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Invite you to take your Bibles 
and turn with me to Isaiah, 

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specifically Isaiah chapter 63. 
It's hard to believe, but after 

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today we will have just three 
more sermons in Isaiah. 

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We'll be done at the end of May.
If you're a pastor who preaches 

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through books of the Bible and 
goes through each passage as you

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come to it, today's passage is 
one that you wish we could take 

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a break from some difficult 
things to reflect on today. 

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Listen, as I read to you from 
Isaiah chapter 63, verses one 

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through 6. 
Who is this who comes from Edom 

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in Crimson, in Crimson garments 
from Basra. 

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He was splendid in his apparel, 
marching in the greatness of his

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strength. 
It is I, speaking in 

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righteousness, mighty to save. 
Why is your apparel red, and 

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your garments like he His who 
treads in the wine press? 

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I have trodden the wine press 
alone and from the peoples. 

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No one was with me. 
I trod them in my anger and 

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trampled them in my wrath. 
Their lifebloods spattered on my

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garments and stained all my 
apparel. 

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For the day of vengeance was in 
my heart. 

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In my year of redemption had 
come. 

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I looked, but there was no one 
to help. 

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I was appalled, but there was no
one to uphold. 

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So my own arm brought me 
salvation and my wrath upheld 

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me. 
I trampled down the peoples. 

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In my anger I made them drunk. 
In my wrath I poured out their 

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lifeblood on the earth. 
Now with those cheery words, 

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let's turn our eyes to the Lord 
and pray. 

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Our Father, as we come to this 
portion of Your word, we pray as

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we do for every portion that You
would open our eyes and our 

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hearts and our minds and help us
to see and to hear and to learn 

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what You want us to see and hear
and learn. 

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We pray, Father, for the Holy 
Spirit to be at work in these 

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moments as we read Your word and
as we reflect on it. 

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May the Holy Spirit be at work 
to change us even in these 

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moments, for we ask it in Jesus 
name, Amen. 

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Well, as you know, we've been 
studying the book of Isaiah and 

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as we've talked about, many of 
the events that we read about in

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the book of Isaiah took place 
during Isaiah's day, which was 

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in the 8th century BC. 
But we've also seen that some of

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what Isaiah wrote about was what
would take place in the early 

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6th century BC, when Judah would
be conquered, would be defeated 

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and taken into exile in Babylon.
And then we've also seen that in

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especially in these last 
chapters, that some of what 

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Isaiah wrote was about when they
would return from exile in the 

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500 and 30s BC, the conquering 
of Israel and Judah, the 

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destruction of the city of 
Jerusalem and of the Temple. 

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But that's not the last time 
that that happened. 

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In 70 AD, there was a Jewish 
revolt against the Roman Empire.

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The Roman army was sent, led by 
General Titus sent to put the 

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revolt down. 
There were months of brutal and 

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ruthless fighting, and 
eventually Titus and his army 

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breached the Jewish defenses and
besieged Jerusalem, destroying 

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the temple that had been 
rebuilt. 

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After they returned from exile, 
the city was raised, killing and

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slaving and displacing most of 
the population of Jerusalem. 

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Jerusalem was in ruins. 
Much of the city was on fire. 

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The temple had been reduced to a
smoldering rubble. 

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The accounts of the battle say 
that Titus, after the battle was

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one, moved through the city that
he had conquered. 

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No one was left to fight. 
His work had been finished and 

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completed. 
The resistance had been crushed.

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No more war, just the aftermath 
of what had happened. 

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No one was able to stand in 
Titus's way. 

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The VV was devastating and 
complete, absolute and finished.

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These first verses of Isaiah 
chapter 63. 

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A watchman, or perhaps Isaiah 
himself, sees a figure coming to

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the city in the distance, coming
from Edom garments that were 

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stained red, marching in the 
greatness of his strength, 

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returning from a battle, from a 
war with his enemies, those that

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he utterly defeated, he took 
them out. 

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No one was able to stand against
him. 

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It was a devastating victory. 
But this was not just a 

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political or military victory. 
This was divine justice, waging 

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war with the enemies of God. 
Both in Scripture and in 

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history, we get glimpses of what
an overwhelming judgment and 

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vengeance looks like. 
We see a city that is conquered 

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or a country that is conquered. 
We see an army that is 

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devastated. 
But what we see here in Isaiah 

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chapter 63 shows a much more 
intensified image of vengeance 

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and judgment, the wrath and the 
justice of the Almighty God 

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being poured out on his enemies.
And the victory is total, 

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absolute, complete, finished, 
eternal. 

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Now the questions that we all 
have to answer today, whose side

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am I on and what difference does
that make for how I live my 

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life? 
So let's take a few moments and 

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let's ask some questions about 
these verses that we're reading 

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today. 
And then let's consider what 

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difference they make for us. 
First of all, who is this figure

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that we're reading about? 
Now? 

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We need to understand the 
setting, the the the scene that 

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we're reading here, that there 
are two main figures in these 

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verses. 
There's a watchman, or perhaps 

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it's Isaiah himself who sees 
another figure coming in the 

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distance. 
And this watchman is the one who

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asks the questions at the 
beginning of verse 1 and in 

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verse 2. 
And then there's another figure,

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the one that he sees who is 
coming and approaching the city.

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That's the scene that we have 
here. 

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So who is the figure that the 
scene that the that the watchman

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sees? 
Well, the figure answers the 

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watchman's questions of who he 
is at the end of verse one. 

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And what does he say? 
It is I speaking in 

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righteousness, mighty to save. 
It is I that sounds very similar

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to what Moses was told about who
was speaking to him at the Bush.

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I am the name of the Lord God 
Almighty, with no beginning and 

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no end, the sovereign Creator of
the universe. 

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And notice he says he is the one
who speaks in righteousness. 

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His His words are truth and he 
is mighty to save another name 

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used in the Old Testament for 
God, El Gabour the Mighty. 1 So 

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it's clear in Isaiah's vision 
here, the one who is coming 

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towards the watchman is none 
other than the Lord God Almighty

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himself. 
And where is he coming from? 

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Well, the watchman tells us in 
the beginning of verse one, he's

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coming from Edom. 
He's coming from Basra, which is

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the capital city of Edom likely.
Remember that Edom was the 

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country of the descendants of 
Esau. 

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Edom was a long standing, ever 
present enemy of Israel, going 

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all the way back to the conflict
between Jacob and Esau. 

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And as we have seen earlier in 
Isaiah, the term Edom is is also

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used more generally as a term 
for all of God's enemies, any 

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who would oppose the Lord God 
Almighty. 

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So what's being described here 
in these verses is God returning

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from dealing with his enemies, 
dealing with those who oppose 

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him. 
And notice how he's dressed 

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beginning of verse one. 
He's splendid in his apparel. 

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The famous Isaiah scholar Alec 
Matir in his commentary points 

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out that the word that we have 
translated in our version here 

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is Crimson. 
It actually translates a Hebrew 

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word that means vivid or sharp 
color. 

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So as the watchman saw this 
figure coming from a distant, he

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could see the figures garments 
and they were vivid. 

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They were sharp in color. 
And notice this one coming was 

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marching in the greatness of his
strength, the sense of majesty, 

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power, strength. 
But then notice what happens 

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when the figure arrives at the 
watchman. 

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The watchman realizes that this 
figures garments are not just 

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covered with vivid and sharp 
colour. 

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Verse 2 tells us the garment is 
stained red, as if this one who 

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had approached the city had been
in a wine press stomping on or 

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treading on grapes. 
Well, that leads us to ask the 

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question, what has he been 
doing? 

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What has this one been doing? 
What work is he returning from? 

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That's what we see in verses 3 
through 6. 

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The Lord God Almighty explains 
that His garments are stained 

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with blood. 
With lifeblood? 

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Of who? 
Of the enemies of God? 

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Of all those who would oppose 
him, we read in verse three that

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the anger and the wrath of the 
Lord has been poured out because

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of the sin and rebellion and 
absence of faith of those who 

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are the enemies of God. 
Verse 4, The day of a righteous 

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vengeance of judgment had 
arrived for God's enemies. 

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And notice the Lord points out 
twice that this day of 

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vengeance, this day of judgment 
is something that only He could 

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bring. 
Beginning of verse three. 

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I have trodden the winepress 
alone, he says. 

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Verse 5. 
I looked, but there was no one 

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to help. 
I was appalled, but there was no

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one to uphold this righteous 
judgement. 

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This righteous vengeance can 
only be brought by the Lord 

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Himself. 
And then in verse 6, we're given

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a picture of God's enemies 
drinking the cup of God's wrath 

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and justice. 
The enemies of the Lord have no 

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one to drink that cup for them. 
They have to drink it down 

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themselves. 
We should have noticed something

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that's very interesting. 
The day of vengeance. 

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The day of vengeance for God's 
enemies. 

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It brings something else. 
It brings something else. 

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What does the day of God's 
vengeance on his vengeance on 

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his enemy also bring? 
The the end of verse 4. 

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God's day of vengeance on his 
enemy also brings a year of 

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redemption. 
The end of verse 5. 

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God's day of vengeance on His 
enemies also brings salvation 

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from the arm of the Lord. 
There is wrath and vengeance and

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judgment for those who are the 
Lord's enemies, for those who do

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not believe in Him, for those 
who do not put their faith in 

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him, for those who do not 
worship Him. 

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Those that would rebel against 
the Lord and choose a life of 

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sin and disobedience with no 
repentance, Who would choose a 

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life of never turning from their
sin and turning back to the Lord

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for forgiveness and loving 
obedience. 

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But for those that are God's 
people, for those who are not 

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the enemies of God, those who 
are in a relationship with the 

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Lord, who seek to follow Him and
love Him and grow in obedience 

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to His Word. 
For them there is redemption and

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salvation. 
And notice, just like the day of

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vengeance and judgement, only 
the Lord can bring salvation. 

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Verse 5. 
Again I looked, but there was no

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one to help. 
I was appalled, but there was no

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one to uphold, so my own arm 
brought me salvation. 

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The Lord says only the arm of 
the Lord can bring salvation to 

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His people. 
God's people can't save 

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themselves. 
No one else can do it. 

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It is only a work of the Lord. 
So this warrior that we see 

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returning from his battle 
against his enemies, who goes to

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war and defeats his enemies, is 
also the Saviour who secures 

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redemption and salvation for his
people through his own work. 

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As we've seen repeatedly in 
Isaiah, and especially as we 

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looked at chapters 52 and 53, 
the promise was given that a 

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servant would be sent, a servant
was promised who would arrive, 

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00:13:48,760 --> 00:13:51,120
and it would be the Lord 
himself. 

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And as we're told in Isaiah 
chapter 53, he would be despised

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and rejected by men. 
He would have no form or majesty

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or beauty. 
He would be a man of sorrows. 

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He would be 1 acquainted with 
grief, one from whom men hide 

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their faces. 
He would bear grief and carry 

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the sorrows of people. 
He would be stricken and smitten

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by God and afflicted. 
He would be pierced for our 

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transgressions. 
He would be crushed for our 

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iniquities. 
Chastisement would be put on him

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that would bring us peace. 
He would be wounded so that we 

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could be healed. 
He would be crushed and put to 

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grief. 
And through the person and the 

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work of the suffering servant, 
we would be accounted righteous.

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That description of that 
suffering servant in Isaiah 53 

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is quoted or alluded to about 40
times in the New Testament, 

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pointing to the person and the 
work of Jesus as that promised 

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suffering servant, that through 
the life and the death and the 

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resurrection of Jesus, the arm 
of the Lord brought salvation 

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for his people. 
Through the person and the work 

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of Jesus, our transgressions, 
our iniquities, our sins are put

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on Jesus and we are accounted 
righteous with the righteousness

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of Jesus. 
This is the salvation, this is 

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the redemption that is being 
spoken of here in Isaiah chapter

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63, and it belongs to those who 
are in Christ, who are in 

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relationship with the Lord 
Jesus. 

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Well, what do we do with all of 
this? 

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Three things today as we finish.
The 1st is this question, Whose 

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side are you on? 
Whose side are you on? 

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All who live will either get a 
day of final vengeance and 

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judgement or final redemption in
salvation. 

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When the warrior servant Savior 
returns or when we die, it will 

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either be a day of vengeance for
us or a day of redemption for us

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for all eternity. 
And it all comes down to this 

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Are you in Christ? 
Are you in Christ? 

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If you believe in Jesus and you 
have been united to him by 

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faith, then he drinks the cup of
God's wrath and justice for you 

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day of redemption. 
But if you are not united to 

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Jesus by faith, then you will 
have to drink that cup yourself.

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You will experience the day of 
God's righteous vengeance. 

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So who are you? 
And understand this? 

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No one gets some vengeance and 
judgement and some redemption 

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and salvation. 
No one gets mostly redemption 

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and a little bit of vengeance. 
No one gets mostly judgement and

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a little bit of salvation. 
It's all or nothing when we die 

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or when the Lord returns. 
So if you're in Christ Jesus, 

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brothers and sisters, rest in 
that truth. 

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As Paul says in Romans, there is
therefore now no condemnation 

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for those who are in Christ 
Jesus. 

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If you are a believer, if you 
are in Christ, there is no 

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condemnation for you. 
There is no day of judgement. 

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There is no day of vengeance, 
only the year of redemption. 

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Rest in that glorious reality 
and be filled with sustaining 

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hope. 
Let that truth fill your heart 

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with unshakeable joy. 
Yours is a day of salvation and 

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redemption. 
But if you're not in Christ, 

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know that there is no rest. 
There is no hope. 

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There is no joy. 
It doesn't work to live a life 

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that has more good works than 
bad to get into heaven. 

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God's Word tells us that you are
either an enemy of the Lord or a

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beloved son and daughter of the 
Lord. 

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And it all comes down to not 
being a pretty good person and 

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having more good works than bad 
in our lives. 

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It comes down to whether you 
have admitted that you are a 

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Sinner and that you need a 
Saviour, and that Saviour is 

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Jesus. 
It comes down to whether you've 

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been united to Jesus by faith. 
So first, whose side are you on?

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Secondly, God's day of 
vengeance, God's day of 

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judgement, his year of 
redemption. 

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It brings an end to evil and to 
sin and to injustice. 

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We're told in God's Word that 
this day is coming, and when it 

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arrives, evil and wickedness are
ended and sin will be no more, 

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and injustice will be eliminated
and righted. 

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This is a truth that's been 
promised to us by the Lord 

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Himself. 
A day when the dwelling place of

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God is with man, when he will 
dwell with his people and he 

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will be with them as their God. 
When he will wipe away every 

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tear from their eyes. 
When death will be no more, When

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there'll be no more mourning or 
crying or sadness, no more pain,

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no more mental anguish. 
Those things will have all 

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passed away. 
So if you're here and you are 

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experiencing injustice, you're 
feeling the weight of evil and 

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wickedness in this world, you're
weary because of the fight, or 

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perhaps the lack thereof, of 
fighting against your sin. 

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Weighed down by the fallenness 
and the brokenness of this 

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world, this day that is coming 
is meant to fill us with great 

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sustaining hope. 
It is meant to give us strength 

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to persevere now, knowing that 
this day is coming. 

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If this is you, you need to come
back to what God's Word says 

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about this glorious day that is 
coming over and over again. 

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Meditate on it. 
Think deeply about it. 

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Let the truth of it wash over 
your heart and your soul. 

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Fix your mind on this truth and 
don't stop until your heart is 

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warmed to the point that you are
filled with a sustaining hope 

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that gives you the motivation 
and the strength that you need 

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to keep going. 
Persevere to the end. 

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Thirdly and lastly, there is 
work to be done. 

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There's work to be done now. 
The Lord is very clear in Isaiah

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63 that the day of vengeance, 
the day of redemption, that's 

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God's work to do. 
He is the only one that can 

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bring those days. 
He looked around. 

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He saw that there was no one who
could help him with his work of 

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vengeance and salvation. 
That was only the work that he 

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could do. 
We can't do that work, but there

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is work for us to do. 
Over and over again in 

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Scripture, God's people are 
called to the work of 

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sanctification, growing in 
Christ likeness. 

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Now, to be clear, Scripture is 
also very clear that the that 

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sanctification in our life is 
first the work of the Holy 

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Spirit. 
But Scripture is clear that we 

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are enabled by the Holy Spirit 
to grow in godliness and 

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holiness and obedience through 
the work of the Spirit in our 

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lives. 
He enables us to do the work. 

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Psalm 119 says, when I think on 
my ways, I turn my feet to your 

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testimonies. 
I hasten and do not delay to 

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keep your commandments. 
The psalmist is saying he 

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considers his ways. 
He, he looks at his life, he 

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thinks about how he's doing and 
he recognizes all the ways that 

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he falls short of honouring the 
Lord. 

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And he then turns his feet back 
to the Lord, hastens without 

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delay to obey the word of God. 
Or Romans 2 verse 4 says, or do 

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you presume on the riches of 
God's kindness and forbearance 

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and patience, not knowing that 
God's kindness is meant to lead 

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you to repentance? 
The kindness of the Lord is 

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meant to lead us, to drive us to
repentance, to to greater 

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obedience. 
What is his kindness to us? 

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It is his grace. 
It is the gospel. 

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God's grace to us is meant to 
lead us to repentance and to a 

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growing in our faith, in our 
maturity, in our obedience to 

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the Lord. 
Or we could think about Titus 3.

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But when the goodness and loving
kindness of God our Savior 

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appeared, He saved us not 
because of works done by us in 

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righteousness, but according to 
His own mercy, by the washing of

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regeneration and renewal of the 
Holy Spirit, whom He poured out 

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on us richly through Jesus 
Christ our Savior, so that being

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justified by His grace, we might
become heirs according to the 

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hope of eternal life. 
The saying is trustworthy, and I

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want you to insist on these 
things so that those who have 

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believed in God may be careful 
to devote themselves to good 

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works. 
Isn't that amazing? 

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We have been saved by God's 
loving kindness and mercy, the 

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washing of regeneration and 
renewal of the Holy Spirit. 

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We have been justified by his 
grace. 

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We have been made heirs 
according to the hope of eternal

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life. 
And if these truths are glorious

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and they are trustworthy, and we
are to insist on these things, 

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why? 
So that we would be careful to 

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devote ourselves to good works. 
Again, it is the gospel, it is 

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God's grace to us that is meant 
to move us to good works. 

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Or we could think of Titus 
chapter 2. 

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For the grace of God has 
appeared, bringing salvation for

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all people, training us to 
renounce ungodliness and worldly

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passions, and to live self 
controlled, upright and godly 

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lives. 
In this present age. 

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What is it that trains us to 
renounce ungodliness? 

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00:24:57,960 --> 00:25:01,240
What is it that trains us to 
renounce worldly passion? 

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00:25:02,600 --> 00:25:05,880
What is it that trains us to 
live self controlled, upright, 

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00:25:05,880 --> 00:25:09,480
godly lives in our present age? 
It is the grace of God that has 

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appeared. 
It is Jesus himself again. 

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00:25:15,520 --> 00:25:18,520
It is God's grace that is meant 
to move us to greater faith and 

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00:25:18,520 --> 00:25:22,200
repentance and growth and grace,
holiness and sanctification. 

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This is the work that the Lord 
calls us to do. 

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This is the work that the Lord 
enables us to do, and it's hard 

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work to say no to our sin and to
turn from it once again and turn

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back to the Lord to follow the 
Lord's word more and more in our

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00:25:40,960 --> 00:25:46,000
lives. 
It is hard work for us, and it's

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good on occasion for us to take 
a step back and to look at the 

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trajectory of our lives. 
Not just a snapshot of where we 

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are in any given moment, but the
trajectory of our lives. 

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Do I see growth and grace in my 
life? 

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00:26:03,160 --> 00:26:07,800
Do I see a maturing faith? 
Do I see a greater desire to 

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00:26:07,800 --> 00:26:12,240
obey the Lord? 
Do I see a greater strength to 

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fight and to lean and not to 
give in to my besetting sins? 

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00:26:16,520 --> 00:26:24,880
And when we don't like the 
trajectory that we see, when we 

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desire to see greater progress, 
the remedy is this. 

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Come back to God's kindness to 
you. 

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00:26:35,640 --> 00:26:39,520
Come back to God's loving grace 
and mercy to you. 

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00:26:41,520 --> 00:26:45,160
Come back to God's grace for you
in the gospel. 

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00:26:46,680 --> 00:26:49,040
Come back to what Jesus has 
accomplished for you. 

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00:26:51,080 --> 00:26:54,800
Because these things are meant 
to lead us to repentance, faith,

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00:26:55,280 --> 00:26:58,920
love of God, and obedience to 
His Word. 

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Let's pray together.