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Know God Or No God Part 2

Allen Jackson Ministries

January 19, 2021

27:29

Pastor Allen Jackson's mission is to help people become fully devoted followers of Jesus Christ.

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Know God Or No God Part 2

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You can make a fundamentaldecision within yourself to be a
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person of the truth, that youwill tell the truth, that you'll
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value the truth; not just theconvenient truth or the
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comfortable truth or the easytruth.
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God is a God of truth, in fact,his counsel to us is, "Buy the
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truth and don't sell it."
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That whatever you possess,whatever resources you have that
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you can exchange or barter inorder to accumulate more truth,
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you want the truth, and when youget it there's nothing more
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valuable, don't ever sell it.
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♪♪♪
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♪♪♪
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♪♪♪
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♪♪♪
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Allen Jackson: It's good to bewith you again.
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This is the second in athree-part message, if you want
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to see the whole thing at onetime you go to the website and
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watch it that way, otherwisejust set your DVR and you can
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get the first and second parts.
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Part two, the topic is knowingGod or there is
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no God, you're gonna be in oneof those two camps, so am I, and
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we can't be content any longerjust to say The Sinner's Prayer,
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or recite some message and bedunked in a pool and then think
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we're good to go.
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We're either going to know Godor he's going to be far from us;
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he is shaking the earth, it's aninteresting season.
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We're gonna explore, in thissession, 10 attributes of God's
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character that have been afoundation for my life.
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In the darkest seasons, in themost desperate places of my
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life, when I've lost hope inpeople or my own strength, or my
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circumstances are just toopainful, it seems, to bear, I've
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come back to the character ofGod and he has sustained me.
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And I want to share them withyou because I believe whatever
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is ahead of us, it's God'scharacter that will sustain us.
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Everything in our world is beingshaken: governments,
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politicians, parties, ourresources, the people we've
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depended upon, it seems likeeverything is in turmoil, we
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don't even know where to trustfor information any longer but
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God's character is a constant.
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Over centuries, throughdifferent empires, while the
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world shifts, our God does notchange.
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So it's a valuable component inyour spiritual toolbox to make
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you strong, firm and steadfast.
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Grab your Bible, maybe anotepad, most of all, open your
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heart and listen to what God hasfor you today.
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Allen Jackson: David is a godlyman, God's king, a part of God's
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chosen people, an exemplarycharacter in Scripture, one of
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our heroes until today, but hehad a desire deep within him,
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powerfully within him, to beself-sustaining, to
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be independent.
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The biblical word for that isrebellion, and I think we have
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to acknowledge how real that iswithin all of us, how
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desperately we want to beindependent of God.
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We don't want to depend uponhim, we're happy to bring him
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into the constellation of ourresources as if he was one more
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idol, one more button we couldpush, but we don't like to be in
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a position where we are fully ortotally or completely or utterly
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dependent upon him.
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We call those places desperateplaces, and David didn't like it
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any better than we do.
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And one of the things that hasbeen called into the light this
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year is those of us that havefilled churches and read our
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bibles and know the words to thesongs that we sing are grappling
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with rebellion within us.
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God was too involved with David,too committed to David, loved
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David too much to tolerate it.
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Because left unchecked, leftunbridled, left to continue to
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grow and to fuel itself and toreplicate like some viral
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destructive force within hisperson, it would've
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destroyed David.
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So God intervened because thatrebellion in David had
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implications for the wholenation.
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If the church fails to be thechurch it has implications for
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our community.
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If we fail to be light and salt,if we fail to hold the character
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of God within our persons and bewilling to be changed and to
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walk in humility and to betransformed, our community
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suffers, our state will suffer,and ultimately our nation
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suffers, the world--
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The church needs to be thechurch.
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It's not about architecture orbuildings or which translation
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we read, God, forgive us.
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It has to do with the holdingthe Word of God in high esteem
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and imagining it to beauthoritative, our rule of faith
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and practice.
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God knows David will respond tohis discipline, he's not wasting
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his effort, I'll give you achoice, he said.
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David knows God's character tobe far superior to human nature,
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he would prefer discipline fromGod than from men.
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May I make a suggestion at thispoint?
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Do not be offended by God'scharacter, that he disciplines,
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that he judges, learn from it.
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To be offended by the characterof God is as shortsighted as
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being offended that water is wetor fire is hot.
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Once you've had a little bit ofexperience, you can benefit from
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the experience and adjust yourbehavior to benefit from both
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water and fire.
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I want to learn to benefit fromthe character of God.
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Big picture, here's the lesson.
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There is a God and it's not youor me, and we can decide whether
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we will submit to him or we willlive our lives in rebellion
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to him.
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Now I would submit to you, it'sbetter to submit but it's
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not easy.
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Now I'm talking about somethingbeyond the recitation of The
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Sinner's Prayer, I'm talkingabout a life beyond just the
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casual attendance of church ifyou don't have a better option,
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or even the faithful, determinedattendance of church so you can
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check the box 'cause, "If I givehim an hour and a half a week,
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surely he'll leave me alone."
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I want to know God.
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In the most difficult places inmy life, the most difficult
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seasons of my life, when I wasthe most broken, when my
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emotions were the least stable,where I had the least hope, the
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darkest days of my life, andthey come to all of us.
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Nobody is immune from these,folks, you don't have to go
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looking for them, they will findyou in due time.
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It's not negative, that's thereality of our journey under
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the sun.
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Jesus had such anguish, suchgreat anguish that he sweat
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great drops of blood.
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In those times, the baseline forme, the foundation that has
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sustained me apart from God'sgrace and mercy, has been
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his character.
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When I felt like the world wasnot a just place, when my
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circumstances were unfair, whenI was disappointed with people,
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when my own strength wasinadequate, or perhaps it was I
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was broken, when my own failureswere so egregious that shame
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felt like it was crushing me,the baseline for me has been the
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character of God.
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I brought you 10 aspects ofGod's character, it's not an
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inclusive list but it's awonderful start.
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And whatever you're facing,whatever we're facing, whatever
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we're going to have to walkthrough in the weeks and the
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months ahead, and I'm confidentwe're gonna have to walk through
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some things, we will need tounderstand the character of God.
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David did, and even in the midstof God's discipline, David
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understood there was hopebecause of the character of God.
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I'm just going to list them foryou.
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The first is that God isfaithful.
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Not a religious phrase, not justa little quick phrase, a glib
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return of the tongue, it meansthat God will keep his promises,
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that he watches over his Word,that he's trustworthy, you can
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trust him.
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You can't always trust thepeople that work on his behalf,
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Christians, even professionalChristians will disappoint you,
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Christian organizations willdisappoint you, they're
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comprised of human beings.
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God is faithful, human beingsnot as much.
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We all understand that, we allunderstand the tug of war
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within us.
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There are times every one of ushave failed to be faithful,
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faithful friends, faithful inour faith.
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We have failed the faithfulnesstest in some way but God is
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unrelenting, he's constant, heis faithful.
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There have been times when Ididn't have the emotional
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strength to stand, and withtears running down my cheeks I
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could say, "God, I know you'refaithful," and you can know
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that today.
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Say, "I don't like mycircumstances," I got it,
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there's some things I don't likeabout mine, but God is faithful.
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It's equally true that God isjust, he's equipped to determine
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true justice.
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God's justice will never beperverted by bribes, by the
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power of influence of otherforces.
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In fact, God clearly tells us inthe Scripture he has a bias
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towards the weak and theunprotected, he's not impressed
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with our strength, with our IQ.
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There is nothing within us-- Hecreated us out of the dust,
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there's nothing we possess thatcould pervert the justice of
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God, he's just.
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He's not intimidated by theaccumulation of great power
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'cause there's no power that canbe accumulated under the sun
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that is even a remote threat tohim.
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There's no resource accumulationthat causes God to flinch
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because everything is his, andif anyone or any organization
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has access or seemingly controlover it, it's but for a brief
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time when God has allowedstewardship, he can take
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it away.
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God is just, there is no justiceapart from him, it's why the
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notion of a separated church andstate is insanity.
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We don't want to statecontrolled by the church, it's
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destructive, but we desperatelyneed a state informed about the
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values of the church.
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Every organization put togetherof human beings by human beings
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apart from God, has proven overand over and over again to be
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oppressive and destructive; Godis just.
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Thirdly, he's a God of truth,truth resides in God.
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Today, the debate's aboutobjective truth, personal truth,
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"You can't know my truth."
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We reject the idea, for the mostpart, of objective truth, that
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there is a truth that isunchanging regardless of
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circumstance or age or any ofthe other transients factors
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that define us as human beings.
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And God boldly declares to usthat he is truth, the arbiter
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of truth.
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Forget that debate for a moment,you can make a fundamental
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decision within yourself to be aperson of the truth, that you
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will tell the truth, that you'llvalue the truth; not just the
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convenient truth or thecomfortable truth or the
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easy truth.
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God is a God of truth.
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In fact, his counsel to us is,"Buy the truth and don't sell
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it," that whatever you possess,whatever resources you have that
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you could exchange or barter inorder to accumulate more truth,
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you want the truth and when youget it there's nothing more
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valuable, don't ever sell it.
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He's a God of truth.
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Number four, he's a God of love;now this one gets a lot
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of airplay.
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And it's true, God is love, theBible tells us that.
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In fact, the primary theme ofthe Bible is that God loves the
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descendants of Adam.
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There's no explanation for it,in fact, it's inexplicable when
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you watch our behavior becausewe've rebelled against him every
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time we've had a half a chance,we will rebel at the drop of a
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hat and we carry several hats.
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And yet, in spite of ourrebellious nature, in John 3, it
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says, "God so loved the worldthat he sent his Son, that
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whoever believed in him mighthave eternal life," he didn't
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send his Son to condemn theworld.
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God loves us, isn't thatamazing?
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But it's a perversion of truthto only let that single aspect
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of God's character to dominateyour view of him, it's an
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incomplete picture, it'sunhelpful.
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It's like saying that water isrefreshing: that's absolutely
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true, but if that's all you knowabout water you wouldn't have
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the wisdom to protect smallchildren from large amounts of
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water, it could be verydestructive to them.
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Allen Jackson: Hey, this isPastor Allen.
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Thank you for letting meinterrupt the lesson for just a
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moment, but I wanted a minutewith you at the beginning of
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this year, first of all tocelebrate, thank God, we
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survived 2020.
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We didn't just survive, we'vecome through stronger, we're
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more focused and more preparedfor the purposes of God than
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we've ever been before, butwe're not finished
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with the turmoil yet.
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I know I'd like it to go awaywith a new calendar as much as
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you would but the reality iswe've still got a path to
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travel, and we're gonna have todo it in the strength
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of the Lord.
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So I wanted a minute with you atthe beginning of this year, I
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want to plant a seed.
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Let's determine to begin to putsome things in place to keep us
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strong spiritually no matterwhat is presented to us in
00:14:34.599 --> 00:14:38.236
this year.
00:14:38.269 --> 00:14:39.570
We thought a lot, in recentweeks and months, about how to
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maintain a healthy immunesystem, how to maintain
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your physical health.
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Well, in the same way, we've gotto think about how to be
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strong spiritually.
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So I put a tool together that Ithink it'll help you, it's a
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daily devotional, it's called,"Standing Firm," that's our goal
00:14:51.182 --> 00:14:54.552
in 2021, we wanna stand firm.
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You know the Ephesians 6passage, it says, "Having done
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everything you know to do, standtherefore."
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Well the attacks aren't goingaway, the challenges aren't
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going to just evaporate, theenemy is alive and well on
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planet Earth, but Jesus is Lord.
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Take the time for your dailyBible reading, do a few minutes
00:15:10.601 --> 00:15:13.905
in a daily devotional, we'll beon TBN every day if you need a
00:15:13.938 --> 00:15:17.175
little boost spiritually, thereare resources available to you.
00:15:17.208 --> 00:15:21.079
Together, we're gonna stand firmand declare Jesus as victor in
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our lives.
00:15:25.283 --> 00:15:26.584
God bless you.
00:15:26.617 --> 00:15:27.952
male announcer: God calls us tostand firm in our faith, we need
00:15:27.986 --> 00:15:30.421
to be engaged.
00:15:30.455 --> 00:15:31.756
To help you recognize deceptionand guard your heart in these
00:15:31.789 --> 00:15:34.292
unpredictable times, we'll sendyou Pastor Allen's sermon DVD
00:15:34.325 --> 00:15:37.195
from the "End of this Age"series, called "Stand Firm,"
00:15:37.228 --> 00:15:40.064
when you donate today.
00:15:40.098 --> 00:15:41.399
When giving $30 or more, you'llalso receive "Standing Firm,"
00:15:41.432 --> 00:15:44.535
the hardback one-year devotionalbook Pastor Allen just spoke of.
00:15:44.569 --> 00:15:47.772
So donate today by calling...or by
00:15:47.805 --> 00:15:52.477
visiting AllenJackson.com.
00:15:52.510 --> 00:15:54.212
Here's a clip from the "StandFirm" DVD.
00:15:54.245 --> 00:15:57.081
Allen Jackson: Don't give yourattention to the expressions of
00:15:57.115 --> 00:15:59.150
evil, focus your heart and yourthoughts and your minds and your
00:15:59.183 --> 00:16:03.554
emotions on what God is doing,it will keep you and protect
00:16:03.588 --> 00:16:07.859
you, it'll bring a joy to you.
00:16:07.892 --> 00:16:10.061
We have rejected the truth ofGod, we've set it aside, we
00:16:10.094 --> 00:16:13.798
don't want to be encumbered byGod's truth and his ideas, it's
00:16:13.831 --> 00:16:16.801
inconvenient to us; we wantpower and we want authority.
00:16:16.834 --> 00:16:23.641
The only peace that will come tohumanity will come from the
00:16:23.674 --> 00:16:26.677
Prince of Peace, it's only thetransformation of the human
00:16:26.711 --> 00:16:30.448
heart that allows us to livetogether in unity and respect
00:16:30.481 --> 00:16:34.652
and love and kindness anddignity.
00:16:34.685 --> 00:16:40.925
I would encourage you,not just in this season,
00:16:40.958 --> 00:16:43.594
but in the season to come,guard your heart,
00:16:43.628 --> 00:16:46.464
be careful what you kneelbefore.
00:16:46.497 --> 00:16:49.000
male announcer: Support futurebroadcasts and receive these
00:16:49.033 --> 00:16:50.768
items today at AllenJackson.comor by calling...
00:16:50.802 --> 00:16:56.374
Allen Jackson: Number five, he'sa God of discipline, a God
00:16:58.476 --> 00:17:02.580
of discipline.
00:17:02.613 --> 00:17:03.948
In Hebrews 12, it says, "TheLord disciplines those he loves,
00:17:03.981 --> 00:17:06.017
and he punishes everyone heaccepts as a son."
00:17:06.050 --> 00:17:10.721
If you're gonna walk with theLord he will discipline you.
00:17:10.755 --> 00:17:15.460
I have never liked discipline;it's a safe place to confess,
00:17:15.493 --> 00:17:20.865
it's a podium.
00:17:20.898 --> 00:17:24.035
And we wrap it in all kinds ofwords-- You know, I remember my
00:17:24.068 --> 00:17:26.304
parents, there would be theseplaces, these junctures you'd
00:17:26.337 --> 00:17:28.172
come to in life and they would,you know, "You need to grow up a
00:17:28.206 --> 00:17:30.441
little bit."
00:17:30.475 --> 00:17:31.776
"No, I'm good right where I am."
00:17:31.809 --> 00:17:34.412
I never volunteered to grow up,I was never an anxious to do
00:17:34.445 --> 00:17:37.014
that, I was really good.
00:17:37.048 --> 00:17:38.349
"We think a job would be goodfor you, it'll help you mature,"
00:17:38.382 --> 00:17:40.318
"No, I'm really, I'm good righthere."
00:17:40.351 --> 00:17:44.155
Every one of those maturitypoints that they seemed to think
00:17:44.188 --> 00:17:46.791
was such an accomplishment andsuch an achievement, in the
00:17:46.824 --> 00:17:49.127
moment I was walking through itit just seemed really unfair, I
00:17:49.160 --> 00:17:51.696
liked it better the other way.
00:17:51.729 --> 00:17:54.699
Now after the fact, I couldprobably begrudgingly see some
00:17:54.732 --> 00:17:57.235
benefits, maybe, kinda, buthonestly, I was probably good
00:17:57.268 --> 00:18:03.674
with immature.
00:18:03.708 --> 00:18:06.177
And I think we're that way withthe Lord, what do we want?
00:18:06.210 --> 00:18:08.146
We wanna go to heaven, I justwanna go to heaven, right?
00:18:08.179 --> 00:18:11.949
Hey God, I want to go to heaven.
00:18:11.983 --> 00:18:14.185
I mean, I'm not really into allthat discipleship stuff and all
00:18:14.218 --> 00:18:17.155
that testifying stuff,witnessing to all people, that
00:18:17.188 --> 00:18:21.058
ambassador stuff.
00:18:21.092 --> 00:18:22.393
No, that's what Pastor's for, Iwant to go to heaven.
00:18:22.426 --> 00:18:27.698
I mean really, it's not eventhat so much, I just don't wanna
00:18:27.732 --> 00:18:29.700
go to hell.
00:18:29.734 --> 00:18:33.104
I mean, if it's like a binarychoice, like I go to hell or
00:18:33.137 --> 00:18:35.206
heaven, alright, I'll try heavenbut if it's like an endless
00:18:35.239 --> 00:18:39.143
church service, could I work inthe lobby?
00:18:39.177 --> 00:18:46.851
Right?
00:18:46.884 --> 00:18:48.186
Are they gonna sing those goofyworship choruses, you know,
00:18:48.219 --> 00:18:49.687
seven words over and over andover?
00:18:49.720 --> 00:18:53.424
Can I come late?
00:18:53.457 --> 00:19:00.431
God disciplines us.
00:19:00.464 --> 00:19:04.235
You ever been around a childthat's not disciplined?
00:19:04.268 --> 00:19:12.643
You know, looking at me when youstarted groaning and that makes
00:19:12.677 --> 00:19:14.612
me a little uncomfortable.
00:19:14.645 --> 00:19:16.881
It's not so much theunpleasantness of the moment,
00:19:16.914 --> 00:19:20.618
you realize somethingdestructive is happening.
00:19:20.651 --> 00:19:24.722
Do you realize that it's God'slove that causes him to his
00:19:24.755 --> 00:19:27.291
discipline you and me?
00:19:27.325 --> 00:19:31.028
'cause we're quite good never togrow up, never to mature.
00:19:31.062 --> 00:19:34.765
We don't want to learn how tomanage our time in relation to
00:19:34.799 --> 00:19:37.969
God, we don't want to learn howto manage our energy in relation
00:19:38.002 --> 00:19:40.404
to God, we don't want to knowhow to manage our money
00:19:40.438 --> 00:19:42.206
in relation to God.
00:19:42.240 --> 00:19:43.541
We don't want any of that, wejust wanna go to heaven, we
00:19:43.574 --> 00:19:45.509
don't wanna go to-- yeah, yougot it.
00:19:45.543 --> 00:19:48.346
God loves us enough todiscipline us, he's a God of
00:19:48.379 --> 00:19:50.982
discipline.
00:19:51.015 --> 00:19:57.121
He's also a God of mercy.
00:19:57.154 --> 00:20:00.558
In Micah 7, in verse 18, we justread it in the last few days, he
00:20:00.591 --> 00:20:04.262
said, "Who is a God like you,who pardons sins and forgives
00:20:04.295 --> 00:20:07.765
the transgression of the remnantof his inheritance?
00:20:07.798 --> 00:20:10.835
You don't stay angry forever,but you delight to show mercy."
00:20:10.868 --> 00:20:15.673
You and I show mercy, typically,begrudgingly, "Well..."
00:20:15.706 --> 00:20:21.178
God delights to show mercy, hedelights to show mercy and his
00:20:21.212 --> 00:20:25.916
mercy is not infinite, it's notwithout end; there should be a
00:20:25.950 --> 00:20:29.920
cautionary sound in the back ofyour head.
00:20:29.954 --> 00:20:33.491
You can persist in yourrebellion beyond the limits of
00:20:33.524 --> 00:20:37.561
God's mercy, the Bible's clearabout that.
00:20:37.595 --> 00:20:43.034
Isaiah 55:7 says, "Let thewicked forsake his way and the
00:20:43.067 --> 00:20:46.437
evil man his thoughts.
00:20:46.470 --> 00:20:48.105
Let him turn to the Lord, andhe'll have mercy on him, and to
00:20:48.139 --> 00:20:51.442
our God, for he will freelypardon."
00:20:51.475 --> 00:20:53.311
Did you hear that invitation isextended to?
00:20:53.344 --> 00:20:55.613
to the wicked.
00:20:55.646 --> 00:20:58.015
You can be in the depths ofdepravity, in the grossest of
00:20:58.049 --> 00:21:02.520
darkness, you can be flat outevil, and if we will turn to the
00:21:02.553 --> 00:21:08.125
Lord, he will have mercy on us.
00:21:08.159 --> 00:21:13.531
The goal is not to hide the junkin your life from the Lord, the
00:21:13.564 --> 00:21:19.570
objective is to gain thecourage, when you understand the
00:21:19.603 --> 00:21:22.273
character of God, begin to dragit into the light and say, "God,
00:21:22.306 --> 00:21:26.077
this is who I've been, I am sosorry.
00:21:26.110 --> 00:21:31.282
God, I've hidden this fromalmost everybody but this is me,
00:21:31.315 --> 00:21:35.553
be merciful to me, God."
00:21:35.586 --> 00:21:37.988
It's the good news we have forevery human being: you don't
00:21:38.022 --> 00:21:42.393
have to be afraid of thepunitive nature of God, he
00:21:42.426 --> 00:21:46.130
delights to show mercy, he'sshown mercy to me and he'll show
00:21:46.163 --> 00:21:49.934
mercy to you.
00:21:49.967 --> 00:21:52.770
Does it mean or only message ismercy?
00:21:52.803 --> 00:21:54.505
No, 'cause if we don't talkabout his discipline, we give a
00:21:54.538 --> 00:21:57.308
perverted perspective of God.
00:21:57.341 --> 00:22:01.112
Number seven, God isall-powerful.
00:22:01.145 --> 00:22:03.948
A fancy word for that,omnipotent, but it really just
00:22:03.981 --> 00:22:06.016
means he's all-powerful, there'snot anything he can't do.
00:22:06.050 --> 00:22:10.921
He can make the earth andeverything that's in it, he can
00:22:10.955 --> 00:22:12.790
hang the stars in space, he canraise the dead to life, or dance
00:22:12.823 --> 00:22:16.193
on the waves.
00:22:16.227 --> 00:22:17.661
He can feed a multitude with ahappy meal, he can come out of a
00:22:17.695 --> 00:22:23.300
sealed tomb, he is all-powerful.
00:22:23.334 --> 00:22:27.972
He can rout an army of tens ofthousands with a few hundred, he
00:22:28.005 --> 00:22:32.810
can change our hearts and minds,he can expose what's hidden in
00:22:32.843 --> 00:22:35.613
the darkness, he's all-powerful.
00:22:35.646 --> 00:22:37.548
You need to know this about God,because we will yield, we
00:22:37.581 --> 00:22:41.385
will compromise.
00:22:41.419 --> 00:22:42.720
We will forfeit our integritybefore the power of human
00:22:42.753 --> 00:22:45.523
beings, before elected officialsor august bodies that have been
00:22:45.556 --> 00:22:50.294
orchestrated because we wanttheir favor or their blessing,
00:22:50.327 --> 00:22:53.030
and we will relinquish the truthand step into the shadows
00:22:53.063 --> 00:22:56.100
because we don't really believethat the one we worship
00:22:56.133 --> 00:22:58.369
is all-powerful.
00:22:58.402 --> 00:23:01.338
Think of Peter and John beforethe Sanhedrin, the Sanhedrin had
00:23:01.372 --> 00:23:03.874
orchestrated Jesus's execution,they were powerful, no question
00:23:03.908 --> 00:23:08.345
about it.
00:23:08.379 --> 00:23:09.980
If they decided you were goingto die there was very little
00:23:10.014 --> 00:23:12.616
that could be done to reversetheir opinion, and they said to
00:23:12.650 --> 00:23:15.653
Peter and John, "Don't evermention the name in this city
00:23:15.686 --> 00:23:18.756
again, if we hear Jesus on yourlips," remember what they said?
00:23:18.789 --> 00:23:26.964
"You do what you need to do, butwe cannot stop."
00:23:26.997 --> 00:23:35.139
They'd put him in prison, whenthey'd get out again they go
00:23:35.172 --> 00:23:37.074
back to it; they would beatthem, and when they'd let them
00:23:37.107 --> 00:23:42.646
out, they'd go back to it; theywould kill their leaders, and
00:23:42.680 --> 00:23:48.252
they'd keep telling the story.
00:23:48.285 --> 00:23:51.055
They understood he wasall-powerful, we struggled with
00:23:51.088 --> 00:23:53.757
that more.
00:23:53.791 --> 00:23:55.326
I know we struggle 'cause I hearthe discussions.
00:23:55.359 --> 00:23:57.928
"Well do you believe in prayingfor the sick?
00:23:57.962 --> 00:24:02.633
Do you go to doctors or pray forthe sick?"
00:24:02.666 --> 00:24:04.702
Yes.
00:24:04.735 --> 00:24:09.840
"Well do you pray about littlethings?"
00:24:09.874 --> 00:24:11.475
Yes, 'cause if I haven't prayedabout little things, I'm not
00:24:11.509 --> 00:24:15.713
gonna have any muscles to pickup the bigger things.
00:24:15.746 --> 00:24:20.784
He's all-powerful.
00:24:20.818 --> 00:24:22.520
"Well I prayed and nothinghappened," do you give your
00:24:22.553 --> 00:24:24.788
child everything he asks for?
00:24:24.822 --> 00:24:27.892
I hope not.
00:24:27.925 --> 00:24:31.495
Sometimes they ask amiss, andsometimes so do we.
00:24:31.529 --> 00:24:37.167
Allen Jackson: In 2020, Godbegan to open our hearts to him
00:24:37.601 --> 00:24:40.204
in new ways.
00:24:40.237 --> 00:24:41.639
Folks, there was a lot more thana virus from China that impacted
00:24:41.672 --> 00:24:44.375
us last year, I believe the handof God has stirred our hearts.
00:24:44.408 --> 00:24:48.279
I'm excited about what's aheadof us, I have a sense of
00:24:48.312 --> 00:24:50.814
anticipation within me.
00:24:50.848 --> 00:24:52.583
We're learning to know the Lordin ways we've never known
00:24:52.616 --> 00:24:54.785
him before.
00:24:54.818 --> 00:24:56.120
It's been uncomfortable, it'sbeen awkward, it's been
00:24:56.153 --> 00:24:58.088
maddening, it's beenfrightening, there's been a
00:24:58.122 --> 00:25:00.891
whole range of emotions, butwe're not going to stop, we're
00:25:00.925 --> 00:25:05.029
not gonna turn loose of ourfaith, we're not gonna step away
00:25:05.062 --> 00:25:08.399
from the Lord, we're going tostep closer to him.
00:25:08.432 --> 00:25:10.734
Next to him is the safest placeto be in the world.
00:25:10.768 --> 00:25:15.105
I'm going to share a littlestory with you in tomorrow's
00:25:15.139 --> 00:25:17.942
lesson about proximity to greatstrength and how to be safe in
00:25:17.975 --> 00:25:22.112
that place.
00:25:22.146 --> 00:25:23.514
But before we go today, I wantto pray with you.
00:25:23.547 --> 00:25:25.849
Father, I thank you for yourWord, that it reveals to us the
00:25:25.883 --> 00:25:29.353
character of the one we worshipand it helps us to understand
00:25:29.386 --> 00:25:32.156
ourselves, that it gives us asense of our place in time and
00:25:32.189 --> 00:25:35.993
what you're doing in the earthin this season.
00:25:36.026 --> 00:25:38.495
Father, help us to be faithful,open our hearts to you as
00:25:38.529 --> 00:25:41.498
they've never been before.
00:25:41.532 --> 00:25:43.033
May we turn our eyes away fromour own will and our own demands
00:25:43.067 --> 00:25:46.670
and our own selfish pursuits andto give you first place as we've
00:25:46.704 --> 00:25:50.674
never done it before.
00:25:50.708 --> 00:25:52.042
I thank you for what you'redoing.
00:25:52.076 --> 00:25:53.677
We will follow, we say yes inJesus's name, amen.
00:25:53.711 --> 00:25:58.248
God bless you.
00:25:58.282 --> 00:25:59.617
Allen Jackson: But I know thisabout God, he's redemptive,
00:26:04.622 --> 00:26:06.490
he'll come for me.
00:26:06.523 --> 00:26:08.859
He will come for me, I belong tohim, he knows my name, he knows
00:26:08.892 --> 00:26:14.231
the number of hairs on my head,he knows my address, he knows
00:26:14.264 --> 00:26:17.067
my circumstance.
00:26:17.101 --> 00:26:18.402
What did he say about the Hebrewslaves?
00:26:18.435 --> 00:26:19.770
He said, "I've heard theircries, I've come for them."
00:26:19.803 --> 00:26:23.140
It's a principle in Scripture,it's not a one-time event, he
00:26:23.173 --> 00:26:26.043
knows you.
00:26:26.076 --> 00:26:27.745
Say, "I'm uncomfortable, does heknow that?"
00:26:27.778 --> 00:26:29.647
I think he does, "Why does heleave me?"
00:26:29.680 --> 00:26:31.415
I don't know, but he'sall-knowing and I'll trust him.
00:26:31.448 --> 00:26:33.951
male announcer: Join us everyweek for another exciting
00:26:33.984 --> 00:26:36.020
message from Pastor AllenJackson, and until then, visit
00:26:36.053 --> 00:26:39.456
us online and discoverremarkable information and
00:26:39.490 --> 00:26:42.626
resources to help take yourChristian life to the
00:26:42.660 --> 00:26:45.462
next level.
00:26:45.496 --> 00:26:46.864
And if you're visiting theNashville area, we'd love to see
00:26:46.897 --> 00:26:49.600
you at World Outreach Church inMurfreesboro, we're easy to find
00:26:49.633 --> 00:26:53.370
so look us up when you'retraveling through.
00:26:53.404 --> 00:26:55.239
And don't forget to connect withPastor Jackson every day through
00:26:55.272 --> 00:26:58.142
social media.
00:26:58.175 --> 00:27:00.010
Thanks so much for joining usand being a part of
00:27:00.044 --> 00:27:02.212
this ministry.
00:27:02.246 --> 00:27:03.580
We'll see you again next time,for another encounter with
00:27:03.614 --> 00:27:05.616
Pastor Allen Jackson.
00:27:05.649 --> 00:27:06.984

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Know God Or No God Part 2

Know God Or No God Part 2

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Know God Or No God Part 2

Know God Or No God Part 2

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