicates fighting,
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it indicates war and
blood. David says in II Samuel
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chapter 11, and verse 25...
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But the sword is
also a mentality isn't it?
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Yes, it is. David has introduced
the mentality of the sword
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of violence to achieve
one's desires into His house.
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And the prophet says
that it will never depart.
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That's a sword,
okay, what's a house?
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Well, in Job chapter one, a
servant tells Job in verse 19,
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He says...
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Is that what is
meant by a house?
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A building, the sword
shall never leave this building.
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ahh, it doesn't
feel right does it?
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Let's see
another example shall we?
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This time from Exodus, chapter
40, where it describes how
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Jehovah led his people,
look at verse 38, it says...
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House of Israel, Israel
was a man, formerly Jacob
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and house of the Hebrew route
bet refers to his children.
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His offspring, the offspring
of Jacob, Israel, are the house
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or children of Israel.
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Nathan says, the sword shall
never leave your house, David.
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Violence and the mindset of
violence and that did happen,
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oh yes, it happened.
The curse upon the offspring
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The House of David.
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But turn with me to Isaiah
chapter 11, I'm going to read
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verses one and two, and listen
as Isaiah prophecies about
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the Messiah.
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Amen! I like it, but
a branch, a root, yes,
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see Isaiah is using the analogy
of a family tree to state
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that the Messiah would
be a descendant of Jesse.
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Okay, who is Jesse?
Yishai in the Hebrew
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well, let's look, let's
look at the book of Ruth
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chapter four, and verse
16, who's Jesse, look at this.
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Where Ruth just
had a baby it says...
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Jesse was David's father, so,
if the Messiah is of the line or
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offspring of Jesse, then
the Messiah is a descendant of
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David. The children of
David, the house of David.
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You're still not convinced?
Okay, let's look at what Jesus
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himself says in
Revelation chapter 22,
00:21:37.83\00:21:41.76
let's look at verse 16.
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Jesus is of the house of
David but if the curse was upon
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David's house, was
Christ born under a curse?
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Did He come to earth and
in addition to everything, He
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endured, the curse of humanities
sins, was He also specially
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effected by belingering
results of David's sin?
00:22:19.53\00:22:24.01
Because He was
right in the family line,
00:22:24.04\00:22:26.78
the shadow of the sword,
the mentality of the sword,
00:22:26.81\00:22:31.65
did violence chase Jesus? was
the mindset of violence around
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Jesus? Just read the gospel's
and they will confirm it.
00:22:36.92\00:22:41.49
How could He save us when
He was born under a curse?
00:22:41.52\00:22:45.73
How could we be
saved if He was cursed?
00:22:45.76\00:22:49.03
Jesus was in the Garden
of Gethsamane great sferials
00:22:49.06\00:22:54.40
of blood had poured from
his brow, the disciples are
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sleeping, Christ has lived the
life, Christ has walked the walk
00:22:58.51\00:23:02.18
and now the cross is
before Him just over the horizon
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approaching with the
dawn, but Christ is at peace
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for Christ, for He has
prayed to His father and said
00:23:08.98\00:23:11.59
not my will but thine,
so when Matthew chapter 26
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the mark comes for
Jesus led by one of His own
00:23:15.66\00:23:19.93
Judas. Look at
Matthew 26 and verse 50.
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The disciples are in fight mode
where Jesus has placed His will
00:23:31.77\00:23:37.55
on the Father's hands,
He's Determined, He is ready
00:23:37.58\00:23:41.02
He is willing, and
then the sword shows up
00:23:41.05\00:23:44.69
the curse, nipping at His
heels threatening to derail
00:23:44.72\00:23:49.39
His accord with the
Father, look verse 51...
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it broke the solemnity,
it brought forth human nature
00:24:02.20\00:24:05.91
the instinct to fight,
salvation by our own power.
00:24:05.94\00:24:10.35
You know Jesus
could have said yes Peter
00:24:10.38\00:24:12.81
cut him down, fight him,
I am of the line of David
00:24:12.85\00:24:16.38
this is how we roll.
Let's throw down Peter
00:24:16.42\00:24:19.85
and verse 52...
00:24:19.89\00:24:21.52
Think of the
significance of that statement
00:24:30.00\00:24:33.47
in light of the curse
of the house and the sword.
00:24:33.50\00:24:37.41
Jesus said no, no friend
hey, are you feeling cursed?
00:24:37.44\00:24:44.35
Destined to be lost,
Jesus said no and then
00:24:44.38\00:24:49.38
He gives to our
question, how can we be saved
00:24:49.42\00:24:53.12
when we feel cursed?
With a momentum of sin
00:24:53.15\00:24:57.43
behind us, the weight of
inequity weighing us down.
00:24:57.46\00:25:01.50
Verse 53... Jesus said...
00:25:01.53\00:25:04.07
Deliverance will
not come via our power
00:25:12.24\00:25:15.51
not via our might but from
The might and power of God.
00:25:15.54\00:25:20.05
Don't you know that He
who commands legions of angels
00:25:20.08\00:25:24.45
can deliver you? How
do you fight a curse?
00:25:24.49\00:25:27.92
You put away your
weapon and you let God fight,
00:25:27.96\00:25:33.13
you use God's sword,
and you will be saved.
00:25:33.16\00:25:37.07
No curse is a match for God.
00:25:37.10\00:25:41.30
So the young man is looking
at me, I hear what you are
00:25:41.34\00:25:47.28
saying preacher, I feel your
words, and I appreciate your
00:25:47.31\00:25:51.35
intention, but my
momma was a drug addict,
00:25:51.38\00:25:54.42
my daddy was a drug
addict, my grandparents were
00:25:54.45\00:25:57.75
drug addicts, how can I
be saved when I'm cursed?
00:25:57.79\00:26:02.76
And I thought about the broken
curses and chains in my life
00:26:02.82\00:26:09.63
and the struggle
that I've been through,
00:26:09.66\00:26:12.77
how the Lord delivered me,
and I leaned forward, and I said
00:26:12.80\00:26:18.87
listen, young man, this
is how you beat a curse.
00:26:18.94\00:26:23.51
You don't beat a
curse, Jesus beats a curse.
00:26:23.55\00:26:31.95
You feel destined for
hell but Jesus said No! No!
00:26:31.99\00:26:40.26
You're destined for glory,
don't you know He can call
00:26:40.30\00:26:45.77
legions of angels, if
that is required to save you
00:26:45.80\00:26:49.44
and He would to beat a
curse by letting God fight.
00:26:49.47\00:26:57.21
You will be victorious. You will
be victorious by God's grace.
00:26:57.25\00:27:08.09
Father in Heaven, the
inertia of our condition
00:27:08.12\00:27:12.89
and the devil seek to convince
us that we cannot be saved
00:27:12.93\00:27:18.47
But you have demonstrated
even there in the garden
00:27:18.50\00:27:23.04
that you are a
breaker of curses.
00:27:23.07\00:27:25.94
And despite what we've
been through, by your grace
00:27:25.97\00:27:30.81
we can be saved anyhow.
So Lord, save us, bless us,
00:27:30.85\00:27:37.35
save us. In thy
name we pray, Amen.
00:27:37.39\00:27:41.89
You know, God has plans for you,
you just walk with your hand
00:27:41.92\00:27:45.03
in His hand, and He will
lead you to His destination.
00:27:45.06\00:27:48.06
May He bless you. And as
always friends, be encouraged.
00:27:48.10\00:27:54.27