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Alright. Good morning. I think I think we're set. I think we're set to worship. Welcome.
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Welcome to First Bee. If you're visiting for the first time today, I pray that you feel right at home. Why don't you stand up? I'd like to share a verse here. I think that'd be appropriate.
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Psalm one forty five three, great is the Lord. Amen? He is most worthy of praise. No one can measure his greatness. Let's pray together.
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God, good morning. Good morning. We are here to meet with you, to learn from you, to just join with you, to give you praise, to give you adoration. And I pray that you begin to shift our focus from the busyness of the week or whatever is going on, onto you. And amen.
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Alright. All hail the pound. Hey, you're up, my friend. Alright.
2:51
Well, good morning. Y'all can have a seat. I've got a few announcements for this week. Most of em are in the bulletin. In fact, all of em are in the bulletin.
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I've got a couple of interesting ones I think. So, we're gonna go through connect hour is between services and that happens every Sunday between services. Monday nights at first B happens at 06:00 instead of 06:15. That's every Monday night. Meal music and a message in Philippians.
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You still in Philippians one? So, very good. That started off last week. The forty days for life campaign, some of y'all have heard about it. Some of you have been going.
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I gotta I got needled a little bit the other night at a turning point board meeting from one of the guys at the Catholic church. He said, you're gonna have to start some sort of a competition. They were all Catholics at this thing last week. This is not funny as like I thought it was. Anyway, he said, he's, I said, no, there's no spirit of competition here.
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This is a time of prayer and fasting for those who'd like to see an end to abortion. So, it's a very peaceful, vigil situation but it's forty minutes of fasting from 12:10 to 12:50. This week, it's going to be at Jackson Hole Baptist Church. This is First Baptist of Jackson. Jackson Hole Baptist Church is the one across the street from the hospital.
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So, that's where the gathering will be this Wednesday and that's in your bulletin. Solid Rock Student Ministry, Renzy.
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Solid woah. Woah. Solid Rock Student Ministry is happening just not this week. I'm heading to Billings to help my mother with some house projects. So no middle school, no high school youth group this week but we're right back on when I get back.
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On schedule next week. Alright, sounds good. There still is the middle school, high school classes going on during this service when the Peak Children's Ministry starts up. That's also the student ministry starting up. Men's fraternity starts this Wednesday at 6AM.
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So, that is the the quest for authentic manhood. It's great. The study is really really good. Starts Wednesday at six and I mean it AM in the morning. This is something that's coming up.
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It's new. Y'all haven't seen this announcement yet but we have been planning this for quite some time. There is a speaker coming up and this has been we've kind of been blessed with this seminar really but tough guys and drama queens is the name of seminar. It's a parenting seminar for those who have either teenagers or those that they think will be, okay? So, tough guys and drama queens parenting seminar Friday, November 7 and sat Friday, November 6 and Saturday, November 7.
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That's an evening and then a morning session for that, and it should be really, really good. The book is great, actually. So there's a book that goes along with this. And we also have small groups starting up, and rather than have the general talk about small groups, there's one specific one. Rob and Elizabeth Miller are gonna be hosting at their house on Wednesday evenings at 06:30 in the evening.
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Counter Culture by David Platt. It's a book, and there are videos. And, Rob, where are you? Would you like to stand and say anything, or is that enough?
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That's good.
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Yeah. Okay. That's good. Wednesday nights at 06:30, and let Rob know. There's his phone number, and there he is.
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If you would, you know, just wave so they see you. There you go. That's happening and it's starting up not this Wednesday but November, first part of November. Okay. And I have one more prayer request which is kind of an announcement.
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A lot of y'all know Terry Nuttle. Terry owns the Cottage Bookstore. It's the Christian bookstore in town and she is kind of cross denominational. She is cross church really. She's involved in a lot of different churches and in a lot of different ministries and she has had some issues with obstructed bowel and a couple other problems.
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She's in ICU at Saint John's. So, would you please pray for her? But I also was asked by the doctors to announce because she is so popular and so well loved. She has been receiving lots of visitors and ICU typically is not the place to go visit people. So if you wanna go, please feel free to go to the waiting room outside of ICU.
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That would be great. And visit with the people visiting her, but she's asked that visitation is not advised, and it's not encouraged at this point. There's also a Caring Bridge page. I know that that's a ridiculously long website, but that's just to let you know that I have that. If you get on Caring Bridge and you look up Terry Nuttle, you can see updates on her status.
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So that's it. And for anything else, please check this morning's bulletin. Those announcements are always good. And if they're not, we fix them. Okay?
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So they should all be good in there this week. Is there anything else? Anybody else? Alright. Would y'all please stand and greet one another and we'll bring you back together with a song.
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Take away. Give and take away. Heard we choose to say, blessed be your name. One more. Give
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Amen. Lord, that's a that's a that's a hard song to sing that you give and you take away. We're painfully aware that this this is a reality of life. But I pray that you would teach us. Would you teach us to, in in every and all circumstances, to be thankful, to be prayerful, to say blessed be your name in all things.
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Amen.
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My hope is in the Lord. Fear a man. But they're a man of what they plan, little thing. But you are everlasting, ever ending God, eternal. Day after day, our God is reigning.
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Say, oh, my hope is in the Lord. And let the songs, let the songs of adoration is reigning upon that. He's worthy to receive the praise and the glory for the glory.
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God, let's pause just a moment to say that you are indeed you are indeed faithful. You're constant and you're never changing, and that's that doesn't describe us. Things are constantly swirling and changing in our lives. And I thank you that you are this solid ground that we can we can just firmly plant our feet on. And and even in the storm, you give peace, and and I'm thankful for that.
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I thank you for I thank you for the rich and joyous times and that happiness that that life comes that life gives. And I I'm also thankful, God, for for the trials that draw us close to you and even in those desert times. But I pray that our response in those times be that of grace, with peace, with thanksgiving, and prayer again. I'm praying that you would teach us these things as a church, as a body, so that these things would not only bring glory to you but it would would show the world who who you are.
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My prayer in the back. This is my prayer Alright. In all my life and every season, all my life and every season, you wish to God by
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Amen. You can be seated, I'm gonna ask Eric Walkup just to come up and say a little prayer. We'll give thanks here as we enter into our worship through giving.
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Let's pray. Father God, thank you for how you've blessed us. Thank you for how you've blessed us with your presence first and foremost. Lord, we give you praise in, the joys of life and in the sorrows of life. You give and you take away.
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Where you've given us jobs and families and homes and community, we praise you, and we give back to you a portion of what you've given us financially where we're lacking jobs or homes or community. I pray that you would provide as only you can. So, father God, we we give this morning knowing that you are God and everything is yours, and therefore, it's a joy to give back to you what is yours as a sign of us saying thank you and we worship you. So I pray this morning that you bless the gift and the giver that your glory might increase, that the joy that you give would be felt by those who give and by those who receive your word that goes out as a result of these gifts. We pray these things in your name.
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Amen.
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Eternal God unchanging mysterious and unknown your boundless love unfailing in grace and mercy shown bright and endless flight
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Amen. It's that time for children's church. Y'all are dismissed and that's going to leave some pockets in here, some air holes like Swiss cheese. If any of y'all are sitting in the back and you wanna come up here and sit next to some of these parents whose children are leaving, then y'all are welcome to. There's some gaps in space.
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If you're uncomfortable in the back, you wanna come forward, you can. Alright. We're back on track this week. So, last week, we kind of knew it was going to be a slack week in attendance for this Sunday morning service here because we had a women's retreat that was going on and it's hunting season. There are few other things and so, there were a few other things that we knew were going on late at night, Saturday night before.
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So, I actually did a one off sermon. Carl and I call it shooting the cannon. When you shoot the cannon, it's just boom. One time, not in a series and so I did that last week on meekness so that I could skip and have everybody back before we started where we were. Second Corinthians six, we had been through verses one and two and we're so we're up to three and going through there.
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I'll start off just a reminder from two weeks ago, that was a story about miss Palmer. Y'all remember my teacher? Miss Palmer, several of you do and I was called on in class and it was time and I was supposed to say something that I did not know how to say. I didn't have it memorized and the analogy there was everyone will eventually, everyone will eventually say that Jesus is lord. Everyone will bow the knee and every tongue confess.
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When are you going to do that? Are you going to do it now? Or you going to do it in that great and mighty day when it will only be, boy, that's tough. Under extreme duress. And it won't matter.
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So second Corinthians six one and two says, and this is his appeal. We then as workers together with him also plead with you. We're urging. We're pleading with you not to receive what you've heard. This is the grace of God that you've heard from us.
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This is the grace of God. The message of the cross. Not to receive that message in vain for he says, in an acceptable time, I've heard you and in the day of salvation, I've helped you. That's a quote from Isaiah. Behold, Paul says, now is the accepted time, now is the day of salvation.
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Behold, behold, look, this is it. It's important. So, that's the appeal from two weeks ago. Straight out of what Paul said to the Corinthians in second Corinthians and this is our text for the day. Imma read the whole thing.
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I don't usually do that. I usually plod through but I'm going to read through it in the English Standard Version through this whole study of second Corinthians. Mostly, I have been using ESV, English standard version. I've also been using the New King James version, which is what I typically use myself. And but I've been checking all the translations the whole time.
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I love them. I love that there's a multiplicity of counselors. Each translation brings out something a little bit different because of the focus of the translation but all of it is good. I don't want to undermine the authority of the Bible that you carry because all of these modern translations are really good but this one has got a really interesting grammatically thing that's going on in it. So, I want to be able to show that.
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So, I'm going use a different translation a minute but listen to the whole passage today or most of the passage. We put no obstacle in anyone's way. He's just made that appeal. He's calling him. Come on.
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Today is the day. We put no obstacle in anyone's way so that no fault may be found with our ministry. I don't ever want for it to be my fault that somebody doesn't come to Jesus because of the way I live my life or because the way I use my words or the way I preach and Paul's the same way and he's saying, I haven't done that. There's nothing. I've done nothing to stop you.
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We put no obstacle in anyone's way so that no fault may be found with our ministry but as servants of God, we commend or we are commending ourselves in every way by great endurance and afflictions, hardships, calamities, beatings, imprisonments, riots, labors, sleepless nights, hunger, by purity, knowledge, patience, kindness, the Holy Spirit, genuine love, by truthful speech, and the power of God. With the weapons of righteousness for the right hand and for the left, through honor and dishonor, through slander, and praise. We are treated as impostors and yet are true. As unknown and yet well known, as dying and behold, we live. As punished and yet not killed.
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As sorrowful, yet always rejoicing, as poor, yet making many rich, as having nothing, yet possessing everything. Isn't that beautiful? I just think that's beautiful. It kind of echoes again what we memorized in chapter four verses eight and nine. Some of the the end part there, especially, having that contrast between how we're treated, how we're how we actually are.
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I want you to look at it again, though, in Young's literal translation. Okay? I don't recommend Young's literal translations. Next impossible to read. But it's it's neat because it does bring out exactly, literally, what it says.
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And if you look at the different colors up there today, the pink and the blue and the yellow, look at the prepositions. This is the grammar lesson for today. Prepositions make a huge difference. Now it's a difference in in and by and with in our language, but the same Greek preposition in is what they use for in, by, or with. So the translation I read a minute ago in the English Standard Version is a great translation.
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They have not gotten anything wrong. It's wonderful. You can trust it. That's wonderful. The NIV hits this one solid.
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No problem with that. The New Living Translation is great with this. New King James. King James. All of them are good translations.
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But look at this literal translation and see if it doesn't impact you a little bit differently. In nothing, given any cause of offense that the ministration, our service, our ministration may not be blamed, but in everything, recommending ourselves as God's ministrants, in much patience, in tribulations, in necessities, in distresses, in stripes, in imprisonments, in insurrections, in labors, in watchings, in fastings, in pureness, in knowledge, in long suffering, in kindness, in the Holy Spirit, in love unfeigned, in the word of truth, in the power of God, through the armor of righteousness, on the right and the left, through glory and dishonor, through evil report and good report, as leading astray and true, as unknown, and recognized, as dying, and low we live, as chastened, and not put to death, as sorrowful, and always rejoicing, as poor and making many rich, as having nothing, and possessing all things. God, would you be with us this morning and and help us internalize this. This is really really good stuff, practical stuff for living every day. Would you would you hit us that way with it this morning, lord?
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Not just an intellectual exercise but make it something that changes and transforms. In Jesus name, amen. So we changed the operatory slide a while back. Did y'all notice it used to say worship of giving. That bothered me because it looked like we were worshiping giving.
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Does that make sense? The worship of giving. Oh, we're worshiping this giving. So, we changed it to through. Worship through giving because that is a way that you can worship but you worship through your giving.
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So, the prepositions make a difference. I would translate this slightly different than mister Young here but let's walk through it. In nothing, he starts off up here. In nothing, giving any offense or not having any blame but in everything recommending ourselves as God's ministries. That in nothing and in everything balances out but I think that in everything is kind of a heading for everything that comes after that.
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The in everything. Second Corinthians six four b through seven. In much patients, in tribulations, all of these actually, if you put them up there, there are some of them that are really negative, it looks like, and then there are some of them that are very positive. And if you look at the first part of the list, and this is in order top to bottom, left to right, in much patience is plural. Endurance says, not just in much patience with one situation, but many, many situations.
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In tribulations or afflictions, all of those s's, you see that? They're all plural. Because do you run up against different kinds of situations that are challenging? Oh my goodness. Yes.
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We hit all kinds of stuff that is hard. In much patience, endurance says, in tribulations, in necessities, afflictions, hardships, distresses, beatings, imprisonments, multiple beatings, physical beatings in his case. Sometimes they're other than that in our case, most of the time, I hope. But for some of us, maybe not. In beatings, in imprisonments, in riots, in labors, in sleeplessnesses, in watchings, in times of hunger, fastings.
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Now those could be the watchings and the fastings could be good. A lot of people posit a couple of different commentaries say the watchings should be in that other list, but I've been sleepless. It's terrible. I'm an insomniac. I know how it is.
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So, I put it in the bad list but if you're up and praying or you're taking time to to study God's word, yeah, it could be in the good list. If you're fasting for spiritual reasons, absolutely. It could be in the good list But I think he's saying I've been without. I've been in hunger, and I've been without sleep. I know what it's like.
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But notice that the rest of this list over here, all of these are plural. This list is all singular. It comes from one place. In pureness, in knowledge, in long suffering, in kindness. Sounds like the fruit of the spirit.
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Sounds like a list we've seen before. In the Holy Spirit, in love unfeigned, genuine love, not faked. In the word of truth and in the power of God. That's all that in itself is is just beautiful to me. I could read that and say, wow, God.
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You've given me a meal already today. But when he ends up with the power of God there, all of this stuff, of course, comes from the power of God. During all of this, in the preposition signifies attendant circumstances. I love that. That's a real attendant circumstances.
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You're in something. You could be, you know, in a crowd, in a mix, in in a box. You can be in something. Attendant circumstances. It's that's what's going on all around you.
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You are in the midst of it. It also could be translated by, like next to something. You're right next to what's happening. Or with, in buyer with, they all carry the same attendant circumstances quality. Like, this is what you find yourself in the midst of.
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All of these things. I would probably translate, and I didn't change the slide. I would probably say, in much patience, in tribulations, in necessities, in distresses, in strikes, in imprisonments, in insurrections, in labors, in watchings, in fastings, by pureness. Because by is kinda like through for us in English. Do you all agree with me?
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So a lot of your translations will switch right there and say in these things, but by these things. Does that make sense? Either is completely legitimate. It's the translator's decision whether to use in, with, by depending on regional differences or what they wanna bring out. But all of these, would everybody agree, are the attendant circumstances to the Christian life?
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Maybe the beatings and imprisonments don't factor so much into your life, but I know a lot of guys who they they do. You know? In everything. That's second Corinthians six four b through seven a. The power of God gets us through, I'll say, through.
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That's second Corinthians six seven b through eight. Y'all know what IFR is? Anybody in here know what it is? I know somebody in the second service will know it. IFR.
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It's a pilot's term. It's an aircraft an air traffic term. IFR is instrument flight rules as opposed to visual flight rules. Okay? Visual flight rules, you can see what's going on.
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You're a pilot. You love this anyway. You can see what's going on, and you can see the mountain to avoid it. You can see where the horizon is to land the plane, you can see what's going on around you, those are visual flight rules. Instrument flight rules is when you can't see what's going on.
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You are completely covered up in clouds, you're completely covered up by weather, there may be lightning going on all around you, There could be anything going on. IFR is what you have to switch over to. And at that point, you're looking this is the old way or the cheap way. Needle and ball. You're looking at that little ball to determine whether you're upright or not.
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You might have this. This is needling ball kind of turn indicator. It's a little bit better technology. This guy's in trouble. His ball is way off center.
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Or he's turning, and he knows it. It lets you know what's going on. Instrument flight rules, and this is an artificial horizon they call it today. Artificial horizon. These things just keep getting better.
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I think of this, we walk by faith and not by sight. Paul mentioned that in chapter five verse seven. He's mentioned it multiple times. It's mentioned multiple times in the Old Testament. We walk by faith and not by sight.
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Now, if we look and see what's going on around us, it can look pretty stormy and cloudy and it looks like there's no way out of this. We cannot get out of this. From where we are, looking how we look, not being able to feel exactly upright. We don't know how to get out of it. We have to walk by faith and not by sight.
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So, that is brings up something else. But the only way out when you find yourself in instrument flight rules is through it. Right? You're stuck. You're there.
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You're in the air. You don't have the option of transporting, teleporting like they did on Star Trek. The only way out is through it. You just can't get out of your circumstances immediately. You have to get out of them by going through them.
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So the next portion we're gonna go through is going through. God gets us through. Also wondered where that came from because this, the only way out is through, I was told this saying and it's helped a lot when you're in the endeavor to try to help people in the counseling room. It's really helpful to tell people, listen, it may get worse before it gets better. And the only way out is through this.
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The only way out is to go through it. The fellow that told me was a was a lifelong member of AA. He's been in there since he was a teenager and he gets up and goes on every single day. But he says this is one of the refrains that helped him and helped so many others is the only way out is through it. Don't give up.
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Just go through it and you have to trust your instruments. That's the next thing but I looked it up to see where the phrase came from because that's who I am and I like this little segment from Robert Frost in a poem called A Servant to Servants. The longest one of his poems I've ever read. By good rights, I ought not to have so much put on me, but there seems no other way. Lynn says, one steady pull more ought to do it.
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He says, the best way out is always through and I agree to that or in so far as I can see no way out but through least ways for me. Ain't that great? Yeah. He's right. There's no way out but through.
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So, Young's literal translation of verse seven starting in seven B, I guess you'd call it. It says, through the armor of righteousness on the right and on the left, through glory and dishonor, through evil report and good report. Those are the through passages. This is not just attendant circumstances. This is being in those attendant circumstances but moving through them.
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It it has some impetus behind it. There's some movement going on in these couple of verses. The first one, through the armor as Young's literal translation calls it. Most translation calls call it weapons and in a lot of places, it's called instruments. Like if you looked it up in extra biblical literature, it would be called instruments like instruments of battle through the armor or the weapons, the instruments of righteousness on the right and on the left.
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And I couldn't help but think of this. Ephesians, we're going a little bit ahead of ourselves. This is we have not been through Ephesians in our study yet but in all circumstances, Paul says, take up the shield of faith with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one and the sword of the spirit which is the word of God. Sword of the spirit which is the word of God. Now, typically, I I thought of this and I looked this up too.
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The right and the left that actually didn't it wasn't political always, okay? I thought that it might be and I couldn't wait to preach on this. The battle, instruments, the weapons of the Lord for the right because there's some things I'd really love for them to read in the Bible and some instruments of the of the Lord for the left because there are definitely some things that I really like for him to see in the Bible but it's not that. It's not political. Darn.
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Typically, the right and the left back in those days, for most people and maybe still most people, the shield went in your left and the sword in your right. Those were the instruments of battle and I think that when he said, through the armor or the weapons of the righteousness on the right and on the left, that's what he was talking about and then in Ephesians, he makes it just very plain. The shield of faith, sword of the spirit, which is the word of God, the Bible. The right and left. Shield of faith to the left, sword of the spirit is the right and I put up there, trust your instruments.
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They keep on telling pilots this all through flight school. Don't freak out. Don't freak out. You have to trust that those instruments that are there for a reason and you can trust your instruments. Now, the shield of faith and the word of God can be trusted.
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Trust your instruments. And then the rest of that verse eight, through glory and dishonor, we will have both, right? Through glory and dishonor. We're human beings. We're going to slip up at some point.
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If if not now, we already have. Through glory and dishonor. But that's the movement. Right? That's how you move.
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Recognizing that it is dishonorable is movement. See in the glory ahead of you. So many of the Bible author, writers, are inspired by the Holy Spirit to mention that the glory set before us is something that should cause movement. Through evil report and good report. Both.
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You're gonna have people report on you well, and you're gonna have people report on you poorly. I know, trust me. It happens. It's part of life. It is what's going on, but it keeps you going forward.
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In everything, the power of God gets us through. As his servants. Now, I picked up the as his servants line from verse three way back up at the top but as his servants, I think fits very well with six, nine, and 10. Paul's very very much on a cycle here. He keeps cycling through his arguments.
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This is the third time he's had a list of his hardships and calamities. He'll have another one even more in detail. As his servants. Y'all don't wanna know that. This is the yeah.
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Host host is a comparative adverb. It makes reference to the quality of a person, thing, or action as to be equivalent to, like, such as or exactly like he is, exactly like this, or such as that, as it were. And it's to a quality which really belongs to that person or thing or to a quality which is supposed, pretended, reigned, or assumed. That's the dictionary definition stuff. But you know what as means?
46:53
You know exactly what as means. So, as God's servants or as God's ministers and my job actually is to equip the body to do the work of the church. So, we're all in this together. It's all ministry. My job is slightly different from yours but y'all have a whole lot more impact on the community than I do personally because I'm one person and y'all are 200 and something people.
47:16
So, as God's ministers, this is for all of us. As leading astray and true, as unknown and recognized, maybe a better translation would be better for this and as dying and low we live, as chaste and not put to death, as sorrowful, yet always rejoicing, as poor and making many rich, as having nothing, and possessing all things. That's Young's literal translation of that. This is the ESV translation of it. The English Standard Version translation says, we are treated as impostors.
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Would you agree with that? You're treated like you don't really know what you're talking about or that you're just faking your religion, trying to earn favor with God, trying to infer favor with people, or trying to look good to people. We are treated as impostors. And yet we're true. It is true.
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God is real. We're treated as unknown. Who what does he know anyway? Who is he? Especially in Paul's case, he didn't have all of the credentials that the super apostles or the the later he calls them false apostles had and he wasn't looking back to his degrees and that sort of stuff.
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So, he's a nobody to those super apostles but Paul is saying, I'm treated as though I'm unknown. Like, I don't even have a right to be here but I'm well known. I was there when the message of the cross arrived in Corinth, and y'all accepted it, and I know what it's like, and you know me. Trust me. As impostors, yet true, as unknown, yet well known, as dying, but behold we live, as punished, but yet not killed.
48:56
I think of Acts, I may have the slide later on the thing, but Acts five, there was this, what are we going to do about these people? They had jailed Peter and John, and then they had gotten out of jail and they prayed for more boldness and one of the advisers said, no, no, no, wait just a second. What we're going to do? Actually, let me get to that, Renzi. Where is that thing?
49:16
There it is. So, in this present case, I tell you and this is one of the learned wise counselors of Israel. So, in this present case, I tell you, keep away from these men and let them alone. Don't hassle them. For if this plan or if this undertaking is of man, it will fail.
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But if it's of God, then you will not be able to overthrow them because God is gonna get through the opposition. He's gonna go through it. You'll not be able to overthrow them. You might even be found to be opposing God. I think that's a good word.
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For as dying, yet we live. This movement is not going to go away. As punished, yet not killed, as sorrowful, yet always rejoicing, as poor, yet making many rich, as having nothing yet possessing everything. What a list of contrast that is. We're treated this way.
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Yet, this is the reality. This is another literal version. This is the modern literal version of this. Listen to it again. Giving no one a stumbling block in anything that our service might not be blamed but we're commending ourselves in everything as servants of God and much endurance and afflictions and calamities and distresses and lashes and prisons and unrest and labors and sleeplessness and fasts, impurity, and knowledge, and patience, and kindness, and the Holy Spirit, and love without hypocrisy that is genuine, real deal.
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I care about you kind of love. In the word of truth and in the power of God, through the weapons of righteousness from the right and from the left, through glory and dishonor, through defamation, and good repute, As misleaders and yet true, as being ignorant and yet fully know, as dying and behold, we live. That's where I got asked. As discipline and yet not put to death as sorrowful, yet even habitually rejoicing. Philippians, this whole study of Philippians, they're going through some pretty tough stuff, but he's always saying, rejoice in the Lord always.
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Again, I say rejoice. Chuck Swindoll's commentary on Philippians is called laugh again. Laugh out loud. Again, as sorrowful yet even habitually rejoicing as poor yet enriching many as having nothing, yet having all things. So in everything, in all of these things, this is what I'm asking you, and these are kinda like my takeaway slides here.
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In all of this stuff, concentrate on this stuff. Really? Concentrate on this stuff. By the power of God, concentrate on these things. It is by purity and pureness.
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It is by actually having this knowledge and where is that? The word of God. It is in long suffering that you learn a lot of the Christian life. It is in actually being kind to other people. It really isn't that.
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It helps get you through a lot. In the Holy Spirit, in real love, not fake love, but real love that you actually are concerned for the other person. More so than yourself. And in the word of truth and the power of God. This is just such a rich passage.
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I don't have to add anything to this. It's so good. The only way out is through. Whether you're an alcoholic or other addict or a legalist, the only way out is through. It's the only way out.
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Whether whichever ditch you're in, only way out is through. You're not going to immediately teleport right to the center of the gospel. The only way out is through. And I thought of this too, Churchill. If you're going through hell, keep going.
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Never, never, never, never, never, never, never, never give up. If you're going through hell, keep going. Don't stop. Don't give in and just live there. Don't set up camp there.
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And trust your instruments. The shield of faith. We walk by faith and not by sight. And the sword of the spirit, which is the word of God. Trust your instruments.
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You may be treated as impostors. You, not just second Corinthians people. You may be treated as impostors, and they may act like you're nobody, unknown, dying, punished, sorrowful, poor. You should remain true. Remain true.
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You're well known to God. There's a friend that sticks closer than a brother. Behold, you will live forever even though you feel like you're dying here. Not suffering death, but always be rejoicing and again, I say, rejoice. Making many rich by sharing that which you possess, everything.
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Message of the cross. It carries forward in a big, big way and then after all that, so we got through verse 10. We're going through 13. After all of that, beautiful, poetic, true encouragement. After all that, he has an open appeal to him and he starts this way.
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We have spoken freely to you, Corinthians. Our heart is wide open. Do you feel like Paul's held holding anything back? I don't. I think he's able to say it all.
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If somebody said, but he did this and he did that. He used to, well, he used to. He used to persecute Christian. He used to go after people. But Paul was conscious about his ministry and he didn't wanna do anything to interrupt anybody else.
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I'm very, very conscious of my ministry. And I don't wanna do anything because any of y'all to stumble. We've spoken freely and I can say, I've spoken freely to you. Our heart is wide open. Paul can say flat out, you're not restricted by us though.
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Remember earlier, he said, we put no obstacle in anyone's way so that no fault may be found with our ministry. We're just giving you the straight up truth exactly as it is. The message of the cross exactly for what it is. We're not promising you that God's going to enrich you because you believe a certain thing. We're not promising you that if you give a little bit of seed money, it'll come back.
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We're not promising that. We're just telling you that this is the way out. This is the way of salvation. We put no obstacle in anyone's way so that no fault may be found with our ministry But you, Corinthians, and I might be able to say it to you too. I'm going to say it to you.
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But you are restricted in the way that you're restricted is in your own affections. It's what moves your heart. What moves your heart? Is it the word of God, the sword of the spirit, the shield of faith? Is that what moves your heart?
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Is Jesus what your life is all about or is it your own affections? You'd rather do whatever else. Actually, the word for affections, you knew you wouldn't get out of here without a Greek word. Splonchnoi. Splonchnoi is the is the word.
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Doesn't that sound like bowels? Splonchnoi? It's internal organs, the viscera, the stuff that you've got out of the deer. That is the splonchnoi. Okay?
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It's the plural, splanchnoi. So it's all of that, all of those affections, all of that gut level, lust, desire, whatever. Inward parts, the heart. It's the seed of your feelings and Paul uses it interchangeably sometimes with what we would call the heart. He says, you have a heart problem.
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That's what you have. Your heart is not seeking after the things of God. The heart is seeking after the approval of man. So, you're restricted by your affections. He's making an open appeal.
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You're not restricted by us but you are restricted in your own affections and then the next verse he says, so in return, for all of this that I've been through and all all that I've gone through, He said, in return for me just sharing this with you, widen your hearts also and I'm speaking to you. I know I'm speaking to you like children. He says it just like that. In return and I'm speaking to you like children, I know. Widen your hearts also.
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So, that is the appeal. The appeal is this, widen your hearts. Open em up. Open em up to this message. Till up the ground.
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Jesus says, fertile soil. You know, good soil. He's saying, till it up. Widen your hearts. Open wide and accept this for being true.
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Now, we're only up to chapter six. We got seven more to go but he he has already established his authority. He's already established that they really do know him and he can be trusted and that he doesn't have any other agenda whatsoever except for the word of God that it would enter into their lives. So, widen your hearts and I say to you, widen your hearts. If there's something that that you've got going on in your life that you just won't let go of, let go of it.
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Widen your hearts to the things of God. Widen your hearts to the things of God. Check your affections. If your affections are taking you in directions that are not God's direction, drop em. Okay.
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Behold, Now is the accepted time. All of this ties back in. It's the most cyclical I've ever seen of a book. It's amazing how it ties back in. Behold, now is the accepted time to widen your hearts.
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Now is the accepted day of salvation. Amen. I think that's it. Never let go. Alright, would you would you stand up?
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And the appeal today is just that, that you widen your heart. If you want to see me afterwards, I'm here. If you want to see me during the week, I'm here. If you want to see one of our elders, they're all standing now but I'll point you towards one of em afterwards if you want to talk to somebody else. I understand that but would you sing with us as we go through this song?
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Amen.
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And even though I walk every go. Oh, no. You never let go, Lord. Never let go of me.
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And I can see the
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light that is coming for the heart that was on. Glorious light beyond, I'll compare. And there will be
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a hand to the
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go of Amen.
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May the Lord bless and keep you and make his face to shine upon you and would you reflect that light to others in Jesus name. Amen.
