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Speaker 3Good morning everybody. How are you? Good. Would you like to hear a Psalm? How about we stand up while we hear a Psalm?
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It's from Psalm 36 and it says, your love Lord reaches to the heavens and your faithfulness to the skies and your righteousness is like the mighty mountains and your justice like the great deep. You preserve both people and animals. How priceless is your unfailing love oh God, people take refuge in the shadow of your wings. Isn't that a good song? What do you say we sing of it?
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Speaker 2Alright, your love oh Lord and your love oh Lord reaches to the heaven
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Speaker 3Your faithfulness,
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Speaker 2your faithfulness stretches to the sky. And your righteous ness is like the mighty mountain. Your unjust days flows like strength. And I will find my high strength in the shadow of your ways.
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Speaker 1Yeah. Good. Y'all most of y'all beat me here this morning. I was glad to see a full house when I walked in from the office down there. Monday nights are happening this week.
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What's going on, Carl?
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Speaker 3Yep. Yep. We're on tomorrow. Blaze is cooking. There's chicken, mashed potatoes, comfort food, and also a new book we're setting in Colossians.
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Colossians. I'm really excited to share Colossians. It's a great book. So please join us. 06:00 meal, music, message.
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Speaker 1Amen. Thank you, Carl. That's good. Same time right here in this room. We'll start out with Awana.
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We'll start in this room and then move all over the church. Kids matter to God. So it's a kids program from three year olds up through fifth grade, and that's always good. The baby bottle campaign, I have not heard. The baby bottles are still back there in the tub, the galvanized bucket in the back.
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That is for Turning Point Pregnancy Resource Center. It's a major fundraiser they do. A lot of their budget is covered by what comes in in each one of those bottles. So, if you would, grab one of those bottles and bring it back. Full of money for Turning Point.
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That'd be good. We've got a CBS prayer group. It's a Bible study that's happening on Wednesdays at 09:30 in the morning and 06:30 in the evenings and we have some flowers this morning that were they're over here, that were donated by some folks who are coming in from out of town and it's in remembrance of Laura Webster Groton, and I just thought I'd tell you all that. That's what's going on. If you look in the bulletin, sometimes we have little pieces of information like that.
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There are a few things in there that I won't make announcements about today, but grab a bulletin on your way out if you didn't grab one on the way in. You'll see all kinds of interest and little stuff. There is an Israel trip that's coming up March in the end of March and there will be a meeting next week. If you're going on that trip, please do come to that. It'll be in my office in between services or in the church office in between services next Sunday and there's connect hour every Sunday in between services down at the other end of the hall and there's usually breakfast or breakfast like items down there, lots of coffee, and please come on down and connect with other folks and I think that that's everything that I'm supposed to announce.
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Did I forget anything that y'all think I'm supposed to announce? The sheep judge the shepherd right here. No? Alright. Very good.
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Would y'all stand and greet one another and make room for some folks. Make room for some folks to come on in.
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Speaker 2I worship
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Speaker 1you and
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Speaker 2my heart cries glory. Hallelujah. Father, your name. My hope is in you. Let's sing it together.
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My hope is in you, Lord, all the day long. I won't be shaken by drowned over stone. Feast that passes understanding is my song and I sing. My hope is in you alone and I'll wait on you and I'll wait on you. Won't be shaken by dry old song.
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A feast that passes understanding is my song. Right out of Isaiah 40,
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Speaker 3it says, yet those who wait for the Lord will gain new strength. That's good news this morning, isn't
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Speaker 2it?
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Speaker 3They'll mount up with wings like eagles. They'll run and not get tired, and they will walk and not become weary. I thank you, God, for the strength that you provide when you provide it. And sometimes it seems like, oh, goodness. How long when how long must we wait?
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But, Lord, you're there. You're near. You care, and you see us through. And so God we give you thanks as a church family for seeing us through and for giving us the gift of one another to help with that too. Let us not forget that, that we're waiting on you, but we also have the gift of one another to come alongside and shoulder burdens.
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God, may you continue to make us a people who truly care and love one another. In Jesus' name, amen.
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Speaker 2At the sound of your great name. Walking down, feel no shade at the sound Your greatness has known there at the sun. Your great name, yet me ask to leave at the sound. Your great name. Jesus worthy.
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Jesus worthy is the lamb that was there for us. Son of God and man, you are high and lifted up. In all the world, I praise your great Long souls receive grace at the sound of your greatness. The father lives, they find their hands at the sound of your greatness. The sick are here and did our ex pat down to your great name.
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Jesus, worthy is the lamb that was staying for us. Son of God and man, you are high and lifted In all the world, my praise, your great name.
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Speaker 3Sing, redeemer, my healer.
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Speaker 2Redeemer, my healer, healer Lord Almighty, my savior defender you are my king. Redeemer, my healer, Lord Almighty. My cedar defender, you are my king. Jesus, worthy is the lamb that was staying for us. Son of God and man, you are high and lifted All the world might praise your great name.
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Let's sing it again. Jesus worthy. Yes. Jesus
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Speaker 3We praise you, God, for being mighty and strong and loving and caring, able to carry our burdens to see us through. Thank you for Jeremiah here going, there's none like you, oh, Lord. You are great, and your name is great in might. Jesus, there is power in your name. Don't let us forget.
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Don't let us turn away from you, but rather to turn to you, not just in times of of trial and need, but times also that are just good and and and and seem to be trouble free. May we seek you in all things. In Jesus name. Amen.
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Speaker 2My name is graven on his end. My name is written on his heart. I know that while in heaven he stands, Behold him there. Behold him there in the present land. My perfect spot is righteous, a great unchangeable I am, the king of glory and honor.
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One in himself I cannot die. My soul is purchased by his blood. My life is hidden with Christ on high. With Christ my savior and my God. Amen.
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With Christ my savior and my God. Hallelujah. Hallelujah. Hallelujah. Praise the one risen sun.
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Oh, God. Sing that again.
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Speaker 3I thank you God for the cross, for making a way to you, that we can come before you with boldly and with confidence, you say. Thank you, God, for being truly sufficient and sue and truly supreme over all things. Thank you, God, for every good and perfect gift. Everything that's good, that comes from you. And thank you, God, for every blessing, every spiritual blessing, every physical blessing, everything that you give.
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And I pray, God, that our hearts would just be inclined to be generous as you have been generous to us. So would you bless these gifts and these offerings? God, use them to to build up your kingdom all over the world. It would be a it'll be amazing someday to see what these treasures that we're building up in heaven have have gone toward, what they have accomplished. So thank you God for your gifts.
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May we give fully and freely as you have given yourself fully and freely to us in Jesus name. Amen. You can be seated.
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Speaker 2And who would've thought that Lamb could rescue the souls of me. Won't you rescue the souls of A counselor, comforter, keeper, spirit long to embrace. You have hope when our hearts are you are the one we adore you give healing in grace our hearts always hunger for oh our hearts We the one that we praise. You are the one we adore. You give healing grace hearts always hunger for.
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Oh, hearts always hunger for. Let's sing again. You are. You are the one that we praise.
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Speaker 1Amen. Alright, it's time for the children to head down for Peak Children's Church. They're heading down to Peak. Does that make any sense to the rest of y'all? It is.
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It's a high point for sure. Alright. How are you all this morning? Pretty Pretty good. Okay.
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Good. I have been sorting through slides and pictures and stories and everything else from Africa for the last week, and I'm still sorting through them, and I probably will be for quite some time. There's space up front, by the way, if you're sitting in back and want to sit up front. We'll all close our eyes until you get up here. Okay.
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No, I'm just kidding. Yes. There, we've got this to go today. This is the last of second Timothy. So, this is where we are in the scripture.
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Second Timothy four nine through 22 and that's what we're going to cover but if you look at this, there are a lot of names. There just a lot of names and so, it's about people, right? What we do is loving God and loving people. Our motto here by the way is with all we are loving God and loving people So, when Paul gets to the very close of his letters, there's a temptation among pastors as there's nothing to learn here. Let's move on to the next book but it's about people.
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He starts with him. He ends with him. He starts with grace and peace. He ends with grace and peace almost every time and so, before we get started in scripture, I want to talk a little bit about our hosts. There were four of us that went recently to Africa.
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So, I went and Tanya and Pascal and Carl. We all went over there and y'all know that because we weren't standing up here upfront for a couple of weeks. We missed two Sundays but we were out. We went and saw this guy, Dave and you might recognize him actually a while back. He came in one Sunday and sat right in the middle of this second row right here and he and his wife, Kim, oh gracious.
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It'll come back in a minute. So, Dave and Kim came in. They sat right there and then on this side of em sat some folks that they knew from the Bay Area, San Francisco, the McCooey's, right? They, y'all know each other from there and then, on the other side sat the folks who are renting them a space here in Jackson also go to the same church. They sat down on a a row here at this church and they knew everybody on their row the first Sunday they were here.
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They only were here for a month. They stayed for one month and he said, I don't know why Not really sure but he took Carl and me and I think Tanya went to out to lunch one day and said, we have been called to, that's Kim. That's a sassy picture. They actually sent that one this morning That's in a Sunday school class where they're supposed to be being sassy at that point. Somebody snapped a picture.
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So I said, if you don't send me a good picture, I'll use that one. And then they sent me this. So that's Dave and Kim, but I used it anyway. Dave and Kim right there and they came and sat right here and they said, we feel like we've been called to encourage the church and okay, that's great. I like encouragement.
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This is really nice and they did the whole time that they were here. They were an encouragement to this church and they also were missionaries in Africa. They've been going for eleven years over to Kenya and whenever y'all hired us, when y'all hired us to come in or gave us a call to come, Tanya and me and Pascal. When y'all did that in 2012, y'all knew you're hiring missionaries, right? You knew that because we've been missionaries in Mexico, Costa Rica, Guatemala, different places.
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We've been all over and you're hiring that. I realized that coming through the door, some of y'all are missions people, missions hearted people, and some of you just kinda aren't. And I don't want for this to be, oh, gracious. Another missionary slideshow. It's gonna kill me.
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So I'm gonna preach through this, but I also wanna I want you to think about these things. In the Old Testament, there are promises that that say like Psalm 22, all the ends of the earth will remember and turn to the Lord and families and all of the nations will worship before you lord. For the kingdom is the Lord and he roods over all the nations. There are old testament prayers. Psalm 67 is the spreading circle.
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I remember preaching through that one. It just blows my mind. Let the peoples with an S. Let all the peoples praise you, oh Lord. Let all the peoples praise you.
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There are commands. Psalm 96 says, tell of his glory among all the nations. Tell of his wonderful deeds among all the people. Say, among the Gentiles, the the nations. The Lord reigns.
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Let the redeemed of the Lord say so. It's about not just about our own experience with Christ and being a good husband or father or business person, but it's about the nations. It really is. And it really excites me to the point that last night jet lag wasn't what woke me up. This is what woke me up.
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I haven't even gotten started yet. The Great Commission, y'all all know. All the nations. All the nations. Paul's life of utter dedication after that.
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Let's start with this. He's writing a personal letter to Timothy. Second, Timothy is written from prison. Paul knows that and he's just said that he's run the race. He's kept the faith.
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His departure time has come and then he says to his true son in the faith, this guy that he had ministered alongside but after having shared with him the gospel and he's accepted it and it 's taken root and he's been ministering for a long time Make every effort to come soon. Hasten to come to me, Timothy Don't waste any time. Just come on. Please I need you. It's a personal note, a personal thing For Demus and this is in person's name, Demus.
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Demus, having loved this present world. He's deserted me and he's gone to Thessalonica. You know what? It is possible to turn away. It's possible to turn away from that which you know to be true.
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Demus administered with him. We see him in Colossians and Philemon listed as a faithful servant alongside him but then he just shrunk back. Demons shrunk back. Now, Dave and Kim went eleven years ago or so and felt impressed to help out in a very very poor area of this poor side of town near a dump and they started building a school and when they kind of linked arms with a few other folks there, non governmental organization types and they started building this thing up and got it funded and got the school built and got things going and got a teaching staff in place and God's name was being glorified among the nations and then, somebody after they were home for a while, voted them out of the loop told all of the dump kids out that in just a minute, the kids that lived in the dump told them that they could not come to school there anymore. Turned the school into a private school.
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And started receiving tuition for it. Does that make y'all mad? Does that hurt your feelings? It does mine. Demus, having loved this present world, deserted Paul and he went back to Thessalonica which is where he's from most likely but he just bailed and you can bail having loved the things of the world.
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Second first John, we haven't hit it yet when it's in yellow. I haven't preached about it here yet. Do not love the world nor the things in this world. If anyone is loving the world, technically, it's a progressive action. Loves the things of the world.
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Love of the father is not in him. For all that is in the world, all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the boastful pride of life. It's not from the father but it's from this world and this world is passing away and also it's lust but the one who does the will of God lives forever. Be careful about worldly things. We do live in the world but we don't have to be worldly He says that.
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Demas was though. He having loved this present world, he deserted. He left. He bailed and he went back to Thessalon It is possible to fall away and it is possible to go after worldly things. It just is and you can have done a good job for a long time and then just cave.
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So, don't please okay? Don't grow weary and do a good. Keep on going forward After that, okay Kenya So I'm trying to remind myself of things. Kenya, the first day that we were in the place where we were going, we took a walk right behind the school where we would be based. This is out the back door of the school less than it's like from here to Nelson Engineering across the street.
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And so this is the Giyoto Dump. It's a dump. It's not a transfer station. This is where they go landfill dump stuff. And so we're walking through and seeing just garbage and people live in the dump and they set up set up a place and they collect bottles mostly.
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Right now, the cost of plastic in bottles is really, really low so the things are just stacking up. They don't make much. The folks don't make much but they do make something. These are working poor people And right in this neighborhood, the Hilton area of the London area of Nakuru, this is the Kyoto dump. So that's a Saturday, actually this is yesterday, and this is Dave right there that had sent he decided to go for a walk in the dump in Kyoto and he saw this is the life of still some of their students are helping with their families to do this, which is great.
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They they have a job that they're doing, I'm not putting that down. But this is just to tell you what we were walking into and who is serving there. This is one of the places, scrap, but there's a there's a spray painted sign there that just says mind your own business Basically, stay out of here. We don't want you around. I don't know who it's talking to but when I was walking through, I couldn't help feel but feel like it was talking to me.
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If I'm just a tourist and I'm not really there to help, mind your own business, you know. He goes on from Demos deserting him and going to Thessalonians. His Cretans has gone to Galatia. Galatia is over in Asia Minor. It's a little bit north of all of the running area of Paul's first, second missionary journeys.
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He went through Galatia but a lot of people believe Christians actually is going to Gaul. Gaul would be France. He went north into France and this is saying he's gone. He hasn't deserted Paul but he is gone. He has been sent out and he's going and he's serving the Lord and either Gaul or Galatia Titus, you know, Titus, the other pastoral epistle we've got first and second Timothy and Titus.
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Titus finished his work in Creed and has gone on to Dalmatia Only Luke is with me. Can you hear a note of kind of sadness and loneliness there? I'm doing what I can do but I am in prison. Come to me as quick as you can. Timothy, don't tarry, hasten to come to me.
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Demus, oh. And Christians is gone now and Titus is gone now and only Luke is here with me. Now, Luke was a physician. If you're an old man in a prison, it's kind of nice to have a doc around. But he says this next, he goes, pick up Mark.
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That's John Mark. Pick up Mark and bring him with you. Come on. Hasten and when you come, bring Mark with you. For he is useful to me for service.
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Oh, this is good too because do y'all remember in Acts? Acts 15, he they are going along and here it is. Barnabas wanted to take John. This is the second missionary journey. They decided they were going to go back and encourage all the churches on their first missionary journey and they says in '36, it says, and they decided that they would go and encourage all the churches and Barnabas in '37 wanted to take John called Mark, John Mark along with them also but Paul kept insisting that they should not take him along who had deserted them.
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Now, Demus has just deserted him and the next thought he has is, bring Mark with you. Mark deserted him. It was years ago. He's on the first missionary journey, you know. So, fifteen years ago or so but Paul kept insisting they shouldn't take him along who had deserted them in Pamphilia and gone home to mama with him to the work and there occurred such a sharp disagreement between Paul and Barnabas who were like this ministering in Antioch, you know, and there arose such a sharp disagreement that they separated from one another and Barnabas took Mark who was his cousin by the way.
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He took him with him and he sailed away to Cyprus. Now, later on, we see that Paul saw Mark as being a faithful servant. He saw that but now he's saying, bring him bring him with me. He's useful. I can hardly wait.
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Mark actually wrote the gospel, wrote down the gospel of Mark. It's probably Peter's story but Mark is useful for service, I would say Yeah, this is where he's mentioned in Colossians and Philemon. Pick up Mark and with you for he's useful to me for service. Service, by the way, while we were there, One of the things that is kind of an abnormal thing, occasionally you hear of somebody making a home visit here for the school, but they make it a regular matter of course to visit each of the students' home at some point during the year. And they have to do it pretty regularly because they have 170 students at this school.
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So while we were there, it seems a little odd that the outsiders would go in, but but it's not odd there. It's a very community driven and not nearly as individualistic. If somebody is gonna come to my house, y'all call first, okay? I mean, it's just the way Americans are. That's the way we all are.
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It's like the best thing that I can do for my neighbors is leave them alone. Isn't that the American way? I'm just saying. That's not the way I feel necessarily. I hope they know the door's open and we're ready to receive and that I that I would be somebody they call if they needed help.
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I hope that that's the truth because I think that's biblical and good but our American culture doesn't usually do that. So we took those buckets that Carl is carrying right there and I'm carrying one up in front up there are full of supplies like to make meals, to wash clothes, those sort of things, just regular supplies. And when we go make a house visit, we would take some of those in for the folks living in between the school and Guillaume, which I said is like from here to Nelson Engineering across the street. So coming in, it was pretty cool. A lot of families speak Swahili until they get to about school age and they teach English in schools.
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So the kids, a lot of them come in not speaking English and they're speaking Swahili and they get to preschool one and preschool two and kindergarten, first, second, third grade. That's what the whole school is there. So some understand English, some understand Swahili. But it was nice to go into these homes where primarily Swahili is spoken and since we're pastors, I actually still respect and look up to pastors there. So, that's a little uncomfortable but they would receive a blessing from you.
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Does that make sense? Without any kind of pride or anything else. It's a it's a normal thing to receive the bucket of goodness, but also if you had a blessing to share, it was something that people were ready to receive and I really, really appreciated that and so when we would go in, we try to have a scripture ready, you know, may grace and peace abound be multiplied to you and your household, that sort of a thing and if there was anything that needed to be discussed as far as school, the school folks handled that but it was nice for us to just ride along in that. We did some of that but Tichicus I've sent to Ephesus Paul says. Tichicus I have sent to Ephesus.
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Tichicus was a guy who carried letters regularly for Paul. We see him doing that in multiple places in the New Testament and he's going to where Timothy is. He's saying, Tichicus, I've sent him to Ephesus. He's your reinforced reinforcement. He's the guy that's going take over while you come quickly to see me.
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I've sent him to Ephesus and when you come, bring the cloak which I left at Troas with with Carpus. So, he's mentioning all these people. He's mentioning all these places Paul is up there with Luke in Rome He mentions Demas having gone to Galatia He mentions Carpus Mark Timothy, Tichicus He's going to get to these other guys. Creshe he's getting to all these in a minute. Alexander is next Titches up sent to Ephesus.
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He is absolutely capable and Timothy knew that they'd worked alongside each other before. He wouldn't feel like he was leaving his post abandoned and he would be able to leave. And he says, and come quickly. When you do come, quickly bring the cloak which I left at Troas, this big old poncho, you know, because it's fixing to get cold in a Roman prison. Bring the books, especially the parchment.
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Paul was always concerned about study, always concerned about this. This might be blank paper for all we know so he could write more letters. We don't know exactly what it was but he's saying, hold on. Bring this good quality paper. Bring it on or bring these books.
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Immediately, he says, Alexander the coppersmith did me much harm That's personal Alexander, this metal worker, copper smith originally but could have been any kind of welder brazier, anything like that. Alexander, the metal worker, he did me a lot of harm and the Lord will repay him according to his deeds. I'm not going to. The Lord, vengeance his mind, saith the Lord. I'm not going to take anything out on him but he does say, be on guard against him yourself, Timothy, because he vigorously opposed our teaching.
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He's absolutely opposed and apparently, he's pretty persuasive. It could have been and I'm not sure of this. It could have been that Alexander the coppersmith spoke up against him at his trial. It could have been that Alexander is the one who had arrested. It could have been that Alexander opposed their teaching in Ephesus and he's still in the same town with Timothy.
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We don't know. It'd be speculation. Everybody has guessed one of those things but we do know that he did him a lot of harm. You know, it's possible to do harm to the Lord's work. It is possible to do harm to the cause of Christ especially to his to his minister or to his servant.
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It's possible to hurt each other's feelings and it's possible to hurt each other's feelings deeply and I'd say again, like I said about desertion, don't do it, please. Humbly, don't do that. Be on guard against him yourself for he vigorously opposed our teaching, Timothy. He goes on and talks about his first defense. This is why people think it might have been that Alexander spoke against him at his defense.
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He says, at my first events, no one supported me. It's possible Alexander could have been against him but no one supported me but all of em deserted me. He doesn't say the same thing like the Lord repay them according to that. He doesn't say that. For most of the rest of the folks, he recognizes it's a hard thing to stand up for someone before a trial and he says, at my first defense, no one supported me but they all deserted me.
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May it not be counted against them. Grace on em because I understand. That's hard. He would hope that when Timothy gets there and he goes into a second trial, at least Timothy will stand with him, right? Are you with me?
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Are we together? Alright. So, that gets us up to 16. I'm actually going to skip verses seventeen and eighteen right now. While I was up last night, I was thinking through this and seventeen and eighteen are the pass passages that I would preach if I were gonna preach this for what the content of what's right here, especially as missions is concerned, but I'm gonna skip it for a minute.
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I'm gonna go to some more names. Greet Prisca and Aquila. Do y'all remember Priscilla and Aquila? Prisca is a shortened name for Priscilla, nickname. Prisca and Aquila are mentioned favorably every time that they're mentioned, and they helped out with Apollos and taught him the way of God more accurately.
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They always had a church meeting in their house. Every time that you meet them, they're they're gathering with people in their house to have a church service. Greet Prisca and Aquila who apparently are there in Ephesus or at least somewhere on the way and the household of Onesiphorus. Onesiphorus, you remember that guy? He says, Onesiphorus, look for me here.
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Everybody else was not really caring that I was even in jail but Onesiphorus sought me out and he found me and he ministered to me and would you say howdy to his folks for me, everybody in his house? Would you all just greet? Would you do that, Timothy? The household of Onesiphorus. People matter and he wants to share the love that God has given him for them.
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He wants them to know. Erastus remained at Corinth. I have not ever met anybody named Erastus. Have you all ever met anybody named Erastus? Until this trip, this is Erastus.
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This guy is our driver. He picked us up at the airport and he drove us all around wherever we needed to be. Every day, either Erastus or Joseph's buddy would show up and pick us up and they would carry us in these little Toyota vans to wherever it was that we needed to be and he was a dedicated Christian believer and he had the praise of the Lord on his lips every morning and he was a helpful helpful man not just for us but when we were doing a worship night, we had one night that it was a combined worship night, two continents, four churches that bring us all together and we had a big worship night and when we got there, the piano that we had was not working properly and Joe's I mean, Erastus jumped in, used just the black keys. How do you play the piano on just the black keys? He transposed, moved around, started playing the piano, and he just jumped in where needed, and I just thought that was really nice because he was our he was our driver.
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He was not paid to play the piano. Worship the Lord wherever you are as you are going be doing these things, right? So, he also is learning guitar It was nice, Carl. His teeth, he taught four, five people three or four chords while we were there. It's pretty nice.
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Erastus remained in Kenya By the way, we did not bring him home with us Erastus remained at Corinth but Trophemus, Trophemus, I left sick at Miletus. You know, Paul Paul had the gift of healing, right? Did he? He did Right? Mentioned several times in the book of Acts, they moved their blankets so that just his shadow might fall and that people would be healed.
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Yet, Paul knew he never took God's prerogative. I'm sure he prayed for Trophimus to be well but he left him sick. At Miletus and Miletus is walking distance from Ephesus. So, mention the trough and must check on him before you come too but don't tarry, hurry, and get here as quick as you can. Make every effort to come before winter.
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He says it the same way. He's like, do this for me, please. It's it's about to get cold and I know the time of my departure is near. Can you come be with me? Eubulus greets you.
45:20
We don't know anything about Eubulus. His name actually means prudent or of good counsel, goodwill, good counsel. And Linus and Putin and Claudia Claudia probably of the the ruling class actually because of her name, most people think that Linus was the second bishop of Rome according to early church fathers but we don't know who Putin or Eubulus are. They're just names, right? And all the brethren, he throws in a extra clause there for all the folks that I haven't named.
45:52
Although, I've hit 14 or 15 names in these few short verses. All everybody else too, the folks here in Rome, they greet you. May the Lord be with your spirit. Amen. And then he ends right where he started.
46:08
Grace be with you. Grace be with you. Unmerited favor from God be with you. That's wonderful, you know? I I feel like we coasted in.
46:16
We skipped verses seventeen and eighteen. We'll come back to em but I want to mention a few names. These are the names Demus and Cre and Titus and Luke and Mark and Tichicus and Carpus and Alexander the copper smith. He does mention the Lord in the verses I skipped Priska, Aquila, the household of Onesip Erastus and Tro and Eubulus and Pudence and Linus and Claudia All of these folks he mentioned. These are the ones on our trip that were really nice I left Aquila in there for some reason The folks who stole the first school they're like demons.
46:48
They line up with that. That's hard. Haven't loved the things of the world that gave up on the downtrodden and went in for the folks who could afford the school to pay themselves. That's a worldly thing to do. Aquila, sorry.
47:05
Titus, Eric, let me just go through pictures about this. This is Dan. Dansong. Dansong. It's funny cause I have a picture like this from just about every country I've ever been to.
47:23
This is great. Dan actually is Dan is that that that short man that was in that first doorway picture there, but they he is from that community. He grew up in that community and he is the guy who is the interface with the community. Knows every family there. They know him and they think well of him, and he is the one who's constantly involved in making sure people's physical needs, temporal needs are being met and that their spiritual needs are and Dan is an amazing guy.
47:52
He's one of the administrators of the school. Grace. Grace, I throw Grace in there because we met Grace on our way from the airport to where we were staying because the last time there were 19 of y'all ladies that went to Kenya. A lot of y'all had a day where you spent with Grace and her Naeema girls project, and they are actually in those gals to sew and that's tea picking outside of there but Grace and then the AIMA Girls Project Grace is doing very well and her ministry is going very well and the girls who had been so hurt and so desperate and there were so few at the time that y'all were there in August 2013 that has grown to where there are a lot of girls who've been impacted by this project and I just wanted you to know that. I'm giving you the list sort of like Paul.
48:46
Grace is doing well and she thanks you and sends greetings. Alfred. Alfred is a student at the school. He's a he's a a little guy very dedicated at school Loves his work. He rides a Boda Boda which is a motorcycle taxi Boda Boda down from the top of the mountain.
49:11
He rides it off of a squatter's property where they are squatter's land in their little house and he rides down to where he gets close enough to where he can walk to school. This is his grandmother Regina. Regina is a show show, a grandma, and she has taken care of a lot of her grandchildren, some of her great grandchildren. She had four kids and has lost two of them to death, and one of them is very sick now and to death now. So, that's Alfred down below with Regina and she is a praying lady.
49:45
She loves the Lord and it was a blessing to be in her home and she prayed for us while we were there. We prayed for her. She prayed for us. It was a very encouraging kind of a new testament time right there. She lives, like I said, on the squatters community up at the top of one of the mountains overlooking the valley.
50:06
This is Martin and his household If you ask Martin what he wants to be when he grows up, he'll say pastor He knows where he has come from and he knows who has brought him out of what he was in He loves the Lord and he loves people. He loves his little baby sister and his mama. This is the opening day, very first day that we got there and the fellow upfront is Eric and I don't have a lot of good pictures of Eric because Eric always was taking the pictures to avoid having himself be in a picture but we got that one. He had the kids just spellbound when he was telling the Bible story at the opening assembly in the morning and then he would say he would say he said it over and over, are we together? And then he'd say it in English, are we together?
50:56
Are we together? I love the accent and then, if someone would speak up, he'd have a question and they'd speak up and he'd say, clap for him once. The whole place would do that at one time. Clap for him once. And he'd move on.
51:10
Eric is a dedicated Christian believer, no doubt about it, going after the cause of Christ with all that he can and that has led him to being the head teacher at Maisha Mafia, this new life little school, a 170 kids. He's in charge of the staff. He's in charge, head teacher. Loves the Bible, loves the Lord. He is a has a fiance and is looking for being married next year and he goes home on the weekends.
51:36
He's from Nairobi. He has been sent out like Paul said, these guys have been sent out. This fellow is sent out from his hometown of Nairobi to Nakuru, the place of dust in this little area and he's taking it on seriously but he goes home back to Nairobi each weekend to go through premarital counseling classes for the next six months. Love that guy. He gets married in November actually, November.
52:02
He was one of the ones that was learning a few chords. This is Manuel. Manuel is the way they pronounced it. And he shows up in a lot of Tanya's pictures especially. Just sweet, sweet, loving little boy who comes from this community and knows where.
52:26
Knows who God is and know knows where he comes from, knows where he's being called into. This fellow is named Mike and Mike's first Sunday as their worship leader at the Movuno Church was the first Sunday we were there. The senior pastor wasn't even there that Sunday. He was at a retreat but Mike started and he started on the week where Carl shows up and you know, none of us have planned our life out to be like it is. Do you do you understand that?
52:54
We can order our stuff, but God is the one who directs. He's the one who gets us there and so Carl, having been through now seven years here and about six, five and a half as the worship leader gets to be there the first day when Mike is in the oh my goodness phase of his ministry. What did I just say yes to? It's wonderful. He taught us a lot of songs in Swahili and I this morning watched their worship service this morning.
53:20
He's playing the bass and they're playing the drums and having a ball right now and leading and sounding great. This is pastor Josh at the Movuno Church. We went along to encourage the church and encourage the staff of the school. That was our stated goal before we left and I'm only going to mention about as many names as Paul does but there are a whole lot more that y'all could be praying for. That's pastor Josh at Mabuno.
53:46
Taking ordinary people and then turn them into fearless influencers for the gospel. That's their theme. This is Florence, the governor of the stomach. She's the cook in the kitchen, and she has a staff. This is Ruth and James is right there, and they cook every day for 170 kids.
54:10
And then in the off season they still come in and they still cook. Even if they don't go to school, do a meal a day for the kids. They do snacks, also porridge and things like that, keep them healthy. It's a lot of cabbage. They go through a lot of cabbage in that place.
54:24
This is leaving the school just the end of the day, and I'm gonna go back to seventeen 18. I got two minutes. Excuse me. Sorry. This is the center point of this passage that I've just taken nine through 22 right in the middle of that is this and it is a tremendous statement of faith.
54:51
It's a tremendous statement from Paul who knows his time of departure has come. The Lord stood with me. Everyone was against me at my trial. Alexander the Coppersmith did me much harm. Everyone either deserted me or didn't speak up for me at my trial.
55:07
But the Lord stood with me. What did Jesus say? Oh my goodness, the great commission we know. Low, I'm with you always. I'll never leave you or forsake you.
55:17
The Lord stood with me and he strengthened me. Jesus had told his disciples that they would stand before governors and kings and Paul knew that he would and he was standing before a governor and he was probably standing before. If not, Nero is somebody pretty close. At his first trial and he was looking forward to his second The Lord stood with me and he strengthened me and he strengthened me. Why?
55:41
So that through me, the proclamation might be fully accomplished. The proclaiming, the preaching of God's word. He's just told Timothy, remember last week, preach the word. Be ready when it's a good time and when it's a bad time, preach the word. Proclaim it.
55:55
Be a herald for God. The Lord stood with me and he strengthened me so that through me, the proclamation might be fully accomplished and that all the Gentiles might hear. Now, our all the Gentiles, we think Gentiles, oh, that's not Jewish. Yeah, it's all the nations. They're actually the Pontata Ethne.
56:12
Pontata Ethne is a recurring theme throughout the whole Bible because this is not just about us. It's not just about me and my family. It's not just about me and my neighborhood. It's not just about me and my state. It is about all, here we are, the nations.
56:29
Gentiles is nations Ethne from which we get ethnicity All of the races all of the people groups, Galatians three eight, even so Abraham remember father Abraham, he believed God and it was reckoned to him as righteousness. Therefore, be sure that it is those who are of faith. You can be sure that it's because of belief. It is those who are of faith who are the sons of Abraham. It's not about race.
56:58
The scripture foreseeing that God would justify the nations, Gentiles by faith, preach the gospel forehand to Abraham saying, all the nations will be blessed in you. So then, those who are of faith will be blessed with Abraham, the believer. It's about belief. Belief in the gospel. Now, most of the people that I have mentioned up here were people that are believers.
57:22
Almost all of em but believers need encouraging too. When I mentioned Alexander the Copper Smith, I did not mention there is somebody and I I've not mentioned him because I don't want to call him names because I don't want to make things worse but there are people who are actively opposed to what's going on at that school. Isn't that terrible? They're actively opposed to it and not for, well, don't want you stealing the culture of the kids. It's nothing like that.
57:51
It is for purely financial reasons. These people are are like kingpins that have set themselves up to take advantage of the poor, and so anything that helps them to get out of the situation they're against. All the nations will be blessed in you. They're still reaching out to those folks too, okay? At school they are.
58:16
This is the one Pontetiah that most of us probably know and Jesus came up and spoke to them saying, all authority has been given to me in heaven and on earth. Wait a second, it's a question of Jesus's authority that he says this and he says, go. Be going and therefore, go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing in the name of the father and the son, the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you and low, I'm with you always even to the end of the age. Threw this one in. This one doesn't say but I've spoken so much on suffering for the past few months that I think that y'all might think that Ray just feels like he suffers all the time.
58:57
I don't. I have joy unspeakable and full of glory. I'm having a ball. I can't believe I get to do this. I'm having a ball but that's not to say that there's not suffering involved in it Being taken as a fool, being taken as some other in the world.
59:10
Come on. Not being taken seriously by people. That's part of it. There are other things that excuse me. There are other things too but this is a light and momentary affliction.
59:23
Do y'all get that? If it is temporal, it's a light and momentary affliction. This momentary light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory that's far beyond comparison while we look not at the things which are seen but at the things which are not seen. If you go and you look at what's seen and you go to a dump in the backside of this little town in Kenya, it will overwhelm you to the point of wanting to just quit. Does that make sense?
59:52
But if you look at what can be and you pay attention to the call that God has placed on your life, amazing things happen and you say yes to Jesus. It takes some suffering through. It takes some opposition. It takes probably at some point, someone will turn their back on you but Christ will strengthen you and he will be with you always and if he's called you into it, he's going to keep you in it. Things which are not seen.
1:00:16
For the things which are seen are temporal but the things which are not seen are eternal. These are my application points for the day and they're all questions, but I want you to think about these things. I'm gonna say them one at a time and this will be the end of the sermon. Are you loving the things of the world? John says, you cannot be loving the things of the world and the things of God at the same time.
1:00:39
It is an either or situation I would say, if you know I'm loving the things of the world deny self and go full heartedly after Christ. It's an amazing thing to say yes to Jesus and to say no to the world. Do you go to great lengths? That's I must have been speaking to Siri when I took these notes. This is not about golf.
1:01:07
Do you go to great lengths to spread the gospel? I was riding down the road. Do you go to great lengths to spread the gospel? If God calls you to spread it on the golf course, by all means, do it and great links. That's wonderful.
1:01:21
Yeah. But it, do you go to great links? I mean, some of those guys that Paul sent out whether he was going to Galatia, Galatia, or Galatia. That's a long way from Rome to walk right? Do you go to great links with the express purpose of spreading the gospel?
1:01:37
Do you do that? Are you like Mark useful for service He didn't say exactly what Mark was going to do for him but he wrote down Peter's story and wrote the gospel of Mark He could have been the manu the scribe, you know, Luke probably was writing down what Paul was saying there but are you useful for service? Are you a utility player? James is a man who works in the kitchen with two ladies in Kenya and it's because he's a utility player who is ready for service. That was the place that fit best at that time.
1:02:09
He is able and he's a community liaison and he's able to speak in front of people and do everything else but right now, most useful thing that he can do for the school is helping the kitchen and he's doing it. Do you realize how important and precious God's word is? Paul said, bring me the parchments especially. Bring me the books especially the parchments. I'm missing those things.
1:02:31
Not extrapolate. It might have been blank paper but I think it was probably scripture. Do you realize how important and precious it is and what a privilege it is to have it in your own language right in front of you? Do you read it? Do you study it?
1:02:46
Alexander the Coppersmith example. Are you causing great harm to the cause of Christ or are you causing great harm to one of his ministers? And then the last one I'll ask you about before we get the band back up here is are you all about the all the nations, all the nations, all the nations are to hear. Are you all about that? I don't want to make anybody who's not a missions person or doesn't enjoy the going part of it to feel bad like, well, you're not a missions person.
1:03:19
No, we're all missions people. Either we're goers or we're senders or we're both, okay? If you're Christian, you're called to all the nations. Does that make sense? Alright.
1:03:29
Did I bore anybody this morning? Really? Try it hard. Would you stand up? And we'll sing one more song.
1:03:52
Speaker 2I have decided to follow Jesus. I have decided to follow Jesus. No turning back.
1:05:05
Speaker 1Amen. The benediction day is from Romans 15 and now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and with all peace. As you trust in him, it is as you believe or as you trust in him that he'll be doing these things. Now, may the God of all hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit and God, when that hope overflows, I pray that it'll be on someone who is hopeless and desperate looking for you. Would you use us to bring others to you?
1:05:36
In Jesus name, amen.
