0:00
Well, how about we stand all up and start singing about Jesus? That's a clunky introduction but I was wondering out and around. Just got up here. So, victory in Jesus. We're going sing hymn number three fifty three.
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If you'd like to sing your part and this is a good one.
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Good morning, everybody. Good morning.
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Unity in Christ, right? Here we go. Let's join our voices.
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I heard an old, old story how a savior came from glory how he gave his life on Calvary to save a wretch like me I heard about his groaning of his precious blood's atoning then I repented of my sins and won the victory Oh, victory in Jesus, my savior forever. He sought me and bought me with his redeeming he loved me air I knew him and all my love is to him he plunged me to victory beneath the cleansing flood And then I cried, dear Jesus, come and heal my broken spirit. And somehow, Jesus came and brought to me the victory. Oh, victory in Jesus, my savior forever. He sought me and bought me with his redeeming blood.
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He loved me ere I knew him, and all my love is due him. He plunged me to victory beneath the cleansing flood. I heard about a mansion he has built for me in glory. And I heard about the streets of gold beyond the crystal sea about the angels singing the old redemption story and some sweet day I'll sing up there song of victory amen oh victory in Jesus my savior forever he sought me and bought me with his redeeming blood he loved me and all my love is to him he plunged me to victory beneath the cleansing blood Amen. Amen.
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That sounds like y'all mean it.
3:42
They were all singing good on that one. That's awesome.
3:44
What a day that will be. Hymn number seven sixty two if you wanna find your part. I'm seeing some hymnals. I'm seeing people holding hymnals. That's great.
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Sing it out loud.
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Let's hear you from the back.
4:00
There is coming a day when no heartache shall come. No more clouds in the sky. No more tears to dim the eye. All is peace forevermore on that happy golden shore. What a day, glorious day that will be.
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What a day that will be when my Jesus I shall see when I look upon his face the one who saved me by his grace when he takes me by the hand and leads me to the promised land what a day glorious day that will be me by the hand and leads me through the promised land what a day glorious day that will be
5:50
Amen. Y'all can have a seat. Got a few announcements this morning. The first one is that summer nursery is available downstairs in both services. Ages zero to five and new the new nursing room is downstairs too.
6:04
If you would like to or are able to be a part of taking care of the nursery sometimes, it would increase the size of our pool of volunteers. Would you please get in touch with Bailey, Morley, or if Bailey's not here, Blake, would you raise your hand? Get in touch with Blake. He will direct you to his wife, Bailey. Thank you, Blake.
6:24
Monday nights at First B are happening at 06:00 tomorrow night. Meal music and a message. Eric Watt is actually going to be speaking. So, he's always interesting. He's speaking here tonight at 07:00.
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Eric Watt will be here to talk about reaching unreached nations and what's going on in the world and I told the first service that the sermon contains a lot of difficult and hard news. His talk tonight will be God's glorious gospel breaking through in some very difficult and hard places. So, bad news this morning, good news this night. So, 07:00. Aren't you glad you're here now?
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But Eric's always interested and always fun and then tomorrow night, he'll have a different tack to take on Monday nights. Meal music and a message tomorrow and on the meal part, Felix Felix and Guadalupe are making Mexican food. So, that's a draw. Meal music and a message should be good tomorrow night. That's at six.
7:22
So, do you know what old Bills is? A lot of y'all are local and you know what old Bills Fun Run is. Is there anybody here who doesn't? Yes, there are a few. Old Bills, Dave O'Shea, would you explain?
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No, I'm just kidding. I'm just joking, Dave. Sorry. Sorry about that. Dave was, I actually, people compare my announcements to your announcements all the time.
7:45
They like yours much better. Yes. Old Bills is a time of year where we get together and there's a five ks run and it's a great time for the whole community to come together but leading up to that event, all of the non profit organizations in town start raising funds and we say through old bills. You can give through old bills to the Community Foundation of Jackson Hole. They have challengers and co challengers and mister and miss old Bill who are very philanthropic people who have given and they want to amplify the giving of to community foundations in Jackson Hole.
8:23
So, that's why we have so many non profit organizations in this town. So, if you want to give to, let's say, the Good Samaritan Mission, you can give straight to them or you can give through old bills and it will amplify that dollar to say a dollar 75 or a dollar 45. Some years, it's been $2. So you give a dollar straight to Good Samaritan, it's just a dollar. If you give it through the Community Foundation, it amplifies the gift.
8:47
The same way with Turning Point. So Turning Point has set is set up with old bills so that if you wanna give to Turning Point Pregnancy Resource Center and you give directly to us, great. Thank you. That's a dollar. But if you give it through old bills, it can be a dollar 75, a dollar 80, maybe $2 Depends.
9:05
Each year we see, but it's an amplification of giving. Also, for first beat. So, there are some rules about how you use these funds, but what we use the old bills funds for is local benevolence. I don't know how many of you know how much we are able to help with people that are just having a hard time, but we have lots of people come through here who need help. They need a bus ticket, they need gas money, they need help catching up on the rent, whatever, and we can use the old Bills money to help those people to be able to say yes.
9:37
They're coming into a church in need and for them to ask and for us to be able to say yes. That's the blessing of Old Bills for this church, okay? The local benevolence fund is funded through Old Bills. So, if you would like to help out with people who are having difficult time and give Diane and me the ability to be able to say yes, write a check, or buy a meal, help out. Then, Old Bills Fun Run, please give through the Community Foundation and just write it down that it is for First B for our Benevolence Fund.
10:08
And they know us. If you give to First B, that's the direction it's going. Are there any questions? Dave, how'd I do? Sorry.
10:17
Well, actually, Chris, Darren, and a couple other guys, they are instead of just kinda giving through it. Do you wanna say something, Chris, about this? We've got lots of this today. Why not? Yeah.
10:29
Sorry. I'm making
10:30
it fast.
10:31
The young adult group is running the race in order to raise money for the local benevolence fund and we are looking to see if the gauge general interest in a t shirt for the race. If you are interested, let me know today so we know whether or not to go forward with it.
10:47
Okay.
10:47
That's
10:47
it. Perfect. Thank you very much. You're welcome. And Lagoon.
10:54
There's a trip that's going down to Lagoon. They're leaving on Friday, this coming Friday and they'll be back on Saturday. The deadline for letting Renzy know that you want to go is tomorrow. So, call Renzy tomorrow, tonight, tomorrow and you could still get in on that trip. There are about 30 people that are going down to Lagoon.
11:13
They're going to camp out in the Lagoon Campground and then they'll be coming back on Saturday the next day. For all other announcements, you can check-in your bulletin. I do have a couple other people that I'd like to call up. One of them is John Burke or actually John and Ally if you'd like to come on up together. We support lots of missionaries and y'all know that but you don't always get a chance to see em because they live on the other side of the world.
11:40
So, I'll let them introduce themselves and what they do.
11:43
Hey, we're John and Allie Burke and we thought we'd introduce our kids. Brian and Kelly, will you guys stand up in the back? These are our kids Brian and Kelly and we're here visiting with the McDaniels which has been really fun this week.
11:56
So we are over in Central well right now we're here. But we have been the last a little bit over two years over in Central Asia. It was our first term over there, so we're spending a lot of time learning the language, getting to know the culture, getting to know the people there. The, country we're in is about 30,000,000 people and the main population of the country is in the 90% Muslim over there. And so we have been getting to know them, learning their language.
12:27
It has been a challenge learning the language, but a really big blessing to learn the language and to see the people react just with heartfelt thank yous. The people over there have been oppressed for years, going way back to Soviet times and even before that, just by strong leaders who have constantly just oppressed the people. And a couple things that are Renzi and Carr were asking, what is it like to reach out to them? What is it like what are the people like? They are just long suffering people.
12:57
I think one of the first things I noticed and I shared with them was when we were riding in a taxi and there's like 20 cars waiting to turn left. And every time a car or two will go all the way by the 20 cars, pull right in front of this line of 20 cars and just stop there. And the people do not say a word about it at all. I have never seen anybody honk at it, do anything like that. I'm like, that would not fly in America at all.
13:24
They just are made to And they pride themselves on being able to endure. And that's a great thing that's there. They're they're enduring, but they're also they are Muslim. And Ray's gonna talk about Romans here today. And I was reading through, as he had mentioned, he wanted you guys to read through Romans nine through eleven and ten just struck my heart with them a lot.
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Because when they when they do hit the problems and when they see that they need stuff, they turn back. It's a secular country, but they turn back to their roots, their their the Islam roots, and they work they try to do the works. And so the very first passage which said, they are they are zealous for God, but they have not and they're zealously seeking of righteousness, but they have not attained it because they did not try to attain it through faith, but instead as if it was by works. And so then later on it talks about how everyone who calls upon the name of the Lord can be saved, but how can they be saved if no one is going there to tell them? And so that's my heart, is just to be there to tell them.
14:31
And that's what I'd ask you if you're gonna pray for our country in Central Asia. We can Allison would love to meet you afterwards, and we can tell you exactly which country that is, afterwards. But right, there are not that many people there. In a country of about 30,000,000 people, there's eight or nine western missionaries there working right now. One of them is retiring, and five of them are new.
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We're the most senior out of the five new ones, having just been there about two and a half years. So God's working. He's bringing more people, but we really do need more people to reach 30,000,000.
15:04
Yeah.
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People with if you like math, there's about maybe maybe 5,000 believers which puts it as point oh 125% evangelical. But we've gotten to know some of the believers there and they are just wonderful people and we'd love to see that grow.
15:23
Thank you. Thank you very much, John. John and I were in Greek classes all the way. We went through seminary altogether. So, he's just as much a grammar nerd as I am.
15:37
At the end. Okay. At the end. Would you stand and greet one another and at some point try to catch up with John and Ali over there. Would you stand and greet one another?
15:46
We'll bring you back together with a song, okay?
15:48
Our need for Jesus. I'd rather have him than anything. That's it's good to sing this song and remind ourselves how important he should be in our life. And we'll gather and sing this. Five zero six if you wanna use your hymnal.
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Hymn number five zero six.
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I'd rather have Jesus in silver or gold I'd rather be his than have riches untold I'd rather have Jesus than houses or lands I'd rather be led by his nail pierced hand than to be a king of a vast domain and be held in sins dread sway I'd rather have Jesus than anything this world than I'd rather be faithful to his his dear cause. I'd rather have Jesus than worldwide fame. I'd rather be true to his holy name than to be the king of the vast domain this world affords today. He's fairer than lilies of rarest bloom. He's sweeter than honey from the out the coon.
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He's all that my hungering spirit needs. I'd rather have Jesus than let him lead than to be a king of a vast domain and be held in sins dread sway. I'd rather have Jesus than anything this world affords today
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Amen. And now we'll go to hymn number five sixty three. Open my eyes that I may see. That's our sincere prayer, lord. That you would open our eyes and let us see what you have for us this morning.
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Open my eyes that I may see glimpses of truth thou hast for me place in my hands the wonderful key that shall unclasp and set me free. Silently now, I wait for thee. Ready, my God, I will to see open my eyes illuminate spirit divine open my ears that I may hear voices of truth thou soundest clear and while the wave notes fall on my ear everything false will disappear. Silently now, I wait for thee. Ready, my God, thy will to see.
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Open my ears, illumine me, spirit, divine. Open my mouth and let me bear
21:33
Y'all can have a seat. Can I get the frontline team to come forward, please? Lord God, you are an amazing, amazing God. We love you and we're thankful lord as the week progressed this week. We had very very hard things happen in the lives of many of the people of this church.
21:59
But lord, through it, I saw them draw closer to you and to one another and so God for Russ and Yvonne Wood, we pray for your comfort, for your strength, for your love, for them to recognize you in the midst of an incredible, difficult, tragic situation. We thank you lord that Bonnie had the good pleasure of attending Bible studies and even more so here recently and that she was in love with you that you had rekindled that desire in her heart. God, I thank you that she had the presence of mind to tell her mama that that she loved you, that she was glad to be praying and being in contact with you. Her passing affects all of us in this valley and I'm seeing so many circles that are overlapping, Lord. Would you, Lord, the downtrodden and the ones who are hurt?
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Would you have your way in the life of that family and all of the related families? God, say that that's where it started. There was also a joyous celebration for going home for Johnny Miller here yesterday that was full of joy and excitement as she passed. God, weddings, the whole of human experience we've experienced this week. God, thank you for all that you've done for us.
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Thank you for all that you've given us. We thank you that every good and perfect gift is from above. We recognize you, lord. We recognize the comfort that the gospel gives. It's a very different thing, lord, when you know Jesus.
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So God, would you, right now, accept back some of what you've given to us. We're putting in our in this plate, some of our resources, lord, that you have entrusted to us. We want to acknowledge you. We want to recognize your comfort and your peace and your love and we want to spread that in this community to those who do not know, in this state, in this country, but Lord, to the uttermost parts of the world. In the rocky hills of Central Asia, Lord, We want your gospel to be planted.
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Would you take this money and amplify it? Multiply it. To do your work. Jesus, you said, I will build my church. Take this and do that.
24:37
In Jesus name, amen. Alright. This last week cracked me up when I put this up here on the screen. A kiosk to construction. What could be a greater number one point?
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You know, get em draw em in with something really exciting and great story. Kiesta Construction. I love this. I am a grammar nerd. John was in a lot of the same classes that I was and when you're looking in seminary for what is the main point?
27:39
I mean, when you get up to preach, what do you wanna preach? You wanna preach the main point? Well, the main point sometimes is elusive especially since we preach thirty minute messages these days. The first time this letter was read, you know, Phoebe carries it from where Paul wrote it to Rome and delivers it and when it gets there, they read it. The whole thing, all 16 chapters of it.
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They read it. They would have studied it more than that but they read it out loud. Well, we don't do that anymore and if I tried to get through the passage, we're trying to get through today and didn't give you a hope for a a bigger point after that, it would be a difficult message to give, I think. So, I've explained kiosk at construction. That's where you go A, B, B, A.
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It actually may be better. Look at it this way. There's A, B, C, D would be your central point. It's a very Hebrew way of thinking. In Genesis, there's one after another of these.
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If you look into em, they're one after another. I used one as an example last week. The central point is this middle point right there and then, it's kind of a mirror image away from it. Now, last week, we covered the two underlying portions. I said, I'm gonna cover the A passage this week.
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So, that is the introduction with Paul's empathy and sorrow because his countrymen had not accepted the gospel that they were lost. And he said, he feels such deep, deep, emotional grief for their being lost and not accepting what's right there. All of the scriptures point towards it but they just can't get it. He says, I would that I were even a cursed so that they might know. I would give up my own relationship if it meant that all of them would know but that's not possible.
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Paul, the sinful man, he had either to pay his sin debt or accept the payment that Christ made for him and he knows and he is proclaiming Christ everywhere but if they reject it, they've rejected it. So, the next portion here and I did say, but we end up with all good theology should end in doxology. All good theology should end in a praise to God. So, at the end of chapter 11, we went over that too where he was praising God for his ways that are unsearchable and no one unknowable but they were gracious and glorious and glory to God forever. Amen.
30:06
So, those two portions we covered last week and I pointed you towards the center which is whoever calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. Whoever believes in his heart, confesses with his mouth, believes that God raised Jesus from the dead, will be saved. So, salvation is the center point of this message but Romans nine is a difficult passage. So, I ask you to read nine, ten, and 11. Y'all said that you would.
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Close in prayer. I ask that y'all would have it illuminated for you this week. Did you read it? Did you read it? I see a lot of bobbin heads in this one.
30:40
Thank you very much. Guests, I know that y'all didn't know that this was your assignment. So, hold on for this bumpy ride. This is kind of the way that it goes. Is it God's fault is the the section we're going to cover today and there's another section that mirrors that towards the end.
30:58
Is it God's fault in chapter 11? Next would be, is it Israel's fault? And then this great statement that whoever believes will be saved and then, he walk moves away from it to ask if it's Israel's fault. Again, same thing. It's a mirror image.
31:15
That's what it looks like. Diane said, you cannot use that slide. Nobody can read that slide. I'm giving you the map from, you know, the 30,000 foot view. So last week, we covered a and a.
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This week, we're only gonna cover the yellow part b. But know that we've got C and D next week and the central passage here is that if you confess with your mouth, Jesus says, lord, believe in your heart that God has raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For the heart of person believes, resulting in righteousness and with the mouth, he confesses, resulting in salvation. That's the center part that you have to think about, okay? I almost gave you the answers.
31:57
Sorry. So, the B section, here we are and I'll call this B one because I'm not going to put you through all of chapter eleven one through 32. We'll just do the first part right now. Some people have seen in this kiosk that construction that the first part of the B part is talking about the past, the central section about the gospel is talking about the present and that latter section in 11 is about the future of Israel in particular, okay? So, past, present, future, if that's a helpful way for you to look at it, I think it's somewhat helpful.
32:29
That's why I shared. So, six starts off this way. Right after Paul saying, oh that I could get them to understand this message because to Israel belong, the prophets and the word of God and the patriarchs and the Messiah is coming through their line and then he says, but I will say this, it's not as though the word of God has failed. Amen. Around these mountains in a wedding yesterday.
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They say, oh, we want to be out. We want to do a wedding in front of the mountain so we can see and I think, man, yes, that's good. It's beautiful but you know what? Even though the mountains crumble into the sea, the word of God endures forever. It's more sure than the grand.
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It's more sure than any of these buttes around here. It's not as though the word of God has failed. For they are not all Israel who are descended from Israel. Well, that's quite a statement. Paul speaking to a church that is of Christians that some are of the Gentile flavor, some are of the Jewish flavor, and have understanding about thing the things of Israel but they've been saved through one lord and he is writing to Christians.
33:46
So, this is supposed to be comforting, okay? For they are not all Israel who are descended from Israel. He's saying that the ethnic line from Israel or Jacob is not all Israel. It's flatly stated and I told you last week or asked you last week, take off your political lenses for a little while and just try to follow the logic through this. A lot of us already know what we think about this passage.
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Try to get out of that for a minute and see what it says, alright? For they are not all Israel who are descended from Israel nor are they all children because they're Abraham's descendants. But the scripture says, through Isaac, your descendants will be named. So, we have Abraham and his wife is Sarah and God tells Abraham that you're going to have a son and Sarah and Abraham get together and say, I don't think that's gonna happen. But maybe this is what he meant.
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The natural way for this to happen is just take my maid, Sarah Hagar. So Hagar has Ishmael. So, that's one of the sons of Abraham, right? Nor are they all children because they're Abraham's descendants but through Isaac, your descendants will be named. That is, it is not the children of the flesh who are the children of God but the children of the promise are regarded as descendants.
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So, after Ishmael, God said, nope, that's not it. That's not the one. And he said that he would give Sarah a son and that son is Isaac and so if you follow God's promise to Abraham to have a son, it was not just a child of the flesh in the normal way, man's way. It was a child of the promise which was very much not the norm. For this is the word of the promise.
35:39
At this time, I will come and Sarah shall have a son. So, the line of God's promise with Abraham and Sarah is through Isaac and then Paul keeps on going. He says, this is God's way, God's promise and it is because of what God decreed. Now, Abraham is just a man one around the desert like everybody else, right? And God chooses him and says, Abraham, Abraham, Lee, go, leave the land that you know and go to a place that I will show you.
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And Abraham believed God. He left the land that he knew and he went to the place that God would show him. He believed God. Paul has already used in Romans in chapter four. He's explained that it was that believing God, trusting him is God's way.
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And then Abraham saw some pretty amazing things. Sarah having a baby in her old age. Isaac was God's child of the promise. Politically, you can get into everything else if you try to. I'm not going to get into it but Ishmael and all that.
36:42
Not only this but there was Rebecca also. So, he's got one where, okay, there's there are two kids. One of them is not the child of promise. It's just the normal way kids are born and then the other one is the child of promise based on what God had said and decreed. Not only this but now, think about this too.
37:00
Rebecca also, when she had conceived twins by one man. So, this is the same one. She's in the line. It's Isaac's wife. She's in this line of God's blessing and promise and now she has twins by one man, our father Isaac.
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Now, Isaac and Rebecca are having twins. They got, obviously, you're to have an older brother and a younger brother even if they're really closely related. I've never seen two of em coming out coming out of exactly the same time. This is pretty close. One of em holding on to the heel of the other.
37:27
That's pretty close. The twins were not yet born and had not done anything good or bad so that God's purpose according to his choice would stand not because of works. God's proven a point here. It's not because of what you've done. It's not because of what you haven't done, not because of works, but because of him who calls.
37:50
It was said to her and God's told this to Rebecca that the older one will serve the younger. Is that the normal way? Is that the man's way? It is not. Traditions of the time, that was not the way.
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So, we have Isaac and Rebecca. They have Esau and Jacob. Esau's older brother. Jacob's a younger younger brother but the older shall serve the younger and that's God's decree. That's what he said.
38:13
That's the way it is. Now, God didn't have to save anybody, did he? We've already covered three times in Romans that all of us are guilty before God. No one is righteous. No, not one.
38:23
He didn't have to save anybody but he makes a choice to bless peoples. Actually, he says, to bless all the peoples of the world in Abraham, he's making a choice to start somewhere. I asked you last week to put yourself in that position. If you had a whole world full of people that needed saving, how would you do it? I'm glad I'm not God.
38:49
Paul is defending God's decree. He's defending God's choice. It was said that the older will serve the younger just as it is written, Jacob I love but Esau I hated. Right there, the radio just stops for me. It's like, that's, wait a minute, Jacob I loved, I can stand but be Esau I hated.
39:11
God is love. God loves everybody. How can this be? When I told you to read nine, ten, and 11, it's so you don't have to stop at places like this. Unless you get to the next place where it says, whoever calls upon the name of the Lord will be saved.
39:25
Just as it is written, Jacob I love but Esau I hated and I just go, Well, that's a quote and the quote is from Malachi. Malachi is the last of the minor prophets. It's right before the intertestamental silence. It's four hundred years between the Old Testament and New Testament. Malachi is the last of the prophets that God has spoken through and the word of the Lord, the first verse says, the oracle of the word of the Lord to Israel through Malachi.
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Malachi is the prophet. God is speaking to his people, Israel and he says this, I have loved you. Oh, that's a good feeling. I'm one of God's chosen people and he's telling me he love me. Thank thank God.
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That's a good way to start off, Malachi. Thank you for that pleasant message. I have loved you, says the Lord but you respond. How have you loved us? What have you done for us lately?
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What are you saying? God, I have loved you. Was not Esau Jacob's brother, declares the Lord? Well, yeah. Esau was Jacob's brother.
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Spit on the ground. Esau was Jacob's brother and God is saying, I have loved you. Are you not recognizing that I love you? Well, how have you loved us? Tell us.
40:49
What have you done for us lately? Well, think about this. Was not Esau Jacob's brother? Yeah. In the line of blessing did not go through Esau.
40:57
No. But it went through Jacob. The one you look back to, your father, Israel. Yet, I have loved Jacob but I've hated Esau. Now, love and hate.
41:07
I I I still have a hard time with it but they are exact opposites. He's saying there's a big big difference between the one that God chose the line to go through and the one that he did not. He did not do man's way. He did God's way. He did a declaration.
41:21
He declared it. He decreed it and he said, I have loved Jacob but I've hated Esau. There was a divided line. There was a split right there and I've made his mountains a desolation and I've appointed his inheritance for the jackals of the wilderness. Though Edom, that's Esau's descendants.
41:40
Edom says, we have been beaten down but we will return and build up the ruins. Thus, says the Lord of hosts. They may build up but I will tear down. And men will call them the wicked territory and the people toward whom the Lord is indignant forever. Your eyes will see this and you will say, the Lord be magnified beyond the border of Israel.
42:03
He's saying that the blessing of God is going has been going through Jacob and they're disillusioned at this point. They feel beaten down too. Jacob's people, Israel feels pretty bad. They have actually begun to offer blind animals. They don't care what they're given.
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They don't care how they're given. If you hear a service sermon on Malachi, it's almost always going to be about giving because they were not giving of their best. They had ceased to really care about God. There was a remnant but they had ceased to really care. The Lord be magnified beyond the border of Israel.
42:39
Does that sound like something Israel would say? Does that sound like something Jacob would say? For the most part, we always see Israel in the Old Testament gathering up and hoarding the blessing of God. In general, that's the way they do and we see that it's not God's way. He said, I'm blessing you to be a blessing to all the nations but it's not usually the way things go.
42:57
They build a fence around it and they hold it in and he's saying that seeing the downcast, Edom, being beaten down, seeing them, you can, hey, hey, hey. That's great. God cursed them. Woo hoo. He's saying, it's going to be so bad for them that your eyes will see it and you, my people, Israel, are going to see it and say, may the Lord be magnified outside of the borders of Israel.
43:23
Outside of just me, my four, and no more, outside of just this church right here, you're going to see how bad it is for other people and you're going to want to magnify me to the ends of the earth. Are you with me? Alright. And so, Jacob, I love but Esau hated. So, what shall we say then?
43:44
Think about this. Paul has been preaching Christ and Christ crucified at this point when he writes this letter for about twenty two years. This is not his first rodeo. Everywhere he went in, he went into the synagogue and he started with the Jews and he argued things from a pharisaical line. He argued things from the Old Testament and he argued for the grace of God, for the blessing of all peoples and he argued that Gentiles were always to be included.
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He's been doing this and he gets shot down and then he goes to the Gentiles and they accept Christ. They weren't even looking for Christ. He says in chapter 11. So, right here, what shall we say then? There's no injustice with God, is there?
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Well, answer the question. Is there any injustice with God? God is just. God is love. There is no injustice with God, is there?
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Meganoito. May it never be. Absolutely not. Perish the thought. Can't even think that way.
44:38
Whatever God does is just but Paul just said up in one through five, he said, oh, I see it too and I hurt for them but they haven't accepted God's way. But God's not unjust. God is just For he said to Moses, I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy and I'll have compassion on whom I have compassion. Now, to to read that for me, if I were to stop right there, I'd say, that sounds flippant. I don't like it when God sounds flippant.
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When he just said, spanks to be Esau. I'll have mercy on him. He didn't have to have mercy on anybody. We all deserve righteously his condemnation. All of us do.
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Death, hell, and the grave. That's what we deserve. When he extends mercy, it's on his own prerogative and that's what Paul's trying to show. But I like this. I'm going go back to this.
45:33
That where he said to Moses is in Exodus 33 and then Moses said to the Lord, see, see, lord, you say to me, bring up this people but you you have not let me know whom you will send with me. I'm alone, God. Yet, you have said, I know you by name. This is almighty God knows me by name. Moses saying, I know you by name and you have also found grace in my sight.
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You didn't deserve it but I'm giving you your unmerited favor. And you have also found grace in my sight. Now, therefore, lord, I pray. If I found grace in your sight, show me now your way that I may know you and that I may find grace in your sight. I don't want to get out of this.
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I know that I don't deserve it. I want to live in your grace and consider that this nation is your people. He's praying that the the blessing of God would rest upon his people, Israel and he said, my presence, God is now speaking. My presence will go with you and I will give you rest and there he said to him, if your presence does not go with us, do not bring us up from here. For how then will it be known that your people and I have found grace in your sight except you go with us.
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So, we shall be separate. Your people and I from all the people who are upon the face of the earth. You see the chosen aspect that we're talking about? But there's a chosen aspect of that where they're chosen to be a blessing to other peoples. It's a time thing.
46:59
This has happened all in the past. So, lord said to Moses, I will do this thing that you have spoken for you have found grace in my sight and I know you by name and he said, please lord, show me your glory. This is an earnest prayer from a guy who's scared to do what God's asked him to do but he's doing it anyway. It's a faithful plea and God said, I will make all my goodness pass before you and I will proclaim the name of the Lord before you. I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.
47:33
Now, he says, he's going to proclaim the name of the Lord before the people. Immediately, he says and I will be gracious on who I'll be gracious. I'll have compassion on whom I'll have compassion but he said, you cannot see my face for no man shall see me and live and the Lord said, here's a place by me and you shall stand on the rock so it shall be while my glory passes that I will put you in the cleft of the rock and I'll cover you there with my hand as I pass by. Then, I will take away my hand and you shall see my back but my face shall not be seen. He hideth my soul in the cleft of the rock and shadows me there with his hand.
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This I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious right there does not sound flippant, does it? So then it does not depend on the man who wills. Jacob and Esau is a good argument for that one or the man who runs but on God who has mercy. God is the one who can decree mercy. For the scripture says to Pharaoh, for this very purpose, I raised you up to demonstrate my power in you and that my name might be proclaimed throughout the whole earth.
48:38
Now, God has a purpose in everything that he does and he says right here that his purpose is that his name would be proclaimed throughout the whole earth. Does it sound like God just wants Israel to know him or that he wants every tribe, tongue, and nation to know him. That's what it sounds like to me. The very purpose he raised Pharaoh up was to demonstrate his power through him. That his name might be proclaimed throughout the whole earth.
49:06
So then, think about this, he has mercy on whom he desires and he hardens whom he desires. I think of Billy Graham and his evangelistic messages quite often. And this point, he would come to towards the end of his, he didn't think chastically. It wasn't right in the middle. He he towards the end of his messages, he would always throw it up there and say, this may be the closest that you ever are to salvation.
49:34
If the Holy Spirit is tugging at your heart right now, accept him today because if you harden your heart against him, he may not pass this way again. That's what this is saying. He hardens whom he desires. Now, if you read the passage about Pharaoh and the hardening of the heart, Pharaoh hardens his heart over and over and over and over just because of abstinence and then at some point, it says, and God hardens Pharaoh's heart. If you've ever been addicted to anything, you know that you make the choice, you harden yourself but then, once you're addicted, it is something that is outside of your control and the only way to come back from that is that what?
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Higher power. God. So, all of this, it's not the most joyous sermon I've ever preached. It is good news. It's like boot camp though.
50:25
It's training us for what's coming next. I I mentioned a couple weeks ago, Rudolph Otto has this book called The Idea of the Holy and he defines the concept of holiness as that which is numinous. Mysterium, Tremendum, Ephesians. It is a mystery that is at once terrifying and attractive. So, if you look at that, he has mercy on whom he desires and he hardens whom he desires and he is almighty God.
50:50
That is terrifying. Unless you know him. And then it's attractive to believe that he might show you grace. So, it's at once terrifying and attractive and this is where this whole passage, all of nine, all 11 live right on that place of numinous. So then, he has mercy on whom he desires and he hardens, whom he desires.
51:16
So, you will say to me then, this is the next logical question. I've done this for twenty two years now. Your next thing when I tell you that God is sovereign, you're going to say, well then, why does he still find fault? If you have an argument with somebody this afternoon, they're going to hit this point too. How can he be sovereign hardening and having mercy and yet still hold us accountable?
51:36
For who resist his will? But on the contrary, Paul says, who are you, oh man? Who answers back to God? That reminds me of Job answering back to God. It reminds me of several people answering back to God in scripture.
51:50
On the contrary, who are you, oh man, who answers back to God? The thing molded will not say to the molder. So, this is a pot and a potter. Why did you make me like this? Will it?
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Or does not the potter have a right over the clay to make from the same lump one vessel for honorable use and another for common use? Answer the question, does it? Yeah, Potter can make it however he wants to and he can make it for whatever use he wants to. What if God, although he was willing to demonstrate his wrath and to make his power known, endured with much patience, vessels of wrath that were prepared for destruction. What if he did that?
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Paul's talking in the first century and he's talking about things that happened a couple thousand years ago coming forward. He's talking about the past He says, what if God has shown extreme patience throughout all of this time with these other vessels that were made for wrath? And he did so to make known the riches of his glory upon vessels of mercy. Which he prepared beforehand for glory. Now, his plan is unfolding a little at a time to us but he has known it since the beginning.
53:05
He did so to make known the riches of his glory upon vessels of mercy which he prepared beforehand for glory, even us. Now, he's been talking about the Jews from old time past, the chosen people of God and Israel and most people are probably going with him that it was ethnic Israel. But a lot of those ethnic Israel Christians were sitting in there and feeling like this was a history lesson not so much applying so much to today and if it was, then, man, these Gentiles, what are they going to do? Even us, whom also he called, not from among the Jews only, but also from among the Gentiles. So, Paul is saying the Ecclesia, the called out ones are from the Jews and the Gentiles and he's saying that those are the vessels of mercy.
53:51
He's using more Old Testament quotes to back up his thesis. As he says also in Hosea, another prophet, I will call those who were not my people, my people. The Gentiles were not the people of God, right? But he's saying, I'm going to call em my people and her who was not beloved, I'm going to call beloved and it shall be that in that place where it was said to them, you are not my people, there they shall be called the sons of the living God. John says, 90 something percent are Muslim but they're secular Muslims for the most part.
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It's where they grew up. In that place, they're not the people of God. But it is said that there, they shall be called sons of the living God. Now, when we get into chapter 10, it's going be about proclaiming the message just like John was saying and through proclaiming the simple gospel of Christ and him crucified, whoever calls on the name of the Lord, believes in their heart that God raised him from the dead, confesses with their mouth that Jesus is lord will be saved. They'll be called the sons of the God of God.
54:56
He keeps on with his old testament backing up. Isaiah cries out concerning Israel. Though the number of the sons of Israel be like the sand of the sea, it is but a small portion. The remnant of them that will be saved. Do y'all get that?
55:14
So, out of Israel, a remnant will be saved. They are God's chosen people to carry the Messiah. They're the ones that God chose through Abraham, decreed through Isaac and Jacob. He says, a remnant will be saved. Now, down in the 11 part, he says, remember when the prophet said, oh, I'm the only one that's left.
55:38
The remnant is so small. I'm the only one that's left and God said, there's still 7,000 who haven't bowed the knee to Baal. I've got my remnant. I am still calling. They're still answering.
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But you can't think about Israel as if every single one of them automatically was declared saved. This is what Paul is introducing. They're chosen to carry the message. They have been called. Have they answered that call?
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It is the remnant Isaiah says that will be saved. For the Lord will execute his word on the earth thoroughly and he will execute his word on the earth quickly. And just as Isaiah foretold, unless the Lord of Sabaoth had left to us a posterity and he did. He did leave to them a posterity left to all who believe. Heaven, he left to all who believe abundant life unless the Lord of Sabaoth had left to us a posterity, we would have become like Sodom and would have resembled Gomorrah.
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Are you with me? Are you seeing this is a hard concept to get through? But God can declare the rules. He's the creator. That's just the way that it is but it's not flippant.
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The rules are favorable for anyone who would believe. In fact, if we look at this, is it God's fault? I'll have to say, no. God has not failed Israel. He gave them his decrees.
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He gave them his word. He gave them his favor. He gave them his grace. He gave them gifts. He gave them a calling and those who responded have never been failed.
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Now, we'll get into next week. Is it Israel's fault? Actually, we'll get into this whole section, this center section and concentrate on whoever believes will be saved. That is what God chose from the beginning. God chose the plan by which they would be saved.
57:36
The cross of Christ, the cross of Calvary, and whoever believes on him will not go disappointed. So, there we are. That's how far we've made it through. Little bit more than a quarter. We covered about a quarter of it today and that's probably the deepest mud we'll walk through for the next couple weeks.
57:56
When I got through, a fellow said, this is like boot camp. It's like you're crawling on your face, getting up under this stuff because everybody always goes through these same arguments. When Paul is putting it up there and saying, Jacob, I loved and Esau, I hated. Now, after the fact, you can see that Esau did not respond to God the way that Jacob responded to God. This is what we're going for, that center section that if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is lord, believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.
58:31
That's the center point of all of this. And if you take nine without this, it is heartless and cruel. But since this is the center point of all of this section, It is an open invitation for anyone who would believe. So, a heart with the heart a person believes resulting in righteousness and with the mouth he confesses resulting in salvation and actually, I would say, not just his salvation. Paul is proclaiming the gospel to us since one sixteen.
59:03
He said, I'm not ashamed of the gospel. I've accepted it and it has saved me and I am proclaiming it because it is the power of God unto salvation for all who believe. Jew first but also the Gentile. In Jesus name, would you stand with me? And we'll sing one more song.
59:20
What is it? Thank you, lord. Thank you, lord that you opened the door. That you split the veil. Thank you lord that you have opened this up for the Gentiles, for those who are not your people, that you are calling us to be your people.
59:37
I thank you lord for the soft heart that is present today that may have been hard in the past. I I ask you lord to appeal directly to people. I pray lord that they would cry out, recognize their need, recognize their lack, recognize their sin, and call out for you who give abundantly. And wash away sin. In Jesus name, lord, would you bless us?
1:00:04
Amen.
1:00:13
Thank you lord for saving my soul thank you lord for making me whole thank you lord for giving to me thy great salvation so rich Wanna do it again?
1:00:42
Let's do it again. I don't think I've ever heard that song before. Really? I'm thankful for it.
1:00:46
It's good. Kinda fits your sermon a
1:00:49
little bit, for giving to me thy great salvation so rich and free
1:01:18
Amen. Now, before we go, I'm going to invite the Verberg family up here onto the stage and any elders, whether you're an elder in this church or another church or you have been or you will be. No, not not the will be. If you if you have been, come on forward. If you're a missionary, if you work as a minister in any way in your church, would you come forward?
1:01:36
These folks have been here with us for several years in this valley and we've worshiped together. I've actually been to Kenya. Emily was on a a team of ladies, 19 ladies went to Kenya and I got to supervise kinda and Nate and Emily have been close. They've helped found Timber Ridge Academy. They're dedicated Christian surgeons servants and they, he's not a surgeon, sorry.
1:02:02
They're dedicated Christian servants and they are looking to do what God has for them. They're answering a call to leave this place that they know. Go back to a place that he'll show em business wise, everything else. So, I'd like to, if we can, just kinda grab hold here, put a hand on one of em and I'd like to ask God to bless. God, we thank you that these have called upon your name.
1:02:24
We thank you that they are saved and that they are exuding the fruits of the spirit. Lord, I thank you that you are as they go progressively. Sanctifying them. I pray that you remove any dross and that you draw em close to you lord. I pray that the overflow from this godly marital relationship would have a huge impact on the place that they're going.
1:02:46
I pray that they would be fruitful. Lord, diverse weights and measures are an abomination. The the undertaking that Nate is taking on is an interesting, interesting thing. They're seeking purity and they're seeking to hold corporate America to purity and lord, that's I I can't think of a more difficult task. So, God, as you have been directing and given him impressions upon his heart and his wife too, These kids, I pray that they would grow up in your nurture and admonition and that they would bless the next church home that they would find, that they'd be blessed and filled and integrated into the fabric of life that reaches out for those who don't know you.
1:03:38
In Jesus name, lord. Thank you for Nate and Emily and all that they've been in this community for the time that they've been here. I thank you for all that you've done in and through their lives. God bless. Amen.
1:03:49
Amen. Amen. Say bye bye to em. They're heading out this week, okay? And God, make your face to shine upon us and give us peace.
1:03:58
In Jesus name, amen. Alright. Thank you, man.
