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This is ERC Sundays, the 
messages from Emmaus Rd. 

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Church in DeWitt, Iowa. 
ERC is a Church of people 

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devoted to knowing Jesus and 
making him known to others 

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through our faith, words and 
actions. 

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Find out more about our church 
at emmausrdonline.org. 

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Here's this week's message. 
We are starting a new series 

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this morning in Philippians. 
We'll be in there the next 4 

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weeks and we're just taking a 
little blurb from each chapter. 

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I would encourage you right now,
certainly break out your Bible. 

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The words will be up on the 
screen. 

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But if you want to take it in, 
in your hands, in your physical 

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Bible, take some notes and 
encourage you to do that. 

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I would also encourage you over 
the next 4 weeks. 

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This is a short letter. 
You could read this letter every

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day for the next 4 weeks. 
If you wanted to enter. 

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It would take like 13 minutes to
read the letter each and every 

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day. 
Immerse yourself in this 

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Christian living that Paul is 
writing to the church in 

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Philippi. 
We're doing chapter 1 this week,

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234 over the next 4 weeks. 
If you want a bigger, fuller 

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picture of all these things that
he's saying and writing, take in

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this letter each and every day 
over the next 4 weeks. 

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Before we jump into God's Word, 
I want to start this morning 

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with a question. 
If someone followed you around 

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for the last seven days, the 
last week, and watch how you 

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spoke to your family, how you 
handled stress at work, how you 

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spent your time and your money, 
how you treated people who 

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disagree with you, would they 
say that's what it looks like to

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follow Jesus? 
Definitely wouldn't for me. 

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All of the 168 hours of this 
past week. 

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It's a sobering question, isn't 
it? 

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We're starting this series today
called This is Living. 

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We're going to journey through 
Paul's letter to the Philippians

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and discover what vibrant, joy 
filled, Christ centered life 

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really looks like. 
Today's chapter 1, the Apostle 

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Paul is writing from prison, 
literally imprisoned. 

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He doesn't know whether he will 
live or die. 

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He doesn't know what tomorrow 
may bring. 

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And yet in the middle of that 
hardship, he makes one of the 

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boldest declarations in the 
Bible For me to live is Christ 

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and to die is gain. 
This single sentence, this 

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sentiment from Paul captures the
heart of what we're diving into 

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today, a life worthy of the 
gospel of Jesus Christ. 

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Let's look at Philippians one 
together. 

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We're going to be starting at 
verse 21 towards the end of the 

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chapter, reading in Jesus name. 
For to me to live is Christ, and

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to die is gain. 
If I am to yet live in the 

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flesh, that means fruitful labor
for me. 

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Yet which I shall choose I 
cannot tell. 

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I am hard pressed between the 
two. 

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My desire is to depart and be 
with Christ, for that is far 

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better, but to remain in the 
flesh is more necessary on your 

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account. 
Convinced of this, I know that I

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will remain and continue with 
you all for your progress and 

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joy in the faith, so that in me 
you may have ample cause to 

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glory in Christ Jesus because of
my coming to you again. 

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Only let your manner of life be 
worthy of the gospel of Christ, 

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so that whether I come and see 
you, or I'm absent, I may hear 

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of you that you are standing 
firm in one spirit, with one 

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mind, striving side by side for 
the faith of the gospel, and not

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frightened in anything by your 
opponents. 

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This is a clear sign to them of 
their destruction, but of your 

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salvation, and that from God. 
For it has been granted to you 

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that for the sake of Christ you 
should not only believe in him, 

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but also suffer for his sake, 
engaged in the same conflict 

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that you saw I had. 
And now here that I still have 

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this is the word of God engaged 
in the same conflict. 

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Paul writes from prison, wrote 
those words to a people that 

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definitely weren't in that same 
prison cell with him. 

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And Paul says for me to live is 
Christ. 

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He doesn't say for me to live is
to chase success or comfort or 

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respect. 
He says Christ is his everything

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for living in the middle of 
Romans 8, if Christ is all we 

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are to live for, Paul reflects 
on this, that the Spirit bears 

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witness with our Spirit that we 
are children of God. 

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And if children, then heirs, 
heirs of God, and fellow heirs 

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with Christ, provided we suffer 
with him, in order that we also 

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may be glorified with him. 
So to live is Christ. 

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And if we are living with Christ
in Christ, then we are children 

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of God and fellow heirs with 
Christ. 

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Thereby we are all God's 
children, sons and daughters of 

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the King. 
We are Princess and princesses. 

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All you girls right now want to 
be princesses when you grow up. 

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Wish granted, there you go. 
You got all you ladies grown 

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already wanted to be princesses.
Here you are living the fabulous

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life. 
But think about that. 

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What's what's the primary job of
an air of royalty, of a Prince 

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or a Princess? 
What's the primary vocational 

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responsibility? 
Their main job is to support the

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reigning king, to protect the 
reputation of the throne, to 

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live your life in a manner 
worthy of that title. 

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Think about that Princess and 
princesses. 

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We don't have a lot of them in 
modern society, but they it 

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still happens. 
Every decision they make as they

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live their life needs to be made
through the lens of what would 

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my king, my father do, How would
he act? 

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What decision that I could make 
in this moment? 

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What decision makes him look 
good? 

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And that might sound oppressive 
or restrictive, but when you 

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have a perfect Father, as our 
Heavenly Father is perfect, 

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then, then yes, those questions 
are a part of how we should 

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consider living in a manner 
worthy of the gospel of Jesus 

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Christ. 
For Paul, Jesus was not an add 

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on to his life, He was his life.
Whether Paul lived or died, his 

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highest goal was to glorify 
Christ and enjoy him. 

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He lived to support the rule and
reign of Jesus Christ in heaven 

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and on earth. 
Look at verse 22 Speaking of his

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his work on earth. 
For me to live his Christ, if I 

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am to live in the flesh, that 
means fruitful labor for me. 

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I'm not down here just slogging 
through this Christian 

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discipleship stuff begrudgingly.
Oh yeah, I guess I got to go 

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deal with people again today. 
I love him like Jesus does. 

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Pray that means fruitful labor 
for me. 

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He, he had, he had this 
enjoyment, this excitement to go

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share Jesus and his love with 
people. 

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So much so I'm torn to live as 
Christ, as guy, to die as gain. 

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Which shall I choose? 
I cannot tell. 

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I'm hard pressed between the 
two. 

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He's echoing the words that that
he wrote in Ephesians 4. 

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Therefore a prisoner for the 
Lord, talking about himself. 

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I, therefore a prisoner for the 
Lord, urge you to walk in a 

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manner worthy of the calling to 
what you've been called. 

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How do we do it? 
Verse three with all humility 

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and gentleness, with patience, 
bearing with one another in 

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love. 
These are the things he was 

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excited about. 
He was looking forward to living

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his life with humility and 
gentleness and patience, bearing

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with difficult people in love, 
eager to maintain the unity of 

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the spirit in the bond of peace.
So the first, first part of 

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living in this chapter is Christ
the center of your life right 

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now? 
Are you compelled to live your 

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life in this manner? 
Is he the center or is he just a

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part? 
When you make decisions about 

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your time, your money, your 
relationships, your 

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entertainment, is Jesus the 
deciding factor this week? 

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Pick one area of your life to 
surrender over to Him, to 

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consciously put Christ at the 
center. 

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Maybe it's your marriage, your 
work, your thoughts, your 

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downtime, how you use your 
phone. 

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Make Christ the center of your 
life this week and moving on, 

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But make the change this week. 
This is living in Jesus his own 

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words. 
Seek first the Kingdom of God 

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and his righteousness and all 
these things will be added to 

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you. 
Not worrying about food or 

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clothes or what we should drink 
or what we will wear. 

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Seek first the Kingdom of God. 
That's Christ centered living. 

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Paul continues in our chapter 
Philippians von One verse 27. 

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Let your manner of life be 
worthy of the gospel of Christ. 

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This phrase manner of life is 
powerful in the original 

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language. 
In the Greek it means live as 

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citizens of the gospel of Jesus 
Christ. 

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Do you live in a world where the
goodness of God is the center? 

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Where the free gift of God is 
your life force, manner of life,

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citizens of live as citizens of 
heaven in such a way that your 

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everyday life is worthy of the 
good news you claim to believe? 

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The gospel is not just something
we believe with our minds, it's 

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something we live with our 
lives. 

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Does your life make the gospel 
compelling, or does it make it 

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confusing? 
When we wax and wane and waver 

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in belief, is Jesus really on 
the throne? 

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I think so. 
If he is the tomb still empty, 

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anything's possible. 
Do we live our lives in such a 

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way? 
Practically? 

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What does this mean for us to? 
How do we live our lives in a 

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manner do those around you? 
Do your coworkers, friends, 

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neighbors, family? 
Do they see something different 

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about the way you live, about 
the way you work? 

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Does your family see the love of
Christ in how you speak to them 

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and forgive them? 
Do you act online in a way that 

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reflects the love of Christ? 
A life worthy of the gospel 

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advances the gospel through both
our words and our walk. 

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The next part of this Paul is 
wanting the church, encouraging 

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the church to root out 
dissensions. 

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He wants to hear that the church
is standing firm in one spirit 

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with one mind, striving side by 
side for the faith of the 

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gospel. 
Unity is not optional for a 

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gospel worthy life. 
We are not made to live at odds,

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in conflict with our brothers 
and sisters in Christ. 

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Paul writes in Colossians 3 what
this again practically looks 

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like. 
Put on then phrase literally 

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means to clothe as God's chosen 
ones, holy and beloved. 

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Put on compassionate hearts, 
kindness, humility, meekness and

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patience bearing with one 
another, and if one has a 

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complaint against another, 
forgiving each other. 

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As the Lord has forgiven you, so
you also must forgive. 

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Above all these things put on 
again. 

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Clothe yourself with love, which
binds everything together in 

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perfect harmony. 
Is that how you act? 

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Do these words inform and 
inhabit your daily actions? 

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When you lose your temper or say
a quick harsh word, are you 

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reminded? 
Didn't put, didn't put the love 

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on this morning. 
Left my compassion at home. 

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Need to go get that. 
Above all, put on love, which 

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binds everything together in 
perfect harmony. 

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Unity, a unified people of God, 
living lives in a manner worthy 

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of the Gospel that requires 
humility, patience, and love. 

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It means we fight for each other
instead of fighting with each 

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other. 
So this week, children of God, 

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pursue unity on purpose. 
Forgive quickly, speak kindly. 

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Look for ways to build up the 
body of Christ rather than tear 

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it down. 
Pursue unity on purpose. 

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Finally, at the end of our 
chapter, verse 29, back in 

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Philippians 1, a life worthy of 
the gospel fights spiritually. 

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Paul reminds them, it has been 
granted to you for the sake of 

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Christ. 
You should not only believe in 

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him, but also suffer for his 
sake. 

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If you're not familiar with the 
Bible, especially the New 

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Testament, there are not 
promises of prosperity, at least

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not in this life. 
Heavenly reward? 

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Yeah, sure. 
There are more promises about 

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suffering and hardship in a life
that is following Christ, 

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engaged in the same conflict you
saw I had and now here that I 

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still have, again, writing from 
prison, literally imprisoned for

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the faith that he professes. 
I saw a meme next week that it 

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was things keeping the early 
church from going to church, 

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Beheadings, persecution, prison,
things that keep the Gospel Belt

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from going from going to church,
the Bible Belt, football games, 

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kids sports, air conditioner 
went out. 

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Our conflict isn't the same it 
was meant to be. 

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Paul writes this another way in 
Second Corinthians. 

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For though we walk in the flesh,
we are not waging war according 

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to the flesh. 
For the weapons of our warfare 

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are not of the flesh, but have 
divine power to destroy 

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strongholds. 
Our weapons, the weapons that we

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possess in Christ, have divine 
power to destroy strongholds. 

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We destroy arguments in every 
lofty opinion raised against the

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knowledge of God. 
How? 

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By taking every thought captive 
to obey Christ Church. 

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This is why it is so important 
for you to be in His Word daily,

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for you to know what His voice 
sounds like, so that when 

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there's a thought, a leading, a 
nudging in your life, you can 

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take that thought and compare it
to the blueprint of God's Word. 

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Is this in His graces for me? 
Is this in His character? 

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Is it in His will? 
What are the areas of my 

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marriage, my household, my 
workplace, my downtime that are 

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not in alignment, that I have 
not taken these temptations 

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captive and covered them with 
the blood of Christ? 

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We're not created for a spirit 
of fear or envy or bitterness or

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lust or lies. 
We fight those things. 

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Paul's words here said that in 
Christ we have this divine power

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to fight against these weapons 
of the Spirit. 

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So we stay rooted in prayer and 
in God's Word. 

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Living a life worthy of the 
gospel involves standing firm. 

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When culture pressures us to 
compromise church, we are in 

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spiritual warfare. 
Jesus has equipped us with the 

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weapons to fight. 
I already blew right past the 

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three-point part of the sermon 
with that fourth point. 

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So we're going to go into a 
fifth one since we already threw

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that out because I did bounce 
around and do a couple other of 

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Paul's writings. 
And this is my favorite passage 

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of Scripture in in the Bible. 
Colossians 312 through 19, 

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really. 
But we're going to take a couple

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verses here, 15 and 16. 
And this is for those who are 

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weary of trying, of trying to 
live out a life in a manner 

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worthy of the gospel. 
And you feel like you've done it

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with all of your effort, how you
are able, casting off your 

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experiences or, or, or your 
shortcomings or your past that 

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seems so dark and broken. 
And you are sick of trying in 

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your own strength because it 
hasn't done it so far. 

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Colossians 3. 
Let the peace of Christ rule in 

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your hearts, to which indeed you
are called in one body, and be 

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thankful. 
Let the Word of Christ dwell in 

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you richly, teaching and 
admonishing one another in all 

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wisdom, singing psalms and hymns
and spiritual songs with 

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thankfulness in your hearts to 
God. 

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Christian living is this simple.
I'm not dismissing the rest of 

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God's word or its usefulness. 
It is this simple, and there's 

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two really easy phrases and 
words in there. 

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Let the peace of Christ rule. 
How much effort are you putting 

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into unseating the peace of 
Christ in your life? 

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How much effort are you putting 
into avoiding the Word of God 

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when Paul's instruction here is 
just to let it dwell? 

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Let the peace of Christ rule the
the phrase in the Greek is, is 

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is like an arbiter. 
It's the peace of Christ is 

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what's making decisions and 
judgments in your life in his 

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peace. 
Let it, let it act, let it 

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decide. 
Let the word of Christ tell you,

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Richard, he doesn't require your
effort or your strength. 

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It's already there. 
You just have to accept the 

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gift. 
Live that out, Yes. 

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And singing songs of praise to 
him with thankfulness in your 

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hearts. 
Paul's message is clear in this 

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first chapter of Philippians. 
A life that is worthy of the 

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gospel of Jesus Christ. 
It's Christ centered, it's 

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gospel advancing not just in our
words but in our actions. 

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It's firm in unity. 
It's strong in spiritual battle 

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and a life lived in the manner 
of the gospel. 

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Let's Christ rule and reign in 
your life. 

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So, Church, will you make Christ
the center of your life this 

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week and you stay forward? 
Will you live in a manner worthy

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of the gospel as sons and 
daughters of the King, raising 

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the reputation of the crown? 
Will you pursue unity and fight 

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the good fight with divine 
weapons from the Son of God? 

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Let's pray our Lord Jesus, you 
never ask anything of us that 

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you have not already defeated. 
May we let your peace rule and 

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reign in the areas of our lives 
that we're not willing to turn 

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over to you. 
Thanks for listening to ERC 

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Sundays. 
To support the work that God is 

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00:25:13,680 --> 00:25:15,960
doing at Emmaus Rd. 
Church, visit 

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00:25:15,960 --> 00:25:18,720
emmausrdonline.org/giving.