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Matthew Chapter 11. 
If you want a title for this 

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one, I've got one for you. 
Usually I don't. 

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Faith, faithful and struggling. 
Faithful and struggling. 

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Those things can live together. 
Did you know that you can be 

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faithful and you can still be 
struggling? 

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We're about to see somebody who 
is faithful but still 

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struggling. 
Jesus has just finished. 

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Remember, he commissioned his 
12, He prepared them, He warned 

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them, He said, hey everybody, 
I'm sending you out into the 

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harvest. 
And then he said, by the way, 

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it's going to be really 
difficult for you. 

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You're going to be like sheep 
among wolves. 

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People are literally going to 
kill you because of me. 

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As the message that Jesus gave, 
He never lied. 

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He never tricked anybody. 
He never deceived anybody. 

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He never once said follow me and
everything's going to be super 

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easy all the time. 
He never implied it, He never 

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insinuated it. 
He told the truth from the 

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beginning. 
He knew what he was worth. 

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And he also said, Hey, let me 
also tell you, if you try and 

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hold on to everything, you're 
going to lose your whole life 

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and your eternity. 
But if you, if you lose 

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everything for my sake, you're 
going to gain everything anyway.

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So there's great promises that 
God gives. 

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There's great promises that 
Jesus gives his disciples and 

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most importantly, he's worth it 
all. 

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So he gives the disciples those 
warnings. 

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And now we're going to go and 
zoom in on somebody who has 

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already tasted and seen and 
experienced the persecution that

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his disciples that the 12 are 
going to start experiencing and 

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that his whole church is going 
to experience overtime. 

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So we'll read verses one through
6. 

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When Jesus had finished 
instructing his 12 disciples, he

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went on from there to teach and 
preach in their cities. 

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Now when John heard in prison 
about the deeds of the Christ, 

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he sent word by his disciples 
and said to him, Are you the one

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who is to come, or shall we look
for another? 

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And Jesus answered them, Go and 
tell John what you hear and see.

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The blind receive their sight 
and the lame walk. 

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Lepers are cleansed, and the 
deaf here, and the dead are 

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raised up, and the poor have the
good news preached to them. 

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And blessed is the one who is 
not offended by me. 

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God, help us to not be offended,
not just by your word, but by 

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whatever it is you want to do in
our lives. 

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We want your will to be done, 
not ours. 

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That's why we pray that prayer 
help our will to align with 

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yours even more so this morning 
and give us revelation even into

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the mysteries of the things that
we don't quite understand and 

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give us peace when it's 
something that's out of our 

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jurisdiction entirely. 
In Jesus name we thank you, 

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Amen. 
You can be faithful and you can 

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still be struggling. 
That is exactly what we see here

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with John the Baptist, a man in 
prison. 

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We're even going to review 
though and remember who John the

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Baptist was. 
This is a man who in this 

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moment, let's be really clear 
what John was doing. 

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John was saying, hey, Jesus, are
you really the Messiah? 

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He might go, why is that such a 
big deal? 

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Aren't people wondering that 
question? 

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I'm going to show you why that's
a really, really, really, 

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really, really, really, really 
big deal. 

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We're going to look at John's 
life. 

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We're going to look at the 
prophecies. 

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We're going to look at him and 
growing up with Jesus. 

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We're going to look at all that 
led up and all of John's 

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ministry to now. 
John the Baptist comes to this 

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moment in his place in his life 
where he goes, Jesus, are you 

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really the one? 
He's got doubt. 

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He's got something he's 
struggling with. 

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He's got pain that he's feeling.
He's got probably lies that have

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been whispered to him. 
But before we get there, we're 

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going to look right in in verse 
one here at Jesus. 

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Jesus in his in his mission, 
we're going to point this out. 

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Jesus goes on, he sends the 12 
out. 

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He says, you guys go that way. 
And then he says, I'm going to 

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go this way. 
And he begins to go into the 

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harvest, right? 
Jesus didn't just send others 

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into the harvest. 
Jesus said, I am also here to go

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into the harvest. 
Jesus was our example in every 

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way. 
He gives us the perfect example 

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of how to live. 
He gives us the perfect example 

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of how to die. 
He was truly a man on a mission,

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but not on a selfish mission. 
He was on a man on a mission in 

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submission to his Father, and it
was driven by his love for 

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others, for the joy set before 
him. 

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Jesus endured the cross, and for
the same reason you and I 

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endured the cross in our lives, 
whatever it may be, whatever 

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challenges may come because of 
the name of Jesus, because you 

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will not bow down to the gods of
this age or any other age. 

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It's the same gods, by the way. 
It's the same demons. 

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They manifest in different ways.
They manifest under a different 

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banner. 
Whether it was Molech or whether

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it was a right to choose or any 
other name, it's all the same 

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demons that have existed for a 
long time. 

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We still reject them. 
We still won't bow down to them,

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no matter what their name is. 
We only honor King Jesus. 

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So Jesus understands that his 
disciples are going to 

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experience persecution, but he 
doesn't just sit back. 

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He's not the king who sends his 
army for it. 

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He's the King who led the way. 
Remember, our God is the one who

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left heaven and came to earth. 
He walked in the dirt where 

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every other God, false God, non 
existent God, demands things of 

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his people that they would do 
better, that they would try 

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harder. 
But Jesus comes and leads the 

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way in every single example. 
So what does Jesus go and do? 

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Jesus goes to teach and to 
preach in the cities. 

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Teaching means explanation. 
He's explaining things to them 

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and preaching. 
That's proclamation. 

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What was Jesus teaching? 
What was Jesus preaching? 

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I wonder, is there any possible 
way we could know? 

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Yes, you already know. 
Remember the Sermon on the 

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Mount? 
That was the gospel. 

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That's the message of the 
Kingdom. 

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The Scripture says that Jesus, 
when he started his ministry, he

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started off preaching and 
teaching. 

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Repent, for the Kingdom of God 
is at hand. 

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Repent. 
That implies that he's made a 

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judgment about something, 
doesn't it? 

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Let's just keep saying obvious 
things. 

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Jesus makes judgments. 
He he tells his church to make 

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judgments. 
Judgment is not the same thing 

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as condemnation. 
We don't condemn people, but we 

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can judge right and wrong. 
We can judge and say the lights 

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are on. 
We can judge and say, you just 

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punched me in the face. 
That's a judgment that that was 

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a wrong thing that you did. 
I'm also going to make a moral 

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judgment about what you did. 
It was wrong. 

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And now I've judged that person,
haven't I? 

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Everyone say yes, because it's 
true and also it's not a bad 

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thing if I condemn them and say 
therefore you're doomed forever.

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Well, now I've gone into the 
condemnation. 

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We reject that. 
We want to walk in forgiveness 

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towards our enemies, but we are 
right and wise to make 

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judgments. 
So Jesus is teaching, Jesus is 

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preaching and he is commanding 
people repent for the Kingdom of

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heaven is at hand. 
But what was he preaching? 

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What was he teaching? 
He was continuing to preach and 

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teach some element or the whole 
or more than the Sermon on the 

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Mount. 
This is what the Kingdom of 

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Heaven is like. 
Blessed are those who are meek, 

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for they shall inherit the 
earth. 

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Blessed are those who mourn, for
they shall be comforted. 

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Blessed are those who mourn what
just cry when someone dies? 

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No, blessed are those who mourn 
their own sinful state. 

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Recognize who you are and where 
you're at. 

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If you mourn about who you are, 
then ultimately you'll be 

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comforted for who God can make 
you into. 

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So what did he preach? 
From day one? 

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Repent, for the Kingdom of 
heaven is at hand. 

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And then He went to teach what 
the Kingdom is like. 

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That begs the question, right? 
If he tells you repent, the 

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Kingdom of heaven's at hand, 
you're like, I really don't know

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what that means. 
That was the preaching. 

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He proclaimed something and now 
he needs to teach you. 

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Hey, here's what I mean when I 
say the Kingdom of heaven, it 

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looks like this and not like 
that. 

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You've heard it said this, but I
say that. 

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They go, oh, I don't know if I 
like that. 

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I didn't say you would like it. 
I just told you it's true. 

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You've heard it said this, but I
say that Jesus does it over and 

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over. 
The world is upside down and 

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broken and he turns it right 
side up and says the enemy is a 

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pervert. 
Satan is a pervert. 

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He distorts and perverts 
everything. 

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But the Lord makes it right side
and says this is designed, this 

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is my purpose, purpose. 
This is the way it's supposed to

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look. 
So this is what Jesus goes out 

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and and does. 
And now Jesus presumably is by 

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himself his 12 or elsewhere. 
They're still travelling and 

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John is in prison. 
John is in prison. 

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Why? 
For preaching the truth to King 

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Herod about King Herod's ongoing
adultery with King Herod's 

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sister-in-law. 
Mark tells us in his gospel that

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Herodias, that's Herod's 
sister-in-law that he was 

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committing adultery with. 
She wanted to put John to death.

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She hated him. 
It says she nursed a grudge 

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against him and wanted to kill 
him, but she could not Why? 

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Because Herod liked him, that's 
why she wanted to put him to 

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death for saying these plain and
true things. 

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John making judgments, saying 
y'all are doing this, that's 

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bad, don't judge me, I did too 
late. 

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And still it's bad and you 
shouldn't do that. 

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It's defiling the land is one of
the things that was said. 

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But Herod kept him safe. 
The scripture even says that 

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when he heard John preached, he 
was greatly perplexed and yet he

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heard him gladly. 
What a strange scenario. 

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What a sad scenario for Herod 
because ultimately he's a fool 

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who rejects the message of 
salvation that was being 

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preached to him, the message of 
repentance that was built for 

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him and given to him. 
That God loved Herod and 

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Herodias so much that he gave 
them their own preacher and 

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their own sermon. 
You got your own special 

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attention to draw you to 
repentance and you rejected it. 

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You saw it as a weaponization 
against you. 

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You saw it as a hammer and 
instead it was the scalpel to 

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remove the cancer to save your 
life. 

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And you said, well, that hurts 
like, well, scalpels hurt and 

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yet they'll save your life in 
the hands of the right teacher, 

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in the hands of the right 
doctor, in the hands of the 

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right master. 
Herod understood. 

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The Scripture says that John was
a man of God. 

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And Herod had some fear of God, 
but not enough to repent and not

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enough to resist the fear of 
woman or the the fear of how he 

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looked to his friends at a 
party. 

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But we'll come to that in 
another time. 

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But he eventually gives in to 
the pressure of his mistress, 

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his wife, his sister-in-law, 
whatever you want to call her, 

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who who was convicted of her 
sin. 

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And he then has John arrested. 
So he likes listening to John. 

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He's like John's like, and you, 
what are you doing here? 

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And he starts preaching against 
him. 

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And here it's like this is kind 
of uncomfortable. 

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He's like pointing out in the 
middle of the sermon. 

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But wow, this is a holy and 
righteous man. 

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What a what a strange scenario 
for Herod to I mean, it's just 

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like just spiritual blindness. 
It was spiritual blindness. 

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The enemy's blinding him. 
And the word is coming, but it 

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can't really get in. 
And Herod's just going, this is 

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fascinating. 
I will come listen to you again.

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Well, listening and listening 
and listening and listening will

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not change your life. 
But obedience sure will. 

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Humility sure will. 
And response to the message sure

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will. 
So eventually he gives in. 

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He has John arrested because his
wife, his mistress, his 

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girlfriend, his sister-in-law is
going. 

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I hate that. 
I hate how he's embarrassing. 

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You know, he preaches this 
message and now people are 

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getting more bold about talking 
about our relationship. 

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And he goes, all right, all 
right, I'll put him in prison. 

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I'll put him in my dungeon. 
Other history records other than

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the Bible tell us that John was 
in prison in one of Herod's 

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dungeons for about a year. 
So one of his dungeons 

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underneath one of his palaces. 
And after about a year, John 

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sends his disciples to Jesus to 
ask Jesus this question. 

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Jesus, are you really the one or
are you the Messiah? 

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00:10:54,000 --> 00:10:56,040
But let's get back into John's 
context here. 

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Let's remember John's mother, 
Elizabeth was first cousins. 

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With who? 
With Mary, the mother of Jesus. 

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00:11:04,720 --> 00:11:07,720
Mary the mother of Jesus, 
Elizabeth the mother of John are

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first cousins, their family. 
John's parents were past the age

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of childbearing. 
Remember how this happened? 

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John's birth was prophesied. 
So remember just quick 

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clarification. 
John the Baptist is not the same

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00:11:20,760 --> 00:11:24,640
one of the the Gospel of John or
first John, second John and 3rd 

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00:11:24,640 --> 00:11:27,400
John in the scriptures or the 
the writer of the Book of 

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00:11:27,400 --> 00:11:30,840
Revelation which is also the 
same John there. 

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00:11:30,840 --> 00:11:33,280
So John the Baptist's here 
different scenario, different 

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00:11:33,280 --> 00:11:36,000
person. 
John's birth was prophesied. 

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00:11:36,560 --> 00:11:40,200
An Angel appeared before John's 
father Zechariah while he was in

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00:11:40,200 --> 00:11:43,360
the temple, and the Angel told 
Zechariah what would happen. 

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00:11:43,960 --> 00:11:47,200
He even told Zechariah that John
would be filled with the Holy 

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00:11:47,200 --> 00:11:50,240
Spirit even while John was still
in Elizabeth's womb. 

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00:11:50,920 --> 00:11:53,600
Why is all this significant? 
Because their parents would have

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00:11:53,600 --> 00:11:56,560
taught them all of this from a 
very, very, very early age. 

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00:11:57,080 --> 00:12:01,000
Little boy Jesus and little boy 
John were six months apart. 

256
00:12:02,280 --> 00:12:04,360
John is only six months older 
than Jesus. 

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00:12:04,600 --> 00:12:09,480
Zechariah, Elizabeth, Joseph and
Mary would have regularly at 

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00:12:09,480 --> 00:12:13,240
family gatherings and each 
individually told these boys, 

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00:12:13,440 --> 00:12:17,080
here is how you were born, here 
is what your purpose is. 

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00:12:17,360 --> 00:12:21,120
They heard this over and over 
and over and you go, no, maybe 

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00:12:21,120 --> 00:12:22,800
they needed more. 
Well, there's a lot more. 

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00:12:23,480 --> 00:12:26,360
We're not even halfway finished 
with John's context yet. 

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00:12:26,960 --> 00:12:31,880
The Angel made Zechariah mute 
for nine months because 

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00:12:31,880 --> 00:12:33,560
Zechariah doubted the word of 
the Lord. 

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00:12:34,280 --> 00:12:38,800
He said, I'm Gabriel, I stand in
the presence of God and because 

266
00:12:38,800 --> 00:12:42,360
you've doubted my words, you 
want to to know that what I say 

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00:12:42,360 --> 00:12:44,000
is true. 
You won't be able to speak. 

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00:12:44,120 --> 00:12:45,680
You say something stupid like 
that, Zechariah. 

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00:12:45,680 --> 00:12:47,440
Now you're not going to be able 
to talk for nine months. 

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00:12:50,000 --> 00:12:52,480
So he made Zechariah mute for 
nine months when he doubted the 

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00:12:52,480 --> 00:12:55,520
word of the Lord during John's 
mother's pregnancy, during 

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00:12:55,520 --> 00:12:58,680
Elizabeth's pregnancy. 
So now Elizabeth conceives not, 

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00:12:59,400 --> 00:13:01,560
not through the Holy Spirit like
Mary did. 

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00:13:01,560 --> 00:13:03,080
Mary was a virgin. 
Elizabeth. 

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00:13:03,320 --> 00:13:05,720
Elizabeth was not a virgin. 
So this was still through, this 

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00:13:05,720 --> 00:13:07,720
was still a supernatural thing 
because they had never had a 

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child, even though they wanted 
to. 

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00:13:09,440 --> 00:13:10,720
They're past the age of 
childbearing. 

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00:13:10,720 --> 00:13:13,400
And now God finally breaks 
through with that miracle. 

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00:13:13,880 --> 00:13:18,600
But six months into Elizabeth's 
pregnancy with John, Mary goes 

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00:13:18,600 --> 00:13:22,240
to see her because Mary has been
visited by an Angel and Mary has

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00:13:22,240 --> 00:13:26,080
conceived in her womb. 
The moment that Mary greets 

283
00:13:26,080 --> 00:13:29,040
Elizabeth, she walks up and she 
says greetings, cousins. 

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00:13:29,040 --> 00:13:31,280
So her cousin Elizabeth is older
than her, but she greets her. 

285
00:13:31,680 --> 00:13:34,800
The moment that Mary greets 
Elizabeth, John inside of 

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00:13:34,800 --> 00:13:38,240
Elizabeth's womb leaps for joy 
at the sound of Mary's voice. 

287
00:13:39,240 --> 00:13:41,760
And in that same moment, 
Elizabeth is filled with the 

288
00:13:41,760 --> 00:13:45,040
Holy Spirit. 
Then what else happens when John

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00:13:45,040 --> 00:13:47,480
is finally born? 
There's a lot of people around. 

290
00:13:47,480 --> 00:13:49,480
When a baby is born, it's a 
celebration. 

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00:13:49,720 --> 00:13:51,440
People have gathered and the 
baby has come. 

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00:13:51,440 --> 00:13:54,040
And of course, people know that 
Zechariah saw vision nine months

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00:13:54,040 --> 00:13:57,000
ago, and they just, he just has 
to write and say, the Lord spoke

294
00:13:57,000 --> 00:13:58,880
to me in the temple. 
So nine months, you know, 

295
00:13:58,880 --> 00:14:01,000
Zechariah can't talk anymore. 
I guess that's it for him. 

296
00:14:02,080 --> 00:14:03,560
But finally they say, what 
should we name the baby? 

297
00:14:03,560 --> 00:14:05,760
What should we name the baby? 
And John writes on a tablet, his

298
00:14:05,760 --> 00:14:08,120
name is John. 
And the moment he wrote that 

299
00:14:08,120 --> 00:14:11,640
down, his mouth was opened and 
he begins to speak again. 

300
00:14:12,040 --> 00:14:14,280
His mouth is finally opened. 
He begins to praise God. 

301
00:14:14,280 --> 00:14:15,640
He's filled with the Holy 
Spirit. 

302
00:14:15,640 --> 00:14:18,800
He prophecies and he sings what 
we read earlier. 

303
00:14:19,240 --> 00:14:22,720
And when Jesus was born, as you 
already know, there were many 

304
00:14:22,720 --> 00:14:26,680
other miraculous signs. 
The stars moved to preach and 

305
00:14:26,680 --> 00:14:29,480
fulfill prophecy. 
The night of Jesus birth, heaven

306
00:14:29,480 --> 00:14:33,520
opened up and filled the skies. 
Hundreds of thousands of 

307
00:14:33,520 --> 00:14:37,320
millions of angels fill the sky 
and these shepherds get to watch

308
00:14:37,320 --> 00:14:40,880
it and they run down the hills 
into Bethlehem to say here's 

309
00:14:40,880 --> 00:14:42,600
what just happened. 
Just thing after thing, 

310
00:14:42,600 --> 00:14:45,440
supernatural miracle after 
supernatural miracle around 

311
00:14:45,440 --> 00:14:49,400
John, around Jesus's birth, to 
confirm who they both are so 

312
00:14:49,400 --> 00:14:51,480
that they can both know who they
are. 

313
00:14:51,640 --> 00:14:53,640
The shepherds saw it all. 
They run down to Bethlehem to 

314
00:14:53,640 --> 00:14:58,040
see Jesus into worship, to tell 
Mary, to tell Joseph and Jesus. 

315
00:14:58,040 --> 00:15:01,720
And John, of course, their 
second cousins, they grow up 

316
00:15:01,720 --> 00:15:04,680
together. 
Joseph, Mary, Zachariah, 

317
00:15:04,680 --> 00:15:07,120
Elizabeth would have told him 
all these things again and again

318
00:15:07,120 --> 00:15:09,080
and again. 
John knows who he is. 

319
00:15:09,080 --> 00:15:10,760
John knows what his assignment 
is. 

320
00:15:11,320 --> 00:15:14,640
So in adulthood, when John 
begins his ministry, John's a 

321
00:15:14,640 --> 00:15:16,840
Wildman. 
He eats locusts. 

322
00:15:17,040 --> 00:15:20,400
You ever had a locust? 
You want that at the OR are 

323
00:15:20,440 --> 00:15:21,440
those going to be at the 
luncheon? 

324
00:15:21,440 --> 00:15:24,680
We should do a John the Baptist 
theme at the luncheon. 

325
00:15:25,160 --> 00:15:27,640
That's our theme. 
Locusts and honey. 

326
00:15:28,640 --> 00:15:30,760
Yeah. 
Honey sweetens it up, I guess. 

327
00:15:32,080 --> 00:15:34,920
When asked about his ministry, 
because he was preaching 

328
00:15:34,920 --> 00:15:37,840
repentance, he was preaching for
one who was to come. 

329
00:15:38,000 --> 00:15:41,160
When asked about his ministry 
and his assignment, he replied 

330
00:15:41,360 --> 00:15:44,080
with prophecy from Isaiah 40 
verse three. 

331
00:15:44,080 --> 00:15:47,520
He said I am the voice of the 
one crying in the wilderness. 

332
00:15:47,680 --> 00:15:49,640
Make straight the way of the 
Lord. 

333
00:15:49,640 --> 00:15:53,000
As the prophet Isaiah said, they
understood what that meant. 

334
00:15:53,320 --> 00:15:55,720
John understood what that meant.
His listeners understood what 

335
00:15:55,720 --> 00:15:57,760
that meant. 
He's not saying I'm just another

336
00:15:57,760 --> 00:15:59,800
prophet. 
I'm the last prophet. 

337
00:16:00,400 --> 00:16:03,280
I'm the prophet who gets to 
bring in the Messiah. 

338
00:16:03,520 --> 00:16:05,560
All prophets have prophesied 
about the Messiah. 

339
00:16:05,560 --> 00:16:08,360
All Scripture is about Jesus. 
The whole Bible's about Jesus, 

340
00:16:08,560 --> 00:16:11,400
from Genesis to Revelation, 
everything's about Jesus. 

341
00:16:11,880 --> 00:16:14,240
But John says in particular, I'm
the one. 

342
00:16:14,240 --> 00:16:16,880
I'm not just saying hey 
everybody do better and make God

343
00:16:16,880 --> 00:16:19,840
happy. 
It's not the message of any 

344
00:16:19,840 --> 00:16:21,720
prophet, by the way. 
So let me clarify that. 

345
00:16:21,720 --> 00:16:24,400
They would say walk in obedience
to the Lord and love him and 

346
00:16:24,400 --> 00:16:27,520
honor him. 
But John says I get to announce 

347
00:16:27,720 --> 00:16:31,080
the King, He's here. 
So this is John's message. 

348
00:16:31,600 --> 00:16:33,800
This is who he is, This is what 
he's doing. 

349
00:16:34,480 --> 00:16:36,800
He went on to tell them, I 
baptize you with water. 

350
00:16:37,320 --> 00:16:40,160
But among you stands one who you
do not know. 

351
00:16:40,160 --> 00:16:41,360
So he's saying he's already 
here. 

352
00:16:41,880 --> 00:16:43,920
Among you stands one you don't 
even know. 

353
00:16:44,520 --> 00:16:48,200
Even he who comes after me, the 
strap of whose sandal I'm not 

354
00:16:48,200 --> 00:16:51,040
worthy to untie, John knows who 
he is. 

355
00:16:51,280 --> 00:16:52,800
He knows who he's prophesying 
for. 

356
00:16:53,040 --> 00:16:56,320
The next day, John saw Jesus 
coming through the crowd and 

357
00:16:56,320 --> 00:17:01,040
John said, behold, the Lamb of 
God who takes away the sin of 

358
00:17:01,040 --> 00:17:03,440
the world. 
You ever talk about your cousins

359
00:17:03,440 --> 00:17:07,079
that way? 
We're like, no, my cousins bring

360
00:17:07,079 --> 00:17:09,599
sin into the world. 
But like, I don't, you know, let

361
00:17:09,880 --> 00:17:12,359
me introduce you to my cousin. 
My cousin takes away the sin of 

362
00:17:12,359 --> 00:17:16,119
the world. 
John knows who Jesus is, doesn't

363
00:17:16,119 --> 00:17:17,760
he? 
It seems as though he's got a 

364
00:17:17,760 --> 00:17:19,720
clue at this point. 
His whole life, his whole 

365
00:17:19,720 --> 00:17:23,319
mission, he's a Man on Fire, 
filled with the Holy Spirit in 

366
00:17:23,319 --> 00:17:26,800
his purpose and in his calling. 
And he's going I know who I am. 

367
00:17:27,520 --> 00:17:29,280
I'm not worthy to untie his 
sandals. 

368
00:17:29,280 --> 00:17:33,040
I'm telling you all about him. 
It's all about Jesus the 

369
00:17:33,040 --> 00:17:36,160
Messiah. 
Behold, the Lamb of God who 

370
00:17:36,160 --> 00:17:40,040
takes away the sin of the world.
After me comes a man who ranks 

371
00:17:40,040 --> 00:17:43,080
before me because he was before 
me. 

372
00:17:44,280 --> 00:17:46,960
He says he ranks above me 
because he was before me. 

373
00:17:46,960 --> 00:17:48,960
Wait a second, I thought, John 
is older than Jesus. 

374
00:17:48,960 --> 00:17:50,520
He's six months older than 
Jesus, right? 

375
00:17:50,960 --> 00:17:54,040
Yes, but so how does Jesus come 
before John? 

376
00:17:54,040 --> 00:17:56,520
Again, John is clarifying that 
he knows that Jesus always 

377
00:17:56,520 --> 00:17:59,720
existed. 
Children, adults, everybody. 

378
00:18:00,040 --> 00:18:02,760
Jesus didn't start to exist when
he came on to the earth. 

379
00:18:03,480 --> 00:18:06,320
He has always been. 
In the beginning was the Word, 

380
00:18:06,320 --> 00:18:08,400
and the Word was with God, and 
the Word was God, and then 

381
00:18:08,400 --> 00:18:10,520
eventually the Word became 
flesh. 

382
00:18:11,000 --> 00:18:14,000
That was just the beginning of 
Jesus's flesh on the earth. 

383
00:18:14,000 --> 00:18:18,600
But Jesus has always been as the
Word of God, as a person, a 

384
00:18:18,600 --> 00:18:24,640
personality, desire, with anger,
with joy, not with any sin. 

385
00:18:26,040 --> 00:18:28,600
But the Father, the Son, and the
Spirit have always been 

386
00:18:28,600 --> 00:18:31,440
together. 
So he's saying after me comes a 

387
00:18:31,440 --> 00:18:35,960
man who ranks before me because 
he was before me. 

388
00:18:36,080 --> 00:18:39,160
I myself did not know him. 
But for this purpose I came 

389
00:18:39,160 --> 00:18:43,440
baptizing with water, that He 
might be revealed to Israel. 

390
00:18:44,320 --> 00:18:48,760
I saw the Spirit descend from 
heaven like a dove, and it 

391
00:18:48,760 --> 00:18:53,040
remained on him. 
I myself did not know him, but 

392
00:18:53,040 --> 00:18:55,720
he who sent me to baptize with 
water told me so. 

393
00:18:55,720 --> 00:18:57,240
This is what the Holy Spirit 
told John. 

394
00:18:57,600 --> 00:19:00,480
John's telling everybody. 
The Lord told me, here's how it 

395
00:19:00,480 --> 00:19:03,240
would work. 
He on whom you see the Spirit 

396
00:19:03,240 --> 00:19:06,120
descend and remained. 
This is he who baptizes with the

397
00:19:06,120 --> 00:19:09,680
Holy Spirit. 
John goes on and I have seen and

398
00:19:09,680 --> 00:19:13,240
borne witness that this is the 
Son of God. 

399
00:19:14,120 --> 00:19:18,960
Then he baptizes Jesus and then 
God the Father says out loud, 

400
00:19:19,600 --> 00:19:25,880
out loud so everyone could hear.
This is my beloved Son and I am 

401
00:19:25,880 --> 00:19:30,720
well pleased with him. 
Let's keep going. 

402
00:19:30,840 --> 00:19:34,160
Then finally when John's 
disciples came to warn him that 

403
00:19:34,160 --> 00:19:37,920
everyone was going to Jesus. 
So after John had said it's all 

404
00:19:37,920 --> 00:19:40,960
about Jesus, his disciples are 
going, hey, everybody's going to

405
00:19:40,960 --> 00:19:42,880
Jesus now. 
Like it seems like your ministry

406
00:19:42,880 --> 00:19:45,320
is kind of shrinking and Jesus 
is is growing. 

407
00:19:45,840 --> 00:19:49,080
John replied, A person cannot 
receive even one thing unless it

408
00:19:49,080 --> 00:19:52,440
is given to him from heaven. 
You yourselves bear me witness. 

409
00:19:52,440 --> 00:19:55,720
You remember that I said I'm not
the Christ, but I have been sent

410
00:19:55,720 --> 00:19:59,040
before him. 
The one who has the bride is the

411
00:19:59,040 --> 00:20:00,960
groom. 
The friend of the groom who 

412
00:20:00,960 --> 00:20:03,880
stands and hears him rejoices 
greatly at the groom's voice. 

413
00:20:04,720 --> 00:20:08,320
Therefore, this joy of mine is 
now complete. 

414
00:20:09,040 --> 00:20:11,680
He's saying finally the groom 
has come for the bride and I'm 

415
00:20:11,680 --> 00:20:14,520
the groom's best friend. 
So when I hear the groom coming,

416
00:20:14,520 --> 00:20:16,880
I get to announce it. 
The groom is here, everybody, 

417
00:20:17,080 --> 00:20:19,040
the groom's here. 
He's come to get the bride. 

418
00:20:19,200 --> 00:20:20,520
So at that time, that's how it 
would work. 

419
00:20:20,520 --> 00:20:22,440
The groom would come and take 
the bride from her father's 

420
00:20:22,440 --> 00:20:25,760
house and take her to his home. 
So the the best friend is 

421
00:20:25,760 --> 00:20:28,040
saying, hey, the groom's here, 
everybody. 

422
00:20:28,080 --> 00:20:30,640
And John saying this is my joy, 
this is my purpose. 

423
00:20:30,880 --> 00:20:33,800
I just get to be the doorman. 
I just get to be the announcer. 

424
00:20:33,800 --> 00:20:36,720
It's all about the groom. 
So his disciples like John. 

425
00:20:36,720 --> 00:20:38,160
What about our ministry? 
What about our thing? 

426
00:20:38,160 --> 00:20:41,560
John says our thing was him. 
He's our thing. 

427
00:20:41,560 --> 00:20:48,040
He's he's all there is. 
This joy of mine is now 

428
00:20:48,040 --> 00:20:51,360
complete. 
He must increase, but I must 

429
00:20:51,520 --> 00:20:55,040
decrease. 
He who comes from above is above

430
00:20:55,080 --> 00:20:57,000
all. 
He who is of the earth belongs 

431
00:20:57,000 --> 00:20:58,840
to the earth and speaks in an 
earthly way. 

432
00:20:59,000 --> 00:21:01,080
He who comes from heaven is 
above all. 

433
00:21:01,240 --> 00:21:03,640
He bears witness to what he has 
seen and heard, yet no one 

434
00:21:03,640 --> 00:21:06,720
receives his testimony. 
Whoever receives his testimony 

435
00:21:06,720 --> 00:21:08,760
sets his seal to this, that God 
is true. 

436
00:21:09,400 --> 00:21:12,720
For he whom God sent utters the 
words of God, for he gives his 

437
00:21:12,720 --> 00:21:15,520
spirit without measure. 
John talking about Jesus. 

438
00:21:15,600 --> 00:21:18,480
He's saying Jesus has the Spirit
of God without measure. 

439
00:21:20,200 --> 00:21:22,720
The Father loves the Son. 
This is John the Baptist still 

440
00:21:22,720 --> 00:21:25,760
talking about Jesus. 
The Father loves the Son and has

441
00:21:25,760 --> 00:21:29,840
given all things into his hand. 
Whoever believes in the Son has 

442
00:21:29,840 --> 00:21:32,560
eternal life. 
Whoever does not obey the Son 

443
00:21:32,680 --> 00:21:34,600
shall not see life, but the 
wrath for God. 

444
00:21:34,800 --> 00:21:36,800
But the wrath of God remains on 
him. 

445
00:21:38,000 --> 00:21:41,680
That Saint John is now asking, 
are you the one who is to come, 

446
00:21:42,840 --> 00:21:45,680
or shall we look for another? 
I hope you're already 

447
00:21:45,680 --> 00:21:48,680
encouraged. 
Have you ever walked through 

448
00:21:48,680 --> 00:21:50,200
anything with the Lord that was 
special? 

449
00:21:50,600 --> 00:21:54,400
Have you ever sensed the Lord's 
nearness, His closeness, his 

450
00:21:54,400 --> 00:21:57,760
presence? 
And then later you doubt it and 

451
00:21:57,760 --> 00:22:00,560
you go, Was that the Lord? 
Was that me? 

452
00:22:01,560 --> 00:22:05,360
I'm not so sure about this. 
Or maybe you just had prayers 

453
00:22:05,360 --> 00:22:08,360
that are unanswered. 
Maybe you just have pain that is

454
00:22:08,360 --> 00:22:13,520
unresolved, like we sang the 
mountain or the valley, wherever

455
00:22:13,520 --> 00:22:15,760
we are. 
Maybe you've got all of that. 

456
00:22:17,280 --> 00:22:20,000
How long does it take you to 
doubt whenever you've got pain? 

457
00:22:21,400 --> 00:22:23,320
How long does it take you to 
doubt whenever you've got 

458
00:22:23,320 --> 00:22:26,120
unanswered prayer? 
How long does it take you to to 

459
00:22:26,120 --> 00:22:28,640
doubt whenever things just 
aren't perfect? 

460
00:22:29,280 --> 00:22:32,280
Doesn't take me long. 
It took John about a year and a 

461
00:22:32,280 --> 00:22:35,000
dungeon. 
I don't know that I would have 

462
00:22:35,000 --> 00:22:37,720
gone a year and a dungeon before
I would have had my my 

463
00:22:37,720 --> 00:22:42,440
challenges and my struggles in 
ancient dungeon in ancient 

464
00:22:42,440 --> 00:22:46,560
times. 
How much trouble and turbulence 

465
00:22:46,560 --> 00:22:49,000
does it take for you to doubt 
all that God has spoken to you? 

466
00:22:49,600 --> 00:22:51,720
How much trouble and turbulence 
does it take for you to doubt 

467
00:22:51,720 --> 00:22:54,200
all that God has done for you, 
all that God has done through 

468
00:22:54,200 --> 00:22:58,600
you? 
For John, it was about a year 

469
00:22:58,600 --> 00:23:00,880
and a dungeon, and there's all 
kinds of dungeons. 

470
00:23:02,680 --> 00:23:06,040
Sometimes you'll need to be 
reassured while you wait. 

471
00:23:06,400 --> 00:23:09,480
Sometimes you need to say to the
Lord, I know what you said to 

472
00:23:09,480 --> 00:23:10,920
me, Lord, but would you just say
it again? 

473
00:23:11,840 --> 00:23:14,000
Would you just reassure me? 
Would you just comfort me again?

474
00:23:14,160 --> 00:23:15,200
Lord? 
I know you spoke. 

475
00:23:15,680 --> 00:23:17,560
I believe that was you. 
I know you moved. 

476
00:23:17,840 --> 00:23:20,960
I know you led me in that way. 
I know you comforted me at that 

477
00:23:20,960 --> 00:23:24,400
time. 
All the confirmations, all the 

478
00:23:24,400 --> 00:23:28,560
blessings, all the reward, all 
the goodness that God has poured

479
00:23:28,560 --> 00:23:31,800
into your life and you go. 
But this isn't how I thought 

480
00:23:31,800 --> 00:23:35,440
this was going to go. 
I, I, I was ready to have faith,

481
00:23:35,440 --> 00:23:39,280
Lord, for this long. 
I, I, I had measured it out and 

482
00:23:39,280 --> 00:23:41,000
I knew I had enough to get me to
hear. 

483
00:23:41,640 --> 00:23:44,840
But now we're in this space. 
I got, I got nothing for here. 

484
00:23:45,080 --> 00:23:46,720
What am I supposed to do in this
space? 

485
00:23:47,760 --> 00:23:49,040
I ran out back here. 
Where? 

486
00:23:49,240 --> 00:23:52,200
What do I do here? 
Well, thankfully we also have 

487
00:23:52,200 --> 00:23:54,760
the answer here. 
You take your doubt to the one 

488
00:23:54,760 --> 00:23:56,360
who can actually do something 
about it. 

489
00:23:56,920 --> 00:24:01,000
You take your pain to Jesus. 
You take your question to the 

490
00:24:01,000 --> 00:24:03,680
Lord. 
John doesn't sit and wander in 

491
00:24:03,680 --> 00:24:06,200
the dungeon and start to pull 
his disciples unto himself and 

492
00:24:06,200 --> 00:24:08,720
go, you know what? 
Think you guys got to break me 

493
00:24:08,720 --> 00:24:10,040
out of here? 
Maybe I'm the Messiah. 

494
00:24:10,040 --> 00:24:12,480
Maybe the like, this guy's not 
doing what I thought he was 

495
00:24:12,480 --> 00:24:14,880
going to do, and maybe the Lord 
hasn't done what you thought he 

496
00:24:14,880 --> 00:24:18,280
was going to do. 
Maybe John still had a certain 

497
00:24:18,280 --> 00:24:20,560
expectation of how Jesus was 
going to do things. 

498
00:24:20,960 --> 00:24:23,040
Maybe John, although he 
understood his assignment, 

499
00:24:23,320 --> 00:24:26,960
still, he's a man. 
He's still got his own problems,

500
00:24:26,960 --> 00:24:29,280
his own challenges, and he still
has his own expectations of. 

501
00:24:29,760 --> 00:24:31,680
But really, we are going to 
overthrow the Romans though, 

502
00:24:31,680 --> 00:24:33,600
right? 
Like because the Messiah brings 

503
00:24:33,600 --> 00:24:36,960
peace to the earth, he's 
supposed to bring peace. 

504
00:24:37,680 --> 00:24:39,400
That's what we've been told. 
That's what the prophecies say. 

505
00:24:39,400 --> 00:24:41,200
He's going to bring peace. 
So that means the Romans have to

506
00:24:41,200 --> 00:24:43,960
be eradicated. 
That means, like Jesus is going 

507
00:24:43,960 --> 00:24:45,880
to be the king, right? 
But if he's not being the king 

508
00:24:45,880 --> 00:24:47,720
and he's just going, what's he 
doing, John? 

509
00:24:47,720 --> 00:24:49,720
He's like preaching and teaching
and just kind of still doing the

510
00:24:49,720 --> 00:24:51,040
same thing he was doing when he 
got arrested. 

511
00:24:53,920 --> 00:24:57,880
But our parents told us, it's 
got to be me. 

512
00:24:57,880 --> 00:25:02,760
It's got to be him. 
This has to be the moment the 

513
00:25:02,760 --> 00:25:06,040
stars changed the prophecies. 
Like all the things that 

514
00:25:06,040 --> 00:25:08,640
happened. 
I heard God the Father say that 

515
00:25:08,720 --> 00:25:11,160
Jesus was his Son. 
But did I hear that? 

516
00:25:13,240 --> 00:25:16,240
I, I, I, the Holy Spirit came on
him like a dove. 

517
00:25:18,040 --> 00:25:20,880
And the Holy Spirit filled me 
and I spoke those things with 

518
00:25:20,880 --> 00:25:23,640
clarity and truth. 
That was the Lord and not me, 

519
00:25:23,640 --> 00:25:26,960
right? 
This is John's disciples are 

520
00:25:26,960 --> 00:25:28,840
sitting there through the prison
gates talking to him. 

521
00:25:30,120 --> 00:25:31,960
I don't know. 
I don't know what you tell us. 

522
00:25:31,960 --> 00:25:34,640
What do you want? 
Go ask. 

523
00:25:35,240 --> 00:25:39,480
Just ask Jesus if he's the one. 
Just ask him that for me. 

524
00:25:40,320 --> 00:25:41,920
He can't text him. 
He can't e-mail him. 

525
00:25:41,920 --> 00:25:45,920
He can't call him. 
It's going to be days at least 

526
00:25:46,080 --> 00:25:48,880
to get there and then days to 
come back. 

527
00:25:50,080 --> 00:25:52,840
Sometimes we need to be 
reassured, but John goes to the 

528
00:25:52,840 --> 00:25:56,680
one who can reassure him. 
So many times Christians, when 

529
00:25:56,680 --> 00:25:58,280
they're hurt, when they're 
disillusioned, when they're 

530
00:25:58,280 --> 00:26:00,440
discouraged, when they're 
confused, they turn from the 

531
00:26:00,440 --> 00:26:02,880
Lord. 
And this is the other warning 

532
00:26:02,880 --> 00:26:06,120
that Jesus gave. 
And verse six, Blessed is the 

533
00:26:06,120 --> 00:26:10,480
one who is not offended by me. 
Jesus, I thought you would do it

534
00:26:10,480 --> 00:26:12,200
like this. 
Blessed is the one who's not 

535
00:26:12,200 --> 00:26:16,400
offended by me. 
Don't be offended by me, Lord. 

536
00:26:16,400 --> 00:26:17,880
I thought it would have happened
by now. 

537
00:26:19,040 --> 00:26:21,240
Lord, I thought you would have 
answered it this way. 

538
00:26:21,480 --> 00:26:23,240
Blessed is the one who's not 
offended by me. 

539
00:26:24,520 --> 00:26:26,520
Stay close to me, stay warm with
me. 

540
00:26:26,520 --> 00:26:28,480
I love you. 
I'm your shepherd. 

541
00:26:31,000 --> 00:26:32,960
Sometimes you've been praying 
for something and you haven't 

542
00:26:32,960 --> 00:26:35,360
seen the Lord move in the way 
that you thought he would. 

543
00:26:35,880 --> 00:26:38,200
The Lord still loves you. 
The Lord is still with you. 

544
00:26:38,440 --> 00:26:42,360
He hasn't changed. 
Your perspective is changing and

545
00:26:42,360 --> 00:26:45,880
pain can do that to us. 
Sometimes if I get my eyes off 

546
00:26:45,880 --> 00:26:48,560
of the Lord and I get my eyes on
my pain, pain has a way of 

547
00:26:48,880 --> 00:26:52,920
distorting and confusing and 
changing me in bad ways. 

548
00:26:53,200 --> 00:26:56,000
It's not inevitable, though. 
It is not inevitable. 

549
00:26:58,440 --> 00:27:00,960
The Lord's love is inevitable, 
but that's also something for me

550
00:27:00,960 --> 00:27:03,440
to receive. 
Although John had his doubts, he

551
00:27:03,440 --> 00:27:05,880
took them to the right place. 
More specifically, he took them 

552
00:27:05,880 --> 00:27:08,880
to the right person. 
This is what you should do. 

553
00:27:08,880 --> 00:27:10,840
This is what I should do. 
Take it to the Lord. 

554
00:27:10,840 --> 00:27:13,960
Don't turn away from the Lord. 
Don't be offended at the Lord. 

555
00:27:14,560 --> 00:27:18,800
Don't be angry at the Lord. 
Often times I've heard people 

556
00:27:18,800 --> 00:27:21,080
say God can handle this and God 
can handle that. 

557
00:27:21,080 --> 00:27:26,120
God can handle anything, and yet
for your own heart's sake, you 

558
00:27:26,120 --> 00:27:28,800
would be very wise to still walk
into humility before the Lord. 

559
00:27:29,040 --> 00:27:31,040
John doesn't go. 
What the heck's going on, man? 

560
00:27:32,800 --> 00:27:36,000
So John has enough fear and 
honor and love for the Lord to 

561
00:27:36,000 --> 00:27:37,400
even talk to him in the right 
way. 

562
00:27:37,680 --> 00:27:40,040
I'm not saying you don't feel 
feelings, but I'm saying honor 

563
00:27:40,040 --> 00:27:42,000
the Lord in the way you even 
come to Him still. 

564
00:27:42,920 --> 00:27:46,160
He's still a father. 
My boys could feel frustration 

565
00:27:46,160 --> 00:27:48,960
with me and still they need to 
approach me as their father, not

566
00:27:48,960 --> 00:27:51,880
as a hey dude, I'm sick of you. 
And now I'm going to talk to you

567
00:27:51,880 --> 00:27:53,520
differently. 
No, you're going to talk to me 

568
00:27:53,520 --> 00:27:55,480
like I'm your father. 
No matter what you may be 

569
00:27:55,480 --> 00:27:58,120
feeling, there's still a way to 
do that. 

570
00:27:58,480 --> 00:28:01,240
And as your father, I'll love 
you and I'll comfort you and 

571
00:28:01,240 --> 00:28:02,880
I'll and I'll do what's best for
you. 

572
00:28:04,120 --> 00:28:06,240
Can't you handle it? 
I can handle a lot of things. 

573
00:28:06,360 --> 00:28:08,880
But for your heart's sake and 
for what would please the Lord, 

574
00:28:08,880 --> 00:28:11,120
there's still a right way to 
approach the Lord. 

575
00:28:11,920 --> 00:28:15,960
So Jesus is not your homeboy. 
Jesus is your Lord and your 

576
00:28:15,960 --> 00:28:19,200
Master and your King, and he's 
to be loved and he's to be 

577
00:28:19,200 --> 00:28:22,040
honored. 
And he's also, God is also our 

578
00:28:22,040 --> 00:28:24,400
Father. 
So he is to be approached 

579
00:28:24,680 --> 00:28:26,960
knowing that you will be 
received. 

580
00:28:28,280 --> 00:28:31,560
But our life has already looked 
different than we thought it was

581
00:28:31,560 --> 00:28:33,640
going to. 
Everybody who's been around for 

582
00:28:33,640 --> 00:28:35,280
a few minutes can attest to 
that, right? 

583
00:28:36,000 --> 00:28:37,680
Lord, I thought you would answer
it like this. 

584
00:28:37,680 --> 00:28:39,000
I thought you would move like 
that. 

585
00:28:39,400 --> 00:28:42,360
And I did not see this coming. 
This is so surprising. 

586
00:28:42,360 --> 00:28:45,160
This is so discouraging. 
This is so frustrating, but 

587
00:28:45,160 --> 00:28:47,920
don't be offended at the Lord. 
Remember, there's a few things 

588
00:28:47,920 --> 00:28:50,000
going on. 
The world is broken. 

589
00:28:50,320 --> 00:28:54,840
We did that, our Father Adam did
that, and now we're all born as 

590
00:28:54,840 --> 00:28:58,360
sinners. 
And on top of that, we have an 

591
00:28:58,360 --> 00:29:00,880
enemy, Satan. 
So there are factors that are 

592
00:29:00,880 --> 00:29:03,000
working against us. 
There is actual brokenness in 

593
00:29:03,000 --> 00:29:05,160
the world. 
Things have not yet been fully 

594
00:29:05,160 --> 00:29:07,320
restored. 
That's always in play. 

595
00:29:07,880 --> 00:29:11,320
Also, you bring in Joe Michael's
own foolishness, his flesh and 

596
00:29:11,320 --> 00:29:14,800
his stupidity and yours too. 
Sure, none of you have any, but 

597
00:29:15,000 --> 00:29:17,200
I do, so you bring that into 
play. 

598
00:29:17,200 --> 00:29:19,920
That's a big factor as well. 
And then the enemy, the devil, 

599
00:29:19,920 --> 00:29:23,360
is real. 
He's not to be feared, but he's 

600
00:29:23,360 --> 00:29:26,840
real and he has a limited degree
of influence in the earth and in

601
00:29:26,840 --> 00:29:30,120
the world. 
You add those three factors up. 

602
00:29:30,120 --> 00:29:33,280
You come up with calamity and 
problems and and brokenness and 

603
00:29:33,280 --> 00:29:36,080
death and and unanswered 
prayers. 

604
00:29:37,160 --> 00:29:38,800
We see that throughout the Word 
of God. 

605
00:29:38,800 --> 00:29:42,040
But yet when it happens to me, 
all of a sudden it's like it's 

606
00:29:42,040 --> 00:29:45,920
never happened to anyone before.
And I go, wow, now I know how 

607
00:29:45,920 --> 00:29:51,040
Job felt like any inconvenience 
in my life like this must be 

608
00:29:51,040 --> 00:29:54,320
what it was like for Job. 
You know that car that pulled 

609
00:29:54,320 --> 00:29:55,760
out in front of me and made me 
late. 

610
00:29:56,640 --> 00:30:02,560
I can relate, Job, you and me. 
I'm exaggerating, but it's not 

611
00:30:02,560 --> 00:30:06,280
far off. 
And yet when we when we see and 

612
00:30:06,280 --> 00:30:09,800
Daniel, Daniel prays and he 
prays for 21 days. 

613
00:30:09,800 --> 00:30:12,200
He's praying and fasting and 
finally an Angel comes and 

614
00:30:12,200 --> 00:30:14,600
brings the answer. 
And the Angel said, the Lord 

615
00:30:14,600 --> 00:30:16,200
sent me the moment you started 
to pray. 

616
00:30:17,000 --> 00:30:21,120
But I've been warring with the 
Prince of Persia for 21 days. 

617
00:30:22,480 --> 00:30:23,920
What in the world is going on 
there? 

618
00:30:24,040 --> 00:30:27,520
I don't quite know, but it seems
as though the Prince of Persia 

619
00:30:27,520 --> 00:30:30,520
is some demonic influence and 
the Angel was having a limited 

620
00:30:31,040 --> 00:30:33,840
like there's friction there. 
But if Daniel had just prayed as

621
00:30:33,840 --> 00:30:36,800
day one. 
God, I pray this the end. 

622
00:30:36,800 --> 00:30:38,240
Well, I guess it's not God's 
will. 

623
00:30:38,680 --> 00:30:41,560
It didn't happen instantly. 
And if it doesn't happen as soon

624
00:30:41,560 --> 00:30:44,240
as it comes out of my mouth, it 
must not be God's will, right? 

625
00:30:44,400 --> 00:30:47,920
What foolishness and immaturity.
But as Daniel prays and press on

626
00:30:47,920 --> 00:30:50,760
Angel goes, hey man, thanks. 
That was a crazy fight. 

627
00:30:51,240 --> 00:30:55,120
I won, of course, but I'm here 
now to bring the answer from the

628
00:30:55,120 --> 00:30:58,920
Lord. 
So what am I supposed to do when

629
00:30:58,920 --> 00:31:01,400
I suffer? 
Paul tells Timothy. 

630
00:31:01,600 --> 00:31:04,480
Endure, endure suffering like a 
good soldier. 

631
00:31:05,960 --> 00:31:08,800
Man, that was not the promise I 
want to put on the refrigerator.

632
00:31:09,160 --> 00:31:12,000
I just want the blessing again. 
I just want the mountaintop. 

633
00:31:12,000 --> 00:31:15,080
I don't want any valleys. 
Lord, I placed my order a while 

634
00:31:15,080 --> 00:31:16,120
back. 
I don't know if you've gotten it

635
00:31:16,200 --> 00:31:18,000
yet. 
Kitchen might be backed up, but 

636
00:31:18,000 --> 00:31:21,320
I just ordered like all the good
stuff, you know, like just all 

637
00:31:21,320 --> 00:31:24,520
the sweets. 
Like, no, no broccoli, just just

638
00:31:24,520 --> 00:31:28,320
the goodies. 
What am I supposed to endure? 

639
00:31:28,520 --> 00:31:30,080
Endure suffering like a good 
soldier. 

640
00:31:30,640 --> 00:31:32,680
Why? 
Because we're in war and we're 

641
00:31:32,680 --> 00:31:36,200
experiencing conflict and combat
and John was on the front lines 

642
00:31:36,200 --> 00:31:38,920
of that. 
John, you walked faithful to the

643
00:31:38,920 --> 00:31:41,000
Lord. 
You know, there's there's some 

644
00:31:41,000 --> 00:31:44,200
who actually would debate and 
say, you know, did John, did 

645
00:31:44,200 --> 00:31:48,240
John venture from his assignment
and calling? 

646
00:31:48,240 --> 00:31:50,440
Was he too much in in Herod's 
business? 

647
00:31:50,800 --> 00:31:53,120
And that's why, you know, his 
mission was Jesus and did he 

648
00:31:53,120 --> 00:31:55,240
venture off? 
I think that's pretty 

649
00:31:55,240 --> 00:31:57,280
speculative. 
And I don't land there. 

650
00:31:57,480 --> 00:31:59,680
I land more on the side of like 
John's a preacher of 

651
00:31:59,680 --> 00:32:02,440
faithfulness and righteousness 
and he's calling out wickedness 

652
00:32:02,440 --> 00:32:04,120
in the land. 
And particularly when it's 

653
00:32:04,120 --> 00:32:06,960
flagrant in public, you can be 
flagrant in public with it. 

654
00:32:07,080 --> 00:32:10,240
I don't think he was like that 
with every, every, every folk in

655
00:32:10,240 --> 00:32:11,520
the every person in the 
neighborhood. 

656
00:32:11,880 --> 00:32:14,960
But when your leaders are doing 
something, well, hey, it's good 

657
00:32:14,960 --> 00:32:16,640
for the goose. 
It's good for the gander. 

658
00:32:16,640 --> 00:32:18,880
If you want to be public in your
sin, then you I'll be public in 

659
00:32:18,880 --> 00:32:21,800
my correction. 
But John's on the front lines of

660
00:32:21,800 --> 00:32:23,960
ministry. 
And then John experiences what 

661
00:32:23,960 --> 00:32:26,040
Jesus has just been preaching to
his disciples about. 

662
00:32:26,600 --> 00:32:28,720
Guys, they're going to flog you 
in their synagogues. 

663
00:32:29,200 --> 00:32:31,400
They're going to beat you in 
church is what that means. 

664
00:32:31,960 --> 00:32:34,480
The church leaders are going to 
beat you is what he was telling 

665
00:32:34,480 --> 00:32:35,920
them. 
The Jewish rulers are going to 

666
00:32:35,920 --> 00:32:37,000
beat you. 
He said because of me. 

667
00:32:37,560 --> 00:32:38,680
He said they'll do it because of
me. 

668
00:32:39,640 --> 00:32:41,920
It won't be because of you. 
It'll be because you're not 

669
00:32:41,920 --> 00:32:43,360
doing things the way they want 
you to. 

670
00:32:43,600 --> 00:32:46,160
You're not doing things the way 
that they expect you to. 

671
00:32:46,160 --> 00:32:49,240
And maybe John had those 
expectations. 

672
00:32:49,240 --> 00:32:52,680
Maybe he didn't think that Jesus
was going to take over the world

673
00:32:52,680 --> 00:32:56,040
through his church over the next
2000 and some years. 

674
00:32:56,880 --> 00:32:58,520
We're still not finished yet, 
clearly. 

675
00:33:01,360 --> 00:33:04,480
So John, John's thinking in a 
much shorter timeline probably 

676
00:33:04,480 --> 00:33:06,200
too. 
Why am I in this dungeon? 

677
00:33:06,840 --> 00:33:08,480
Jesus came to set the captives 
tree. 

678
00:33:09,520 --> 00:33:11,800
Like they had a very specific 
way of thinking about that. 

679
00:33:12,560 --> 00:33:14,320
I'm a captive. 
It's been a year. 

680
00:33:14,520 --> 00:33:16,360
When's it like, when am I going 
to be freed? 

681
00:33:17,520 --> 00:33:18,960
We're speculating a little bit 
now. 

682
00:33:19,120 --> 00:33:22,640
What was John's expectation? 
But here we are still longing 

683
00:33:22,640 --> 00:33:26,240
like John for the fullness of 
our Lord's Kingdom in our lives 

684
00:33:26,520 --> 00:33:29,040
and all over the earth and all 
throughout creation. 

685
00:33:29,640 --> 00:33:32,360
And you and me are like, Lord, 
come through on that thing this 

686
00:33:32,360 --> 00:33:35,960
week. 
But what if it's another 2000 

687
00:33:35,960 --> 00:33:38,640
years before the Lord returns in
glory? 

688
00:33:39,240 --> 00:33:41,520
What am I going to do? 
Lord, help me to be faithful. 

689
00:33:42,280 --> 00:33:45,040
Lord, help me to be, to endure 
suffering like a good soldier. 

690
00:33:45,880 --> 00:33:49,000
Help me to walk close to you. 
I got questions that have not 

691
00:33:49,000 --> 00:33:52,640
been answered and you know what,
it doesn't matter compared to 

692
00:33:52,640 --> 00:33:55,800
knowing him, Paul had a 
different perspective. 

693
00:33:55,800 --> 00:34:00,720
Right when Paul's in the prison,
when he's in jail in the 

694
00:34:00,720 --> 00:34:02,480
midnight hour, he's praising 
God. 

695
00:34:03,440 --> 00:34:06,200
They're thanking God that they 
were counted worthy to suffer 

696
00:34:06,200 --> 00:34:08,040
for the name. 
That's what the that's what 

697
00:34:08,040 --> 00:34:10,280
Peter and the others did when 
they when they took a beating, 

698
00:34:10,280 --> 00:34:13,400
they said they were literally 
rejoicing and praising God's 

699
00:34:13,400 --> 00:34:16,560
hand. 
What an honor we do you realize 

700
00:34:16,560 --> 00:34:19,440
what just happened to us as 
they're bleeding backs and 

701
00:34:19,440 --> 00:34:22,080
suffering bodies and and the 
others would be attending to 

702
00:34:22,080 --> 00:34:24,639
them and caring for them. 
They said what a blessing. 

703
00:34:25,159 --> 00:34:28,600
How could you say that because 
we just got to suffer like Jesus

704
00:34:28,600 --> 00:34:31,280
did. 
We got to follow him in his 

705
00:34:31,280 --> 00:34:34,199
suffering and of course all 12 
eventually, well, except for 

706
00:34:34,199 --> 00:34:37,040
John. 
They tried to kill John, but 

707
00:34:37,040 --> 00:34:39,719
they were unsuccessful. 
But all 12 disciples end up 

708
00:34:39,719 --> 00:34:42,719
dying for the cause of Christ. 
They endured suffering. 

709
00:34:43,960 --> 00:34:49,040
Paul does the same thing. 
So praising God is another way 

710
00:34:49,040 --> 00:34:51,159
to go to God. 
We don't just have to go to God 

711
00:34:51,159 --> 00:34:53,280
in the literal way that John 
does with a question. 

712
00:34:53,520 --> 00:34:56,600
Although you're allowed to Lord,
I have a question about this. 

713
00:34:56,600 --> 00:35:00,440
Lord, I don't understand this. 
Lord, help me with this and he 

714
00:35:00,440 --> 00:35:02,160
will. 
He will. 

715
00:35:02,520 --> 00:35:06,000
Don't shake your fist at God. 
Don't charge him with 

716
00:35:06,000 --> 00:35:10,600
wrongdoing, but go to the Lord 
and say Lord, I am confused. 

717
00:35:11,040 --> 00:35:13,240
I'm having a hard time. 
That much is sure. 

718
00:35:13,480 --> 00:35:16,320
I'm I'm questioning this. 
I'm not sure about that. 

719
00:35:16,320 --> 00:35:18,400
That's one way to go to him. 
Another way to go to him is what

720
00:35:18,400 --> 00:35:21,920
we already talked about and 
that's praise glorifying his 

721
00:35:21,920 --> 00:35:23,800
name. 
Well, is that going to move my 

722
00:35:23,800 --> 00:35:26,480
mountain? 
It'll move your heart for sure. 

723
00:35:26,960 --> 00:35:29,080
Another lyric in that song and 
I'll send that to you later 

724
00:35:29,080 --> 00:35:31,200
today on Voxrot. 
I thought it would tie in well 

725
00:35:31,200 --> 00:35:32,520
with this message and it'll 
bless you. 

726
00:35:34,760 --> 00:35:37,200
It it might not, might not 
always move a mountain, but 

727
00:35:37,200 --> 00:35:40,160
it'll always leave a mark. 
It's always going to do 

728
00:35:40,160 --> 00:35:43,200
something so praise again, it's 
not for us, it's for the Lord 

729
00:35:43,200 --> 00:35:46,480
and yet in his kindness, he 
still blesses and strengthens us

730
00:35:46,480 --> 00:35:48,760
through the process. 
Whereas you might go to Lord if 

731
00:35:48,760 --> 00:35:50,280
you're just going to the Lord in
prayer demand. 

732
00:35:50,280 --> 00:35:52,440
I need an answer on this. 
I need an answer on that. 

733
00:35:52,440 --> 00:35:55,320
I need an answer on this. 
Well, hang on enter his courts 

734
00:35:55,320 --> 00:35:57,720
with Thanksgiving. 
You have much to be thankful 

735
00:35:57,720 --> 00:35:59,640
for. 
You've zoomed in on the on the 

736
00:35:59,640 --> 00:36:01,040
one thing you're not thankful 
for. 

737
00:36:02,080 --> 00:36:05,240
He might not have even have done
it, might just be the enemy in 

738
00:36:05,240 --> 00:36:07,280
other circumstances, but you've 
zoomed in on that thing. 

739
00:36:07,520 --> 00:36:11,480
You've blamed him for it, which 
he might not have even done at 

740
00:36:11,480 --> 00:36:13,600
all. 
And now you, you're putting him 

741
00:36:13,600 --> 00:36:17,880
on trial instead of God. 
Thank you for my salvation. 

742
00:36:18,440 --> 00:36:21,960
Thank you that my name is 
written in heaven right now. 

743
00:36:22,520 --> 00:36:25,040
For those of you who have put 
your faith and your trust in 

744
00:36:25,040 --> 00:36:27,720
Jesus and his blood, and you've 
received His grace. 

745
00:36:28,000 --> 00:36:30,880
There is a book in heaven. 
It exists at this very moment. 

746
00:36:30,880 --> 00:36:34,040
If we were there, we could turn 
the pages and your name is on 

747
00:36:34,040 --> 00:36:36,040
it. 
Your name is in that book. 

748
00:36:36,280 --> 00:36:38,880
Not only that, more importantly,
your name is written in the palm

749
00:36:38,880 --> 00:36:43,560
of His hand. 
I'm struggling to believe that. 

750
00:36:43,560 --> 00:36:46,360
All right, well, well, that 
would be the thing to encourage 

751
00:36:46,360 --> 00:36:48,440
your faith in. 
And we're going to see how do we

752
00:36:48,440 --> 00:36:51,320
encourage our faith? 
How does Jesus encourage faith? 

753
00:36:51,320 --> 00:36:54,320
Look at the gentleness in the 
kindness of Jesus here. 

754
00:36:54,840 --> 00:36:58,280
He doesn't give a sharp rebuke. 
John's disciples come. 

755
00:36:58,280 --> 00:37:01,680
Jesus and him grew up together, 
being told, being told, talking 

756
00:37:01,680 --> 00:37:03,840
about the things of God 
together, even as little boys, 

757
00:37:04,040 --> 00:37:05,880
even as young men. 
And then, of course, when it's 

758
00:37:05,880 --> 00:37:08,640
the time of ministry, you know, 
their hearts were on fire. 

759
00:37:09,400 --> 00:37:14,000
Jesus come from heaven, John, 
just a normal man, not also God 

760
00:37:14,000 --> 00:37:16,600
at the same time. 
But what a joyful moment for 

761
00:37:16,600 --> 00:37:18,760
them to interact at the river in
that baptism. 

762
00:37:18,760 --> 00:37:20,560
And John's confused. 
He's like, why am I baptizing 

763
00:37:20,560 --> 00:37:21,880
you? 
You should be baptizing me. 

764
00:37:22,280 --> 00:37:25,280
And Jesus, like, roll with it. 
Do what I do, what I tell you to

765
00:37:25,280 --> 00:37:26,920
do. 
And just like, oh, got it, I can

766
00:37:26,920 --> 00:37:29,960
do that. 
They got all this memory, all 

767
00:37:29,960 --> 00:37:33,000
this history, all this joy. 
And John sends his disciples to 

768
00:37:33,080 --> 00:37:35,680
Jesus and Jesus doesn't go. 
Are you serious? 

769
00:37:36,880 --> 00:37:40,920
Jesus rebukes unbelief 
throughout the Gospels boldly. 

770
00:37:41,800 --> 00:37:44,440
He's not always gentle. 
Whenever it comes to somebody's 

771
00:37:44,440 --> 00:37:46,920
unbelief, he gets very 
frustrated visibly. 

772
00:37:47,240 --> 00:37:49,840
He says, you faithless 
generation, how long must I bear

773
00:37:49,840 --> 00:37:51,840
with you? 
Ouch, Lord. 

774
00:37:52,560 --> 00:37:56,040
But when John comes and John 
brings his question, why? 

775
00:37:56,040 --> 00:37:59,440
Because John is faithful. 
John is actually faithful and 

776
00:37:59,440 --> 00:38:02,040
walks with the Lord. 
He's not just doubting. 

777
00:38:02,040 --> 00:38:05,840
He's not just an accuser, He's 
not an enemy, He's not a wolf, 

778
00:38:06,040 --> 00:38:10,400
he's not a pig, He's not a dog. 
He's actually faithful like you.

779
00:38:11,080 --> 00:38:12,720
He's faithful to the Lord. 
But he's going. 

780
00:38:13,360 --> 00:38:14,520
I'm struggling. 
Jesus doesn't go. 

781
00:38:14,520 --> 00:38:17,560
Guys, are you serious? 
John told you to ask me that. 

782
00:38:17,840 --> 00:38:19,920
Yes, Lord. 
And you thought it was a good 

783
00:38:19,920 --> 00:38:21,360
idea to come all the way here 
and ask me that? 

784
00:38:24,080 --> 00:38:25,760
I'm not even. 
I'm not even going to dignify 

785
00:38:25,760 --> 00:38:30,040
that with an answer. 
I said he didn't rebuke John 

786
00:38:30,040 --> 00:38:33,440
sharply. 
He doesn't give him a plain and 

787
00:38:33,440 --> 00:38:39,400
simple yes, though. 
Look what he gives in verse 

788
00:38:39,400 --> 00:38:40,920
four. 
And Jesus answered them. 

789
00:38:41,800 --> 00:38:46,360
Go and tell John what you hear 
and what you see, which is all 

790
00:38:46,360 --> 00:38:49,120
any disciples required to do. 
That's what you're required to 

791
00:38:49,120 --> 00:38:50,600
do. 
Tell what you hear and what you 

792
00:38:50,600 --> 00:38:51,920
see. 
In the sermon. 

793
00:38:52,120 --> 00:38:54,720
No, in your life, tell what you 
hear and see what's the Lord 

794
00:38:54,720 --> 00:38:56,480
done for you. 
That is your testimony. 

795
00:38:56,800 --> 00:38:59,320
You stand in the court of the 
world and they go, what's this 

796
00:38:59,320 --> 00:39:00,280
thing about God? 
You go. 

797
00:39:00,280 --> 00:39:02,520
He saved me. 
He's changed me. 

798
00:39:02,560 --> 00:39:04,560
He made me a different person. 
Well, I don't believe it. 

799
00:39:04,600 --> 00:39:06,000
I didn't. 
I can't make you do anything. 

800
00:39:06,000 --> 00:39:08,160
I'm just telling you. 
This is my testimony. 

801
00:39:08,760 --> 00:39:10,760
Here is I was dead and now I'm 
alive. 

802
00:39:11,000 --> 00:39:12,240
I was lost. 
Now I'm found. 

803
00:39:12,240 --> 00:39:13,920
I was blind. 
Now I see. 

804
00:39:13,920 --> 00:39:16,680
He tells them, go tell what you 
hear and what you see. 

805
00:39:17,200 --> 00:39:19,440
And then he does something very 
specific. 

806
00:39:19,800 --> 00:39:22,280
He quotes John's favorite 
prophet, Isaiah. 

807
00:39:23,160 --> 00:39:25,880
He doesn't give him the obvious,
yes, but he does give him the 

808
00:39:25,920 --> 00:39:28,640
obvious, yes. 
He goes go tell him what you 

809
00:39:28,640 --> 00:39:30,000
hear and see. 
But he doesn't just leave it 

810
00:39:30,000 --> 00:39:33,080
there. 
He quotes specific passages from

811
00:39:33,080 --> 00:39:37,360
Isaiah, that prophecy about the 
Messiah explicitly. 

812
00:39:38,200 --> 00:39:42,520
So he is plainly saying with a 
big flashing light and sirens 

813
00:39:42,520 --> 00:39:47,280
and horns, John, Of course I am.
Of course I am. 

814
00:39:47,280 --> 00:39:51,520
But he does it by saying, tell 
John this, Tell John that you 

815
00:39:51,520 --> 00:39:53,840
know the prophecy about the 
Messiah, what he would do, Tell 

816
00:39:53,840 --> 00:39:56,480
John I'm doing that. 
You know this other prophecy 

817
00:39:56,480 --> 00:39:59,360
that the Messiah was definitely 
going to do, Tell John, I'm 

818
00:39:59,360 --> 00:40:01,560
doing that. 
The other prophecy that the 

819
00:40:01,560 --> 00:40:05,160
Messiah was going to do, tell 
John I'm doing that John. 

820
00:40:05,200 --> 00:40:08,840
John identified himself through 
the prophet Isaiah's prophecy 

821
00:40:08,840 --> 00:40:12,000
about himself accurately. 
John knows the Scriptures well. 

822
00:40:12,440 --> 00:40:16,760
Jesus comforts and he says tell 
John what you hear and see. 

823
00:40:16,880 --> 00:40:22,160
The blind receive sight. 
The lame walk lepers are 

824
00:40:22,160 --> 00:40:26,600
cleansed and the deaf here and 
the dead are raised up and the 

825
00:40:26,600 --> 00:40:29,120
poor have the good news preached
to them. 

826
00:40:29,120 --> 00:40:31,520
So these are different passages 
that Jesus has hopped around 

827
00:40:31,520 --> 00:40:34,920
from Isaiah and he's going 
Messiah, Messiah, Messiah. 

828
00:40:35,120 --> 00:40:39,760
John, it's me. 
Don't doubt, don't be afraid, be

829
00:40:39,760 --> 00:40:43,680
faithful to the end. 
What a comfort, what an 

830
00:40:43,680 --> 00:40:45,920
encouragement. 
You can and you should expect 

831
00:40:45,920 --> 00:40:48,720
the same kind of comfort. 
You can and you should expect 

832
00:40:48,720 --> 00:40:50,440
the same kind of comfort when 
you go to the Lord. 

833
00:40:51,120 --> 00:40:54,040
Specifically, John had an issue 
of doubt here, but we can lump 

834
00:40:54,040 --> 00:40:58,160
it in with anything else, pain, 
suffering, you can bring it to 

835
00:40:58,320 --> 00:41:00,920
the Lord. 
And we don't want to conflate 

836
00:41:00,920 --> 00:41:02,800
things here. 
We don't want to confuse things.

837
00:41:02,960 --> 00:41:04,920
And I point this out to you 
every time I see it. 

838
00:41:04,920 --> 00:41:09,480
We don't want to confuse John's 
persecution with unanswered 

839
00:41:09,480 --> 00:41:11,560
prayers that you don't have 
promises for, because when you 

840
00:41:11,560 --> 00:41:14,440
do have a promise from the Word 
of God, you shouldn't move off 

841
00:41:14,440 --> 00:41:17,560
of that promise, right? 
And yet how many have been 

842
00:41:17,560 --> 00:41:19,800
standing on promises that they 
still haven't seen? 

843
00:41:21,120 --> 00:41:23,760
But it's not the same thing as 
persecution. 

844
00:41:23,760 --> 00:41:27,080
We are promised persecution. 
So it's going to happen. 

845
00:41:28,200 --> 00:41:31,400
We may escape it. 
And the Lord says if you can get

846
00:41:31,400 --> 00:41:32,920
away from it, by all means get 
away from it. 

847
00:41:32,920 --> 00:41:35,760
I don't want you to just 
deliberately martyr yourselves. 

848
00:41:36,120 --> 00:41:38,960
So get out of harm's way when 
you can be as wise as a serpent,

849
00:41:38,960 --> 00:41:41,560
be hard to hit. 
But it's not the same thing as 

850
00:41:41,560 --> 00:41:43,280
his promises. 
When the Lord is given another 

851
00:41:43,280 --> 00:41:45,880
promise, a blessing, you should 
stand on that. 

852
00:41:46,040 --> 00:41:48,920
So don't hear your pastor 
encouraging you towards doubt 

853
00:41:49,120 --> 00:41:51,720
and unbelief when the Scripture 
has been plain on something. 

854
00:41:52,440 --> 00:41:55,800
But do hear your pastor saying 
sometimes that timeline is 

855
00:41:55,800 --> 00:41:57,280
longer than we thought it was 
going to be, right? 

856
00:41:57,640 --> 00:42:01,360
That's where faith lives. 
There's the moment that I asked,

857
00:42:01,600 --> 00:42:04,520
there's the moment that I 
receive, What's this gap in the 

858
00:42:04,520 --> 00:42:06,320
middle? 
This is where I need to actually

859
00:42:06,320 --> 00:42:07,880
have faith. 
I don't need faith when I see 

860
00:42:07,880 --> 00:42:10,880
it. 
I need faith right here and here

861
00:42:10,880 --> 00:42:13,080
and here and here and here. 
And then it comes and you go, of

862
00:42:13,080 --> 00:42:17,080
course it's a relief, it's a 
blessing, but it's not a shock. 

863
00:42:17,960 --> 00:42:19,880
Why? 
Because if you're in faith, 

864
00:42:19,880 --> 00:42:21,840
you're not, you're not shocked 
when the thing happens. 

865
00:42:21,840 --> 00:42:24,240
If you're actually shocked when 
something happens, that was a 

866
00:42:24,240 --> 00:42:26,320
pretty good indicator that you 
weren't actually in a heartfelt 

867
00:42:26,320 --> 00:42:28,080
faith. 
It was a mental game you were 

868
00:42:28,080 --> 00:42:29,800
playing. 
I don't condemn you for it. 

869
00:42:29,800 --> 00:42:32,680
I've been there many times where
I say the right things because 

870
00:42:32,680 --> 00:42:34,840
the Bible says so. 
It's a good practice. 

871
00:42:35,120 --> 00:42:36,680
But remember, faith is not a 
formula. 

872
00:42:37,160 --> 00:42:39,920
Faith comes out of the heart and
it comes from God. 

873
00:42:40,360 --> 00:42:42,000
And what is Jesus giving to 
John? 

874
00:42:42,000 --> 00:42:45,800
By giving him the Scriptures? 
He's giving him faith because 

875
00:42:45,800 --> 00:42:47,360
faith comes from the word of 
God. 

876
00:42:47,840 --> 00:42:49,400
You want faith? 
I need faith. 

877
00:42:49,400 --> 00:42:51,160
I need to believe more. 
I need to believe more. 

878
00:42:51,440 --> 00:42:52,880
Faith comes from hearing the 
word of God. 

879
00:42:53,200 --> 00:42:55,040
Your faith is being built up 
even this morning. 

880
00:42:55,040 --> 00:42:56,640
Why? 
Because the Word of God comes. 

881
00:42:56,640 --> 00:42:59,280
And when the Word of God comes 
with the Word of God travels 

882
00:42:59,280 --> 00:43:02,240
faith to receive it. 
You know, wild how everything's 

883
00:43:02,240 --> 00:43:03,880
a gift from God. 
You don't get to. 

884
00:43:04,000 --> 00:43:05,880
You don't get to be the hero. 
You don't get to beat your chest

885
00:43:05,880 --> 00:43:06,360
or anything. 
Go. 

886
00:43:06,760 --> 00:43:08,720
I had faith. 
Where'd you get that? 

887
00:43:09,400 --> 00:43:11,480
The Lord gave it to me, right? 
Yeah. 

888
00:43:11,520 --> 00:43:15,360
He gives everything, He gets all
the credit, He gets all the 

889
00:43:15,360 --> 00:43:17,760
glory. 
Receiving something, not a big 

890
00:43:17,760 --> 00:43:19,480
deal, kind of an easy thing to 
do. 

891
00:43:19,800 --> 00:43:22,480
The Lord gets the credit, the 
key, because he's the giver, 

892
00:43:23,200 --> 00:43:27,560
because he's the initiator. 
We're going to close wrapping it

893
00:43:27,560 --> 00:43:31,080
up, but this is the point. 
I want you to see the gentleness

894
00:43:31,160 --> 00:43:34,680
of Jesus, not a sharp, not a 
sharp rebuke, but an 

895
00:43:34,680 --> 00:43:37,640
encouragement from the Word of 
God. 

896
00:43:38,000 --> 00:43:41,000
You should expect the same 
gentle strengthening when you 

897
00:43:41,000 --> 00:43:44,160
bring your pain, when you bring 
your doubts, when you bring your

898
00:43:44,160 --> 00:43:48,920
struggles to God, and when you 
consider persecution or any kind

899
00:43:48,920 --> 00:43:53,080
of pain or even your own will 
having to be laid down, which is

900
00:43:53,080 --> 00:43:56,320
the life that we signed up for, 
even your own will being laid 

901
00:43:56,320 --> 00:43:58,760
down. 
Remember, the disciple is not 

902
00:43:58,760 --> 00:44:02,960
greater than his Master. 
Our Lord Jesus brought his pain 

903
00:44:02,960 --> 00:44:08,000
to the Father in the garden on 
the night of his betrayal before

904
00:44:08,000 --> 00:44:10,480
His crucifixion. 
He brought all of his pain to 

905
00:44:10,480 --> 00:44:12,400
the Father. 
Father, not my will, but your 

906
00:44:12,400 --> 00:44:15,560
will be done. 
Jesus did want it. 

907
00:44:15,760 --> 00:44:18,000
Jesus did choose this. 
This is why he's doing it. 

908
00:44:18,360 --> 00:44:21,400
And yet in his flesh, he does 
not want to experience what he's

909
00:44:21,400 --> 00:44:24,480
about to experience. 
Since also from a little boy, 

910
00:44:24,680 --> 00:44:27,240
the little boy Jesus would have 
seen Roman crucifixion. 

911
00:44:27,800 --> 00:44:30,760
And he knew what his next 12 
hours was going to look like. 

912
00:44:31,760 --> 00:44:34,400
He knew what a scourging looked 
like and he knew what he was 

913
00:44:34,400 --> 00:44:38,600
about to endure. 
He knew and he was innocent, and

914
00:44:38,600 --> 00:44:40,840
even beyond all that, He knew he
was going to be separated from 

915
00:44:40,840 --> 00:44:45,880
the Father. 
Father, not my will, but your 

916
00:44:45,880 --> 00:44:47,840
will be done. 
Aren't you thankful that Jesus 

917
00:44:47,840 --> 00:44:50,240
was faithful? 
Aren't you thankful that Jesus 

918
00:44:50,240 --> 00:44:54,080
endured his suffering like a 
good soldier, obedient to the 

919
00:44:54,080 --> 00:44:56,720
Father? 
As an example, our King did 

920
00:44:56,720 --> 00:44:59,680
everything first. 
Our God calls us to some 

921
00:44:59,680 --> 00:45:01,360
difficult and challenging 
things. 

922
00:45:01,560 --> 00:45:03,600
It's OK to say that. 
It's OK to acknowledge that. 

923
00:45:03,880 --> 00:45:06,600
It's OK to be honest about that.
But our King did it all first. 

924
00:45:06,600 --> 00:45:08,640
Our king doesn't just go do it. 
I said so. 

925
00:45:09,120 --> 00:45:11,600
Our king says I didn't follow 
me. 

926
00:45:11,880 --> 00:45:14,400
Follow me into the life that is 
truly life. 

927
00:45:14,960 --> 00:45:17,440
Take up your cross. 
Follow me. 

928
00:45:17,720 --> 00:45:20,000
Remember, you take up a cross. 
You don't go back. 

929
00:45:20,640 --> 00:45:22,840
You see a man carrying a cross. 
But there's one thing you know 

930
00:45:22,840 --> 00:45:24,720
about that man. 
Wherever he's going, he's not 

931
00:45:24,720 --> 00:45:27,280
coming back from it. 
This is his last day. 

932
00:45:27,440 --> 00:45:30,720
This is his last walk. 
Christian, this is your last 

933
00:45:30,720 --> 00:45:33,240
walk. 
This is the only walk you should

934
00:45:33,240 --> 00:45:36,880
take. 
And for John, he ends up being 

935
00:45:36,880 --> 00:45:42,120
killed in that dungeon. 
That's where it ended, and 

936
00:45:42,120 --> 00:45:44,560
that's where it all began. 
John's doing real well right 

937
00:45:44,560 --> 00:45:46,480
now. 
You're going to get to meet John

938
00:45:46,480 --> 00:45:48,120
the Baptist. 
You're going to get to talk to 

939
00:45:48,120 --> 00:45:50,560
John the Baptist. 
You're going to get to say, man,

940
00:45:50,560 --> 00:45:52,240
tell me about the dungeon. 
He's like, I don't want to talk 

941
00:45:52,240 --> 00:45:54,560
about the dungeon. 
That's embarrassing. 

942
00:45:56,240 --> 00:46:00,480
I doubted the Lord like I 
doubted him too sometimes, John,

943
00:46:01,640 --> 00:46:04,320
but he is faithful to us. 
He's faithful to you. 

944
00:46:04,320 --> 00:46:07,240
Heavenly Father, thank you for 
your faithfulness. 

945
00:46:08,600 --> 00:46:10,600
Thank you for the strength of 
the Holy Spirit. 

946
00:46:10,680 --> 00:46:13,080
Thank you for the gentleness 
that you give us through your 

947
00:46:13,080 --> 00:46:14,680
word. 
As you minister to your people 

948
00:46:15,720 --> 00:46:17,960
or whatever pains we have, we 
bring them to you. 

949
00:46:18,320 --> 00:46:21,040
We don't run away from you or 
your church. 

950
00:46:21,280 --> 00:46:26,120
We come to you in praise and in 
prayer, sometimes in confusion. 

951
00:46:27,520 --> 00:46:29,440
Father, would you please comfort
your people? 

952
00:46:30,160 --> 00:46:31,800
Would you send them out in joy 
today? 

953
00:46:32,480 --> 00:46:33,960
Would you send them out in 
strength? 

954
00:46:34,240 --> 00:46:36,240
Even though there's questions 
they still don't have answered, 

955
00:46:36,240 --> 00:46:38,640
Even though there's prayers that
we still haven't seen the 

956
00:46:38,640 --> 00:46:41,040
breakthrough for. 
There's loved ones that we've 

957
00:46:41,040 --> 00:46:43,280
been praying for. 
They after all these years, they

958
00:46:43,280 --> 00:46:44,720
still haven't come into the 
Kingdom. 

959
00:46:48,440 --> 00:46:50,840
There's pain that we feel, 
there's questions that we have. 

960
00:46:50,840 --> 00:46:55,080
There's challenges that we're 
facing, there's attacks, all 

961
00:46:55,080 --> 00:46:57,840
kinds of things. 
How would you help us to endure?

962
00:46:58,000 --> 00:47:00,800
By getting our eyes off of our 
situation and on to You? 

963
00:47:01,120 --> 00:47:03,800
Would you make us a people of 
gratitude that we would enter in

964
00:47:03,800 --> 00:47:06,920
your courts with Thanksgiving? 
That we would enter into Your 

965
00:47:06,920 --> 00:47:12,080
house with praise? 
You're still so worthy, and You 

966
00:47:12,080 --> 00:47:18,440
deserve it all. 
Keep us faithful even when we're

967
00:47:18,440 --> 00:47:20,920
struggling, God. 
Keep us faithful even when we 

968
00:47:20,920 --> 00:47:23,760
have doubts. 
Keep us faithful, Lord, even 

969
00:47:23,760 --> 00:47:28,680
when we're in pain. 
We know who our healer is. 

970
00:47:29,040 --> 00:47:33,160
We keep coming to you. 
We ask and we seek and we knock 

971
00:47:34,680 --> 00:47:37,360
because you promised that if we 
ask, if we seek, if we knock, 

972
00:47:37,360 --> 00:47:40,520
that it would be given, that we 
would find, that the door would 

973
00:47:40,520 --> 00:47:45,400
be open. 
The timeline is in your, your 

974
00:47:45,400 --> 00:47:48,280
jurisdiction. 
We rest in knowing that our 

975
00:47:48,280 --> 00:47:50,760
Father is good, that the 
Shepherd is with us in the 

976
00:47:50,760 --> 00:47:55,000
valley or on the mountain, in 
the dungeon or in the palace. 

977
00:47:56,320 --> 00:47:58,920
We're already seated in heavenly
places with Christ. 

978
00:47:59,640 --> 00:48:03,440
We already have a position of 
great joy and privilege and 

979
00:48:03,440 --> 00:48:05,800
love. 
Thank you for saving us, God. 

980
00:48:06,440 --> 00:48:08,880
Thank you for writing our name 
in the Lamb's book of life. 

981
00:48:11,160 --> 00:48:14,000
God, I pray that you would save 
people even right now, even as I

982
00:48:14,000 --> 00:48:18,560
pray for anyone who hasn't 
called on the name of Jesus to 

983
00:48:18,560 --> 00:48:21,520
be their Lord and Savior. 
That they would confess their 

984
00:48:21,520 --> 00:48:24,600
sins, that they would turn from 
their sin, and that they would 

985
00:48:24,600 --> 00:48:30,920
be rescued because Jesus 
suffered the wrath of God on our

986
00:48:30,920 --> 00:48:32,560
behalf. 
So that we wouldn't have to 

987
00:48:32,560 --> 00:48:34,600
suffer, so that we wouldn't have
to go to hell. 

988
00:48:35,560 --> 00:48:38,160
So that we wouldn't have to be 
separated from God anymore, but 

989
00:48:38,160 --> 00:48:41,000
that we could be a new creation 
and have a new life right here 

990
00:48:41,000 --> 00:48:46,120
and now and forever in glory. 
Whoever calls upon the name of 

991
00:48:46,120 --> 00:48:52,440
the Lord shall be saved. 
Jesus is King now and forever. 

992
00:48:54,760 --> 00:48:57,400
There is no other way to get to 
the Father except through Him. 

993
00:49:00,600 --> 00:49:03,360
Holy Spirit, thank you for your 
comfort and your reassurance. 

994
00:49:08,400 --> 00:49:10,520
I pray that as your people go 
out today that they would go out

995
00:49:10,520 --> 00:49:13,840
with the fire of God in in their
spirit and on their head, 

996
00:49:17,400 --> 00:49:24,280
reassured and comfortable, even 
in mystery, in Jesus name. 

997
00:49:26,640 --> 00:49:29,000
And now the Lord bless you and 
keep you. 

998
00:49:29,960 --> 00:49:33,160
The Lord make his face shine 
down upon you and be gracious to

999
00:49:33,160 --> 00:49:35,560
you. 
The Lord lift up his countenance

1000
00:49:35,560 --> 00:49:40,680
upon you and give you great 
peace in Jesus name, Amen.