Who was Jesus?
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He had compassion for
the weak and the hurting.
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He loved every person He met
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and taught them how to love.
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His great heart helped
all those who came near Him
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but most of all He was a friend.
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That was who He was.
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Now find out who He IS.
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Welcome back to
3ABN Summer Camp Meeting.
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We're so glad that
you have joined us.
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I know it's not quite the
same as being here in person
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but praise the Lord that
we can still reach out and do
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3ABN Summer Camp Meeting
through television, through
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radio, through the Internet.
So we're praising the Lord
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for technology. Were you
blessed by that music hour?
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I know that I sure was
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and we just appreciate
the talent that God has given
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the musicians that were
able to share this evening.
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And what a great way
to start out Camp Meeting!
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You know, I think
about worshiping God
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and music is
such a part of that.
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And what an incredible theme!
I want to say thank you to
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the crew. You saw the
open and it's depicting Jesus
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walking beside the lake talking
to people. Can you imagine?
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Wow! What an incredible
day that must have been!
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But you know what? We
have heaven to look forward to.
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So we are just praying that
the Holy Spirit will be here
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during Camp Meeting; that
you will come away blessed.
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As you listen to all the
messages, all the music hours
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we KNOW that you will
be blessed. Why? Because
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we prayed for God's
presence to be here.
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Now I'm really excited
to introduce the speaker
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that's
launching out Camp Meeting
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and that's
Pastor James Rafferty.
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We're always excited to intro-
duce him, but you know what?
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In case you've missed it,
he's now a full-time employee
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of 3ABN... so
that's so exciting.
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His title is
Director of Discipleship.
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His wife will also be
joining him here as well, Rise.
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But he's a man of the Word.
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He loves God, and he
has a heart for evangelism.
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So we're so excited
about the up-coming plans
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with having him here on board.
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I also want to encourage you
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if you have any
questions or comments
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as you listen to the speakers
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you can always text us at:
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Or you can e-mail us:
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But before Pastor James brings
the message to us this evening
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we have Tim Parton
bringing us a beautiful song
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and it's entitled Behold
our God. Thank you so much, Tim.
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Who has held the
oceans in His hands?
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Who has numbered
every grain of sand?
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Kings and nations
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tremble at His voice...
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all creation
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rises to rejoice.
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Behold our God
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seated on His throne.
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Come, let us adore Him.
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Behold our King!
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Nothing can compare...
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come, let us
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adore
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Him.
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Who has given
counsel to the Lord?
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Who can question
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any of His words?
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Who can teach the
One who knows all things?
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Who can fathom
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all His wondrous deeds?
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Behold our God
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seated on His throne.
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Come, let us adore Him!
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Behold our King!
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Nothing can compare...
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come, let us adore
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Him.
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Who has felt
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the nails upon His hands
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bearing all the
guilt of sinful man?
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God eternal
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humbled to the grave,
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Jesus, Savior,
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risen now to reign!
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Behold our God
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seated on His throne.
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Come, let us adore Him!
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Behold our King!
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Nothing can compare...
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come, let us adore
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Him!
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You will reign forever!
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You will reign forever!
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Yes, You will reign
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forever
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and ever!
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Behold our God
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seated on His throne.
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Come, let us adore Him!
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Behold our King!
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Nothing can compare...
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come, let us adore
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Him!
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Amen!
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Praise God! What a beautiful,
powerful message in song!
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Thank you, Tim. What a blessing!
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Well, welcome to the 2021
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3ABN Summer Camp Meeting.
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And the theme of this
Camp Meeting is so beautiful
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and so powerful.
It's right here before us:
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Who is Jesus? Who is Jesus?
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And I am blessed
to be able to launch
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the presentations
for this Camp Meeting
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with the message Eternal God.
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Jesus is eternal
God. Let's pray together.
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Father in heaven,
thank you again so much
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for this opportunity that
we have to study Your Word
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and to learn about
Jesus who IS eternal God.
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And we are just thankful
for the gift You've given us
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in Jesus Christ:
the gift of salvation
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that brings us His righteousness
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and it gives us the hope
that we need to push through
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the darkness of this world
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and to find ourselves through
the Author and Finisher of our
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faith on the other side of evil
and pain and suffering and sin.
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So guide our hearts
right now as we open Your Word,
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as we study more about Jesus,
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as we get our focus on the Lamb.
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Guide us to heaven;
guide us to the light
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to the truth of who Christ
is and what He means to us.
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Be with each and
every listener we pray
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in Jesus' name, Amen.
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Praise God!
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You know, this
theme is so powerful
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and it's something
that I've been studying
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for the last few
weeks just in preparation
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for the meetings here...
and I've learned so much.
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You know, you
think you know a subject.
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You've been studying
the Bible for many years
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and you think you've got
it kind of all figured out.
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And then you're basically
needing to present and to
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understand the
subject and it's a blessing
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to go into the Word of God and
with that need and that desire
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to learn more to
actually gain insights
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that you didn't have before.
So there are many Bible verses
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scattered throughout the
Old and the New Testament
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that speak to the
subject at hand. For example,
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one of the most important
and significant I think
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is Isaiah chapter 9 verse
6. Let's just take a look there
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in Isaiah chapter 9 and verse 6.
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Isaiah 9 verse 6 says this:
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"For unto us a Son is born... "
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"Unto us... " excuse
me... "Unto us a Child is born,
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unto us a Son is given
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and the government
shall be upon His shoulders.
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And His name shall
be called Wonderful,
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Counselor, the Mighty God,
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the Everlasting
Father, the Prince of Peace. "
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Now you can't help but recognize
as you look at this Bible verse
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that this is talking about Jesus
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because Jesus is
the Child that was born.
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Jesus is the Son that was given.
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Jesus is the
Wonderful Counselor.
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Jesus is the Mighty God.
He is the Everlasting Father.
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You can't stop
with the Child given;
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you can't stop
with the Son born.
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You have to recognize
that He is also the Mighty God
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and the Everlasting Father.
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Clear in Isaiah
chapter 9 and verse 6.
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But then we go to
the New Testament.
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Now in the New Testament we
have a number of Bible verses.
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And we're going to look at
a few of them but I want us to
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focus in right now on one
that's found in Philippians
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chapter 2. This is one of my
favorite sections of Scripture
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concerning Christ because
of what it reveals to us.
00:10:01.13\00:10:03.70
In Phil. chapter 2 and we're
just going to look at verses 5-6
00:10:04.33\00:10:07.20
it says here:
00:10:07.67\00:10:09.20
"Let this mind be in you
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which was also in Christ Jesus.
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Who being in the form of God
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thought it not robbery
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to be equal with God. "
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So here we find the
apostle Paul telling us
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that Jesus was
in the form of God
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and He thought it not robbery,
that is, something to be grasped
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onto, to be equal with God.
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So John is recording
the words of Christ here
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as He reveals
Himself as equal with God.
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Excuse me, Paul is recording
these words concerning Christ
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as he under inspiration reveals
Him as being equal with God.
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Something that we see throughout
the Old and the New Testament.
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In fact, John
records the words of Christ
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when He revealed
Himself as "the eternal I AM"
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of Exodus chapter 3.
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And again when Christ came
to John on the Isle of Patmos -
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the lonely prison
island where John was exiled to
00:11:03.09\00:11:07.76
toward the end of his ministry -
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He revealed Himself
to John as The Almighty
00:11:09.76\00:11:12.67
in Revelation
chapter 1 and verse 8.
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So this basically
confirms a principle
00:11:15.67\00:11:18.77
of Biblical interpretation.
This principle is found
00:11:18.97\00:11:21.34
in II Corinthians 13:1
and the principle is this:
00:11:21.54\00:11:25.25
that in the mouth of
two or three witnesses -
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that is 2 or 3 witnesses -
that every word be established.
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And so what we have here is
we have the witness of Isaiah,
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we have the witness of Paul,
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we have the witness
of John that establishes
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the truth of who Christ is.
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Now we know that
Christ was the Child born.
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We know that
Christ was the Son given.
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But there's a lot of
controversy among us,
00:11:48.47\00:11:51.94
a lot of controversy among
those who profess to follow
00:11:52.14\00:11:55.31
God in relationship
to His eternal existence,
00:11:55.51\00:12:00.38
to His Godhead, to His Godship,
00:12:00.58\00:12:03.18
to Him being God, Mighty
God, the Everlasting Father.
00:12:03.39\00:12:06.76
That's a phrase that
we don't normally apply
00:12:06.96\00:12:09.52
to Jesus Christ. And so we're
going to be looking at this
00:12:09.72\00:12:13.19
in more detail
because we recognize that...
00:12:13.40\00:12:15.63
that John and Paul and Isaiah
00:12:15.83\00:12:18.77
are all witnesses of
Christ as eternal God.
00:12:18.97\00:12:22.34
In fact, John's
testimony is so clear
00:12:22.54\00:12:26.24
that an entire denomination
has actually printed their
00:12:26.44\00:12:30.21
own Bible in order to silence
John's inspired declaration
00:12:30.41\00:12:34.75
that's found in John chapter 1.
00:12:34.95\00:12:37.15
And this is one of my
favorite sections of Scripture
00:12:37.35\00:12:39.65
when it comes to Jesus Christ.
00:12:39.85\00:12:41.52
John chapter 1 and we're
going to begin with verse 1.
00:12:41.72\00:12:44.76
We're going to
look at John 1:1-3.
00:12:44.96\00:12:47.46
Here's what it says:
00:12:50.07\00:12:51.40
"In the beginning was the Word
00:12:51.43\00:12:53.94
and the Word was with God
00:12:54.14\00:12:56.97
and the Word WAS God.
00:12:57.17\00:13:00.34
The same was in the beginning
00:13:00.54\00:13:01.88
with God and all
things were made by Him
00:13:02.08\00:13:03.78
and without Him was not anything
00:13:03.98\00:13:05.31
made that was made. "
00:13:05.51\00:13:06.85
Now this is so
powerful because we understand
00:13:06.88\00:13:10.15
that this is talking about Jesus
00:13:10.35\00:13:11.69
because later in
the verse it says
00:13:11.82\00:13:13.59
"And the Word was made
flesh and dwelt among us. "
00:13:13.79\00:13:15.72
And of course Jesus is the
only One who was made flesh
00:13:16.12\00:13:18.69
and dwelt among us
in relationship to God.
00:13:18.89\00:13:21.73
But it tells us quite
clearly in verse 1 that
00:13:22.23\00:13:24.33
not only was the Word
WITH GOD but the Word WAS God.
00:13:24.53\00:13:28.34
And that newer translation
of the Bible that I was talking
00:13:28.54\00:13:31.91
about in relationship to
that denomination that is trying
00:13:32.11\00:13:35.21
to silence John's witness here
00:13:35.41\00:13:36.85
says that the Word was a
god. They've added that little a
00:13:37.05\00:13:40.98
in there and then
they put god with a small g
00:13:41.18\00:13:43.99
instead of a capital G.
00:13:44.19\00:13:45.52
And this is totally contrary
not just to the record here
00:13:45.55\00:13:49.16
in John chapter 1
but also to the way that
00:13:49.36\00:13:51.59
Greek word is used
throughout the Scriptures.
00:13:51.79\00:13:53.93
Here Jesus is the Word
who was not only with God
00:13:54.53\00:13:57.73
but He was also God.
00:13:57.93\00:13:59.43
He is the One who made all
things in the context of this.
00:13:59.63\00:14:02.70
That means that's He's
placed in contrast with
00:14:02.90\00:14:05.81
everything that is unmade.
00:14:06.01\00:14:07.94
Jesus Christ is not
made. He is the One that
00:14:08.14\00:14:11.18
made all things in contrast
to everything that is made.
00:14:11.38\00:14:14.48
And so therefore we have
Him as in the "unmade" category
00:14:14.68\00:14:18.72
according to John chapter 1.
00:14:18.92\00:14:20.26
Now I've spent a lot of
time studying this subject
00:14:20.46\00:14:23.69
in the years that
I've been in ministry.
00:14:23.89\00:14:25.96
In fact, I had a
number of studies with a group
00:14:26.16\00:14:28.86
back in Washington
state... a group of people
00:14:29.06\00:14:33.00
called Jehovah Witnesses.
00:14:33.20\00:14:34.54
And we studied for
months the different doctrines
00:14:34.60\00:14:37.67
that they were
teaching & believing.
00:14:37.87\00:14:39.87
And now as a Christian
and an Adventist at that time
00:14:40.08\00:14:43.14
it wasn't my purpose
to try to convince them
00:14:43.35\00:14:47.12
but they would try to convince
me that I needed to become
00:14:47.32\00:14:49.98
a Jehovah's Witness. And so we
were studying the Bible together
00:14:50.19\00:14:52.69
and we were moving
through the different subjects.
00:14:52.89\00:14:55.19
And we found some common ground
but then we got to the topic
00:14:55.39\00:14:57.93
of course Jesus Christ.
00:14:58.13\00:15:00.50
And I started to recognize that
they have this new translation,
00:15:00.70\00:15:04.40
this New World translation
of the Bible, that they use
00:15:04.60\00:15:08.07
that has changed
some of the Bible verses.
00:15:08.27\00:15:10.51
And so they gave
me this questionnaire.
00:15:10.71\00:15:12.67
It had about I think
thirty or forty questions on it
00:15:12.87\00:15:15.74
that had to do
with Christ being God
00:15:15.94\00:15:18.61
and questions that would
simply undermine the idea
00:15:18.81\00:15:21.72
that He was God, and
they wanted me to fill it out,
00:15:21.92\00:15:23.39
to answer the questions.
And so I began to answer
00:15:23.59\00:15:25.25
these questions.
And as I did, again
00:15:25.45\00:15:27.76
I was able to study more
deeply into the Scriptures
00:15:27.96\00:15:32.19
and I found myself going
back to the book of Genesis.
00:15:32.39\00:15:35.46
And in the book of
Genesis I found something really
00:15:35.86\00:15:37.77
interesting. In Genesis 1:26
00:15:37.97\00:15:41.47
it talks there
about God in the plural.
00:15:41.67\00:15:44.81
God says: "Let US
00:15:45.01\00:15:47.28
make man in Our
image after Our likeness. "
00:15:47.48\00:15:50.71
And I thought:
"That's really interesting.
00:15:50.91\00:15:52.38
'Let US make man in Our
image after Our likeness. ' "
00:15:52.58\00:15:54.88
And so I looked up
the word God there.
00:15:55.08\00:15:57.02
"God says let US... "
00:15:57.22\00:15:59.15
And the word for God is Elohim.
00:15:59.35\00:16:01.62
And I found that that
word Elohim is a plural.
00:16:01.82\00:16:05.59
In other words, it is
speaking of God in the plural.
00:16:05.79\00:16:09.86
That God in the
context of Genesis -
00:16:10.07\00:16:12.43
the very first book of the
Bible, in the very beginning of
00:16:12.63\00:16:14.90
the Word of God
- is in the plural.
00:16:15.10\00:16:17.74
In other words, it is
speaking of more than just
00:16:17.94\00:16:20.38
God the Father. We
have God the Father,
00:16:20.58\00:16:22.91
God the Son, and
God the Holy Spirit.
00:16:23.11\00:16:25.31
And of course, in that
context we have Jesus Christ
00:16:25.51\00:16:28.92
understanding, recognizing
that He is part of that Godhead
00:16:29.12\00:16:33.52
in the New Testament.
So the Old Testament -
00:16:33.72\00:16:35.92
Elohim: let US
make man in OUR image.
00:16:36.12\00:16:39.73
And then there are other places.
In fact, there are hundreds
00:16:39.93\00:16:42.33
of places in the Old Testament
where the word Elohim is used
00:16:42.53\00:16:45.83
to describe God.
00:16:46.03\00:16:47.50
And I was intrigued with this
and began to share this with
00:16:47.70\00:16:50.27
my friends, my
Jehovah's Witnesses friends.
00:16:50.47\00:16:52.24
And shortly after
this based on that study
00:16:52.64\00:16:55.71
and also the
study that we were doing
00:16:55.91\00:16:57.71
in John chapter 1
that Bible study ended.
00:16:57.91\00:17:01.95
But it really helped me.
You know, when we study together
00:17:02.15\00:17:05.09
we can really learn
a lot from one another.
00:17:05.29\00:17:06.92
And it really helped me to
gain insight into this subject
00:17:07.12\00:17:10.76
on the Word of God.
I was kind of cut off.
00:17:10.96\00:17:13.73
They had someone come
to the study and ascertain
00:17:13.93\00:17:16.77
if I was even someone that they
should continue to study with.
00:17:16.97\00:17:21.04
And as they realized
that I was immoveable,
00:17:21.24\00:17:23.91
that I was going to
stay with the Word of God
00:17:24.11\00:17:25.71
and the truth of the Word of God
00:17:25.91\00:17:27.24
they said: "We're
not going to study.
00:17:27.44\00:17:28.78
You shouldn't be studying
with this guy any more. "
00:17:28.91\00:17:30.28
But I left there with this
understanding that has deepened
00:17:30.48\00:17:34.38
in my own Christian experience,
in my own relationship
00:17:34.58\00:17:38.45
with God. And I
find that each one of us
00:17:38.65\00:17:41.49
has that opportunity. Whenever
you study the Word of God
00:17:41.69\00:17:44.13
even if you're studying with
people who may not see things
00:17:44.33\00:17:45.83
the way you see things
00:17:46.03\00:17:47.36
it gives you opportunity
to gain greater insight
00:17:47.40\00:17:49.76
into the truth of God's Word.
00:17:49.96\00:17:52.90
So this is what I gathered
as I began to study with
00:17:53.10\00:17:57.67
these Jehovah's
Witnesses, and I took that
00:17:57.87\00:17:59.77
and I ran into some
other statements that I thought
00:17:59.97\00:18:04.15
really helped me to recognize
how controversial this is.
00:18:04.31\00:18:07.22
And what I mean by that is this:
00:18:07.42\00:18:08.75
my study with Jehovah's
Witnesses was not the first time
00:18:09.42\00:18:12.52
that this subject
became controversial.
00:18:12.72\00:18:16.02
When you go back to
00:18:16.22\00:18:17.73
the life of Christ, when you go
00:18:17.93\00:18:19.83
back to Jesus Christ
incarnate you're going to find
00:18:20.03\00:18:22.86
that this truth has been
controversial even in His day.
00:18:23.06\00:18:26.63
Jesus Christ in John chapter
8 beginning with verse 58
00:18:26.84\00:18:31.04
is sharing with the
religious leaders of His time
00:18:31.24\00:18:34.01
the fact that He is God.
00:18:34.21\00:18:35.54
And this is the way
He says it, John 8:58:
00:18:35.71\00:18:37.85
"Jesus said unto them:
'Verily, verily I say unto you
00:18:38.05\00:18:41.75
before Abraham was I am. ' "
00:18:42.62\00:18:45.45
Jesus Christ again is claiming
to be the self-existent One.
00:18:46.45\00:18:49.76
He's going back now
to the Exodus, back to
00:18:50.26\00:18:53.16
Exodus chapter 3
when Moses asked God
00:18:53.36\00:18:57.00
to tell him who he -
Moses - should tell the people
00:18:57.20\00:19:01.80
had sent him to
deliver them from Pharaoh.
00:19:02.00\00:19:04.37
"Who should I
tell them You are? "
00:19:04.77\00:19:06.81
And God responds and
says: "I AM that I AM. "
00:19:07.21\00:19:11.18
And Jesus picks this up.
00:19:11.58\00:19:13.08
In John 8:58 Jesus picks this up
00:19:13.58\00:19:16.72
and Jesus basically
says: "I am the I AM. "
00:19:16.92\00:19:21.52
"I am before Abraham. "
00:19:22.39\00:19:24.86
"I am that self-existent One. "
00:19:25.06\00:19:27.63
And the Jews understood this.
00:19:28.03\00:19:29.36
They knew exactly
what He was saying
00:19:29.40\00:19:30.97
and their response
is really interesting.
00:19:31.17\00:19:33.37
In verse 59: "They took
up stones to cast at Him
00:19:33.57\00:19:38.11
but Jesus hid Himself
and went out of the temple
00:19:38.31\00:19:41.08
going through the midst of
them and so He passed by. "
00:19:41.28\00:19:43.91
So what we see
here basically is we see
00:19:44.11\00:19:46.72
that this has been contro-
versial from the very beginning.
00:19:46.92\00:19:50.49
Not just from Genesis
but even as Christ came,
00:19:50.89\00:19:53.69
even as the Child is
born, even as the Son is given,
00:19:53.89\00:19:56.62
even as the Mighty God
comes incarnate in human flesh
00:19:56.83\00:19:59.86
and claims to be the
self- existent One, the I AM,
00:20:00.06\00:20:02.86
even then religious leaders
are seeking to stone Him;
00:20:03.06\00:20:07.04
are seeking to cancel Him;
00:20:07.24\00:20:08.64
are seeking to take His life.
00:20:08.84\00:20:11.01
Satan has always hated the fact
00:20:11.31\00:20:13.71
that God would come in
the person of Jesus Christ
00:20:13.91\00:20:16.75
to our rescue. And
he's doing everything he can
00:20:16.95\00:20:19.61
to obscure that. We
can hang our whole heart,
00:20:19.81\00:20:23.18
our whole hope, upon
Jesus Christ incarnate
00:20:23.39\00:20:26.39
in human flesh.
00:20:26.59\00:20:28.49
So this was the
Jewish experience.
00:20:28.69\00:20:30.59
You know, when Jesus explains
that He is the I AM of the
00:20:30.79\00:20:32.96
Bible, the One who appeared
to Moses in the burning bush,
00:20:33.16\00:20:36.03
the One that sent him on a
divine errand to rescue His
00:20:36.23\00:20:40.87
people, that He's the Rock.
00:20:41.07\00:20:42.50
Paul says that the Rock that
followed them in I Corinthians
00:20:42.70\00:20:45.64
chapter 10 "that
Rock was Jesus Christ. "
00:20:45.84\00:20:49.48
In their wilderness wanderings
the pillar of cloud by day
00:20:49.68\00:20:52.81
and the pillar of fire by night.
00:20:53.01\00:20:54.58
When Jesus claims this
the Jews seek to stone Him
00:20:54.78\00:20:58.65
because they knew that Jesus was
calling Himself THE GREAT I AM.
00:20:58.85\00:21:03.06
And that's the
thing about Jesus.
00:21:03.26\00:21:05.96
That's the thing
about belief in Jesus.
00:21:06.16\00:21:07.80
You know, you can't simply say
that Jesus was a great prophet.
00:21:08.00\00:21:11.40
You can't really say
that Jesus was ONLY a prophet.
00:21:12.57\00:21:16.10
Because if you say
that He was a prophet
00:21:16.30\00:21:18.91
all of God's
prophets are faithful to God.
00:21:19.11\00:21:21.58
God's prophets don't lie.
00:21:21.78\00:21:23.38
And if you accept Christ
as a prophet - which He was -
00:21:23.58\00:21:25.95
He was more than a prophet
- but you accept Christ as
00:21:26.15\00:21:27.75
a prophet then you
must accept Him as THE I AM
00:21:27.95\00:21:30.79
because Jesus Himself
calls Himself THE I AM.
00:21:30.99\00:21:33.59
The Word... capital W.
00:21:33.79\00:21:36.06
He is the One that was
in the beginning with God.
00:21:36.26\00:21:39.13
He was the One
that made all things.
00:21:39.33\00:21:41.13
He was the One
that is equal with God.
00:21:41.33\00:21:43.80
He is the Everlasting
God; He is the Mighty God!
00:21:44.00\00:21:47.34
And so if you
accept Christ as a prophet
00:21:47.54\00:21:50.01
you must accept what Christ
says of Himself as a prophet
00:21:50.21\00:21:52.77
because He is, if He is a
prophet, He is a true prophet
00:21:52.97\00:21:55.78
of God. And if He is
a true prophet of God
00:21:55.98\00:21:57.55
He is One that does not lie.
00:21:57.71\00:22:00.28
And if you accept
this inspired testimony
00:22:00.48\00:22:03.59
of Christ you will
find that the same Rock
00:22:03.79\00:22:07.59
that guided His people,
that was with His people,
00:22:07.79\00:22:10.66
that comforted His people,
that protected His people,
00:22:10.86\00:22:13.06
that provided for His people
in the wilderness wanderings
00:22:13.26\00:22:16.03
is the same Rock that
is going to provide for us
00:22:16.23\00:22:19.43
and comfort us and protect us
00:22:19.63\00:22:21.04
in our wanderings in
the wilderness of sin.
00:22:21.24\00:22:24.01
We need Jesus Christ to
be with us when the heat
00:22:24.71\00:22:28.94
of the guilt comes upon
us in that wilderness of sin.
00:22:29.14\00:22:32.65
We need Jesus to
be our Rock today.
00:22:32.85\00:22:35.58
And Jesus is still
the water of life today.
00:22:35.78\00:22:38.29
He's still the
pillar of cloud today.
00:22:38.49\00:22:40.06
He's still the Rock today.
00:22:40.26\00:22:41.72
He is still the One who
is with His people today.
00:22:41.92\00:22:45.63
So we don't want to pick up
those stones to stone Christ,
00:22:45.83\00:22:49.90
to stone the revelation
of His divinity because
00:22:50.10\00:22:52.97
Jesus as God
incarnate is EVERYTHING for us.
00:22:53.17\00:22:57.44
He is everything that
we need for our salvation.
00:22:57.84\00:23:01.21
In fact, God is asking us
to give our life to Jesus.
00:23:01.41\00:23:04.51
God is asking us to
trust our lives into His hands.
00:23:04.71\00:23:07.35
Wherever you
are, whoever you are
00:23:07.55\00:23:09.92
wandering in
that wilderness of sin
00:23:10.12\00:23:11.79
God is calling you
through the Rock, Christ Jesus.
00:23:11.99\00:23:14.19
God is calling you through
the Mighty God who has come
00:23:14.39\00:23:16.12
as our Deliverer
incarnated into human flesh.
00:23:16.32\00:23:18.39
He's calling us
to Him and Jesus says
00:23:18.59\00:23:21.13
"Whoever comes to Me I
will in no wise cast out. "
00:23:21.33\00:23:25.33
And if you only had
one promise, friends,
00:23:25.73\00:23:28.00
if you only had one
promise in all of Scripture,
00:23:28.20\00:23:30.07
that promise would be enough
00:23:30.27\00:23:31.61
to take you into
the kingdom of God.
00:23:31.81\00:23:34.71
You are to know your heavenly
Father through Jesus Christ.
00:23:34.91\00:23:38.58
You are to know in
the sin-scorched world
00:23:39.55\00:23:42.32
a Savior who has come to
give you the water of life.
00:23:42.52\00:23:45.89
So we want to
look now in the context
00:23:46.09\00:23:49.06
of the joy that God has
brought to us in Jesus Christ.
00:23:49.26\00:23:53.06
You know the Bible
says in Luke chapter 15
00:23:53.26\00:23:55.46
that there is joy in heaven
over one sinner that repents.
00:23:55.66\00:23:58.20
And that's why Jesus
Christ came to this world.
00:23:58.60\00:24:01.00
He came to reveal
to us the God of heaven
00:24:01.40\00:24:03.54
so that we could find
that joy or give God that joy
00:24:03.74\00:24:08.78
of returning to Him, to the
Father, to the image in which
00:24:08.98\00:24:11.71
we were created.
So in John chapter 1
00:24:11.91\00:24:14.12
Jesus is God. He's the Word;
He's the Maker of all things.
00:24:14.32\00:24:17.45
In John chapter 8
Jesus is the GREAT I AM.
00:24:17.65\00:24:19.72
He's the Rock that provides
water in that wilderness of sin.
00:24:19.92\00:24:23.36
And now we want to look
in John chapter 14 because
00:24:23.56\00:24:25.96
here is where we find
something that is so powerful
00:24:26.16\00:24:28.86
and so insightful...
at least it was to me
00:24:29.06\00:24:31.13
and I hope it's
going to be to you
00:24:31.33\00:24:32.67
about the incarnate
humanity of Jesus Christ.
00:24:32.70\00:24:37.74
In John chapter 14
and verse 9 Jesus says
00:24:37.94\00:24:41.34
unto Thomas and Philip
00:24:41.54\00:24:46.31
and His
disciples. He says to them:
00:24:46.51\00:24:49.35
"Have I been so long with you
00:24:49.55\00:24:51.25
and thou hast
not known Me, Philip?
00:24:51.45\00:24:54.56
He that has seen Me
has seen the Father.
00:24:54.76\00:24:56.83
How sayest thou then
'Show us the Father? ' "
00:24:57.03\00:25:00.50
Now this is a verse that
I've read many many times.
00:25:00.93\00:25:04.13
You know, Philip and the
disciples are struggling with
00:25:04.33\00:25:05.93
Christ... they're struggling
to understand who Christ is.
00:25:06.13\00:25:10.37
Christ has just declared to
them "I am the way, the truth,
00:25:10.57\00:25:12.41
and the life. No one
comes to the Father but by Me"
00:25:12.61\00:25:14.48
in verse 6. And
Philip says: "Well...
00:25:14.68\00:25:16.85
well show us the Father
and that will be good enough
00:25:17.05\00:25:19.75
for us. Just show
us who the Father is. "
00:25:19.95\00:25:21.55
And Jesus basically says
to them: "If you've seen Me,
00:25:21.75\00:25:25.69
you've seen the Father.
Have I been with you for so long
00:25:25.89\00:25:29.36
and you haven't
seen the Father? "
00:25:29.56\00:25:30.89
"Haven't you seen
the Father in Me? "
00:25:31.23\00:25:32.69
And I really
want us to hear this -
00:25:33.09\00:25:35.26
this inspired declaration -
because what Jesus is saying
00:25:35.46\00:25:38.67
here is so powerful, it's so
important, it's so significant.
00:25:38.87\00:25:42.80
This is huge for us
00:25:43.00\00:25:45.27
because there's so
much confusion about
00:25:45.47\00:25:49.44
Christianity and
their belief in God
00:25:49.64\00:25:52.68
and the idea that God is
one and there's only one God.
00:25:52.88\00:25:56.12
And there's so much
confusion about this idea that
00:25:56.32\00:25:59.65
Jesus is God. And we have dif-
ferent religious denominations
00:25:59.85\00:26:04.46
and different beliefs
about Christ being God.
00:26:04.66\00:26:07.13
And so here we want to
see that Jesus is saying
00:26:07.33\00:26:09.93
"You know, when you see
the Father you're seeing Me
00:26:10.13\00:26:12.20
and when you see Me
you're seeing the Father. "
00:26:12.40\00:26:14.00
We can't miss this. This
is so powerful because...
00:26:14.20\00:26:16.27
because monotheism is
alive in the world today
00:26:16.47\00:26:21.01
in contrast with polytheism.
00:26:21.21\00:26:23.75
Now monotheism is
this idea that we believe
00:26:23.95\00:26:25.65
in one God.
Polytheism is the idea that
00:26:25.85\00:26:27.62
we believe in many
gods. And there are so many
00:26:27.82\00:26:30.15
religions today
that are polytheistic.
00:26:30.35\00:26:32.25
You know, Hindus have many gods.
00:26:32.45\00:26:33.79
They have Shiva and
Vishnu and Krishna...
00:26:33.92\00:26:35.62
all these different gods
that have different purposes
00:26:35.82\00:26:39.13
and different
characters and different hearts
00:26:39.33\00:26:41.46
in the way that
they relate to humanity.
00:26:41.66\00:26:43.93
And then you have the
Greeks. They had many gods.
00:26:44.13\00:26:46.03
They had Zeus and they
had Hades and they had Apollo.
00:26:46.23\00:26:48.07
And all these gods had
different personalities
00:26:48.27\00:26:51.07
and different characters
and different purposes.
00:26:51.27\00:26:54.14
And then, of course,
you had the pagan gods.
00:26:54.71\00:26:56.61
The Roman gods that
fulfilled different functions
00:26:56.81\00:26:59.55
corresponding to the
various aspects of life.
00:26:59.75\00:27:01.65
There were many gods in
the Latium - the reach of Italy
00:27:02.68\00:27:05.52
where Rome was founded.
Some which were like Italic
00:27:05.72\00:27:09.02
and Sabine and Etruscan.
00:27:09.22\00:27:12.29
These gods were all different.
00:27:12.49\00:27:15.83
That was the belief of
polytheism: that different gods
00:27:16.03\00:27:19.73
are polytheistic, or
believing in different gods
00:27:19.93\00:27:22.87
is polytheism. And in
contrast to that, we have
00:27:23.07\00:27:26.34
monotheism. Now
monotheism believes
00:27:26.54\00:27:29.31
in the one God, and of course
the Jews were monotheistic
00:27:29.51\00:27:32.65
in their belief and
their understanding.
00:27:32.85\00:27:34.52
And we as Christians
claim to be monotheistic.
00:27:35.02\00:27:37.45
In other words, we
believe in the one God
00:27:37.65\00:27:39.65
and yet people will say
to us: "Well if you believe
00:27:39.85\00:27:41.49
in the one God and you
don't believe in many gods
00:27:41.69\00:27:44.43
how can you say
that Jesus is God? "
00:27:44.63\00:27:46.33
You know, "Isn't that believing
in more than one God? "
00:27:46.73\00:27:48.80
And this is where I
think our hearts and our minds
00:27:49.00\00:27:52.53
need to be understanding
exactly what Jesus is saying
00:27:52.80\00:27:55.67
in John chapter 14.
00:27:55.87\00:27:57.64
You see, all the
religions that have many gods
00:27:57.84\00:28:00.04
or more than one god
have gods who are different
00:28:00.24\00:28:02.64
from each other, You know,
even some forms of Christianity
00:28:02.84\00:28:05.95
make God the Father
different from God the Son.
00:28:06.15\00:28:08.25
You know: God the
Father is an angry God
00:28:08.65\00:28:10.39
and the Son is a merciful God.
00:28:10.59\00:28:12.15
And so you see
this contrast sometimes
00:28:12.35\00:28:14.89
even within Christianity.
00:28:15.09\00:28:16.42
But in reality, it's Christian-
ity's unique contribution
00:28:16.93\00:28:22.20
to religious understanding
00:28:22.40\00:28:24.60
to present one God
in these three persons.
00:28:24.80\00:28:28.30
In other words,
Father, Son, and Holy Spirit
00:28:28.50\00:28:30.44
each one of them, each
one of this heavenly trio
00:28:30.64\00:28:34.14
is a perfect
reflection of the other.
00:28:34.34\00:28:37.48
In other words, and
this is so beautiful to me,
00:28:37.88\00:28:40.78
Christianity unlike
every other religion
00:28:41.98\00:28:44.85
believes in and
worships one God.
00:28:45.05\00:28:49.22
Whereas these other
religions worship many gods
00:28:49.42\00:28:51.76
Christianity worships
one God who is revealed
00:28:51.96\00:28:55.16
in purpose, in
character, in divine nature
00:28:55.36\00:29:00.14
in the Father, in the
Son, and in the Holy Spirit.
00:29:00.34\00:29:02.47
So "If you have
seen me, " Christ says:
00:29:02.67\00:29:04.71
"you have seen the Father. "
And then Christ goes on to say
00:29:04.91\00:29:07.71
that when the Holy Spirit
comes He's going to testify
00:29:07.91\00:29:09.74
of Jesus. Now we read
about that in John chapter 16.
00:29:09.94\00:29:12.88
Let's just take a
look at these verses.
00:29:13.08\00:29:14.42
Jesus says: "Howbeit,
when He, the Spirit of Truth
00:29:17.89\00:29:20.06
is come He will guide you into
00:29:20.26\00:29:21.96
all truth for He shall not
00:29:22.16\00:29:23.49
speak of Himself
00:29:23.69\00:29:25.03
but whatsoever He shall hear
00:29:25.06\00:29:26.80
that shall He speak
00:29:27.00\00:29:28.33
and He will show
you things to come. "
00:29:28.36\00:29:29.70
Verse 14:
00:29:29.73\00:29:31.20
"He shall glorify Me
00:29:31.50\00:29:33.47
for He shall receive of Mine
00:29:33.67\00:29:35.74
and shall show unto you
00:29:35.94\00:29:37.47
all things... " verse 15...
00:29:37.87\00:29:40.01
"that the Father hath are Mine.
00:29:40.28\00:29:41.78
Therefore, said I, He shall take
00:29:41.98\00:29:44.05
of Mine and shall
show it unto you. "
00:29:44.25\00:29:46.65
So here we see Christ
talking about the Holy Spirit.
00:29:46.85\00:29:50.49
And in the context of what
we've read in John chapter 14
00:29:50.69\00:29:54.49
and verse 9 we see
here a broader expansion
00:29:54.69\00:30:00.23
of this heavenly trio.
00:30:00.43\00:30:01.93
Jesus says: "If you've seen
Me, you've seen the Father. "
00:30:02.13\00:30:04.47
And you can't say that of Zeus.
00:30:04.87\00:30:06.20
You can't say: "Well if you've
seen Zeus you've seen Hades. "
00:30:06.27\00:30:08.20
You can't say: "If you've seen
Shiva you've seen Krishna. "
00:30:08.40\00:30:10.94
You can't say: "If you've seen
Sabine you've seen Italic. "
00:30:11.14\00:30:13.78
You can't say that of
these other polytheistic gods.
00:30:13.98\00:30:16.44
You can only say that
of the God of the Bible.
00:30:16.85\00:30:19.88
The God of the Bible is One!
00:30:20.95\00:30:23.08
If you've seen Jesus,
you've seen the Father.
00:30:23.28\00:30:25.85
When the Holy Spirit
comes, He's coming to testify
00:30:26.05\00:30:28.72
of Jesus. When you
see the Holy Spirit...
00:30:28.92\00:30:31.09
when the Holy Spirit is
filling you, the Holy Spirit
00:30:31.29\00:30:33.63
is filling you full of
the characteristics of Jesus.
00:30:33.83\00:30:36.50
The mind of Christ is
filled in you through the power
00:30:37.17\00:30:40.74
of the Holy Spirit
because the Holy Spirit comes
00:30:40.94\00:30:42.40
to show Christ. And
Christ comes to show
00:30:42.60\00:30:45.57
the Father
because they are all one.
00:30:45.77\00:30:47.28
They have the same character;
They have the same mind;
00:30:47.48\00:30:49.38
They have the same purpose;
00:30:49.58\00:30:50.95
They have the same divine
essence; They are all One.
00:30:51.11\00:30:53.68
They are three individual
persons but They are one God.
00:30:54.08\00:30:58.09
And this is COMPLETELY
DIFFERENT from polytheism.
00:30:58.29\00:31:01.22
So you cannot
actually say that Christians
00:31:01.62\00:31:04.26
who believe God the Father, God
the Son, and God the Holy Spirit
00:31:04.46\00:31:06.59
are polytheistic... they're not!
00:31:06.80\00:31:08.46
They're monotheistic...
clearly they are.
00:31:08.66\00:31:10.47
When you understand this
one truth it sets Christianity
00:31:10.67\00:31:14.07
apart from all the
other polytheistic religions.
00:31:14.27\00:31:18.07
So there are these
many gods in Hinduism
00:31:18.47\00:31:21.21
and Greek mythology and
paganism. They're all different.
00:31:21.41\00:31:23.58
They all have different
purposes, different characters,
00:31:23.78\00:31:25.51
etc. But there is
the one God of the Bible:
00:31:25.71\00:31:29.12
God the Father, God the
Son, and God the Holy Spirit.
00:31:29.52\00:31:31.42
I hope you got this
because this is so significant,
00:31:31.62\00:31:35.42
it's so powerful, and
it's been such a blessing to me
00:31:35.62\00:31:37.99
to see this more clearly
than I've ever seen it before.
00:31:38.19\00:31:41.86
Now we want to
take one more look
00:31:42.56\00:31:45.13
at the subject of
Christ as eternal God
00:31:45.33\00:31:49.24
and we're going to do
that in the book of Hebrews.
00:31:49.44\00:31:51.37
Because what we want to
do here is we want to find
00:31:51.87\00:31:54.01
this subject... we want
to find this laid out for us
00:31:55.14\00:31:59.85
in a contextual systematic way.
00:32:00.05\00:32:03.08
And that's what the
book of Hebrews is all about.
00:32:03.28\00:32:04.62
The book of Hebrews gives
us a contextual, systematic
00:32:04.79\00:32:07.99
revelation treatise if
you will on Jesus Christ.
00:32:08.19\00:32:11.69
Jesus Christ IS
God... Hebrews chapter 1.
00:32:12.09\00:32:14.86
He is man... Hebrews chapter 2.
00:32:15.06\00:32:16.77
He is Savior, He is Intercessor,
00:32:16.97\00:32:20.27
He is Priest, He
is EVERYTHING to us.
00:32:20.47\00:32:23.94
And the book of Hebrews
is giving us this treatise:
00:32:24.14\00:32:26.24
this beautiful
picture of who Christ is.
00:32:26.44\00:32:30.75
And its contextual
and it is systematic.
00:32:30.95\00:32:33.98
And so as we look in
the book of Hebrews -
00:32:34.38\00:32:35.82
the New
Testament book of Hebrews -
00:32:36.02\00:32:37.35
at this systematic
contextual treatise of Christ
00:32:37.65\00:32:41.12
we're going to find that
the first part of this treatise
00:32:41.32\00:32:44.13
introduces Christ as
the eternal God in a way
00:32:44.33\00:32:48.03
that will I think satisfy
even the searching scholar.
00:32:48.23\00:32:51.37
In the book of Hebrews the
divinity or the divine nature
00:32:51.60\00:32:55.27
of Jesus is clearly
depicted in chapter 1.
00:32:55.47\00:32:58.41
So let's open our
Bibles to Hebrews chapter 1
00:32:58.61\00:33:01.58
and let's look here
as we begin the outline
00:33:01.78\00:33:04.41
that is given here by
the author of Hebrews.
00:33:04.61\00:33:06.85
Hebrews chapter 1
unfolds this aspect of Christ's
00:33:07.05\00:33:10.59
divine nature,
of Christ's divinity
00:33:10.79\00:33:13.39
in relationship to the Father
00:33:13.59\00:33:15.39
that is both
relational and redemptive.
00:33:15.59\00:33:19.39
And it begins in this
majestic King James language.
00:33:19.59\00:33:23.37
I love the language
of the King James Bible
00:33:23.57\00:33:25.77
and so we're going to
read here in Hebrews chapter 1
00:33:25.97\00:33:28.00
beginning with verse 1.
00:33:28.20\00:33:29.54
It says: "God,
who at sundry times
00:33:30.01\00:33:33.31
and in diverse manners... "
00:33:33.51\00:33:35.74
You know, that's
King James language.
00:33:35.94\00:33:37.51
Sundry times... that means
00:33:37.71\00:33:39.11
various times.
Diverse manners...
00:33:39.31\00:33:41.02
different manners. So God
00:33:41.22\00:33:42.98
at various times
in different ways
00:33:43.18\00:33:46.29
"spoke in times past unto
the fathers by the prophets. "
00:33:46.49\00:33:49.92
You know, God is a communicator.
00:33:50.13\00:33:51.69
God is seeking to speak to us.
00:33:51.89\00:33:53.50
God is seeking to communicate
to us because God wants
00:33:53.70\00:33:56.10
a relationship with us.
00:33:56.30\00:33:57.67
And that's really
what it's all about.
00:33:57.87\00:33:59.20
You know, when you have
a relationship with someone
00:33:59.57\00:34:01.67
and you're not on speaking
terms - that phrase that we use
00:34:01.87\00:34:04.61
sometimes: "We're
not on speaking terms"
00:34:04.81\00:34:06.41
that means the
relationship is going south.
00:34:06.61\00:34:08.24
That means there's a
problem in the relationship.
00:34:08.44\00:34:10.25
And we've had a problem
in our relationship with God
00:34:10.45\00:34:13.21
from the beginning of sin...
from the very entrance of sin
00:34:13.42\00:34:16.18
into this world. Adam
and Eve found themselves
00:34:16.38\00:34:18.89
hiding from God when
He came to visit them
00:34:19.09\00:34:21.79
in the garden as He normally
did in the cool of the day.
00:34:21.99\00:34:24.39
And He calls out to
them, He speaks out to them
00:34:24.79\00:34:27.30
because God's desire
for a relationship with us
00:34:27.50\00:34:31.00
hasn't changed because of sin.
00:34:31.20\00:34:33.20
Our relationship
with Him has changed.
00:34:33.40\00:34:36.04
We're hiding... we're afraid.
00:34:36.24\00:34:37.57
But God is still seeking
us; God is still wanting to
00:34:37.64\00:34:39.61
communicate with us, and that's
what Hebrews is telling us
00:34:39.81\00:34:42.54
in chapter 1 and verse 1.
00:34:42.74\00:34:44.11
God has spoken to
us. His relationship
00:34:44.31\00:34:47.25
to us hasn't changed.
00:34:47.45\00:34:48.92
He wants to speak;
He wants to communicate
00:34:49.12\00:34:51.42
but He's done it
through the prophets now.
00:34:51.62\00:34:53.25
He's done it through the
prophets and then it says
00:34:53.46\00:34:55.49
in verse 2: "Has
in these last days
00:34:55.69\00:34:58.43
spoken unto us by His Son
00:34:58.63\00:35:00.36
whom He has
appointed heir of all things
00:35:00.56\00:35:02.63
and by whom also
00:35:02.83\00:35:04.20
He made the worlds. "
00:35:04.40\00:35:05.97
Now this is beautiful!
This is powerful because
00:35:06.17\00:35:08.34
we see here Jesus
Christ being the Creator,
00:35:08.54\00:35:11.44
again, being established
right here in Hebrews 1:1-2.
00:35:11.64\00:35:15.51
But notice what
it says in verse 3:
00:35:15.71\00:35:17.61
"Who being the brightness of His
00:35:17.81\00:35:20.22
glory and the express image
00:35:20.42\00:35:23.45
of His person and upholding
00:35:23.65\00:35:25.69
all things by
the word of His power
00:35:25.89\00:35:28.06
when He had by Himself purged
00:35:28.26\00:35:30.13
our sins sat down
00:35:30.33\00:35:32.39
on the right hand of
the Majesty on high. "
00:35:32.59\00:35:37.53
Hebrews chapter 1
verses 1 through 3.
00:35:37.73\00:35:39.47
Now this is amazing.
It's interesting because
00:35:39.67\00:35:42.20
a lot of scholars don't know
who the author of Hebrews is.
00:35:42.40\00:35:46.94
But I think if you do some
research and some comparison
00:35:47.14\00:35:50.35
through other
epistles in the New Testament
00:35:50.55\00:35:52.41
you're going to find clearly
00:35:52.61\00:35:54.15
that the author of the
book of Hebrews is Paul.
00:35:54.35\00:35:56.62
And the reason why a lot
of scholars don't think he's
00:35:56.82\00:35:59.25
the author is because he
doesn't open this book with
00:35:59.45\00:36:02.02
his usual Paul, an
apostle of Jesus Christ,
00:36:02.22\00:36:05.03
called by the grace of God, etc.
00:36:05.23\00:36:06.83
He gets right to the point.
00:36:07.03\00:36:08.80
And the reason he
does that, I think,
00:36:09.00\00:36:10.33
is because he is
speaking to the Hebrews,
00:36:10.37\00:36:13.64
to his brethren
according to the flesh,
00:36:13.84\00:36:16.24
and he knows perhaps
that his time is limited.
00:36:16.44\00:36:18.81
And so in the first three verses
he just sets it out there.
00:36:19.01\00:36:21.84
He just gets right to the point.
00:36:22.04\00:36:23.38
He doesn't waste any time at all
00:36:23.55\00:36:25.45
with introductions about
grace and about apostleship.
00:36:25.65\00:36:28.82
Paul gets right to the
point. He says basically
00:36:29.02\00:36:30.95
God has been talking
to us through the prophets
00:36:31.15\00:36:33.46
in times past and now He
sent His Son to talk to us
00:36:33.66\00:36:35.59
in these last days. And
His Son is the One by whom
00:36:35.79\00:36:37.93
He created the
worlds. He is equal with God.
00:36:38.13\00:36:40.03
He's the revelation and
the brightness of His glory
00:36:40.23\00:36:42.80
and the very
express image of His person.
00:36:43.00\00:36:44.47
And He has purged our
sins and sat Himself down
00:36:44.67\00:36:47.50
at the right hand of God.
And if the Jews aren't going to
00:36:47.70\00:36:49.97
listen any more to
what Paul has to say
00:36:50.17\00:36:51.71
at least he's
gotten it all out there.
00:36:51.91\00:36:53.24
In those three verses
he's covered everything
00:36:53.34\00:36:55.94
that we need to
know about who Christ is,
00:36:56.14\00:36:58.35
about what
Christ has accomplished,
00:36:58.75\00:37:00.42
and about where
Christ is right now:
00:37:00.62\00:37:02.12
sitting on the
right hand of the Father.
00:37:02.32\00:37:04.59
So Jesus Christ is the
brightness of God's glory
00:37:04.79\00:37:08.52
Paul is saying right here.
00:37:08.72\00:37:10.06
Jesus Christ is the
express image of God's person
00:37:10.09\00:37:12.93
Paul is saying right here.
00:37:13.13\00:37:14.46
Jesus Christ upholds all
things by the word of His power
00:37:14.50\00:37:18.43
Paul is saying right here.
00:37:18.63\00:37:19.97
Jesus made the worlds
Paul is saying right here.
00:37:20.00\00:37:23.00
Then Hebrews continues.
It continues to describe
00:37:23.41\00:37:26.01
this divine relationship
of God the Father and the Son.
00:37:26.21\00:37:30.31
Notice what it says
as we go down to verse 6
00:37:30.51\00:37:33.08
of Hebrews chapter 1.
00:37:33.28\00:37:34.62
And again Paul says: "When
He brings the first begotten
00:37:34.98\00:37:38.89
into the world He sayeth:
'Let all the angels of God
00:37:39.09\00:37:42.26
worship Him. ' " Verse 7:
00:37:42.46\00:37:43.96
"And of the angels He
sayeth: 'Who maketh His angels
00:37:44.16\00:37:47.06
spirits and His
ministers a flame of fire. '
00:37:47.26\00:37:49.33
But unto the Son...
" verse 8, "He says:
00:37:49.53\00:37:52.57
'Thy throne O God
00:37:52.77\00:37:55.50
is forever and ever. A
scepter of righteousness
00:37:55.70\00:37:59.21
is the scepter
of Thy kingdom. ' "
00:37:59.41\00:38:01.64
Hebrews chapter 1
verses 6 through 8.
00:38:01.84\00:38:04.05
So we see here Paul
picking up the same language
00:38:04.25\00:38:06.88
that we read about
in Isaiah chapter 9.
00:38:07.08\00:38:09.55
Paul here is identifying this
interaction that's taking place
00:38:09.75\00:38:15.06
between God the
Father and God the Son.
00:38:15.26\00:38:16.73
And Paul is saying here
that unto the Son He, God, says:
00:38:16.93\00:38:22.33
"Thy throne O God is forever. "
00:38:22.53\00:38:25.00
God the Father was
calling God the Son God.
00:38:25.20\00:38:27.64
Did you hear that
testimony in Hebrews?
00:38:27.84\00:38:30.04
It leaves no room for confusion
00:38:30.24\00:38:32.27
as to Christ's original
unborrowed divine nature.
00:38:32.47\00:38:36.18
Hebrews says unto the
Son God the Father says:
00:38:36.38\00:38:40.52
"Your throne, O God,
is forever and ever. "
00:38:40.72\00:38:45.12
So Hebrews now is kind
of moving back and forth
00:38:45.32\00:38:49.12
I would say seamlessly
between the incarnate Christ:
00:38:49.32\00:38:52.39
a Man who was born into
this world for our redemption
00:38:52.59\00:38:57.43
and the
pre-existing divinity of Christ.
00:38:57.63\00:39:00.40
The pre-existing
Christ who is eternal God.
00:39:00.60\00:39:04.67
The Father
relates to the Son as God.
00:39:04.87\00:39:08.21
He calls Him Lord and
then the Father says to Jesus
00:39:08.41\00:39:11.38
"I am Your God" in
relationship to the fact that
00:39:11.58\00:39:14.55
Jesus Christ has become a man
00:39:14.75\00:39:16.92
and now looks to the Father
as we are to look to the Father.
00:39:17.12\00:39:20.52
So the emphasis continues in
verse 10 of Hebrews chapter 1
00:39:20.72\00:39:25.63
as it identifies
Christ as a Son in a new sense
00:39:25.83\00:39:29.26
regarding that His
incarnation as a man
00:39:29.46\00:39:33.34
has established Him
in a way that is now new
00:39:33.54\00:39:37.97
to His pre-existent self.
00:39:38.17\00:39:40.74
And it maintains this great
emphasis on Christ's unborrowed
00:39:40.94\00:39:46.21
underived divinity
while also introducing us
00:39:46.41\00:39:50.55
to Christ as a human being.
00:39:50.75\00:39:53.12
Notice verse 10 of Hebrews 1.
00:39:53.32\00:39:55.26
"And Thou, Lord,
00:39:55.46\00:39:57.09
in the beginning
has laid the foundation
00:39:57.29\00:39:59.59
of the earth and the heavens
00:39:59.79\00:40:01.33
are the works of Thine hands. "
00:40:01.53\00:40:03.26
Verse 11:
00:40:03.47\00:40:04.80
"And they shall
perish but Thou remainest.
00:40:04.83\00:40:06.17
And they shall all wax
old as does a garment. "
00:40:06.33\00:40:09.30
Verse 12:
00:40:09.50\00:40:10.84
"And as a vesture
Thou shalt fold them up
00:40:10.87\00:40:12.87
and they shall be changed
00:40:13.07\00:40:14.41
but Thou art the same
00:40:14.44\00:40:15.98
and Thy years shall not fail. "
00:40:16.18\00:40:19.38
These last verses are amazing.
00:40:19.58\00:40:21.68
These last verses
offer us the capstone
00:40:21.88\00:40:25.15
to Christ's
unborrowed, underived, divinity.
00:40:25.35\00:40:29.36
The Bible says of Christ:
"Thou, Lord, in the beginning
00:40:29.56\00:40:33.73
hast laid the
foundation of the earth. "
00:40:33.93\00:40:35.76
"Thou remainest. "
"Thou shalt fold them up. "
00:40:35.96\00:40:39.40
"Thou art the same. "
"Thy years shall not fail. "
00:40:39.60\00:40:42.80
So with this
contextual systematic teaching
00:40:43.00\00:40:47.18
on Christ's
divinity the book of Hebrews
00:40:47.38\00:40:49.91
summarizes
basically the entire topic
00:40:50.11\00:40:53.31
we're talking about here.
00:40:53.52\00:40:54.85
From Genesis to Isaiah
00:40:54.88\00:40:57.35
to John to Revelation,
00:40:57.55\00:40:59.49
Philippians, back here
00:40:59.69\00:41:01.99
in the context of the
book of Hebrews we have a full
00:41:02.19\00:41:05.29
revelation of
who Christ really is.
00:41:05.49\00:41:07.96
The Bible teaches in
both the Old Testament
00:41:08.36\00:41:11.07
and the New Testament that
Jesus Christ is equally God.
00:41:11.27\00:41:15.10
The Bible teaches that He holds
the title Everlasting Father.
00:41:15.50\00:41:20.84
And this testimony accords
with the Biblical interpretive
00:41:21.04\00:41:25.28
principle that we find in:
00:41:25.48\00:41:27.32
"In the mouth of
two or three witnesses
00:41:29.85\00:41:32.45
let every word be established. "
00:41:32.65\00:41:34.42
So the gospel of John
00:41:34.62\00:41:36.02
spends quite a bit
of time in summary now
00:41:36.22\00:41:38.93
emphasizing Christ's divinity.
00:41:39.13\00:41:41.26
"In the beginning was the Word
00:41:41.46\00:41:43.47
and the Word was God
and the Word was with God. "
00:41:43.67\00:41:47.24
In fact, it so
clearly identifies Christ
00:41:47.44\00:41:50.84
as God that an
entire denomination
00:41:51.04\00:41:54.31
have printed their
own version of the Bible
00:41:54.51\00:41:56.75
in order to change the
Greek word used throughout the
00:41:56.95\00:41:59.71
New Testament for God to a god,
small g, instead of capital G.
00:41:59.91\00:42:04.49
So we've learned
also that polytheism
00:42:04.69\00:42:08.02
is the belief in many
gods who are all different.
00:42:08.22\00:42:11.23
They are different from
each other in character,
00:42:11.43\00:42:14.46
in purpose, in heart, in mind.
00:42:14.66\00:42:17.97
Whereas monotheism is the belief
00:42:18.17\00:42:20.14
in the one God,
and unlike polytheism
00:42:20.34\00:42:23.61
Christianity teaches
that there is one God:
00:42:23.81\00:42:26.54
Father, Son, and Holy Spirit
who are identical in nature,
00:42:26.74\00:42:30.98
in character, in
purpose, in heart.
00:42:31.18\00:42:34.68
They are, according to
hundreds of Bible verses
00:42:34.88\00:42:38.25
in the Old
Testament, They are Elohim.
00:42:38.45\00:42:40.86
They are GOD:
Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
00:42:41.26\00:42:44.86
They are Elohim...
that's a plural for God.
00:42:45.06\00:42:47.43
And yet if you've seen
Jesus you've seen the Father.
00:42:47.63\00:42:50.47
And the Holy
Spirit testifies of Jesus.
00:42:50.87\00:42:53.03
If you've seen one,
you've seen them all
00:42:53.23\00:42:54.84
because They are one
in purpose, one in heart,
00:42:55.04\00:42:57.74
one in character, one in nature.
00:42:57.94\00:43:00.31
So from the Old
Testament to the New Testament
00:43:00.51\00:43:02.58
we find this
oneness... this one-God truth...
00:43:02.78\00:43:06.82
that is taught in
the three persons:
00:43:07.02\00:43:09.05
God the Father, God the
Son, and God the Holy Spirit
00:43:09.25\00:43:12.09
who testify of each
other, who reveal each other,
00:43:12.49\00:43:15.12
who are not
different from each other
00:43:15.32\00:43:16.66
like Zeus is
different from Hades
00:43:16.83\00:43:18.36
or Krishna is
different from Shiva
00:43:18.56\00:43:20.66
or Sabine is
different from Italic.
00:43:20.93\00:43:23.30
They are One; They are the same
00:43:23.50\00:43:25.83
and yet They are
three divine persons...
00:43:26.03\00:43:28.54
the heavenly trio if you will.
00:43:28.74\00:43:30.71
So finally we
looked at this systematic
00:43:30.91\00:43:33.88
contextual theological treatise
00:43:34.08\00:43:37.11
on Christ in
the book of Hebrews.
00:43:37.51\00:43:39.35
What a beautiful
revelation that we have there.
00:43:39.55\00:43:41.62
And we find Paul here
moving seamlessly between
00:43:41.82\00:43:44.72
the incarnate Christ
and the pre-existent Christ
00:43:44.92\00:43:47.76
emphasizing that Jesus Christ is
the brightness of God's glory.
00:43:47.96\00:43:52.69
Jesus Christ is the
express image of His person.
00:43:52.89\00:43:55.93
He upholds all things
by the word of His power.
00:43:56.13\00:43:58.43
Jesus is the One to
whom the Father says
00:43:58.63\00:44:01.44
"Your throne, O God,
is forever and ever. "
00:44:01.64\00:44:04.34
And finally
Hebrews 1 says of Christ
00:44:04.54\00:44:06.24
"Thou, Lord, in the beginning
hast laid the foundation
00:44:06.44\00:44:09.54
of the earth. You remain.
00:44:09.74\00:44:12.08
You shall fold them up.
00:44:12.28\00:44:13.62
You are the same; Your
years shall not fail. "
00:44:13.65\00:44:17.25
So truly, according to the Bible
00:44:17.45\00:44:20.16
Christ is equal with God.
00:44:20.36\00:44:22.12
Christ is fully
divine. Christ is eternal
00:44:22.32\00:44:25.13
everlasting Father and therefore
our sole Savior from sin.
00:44:25.33\00:44:30.80
For only One who
is equal with God
00:44:31.00\00:44:33.50
only one who is equal
with the character of God
00:44:33.70\00:44:37.01
can actually save
us from sin. You see,
00:44:37.21\00:44:38.64
the Bible tells
us in I John 3:4 that
00:44:38.84\00:44:41.54
"sin is the
transgression of God's law. "
00:44:41.74\00:44:44.78
In Romans chapter 3 we are told
00:44:45.18\00:44:47.45
that "all have sinned and fallen
short of the glory of God. "
00:44:47.65\00:44:51.42
Now that word glory is
synonymous with God's law.
00:44:51.62\00:44:54.86
Because the word glory
represents God's character
00:44:55.06\00:44:57.83
and truly God's
character is love
00:44:58.03\00:45:00.70
and His law is love.
00:45:00.90\00:45:02.43
In fact, Jesus says
in Matthew chapter 22
00:45:02.63\00:45:05.53
verses 36 through 40
00:45:05.73\00:45:07.90
that the law is
summarized in two things:
00:45:08.10\00:45:11.37
One: loving God with all
our heart, mind, and soul
00:45:11.57\00:45:14.54
and Two: loving our
neighbor as ourselves.
00:45:14.74\00:45:18.18
In all of this we have
the law and the prophets.
00:45:18.38\00:45:21.25
So God is
love... His law is love.
00:45:21.45\00:45:24.35
God's law is a
transcript of His character.
00:45:24.75\00:45:27.79
It is a revelation of His glory.
00:45:27.99\00:45:30.53
We sin by
transgressing God's law.
00:45:30.73\00:45:33.53
We sin by falling short of
God's glory, of who God is.
00:45:33.73\00:45:38.17
An angel cannot make
reconciliation for that sin.
00:45:38.37\00:45:41.60
For the transgression of
God's law only God Himself
00:45:41.80\00:45:45.41
can make reconciliation.
00:45:45.61\00:45:46.94
Only God Himself
can make propitiation.
00:45:47.08\00:45:49.54
So we must look to a
Savior who is not an angel.
00:45:49.74\00:45:54.12
We must look for a Savior
who is no less than God Himself.
00:45:54.32\00:45:57.19
And that Savior IS Jesus Christ.
00:45:57.39\00:45:59.92
Because, you see, God
can't just toss His law.
00:46:00.32\00:46:02.72
God can't just do
away with His law.
00:46:02.92\00:46:05.79
God doesn't nail His
moral law to the cross.
00:46:05.99\00:46:08.93
God upholds His
law in Jesus Christ.
00:46:09.13\00:46:12.73
That's why Jesus Christ
came: to be a fuller revelation
00:46:12.93\00:46:15.97
of God and
therefore of God's law.
00:46:16.17\00:46:18.57
Jesus Christ was sinless.
00:46:18.77\00:46:20.14
Jesus Christ was holy;
Jesus Christ was perfect.
00:46:20.54\00:46:23.08
Jesus Christ was BLAMELESS!
He was a perfect representation
00:46:23.28\00:46:26.75
of the law of God,
and yet the Bible says
00:46:26.95\00:46:28.92
in II Corinthians 5:21
00:46:29.12\00:46:31.22
"He who knew no
sin... " That's Jesus Christ,
00:46:31.42\00:46:33.59
the blameless, holy, perfect
Jesus Christ who knew no sin...
00:46:33.79\00:46:37.39
"He became sin for us. "
00:46:37.59\00:46:39.89
Now when we look at this
it's powerful, it's beautiful
00:46:40.10\00:46:42.16
because the Bible is
teaching us that our salvation
00:46:42.36\00:46:44.77
is found in this eternal
Savior, in this mighty God
00:46:44.97\00:46:48.17
that is identified as
Jesus Christ, the incarnate
00:46:48.37\00:46:53.34
God in human
flesh, the Word made flesh
00:46:53.54\00:46:55.44
who is God and dwelt among us.
00:46:55.64\00:46:57.55
Our salvation is
found in Him because
00:46:57.71\00:47:00.15
He comes as the One who
is a perfect representation
00:47:00.35\00:47:03.35
of the glory of God
and yet He comes as a man.
00:47:03.55\00:47:05.35
And as a man He reveals
00:47:05.55\00:47:08.72
the principles of God's law
perfectly, blamelessly, holy.
00:47:08.92\00:47:12.43
AND THEN He becomes
sin for us. In other words,
00:47:12.63\00:47:15.23
He actually takes on
everything that we deserve:
00:47:15.43\00:47:19.57
sin and its consequences.
00:47:19.77\00:47:22.10
He lives a perfect
life and then He dies
00:47:22.30\00:47:24.31
in our place as
our substitute...
00:47:24.47\00:47:26.17
taking upon Himself
our penalty for sin.
00:47:26.37\00:47:29.74
And as He does this He allows us
00:47:29.94\00:47:33.28
to receive from
Him His righteousness.
00:47:33.48\00:47:35.82
Paul is saying here that
there's a great transaction
00:47:36.22\00:47:38.32
taking place. He's
saying that Jesus Christ
00:47:38.52\00:47:40.62
became sin for us.
00:47:40.82\00:47:42.16
Jesus never sinned. He
didn't deserve to become
00:47:42.22\00:47:44.49
sin for us. There was nothing
that earned Him that position.
00:47:44.69\00:47:48.36
He simply BECAME sin
for us; volunteered to take
00:47:48.56\00:47:52.20
our place and to receive
our punishment as a sinner
00:47:52.40\00:47:56.20
and in so doing He
gives us His righteousness.
00:47:56.40\00:47:59.64
Paul says it this
way: "He became sin for us
00:47:59.84\00:48:01.91
who knew no sin
that we might become
00:48:02.11\00:48:04.15
the
righteousness of God in Him. "
00:48:04.35\00:48:05.98
Now this is a powerful exchange
because what God is basically
00:48:06.18\00:48:09.22
saying here is that we,
who have done no righteousness,
00:48:09.42\00:48:14.19
who deserve no
righteousness, who are not holy,
00:48:14.39\00:48:17.63
who are not blameless...
In fact, Paul says in Romans
00:48:17.83\00:48:20.63
chapter 3 verse 9: "There
is none that seeks after God...
00:48:20.83\00:48:23.26
no not one. " There's
none good; none of us are good.
00:48:23.47\00:48:25.30
We who have done no
good who ARE no good...
00:48:25.70\00:48:28.04
we get His righteousness.
00:48:28.24\00:48:29.57
Jesus, who did no sin,
who is blameless and holy,
00:48:29.60\00:48:32.71
He takes our sin and
we take His righteousness.
00:48:32.91\00:48:37.25
This is the great
exchange of the gospel.
00:48:37.45\00:48:39.58
And an angel couldn't have
accomplished that reconciliation
00:48:39.78\00:48:42.88
for us, the reconciliation
that's outlined for us in
00:48:43.08\00:48:46.25
II Corinthians chapter 5.
00:48:46.45\00:48:47.79
An angel
couldn't have done that.
00:48:47.82\00:48:49.16
Any being lower than God
Himself could not have done that
00:48:49.22\00:48:52.49
because someone had to come who
was equal with the law of God
00:48:52.69\00:48:56.33
in order to make propitiation.
In order to satisfy
00:48:56.53\00:48:59.70
the just claims of that law
00:48:59.90\00:49:02.20
and uphold it while
manifesting or giving to us
00:49:02.40\00:49:06.64
the righteousness, the mercy,
and the grace that we need
00:49:06.84\00:49:09.28
to be saved from the
guilt, from the consequences,
00:49:09.48\00:49:12.61
from the ultimate end of
the transgression of that law
00:49:12.81\00:49:17.75
which is death.
00:49:17.95\00:49:19.89
Transgression of the
law leads us to death.
00:49:20.09\00:49:22.32
Sin is transgression of the law.
00:49:22.72\00:49:24.46
The wage of sin is? Death.
Romans chapter 3 and verse 23.
00:49:24.66\00:49:27.66
So Jesus Christ has come
00:49:27.86\00:49:29.80
to manifest to us
this great salvation
00:49:30.00\00:49:33.23
that we find in
the plan of salvation:
00:49:33.44\00:49:37.17
the eternal plan of salvation
that God has laid aside
00:49:37.37\00:49:39.97
from the very
beginning of the world.
00:49:40.18\00:49:41.88
And it's in this context that
we want to thank and praise God
00:49:42.08\00:49:44.88
for the salvation that's
been offered us in Jesus Christ.
00:49:45.08\00:49:47.62
It is in this context that
Satan is doing everything he can
00:49:47.82\00:49:51.05
to undermine - subtly
undermine - Christ's divinity,
00:49:51.25\00:49:54.86
Christ's divine nature.
00:49:55.06\00:49:56.49
He wants to destroy
the divinity of Christ
00:49:56.69\00:50:00.03
because in destroying
the divinity of Christ
00:50:00.23\00:50:01.93
he undermines the
plan of salvation.
00:50:02.13\00:50:04.70
He destroys everything
that we've just established
00:50:04.90\00:50:06.84
and we've talked about. Every-
thing that has been established
00:50:07.04\00:50:08.77
in the Word of God. He
destroys the plan of salvation
00:50:08.97\00:50:11.54
by taking Christ and
making Him something less
00:50:11.74\00:50:15.18
than what He was: the Mighty
God, the Everlasting Father,
00:50:15.38\00:50:18.31
the Prince of Peace.
00:50:18.51\00:50:19.85
The One who has come to
reveal the Father to us.
00:50:19.91\00:50:22.52
The One who is
one with the Father
00:50:22.72\00:50:24.55
and the One who has promised
us the gift of His Holy Spirit
00:50:24.75\00:50:28.12
to also reveal to us
this beautiful revelation
00:50:28.32\00:50:31.73
of God's character and, of
course, to transform us back
00:50:31.93\00:50:34.73
into the image in which we
were created: the image of God.
00:50:34.93\00:50:37.63
And so we find ourselves
now in concluding this powerful
00:50:38.47\00:50:43.17
presentation, this powerful
revelation of who God is.
00:50:43.37\00:50:46.37
It's not a powerful presen-
tation; it's the Word of God!
00:50:46.57\00:50:48.31
This is so clearly God's truth
from the Old Testament to the
00:50:48.51\00:50:52.81
New Testament. It's
not about me; it's not
00:50:53.01\00:50:55.02
about the words
that I am speaking.
00:50:55.22\00:50:56.55
It's about the words
that God is speaking.
00:50:56.58\00:50:57.92
It's about the truth of God's
Word - of the Old and the New
00:50:58.12\00:51:01.39
Testament, the
truth about Jesus.
00:51:01.59\00:51:03.06
This truth reveals to
us a God who being in form
00:51:03.26\00:51:09.20
with God, being equal with God
00:51:09.40\00:51:11.23
did not think it robbery...
something to be held on to...
00:51:11.43\00:51:13.90
but came down to our
level via Philippians chapter 2.
00:51:14.10\00:51:18.54
Let's just close out
there in Philippians chapter 2
00:51:18.74\00:51:20.68
and we'll begin with verse 5.
00:51:21.04\00:51:22.84
We've looked at verse 5
and 6 of Philippians chapter 2
00:51:23.04\00:51:25.81
but we're going to look now
at the rest of this declaration
00:51:26.01\00:51:29.45
that Paul makes in
Philippians chapter 2.
00:51:29.65\00:51:31.55
Starting with verse 5 we're
going to read all the way down
00:51:33.02\00:51:35.59
in Philippians
chapter 2 to verse 11.
00:51:35.79\00:51:38.39
Because this is a
summary if you will
00:51:38.59\00:51:40.93
of the history of
the plan of salvation.
00:51:41.13\00:51:44.07
And these verses
include all of us in a sense.
00:51:44.47\00:51:47.24
Philippians chapter 2
beginning with verse 5:
00:51:47.44\00:51:49.80
"Let this mind be in you which
was also in Christ Jesus. "
00:51:50.51\00:51:53.31
What kind of mind
did Christ Jesus have?
00:51:53.51\00:51:54.98
"Who being in the form of God
00:51:55.18\00:51:56.81
thought it not robbery to be
00:51:57.01\00:51:58.35
equal with God, but made Himself
00:51:58.38\00:51:59.81
of no reputation. "
00:52:00.02\00:52:01.55
He emptied Himself.
00:52:01.75\00:52:03.08
"and took upon Him
the form of a servant
00:52:03.12\00:52:05.09
and was made in the likeness
00:52:05.29\00:52:06.62
of men.
00:52:06.65\00:52:08.56
And being found and fashioned
00:52:08.76\00:52:10.09
as a man He humbled Himself
00:52:10.13\00:52:11.46
and became obedient unto death
00:52:11.63\00:52:13.63
even the death of the cross. "
00:52:13.83\00:52:16.36
Here we have if
you will a summary
00:52:16.56\00:52:19.13
of this wonderful
truth of who Christ is
00:52:19.33\00:52:21.50
and who Christ became.
00:52:21.70\00:52:23.04
We are confused many times
as we look at the manifestation
00:52:23.07\00:52:26.37
of Christ in
humanity and we think: "Well,
00:52:26.57\00:52:28.08
He was a man.
Created, formed, born as a man
00:52:28.28\00:52:33.15
from Mary... He can't be
God because He was a man.
00:52:33.35\00:52:36.75
How can He be God? "
00:52:36.95\00:52:38.29
Well, we have to go
to the divine revelation.
00:52:38.32\00:52:41.19
We can't trust in our own
feelings, our own thoughts,
00:52:41.39\00:52:44.33
our own wisdom. We
have to trust in the wisdom
00:52:44.53\00:52:47.00
of God and the
wisdom of the Bible.
00:52:47.20\00:52:48.80
And the Bible tells us
that Christ indeed was equal
00:52:49.00\00:52:51.80
with the Father, and He
didn't count it something to be
00:52:52.00\00:52:54.14
grasped on to, to
be held on to, but He
00:52:54.34\00:52:55.70
emptied Himself of that
divinity and He became a man.
00:52:55.90\00:52:58.84
He was the God-Man and He wants
us to have that same mindset.
00:52:59.04\00:53:02.44
You know, we were
made in the image of God.
00:53:02.84\00:53:04.18
We were created to be
like God but we've fallen.
00:53:04.38\00:53:06.82
And yet Satan promised us
in the Garden of Eden that
00:53:07.02\00:53:09.88
we would be gods.
00:53:10.09\00:53:11.42
And many of us are seeking
to be gods in our own right...
00:53:11.45\00:53:14.29
relying on our own wisdom,
00:53:14.79\00:53:16.73
relying on our own strength,
00:53:16.93\00:53:18.93
relying on our own understanding
00:53:19.13\00:53:21.23
and not relying on the
wisdom and the strength and the
00:53:21.43\00:53:24.33
understanding that God
gives us in Jesus Christ.
00:53:24.53\00:53:26.30
And God is calling
us to be like Christ.
00:53:26.70\00:53:28.50
To have the mind of
Christ... to humble ourselves.
00:53:28.70\00:53:31.01
Notice what it says
here: to humble ourselves
00:53:31.21\00:53:33.21
and to be like the One who
became obedient even unto death.
00:53:33.41\00:53:36.98
Who came in the likeness of
man; who was found and fashioned
00:53:37.18\00:53:39.75
as a man, who humbled
Himself to be a servant of man.
00:53:39.95\00:53:43.39
And then it says: "He humbled
Himself even to the death
00:53:43.59\00:53:47.62
of the cross. " Jesus
Christ went all the way
00:53:47.82\00:53:51.03
down to the place where
He needed to be in order to
00:53:51.23\00:53:54.50
rescue us from sin and
from sin's consequences.
00:53:54.70\00:53:58.23
And then it says in verse 9:
00:53:58.43\00:53:59.77
"Wherefore God also
has highly exalted Him
00:53:59.80\00:54:03.10
and given Him a name
which is above every name
00:54:03.30\00:54:05.74
that at the name of Jesus
00:54:05.94\00:54:08.31
every knee should bow
00:54:08.51\00:54:09.84
of things in
heaven and things in earth
00:54:10.01\00:54:12.25
and things under the earth.
00:54:12.45\00:54:13.78
And that every tongue should
00:54:13.82\00:54:15.15
confess that
Jesus Christ is Lord
00:54:15.18\00:54:17.55
to the glory of
God the Father. "
00:54:17.75\00:54:20.56
It is the glory of God
00:54:20.96\00:54:23.16
to confess that
Jesus Christ is Lord;
00:54:23.36\00:54:25.13
that Jesus Christ is
One equal with the Father.
00:54:25.33\00:54:27.30
It is the glory of
God because Jesus Christ
00:54:27.50\00:54:29.96
came to reveal the
Father. Jesus Christ is one with
00:54:30.17\00:54:33.23
the Father. He is the
one God with the Father
00:54:33.44\00:54:36.00
and the Holy Spirit.
This is not polytheism...
00:54:36.20\00:54:38.64
This is monotheism.
This is recognizing that when
00:54:38.84\00:54:41.04
you've seen Jesus
you've seen the Father.
00:54:41.24\00:54:43.11
And when the Holy Spirit
comes He comes to show us Jesus.
00:54:43.51\00:54:45.58
They are all one in
heart. They are one in
00:54:45.78\00:54:48.02
mind, They are one in character,
They are one in purpose,
00:54:48.22\00:54:50.62
They are the one God.
And it would glorify God
00:54:50.82\00:54:53.49
for us to recognize that
00:54:53.69\00:54:55.02
and to recognize
why Christ had to come.
00:54:55.06\00:54:56.99
Why the Father
had to send His Son.
00:54:57.19\00:54:59.63
Why God had to be incarnate
because one equal with the law
00:54:59.83\00:55:03.03
had to die as a consequence of
our transgression of that law.
00:55:03.23\00:55:07.44
One equal with the
glory of God had to die
00:55:07.64\00:55:10.31
as a consequence of us falling
short of the glory of God.
00:55:10.51\00:55:13.27
And that's exactly
what Jesus Christ has done.
00:55:13.48\00:55:15.54
And one day every
knee is going to bow
00:55:15.74\00:55:17.91
and every tongue
is going to confess
00:55:18.31\00:55:20.12
that Jesus Christ is Lord
to the glory of God the Father.
00:55:20.32\00:55:22.58
Every knee! Every tongue!
00:55:22.78\00:55:24.12
Even Satan Himself
will eventually bow
00:55:24.32\00:55:26.89
and confess this
truth. But friends,
00:55:27.09\00:55:28.82
I'm appealing to you right now
00:55:29.02\00:55:30.76
let's confess this
truth while probation lingers.
00:55:30.96\00:55:35.00
Let's confess this
truth now while Jesus Christ
00:55:35.20\00:55:37.63
is in the heavenly
sanctuary ministering for us
00:55:37.83\00:55:40.27
proffering His
righteousness, His merit
00:55:40.67\00:55:43.71
in the place of our sins.
00:55:43.91\00:55:45.57
Taking from us the
consequences of those sins:
00:55:45.77\00:55:48.54
death, eternal
death, the second death
00:55:48.74\00:55:50.55
and giving to us the
gift of eternal life.
00:55:50.75\00:55:53.25
Friends: I'm asking,
I'm pleading with you
00:55:53.65\00:55:55.15
to accept the gift that God has
given us in His only begotten
00:55:55.55\00:55:58.89
Son Jesus Christ, One
who is equal with the Father.
00:55:59.09\00:56:01.59
Accept the message of the Bible,
00:56:01.99\00:56:03.39
the Old and the New Testament.
00:56:03.59\00:56:04.93
Don't rely upon your wisdom.
Don't rely upon the wisdom
00:56:04.96\00:56:06.93
of others but rely on
the truth of God's Word.
00:56:07.13\00:56:10.17
This is my final
appeal... the final appeal
00:56:10.57\00:56:12.93
of this first
presentation of this Summer 3ABN
00:56:13.13\00:56:16.71
Camp Meeting that
is all about Jesus
00:56:16.91\00:56:19.31
and who Jesus is.
00:56:19.51\00:56:20.84
And the appeal that
I am making to you is:
00:56:20.94\00:56:23.08
bow now and confess now
00:56:23.28\00:56:25.55
that Jesus Christ is Lord.
00:56:25.75\00:56:27.82
Father in heaven, we
are asking that You would
00:56:28.02\00:56:30.09
please speak to each
and every person out there,
00:56:30.29\00:56:32.05
each and every listener
right now wherever they are.
00:56:32.25\00:56:34.12
In whatever country they are
and wherever their hearts are at
00:56:34.32\00:56:36.86
we're asking that
You would please, Father,
00:56:37.06\00:56:39.69
please draw their
knees in submission to You.
00:56:39.89\00:56:43.93
Draw their hearts
in submission to You,
00:56:44.13\00:56:45.73
in submission to this
truth that is revealed
00:56:45.93\00:56:48.50
throughout Scripture -
Old and New Testament -
00:56:48.70\00:56:50.54
of who Jesus is:
eternal God. Do this for them,
00:56:50.74\00:56:54.58
do this for us we pray
00:56:54.78\00:56:56.11
and thank you. In
Jesus' name, Amen.
00:56:56.24\00:56:59.78
His body was broken
so that we could live
00:57:02.52\00:57:06.99
giving us the
gift of eternal life.
00:57:07.39\00:57:09.59
He pursues us relentlessly
with an everlasting love.
00:57:11.26\00:57:15.26
Regardless of our
failures and mistakes
00:57:16.36\00:57:19.20
the One who
loves us like no other.
00:57:19.90\00:57:23.20
THIS is who Jesus IS.
00:57:24.54\00:57:27.48