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Speaker 1: Life Audio. For more resources to help you in your

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Speaker 1: walk with Christ, please visit us at Bible Studyheadquarters dot com.

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Speaker 1: I recognize we double caffeinated the coffee today because we

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Speaker 1: know you lost an hour of sleep. Weird, weird thing

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Speaker 1: happened to me last night doesn't normally happen normally when

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Speaker 1: we changed the clocks. I'm just I just know I'm

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Speaker 1: going to be messed up the next day. I got

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Speaker 1: super tired early last night when I noticed it happening,

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Speaker 1: I thought, just go with it, don't fight it, just

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Speaker 1: go with it. And I woke up this morning refreshed

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Speaker 1: and ready to go. So I hope you feel the

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Speaker 1: same way. But you probably notice if you look at

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Speaker 1: the slide behind me the info that we sent out

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Speaker 1: on Friday, I said, I was continuing our sermon series

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Speaker 1: in the Book of Revelation. And if you know anything

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Speaker 1: about my weekly pattern, typically I have each week's message prepared,

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Speaker 1: usually by Thursday, but always by Friday. Well, this week

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Speaker 1: was one of those weeks. It was so busy that

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Speaker 1: it was Friday before I had finished up, and I

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Speaker 1: had prepared a message this week for us from Revelation

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Speaker 1: chapter twelve, and then I woke up yesterday and was

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Speaker 1: thinking about it and praying about it. Mind you, I

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Speaker 1: was like one hundred percent ready to go, had all

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Speaker 1: the slides ready, had the message ready, and couldn't shake that.

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Speaker 1: Today we're supposed to look at something different. So I decided,

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Speaker 1: you know what, we're just going to prepare something different.

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Speaker 1: And so today we're looking at what I believe the

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Speaker 1: Lord led me to share with you yesterday and today,

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Speaker 1: and we're going to look instead at Second Corinthians chapter one.

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Speaker 1: We're going to be looking at verses three through eleven.

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Speaker 1: So we'll resume our series in revelation at a future Sunday.

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Speaker 1: But today we're just going to look at this passage

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Speaker 1: because I think this is what God wants us to

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Speaker 1: hear this week. Second Corinthians, chapter one, verses three through eleven.

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Speaker 1: Let me read that for us as we talk about

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Speaker 1: this idea of God comforting us so that we can

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Speaker 1: comfort others. In tewo Corinthians chapter one, starting with verse three,

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Speaker 1: it says, this blessed be the God and Father of

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Speaker 1: our Lord, Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and the

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Speaker 1: God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction,

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Speaker 1: so that we may be able to comfort those who

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Speaker 1: are in any affliction with the comfort with which we

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Speaker 1: ourselves are comforted by God. For as we share abundantly

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Speaker 1: in Christ's sufferings, so through Christ, we share abundantly and

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Speaker 1: comfort too. If we are afflicted, it is for your

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Speaker 1: comfort and salvation. And if we are comforted, it is

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Speaker 1: for your comfort which you experience when you patiently endure

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Speaker 1: the same sufferings that we suffer. Our hope for you

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Speaker 1: is unshaken, for we know that as you share in

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Speaker 1: our sufferings, you will also share in our comfort. Then

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Speaker 1: Paul goes on in verse eight to say, for we

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Speaker 1: do not want you to be unaware, brothers, of the

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Speaker 1: affliction we experienced in Asia, for we were so utterly

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Speaker 1: burdened beyond our strength that we despaired of life itself. Indeed,

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Speaker 1: we felt that we had received the sentence of death.

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Speaker 1: But that was to make us rely not on ourselves

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Speaker 1: but on God, who raises the dead. He delivered us

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Speaker 1: from such a deadly peril, and he will deliver us.

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Speaker 1: On him. We have set our hope that He will

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Speaker 1: deliver us again. You also must help us by prayer,

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Speaker 1: so that many will give thanks on our behalf for

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Speaker 1: the blessing granted us through the prayers of many. Let's

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Speaker 1: pray together, Lord, thank you so much for your word,

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Speaker 1: and thank you for the fact that you demonstrate that

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Speaker 1: you are present with us in all circumstances. You walk

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Speaker 1: with us through seasons that are challenging. You give us

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Speaker 1: access to your word that speaks about a variety of

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Speaker 1: things that we find so highly relevant. And Lord, as

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Speaker 1: we look at the portion of Scripture, a portion of

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Speaker 1: your word where you spoke through the Apostle Paul to

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Speaker 1: the early Church and likewise to us about trials and

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Speaker 1: difficulties and challenges and things like that that come our way,

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Speaker 1: but also the comfort that you provide. Father, we pray

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Speaker 1: that you would likewise comfort us, and that you would

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Speaker 1: use our lives and our testimonies in such a way

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Speaker 1: that we have the privilege to comfort others. So Father,

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Speaker 1: we commit ourselves to you. We thank you so much

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Speaker 1: for your presence with us today, and we pray that,

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Speaker 1: by the power of your Holy Spirit, that you would

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Speaker 1: speak the truth of your word to our hearts. Right now.

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Speaker 1: We pray this all in Jesus' name. Amen. So I

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Speaker 1: think it doesn't take very long for us to realize

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Speaker 1: that life has a way of introducing us to suffering,

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Speaker 1: whether we want that introduction or not, whether or not

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Speaker 1: that's something that we're looking for, it's going to come

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Speaker 1: our way. None of us plans for hardship. We're planning

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Speaker 1: out our calendars, and I'm very much a planner, but

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Speaker 1: I have to tell you I don't plan hardship into

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Speaker 1: my ca I don't plan it into my schedule. And

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Speaker 1: yet every believer eventually encounters seasons of pressure or sometimes

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Speaker 1: grief or sometimes disappointment, or sometimes even fear that might

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Speaker 1: feel heavier than we imagined we could bear. And then

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Speaker 1: you look at the apostle Paul here in Second Corinthians,

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Speaker 1: and you recognize that Paul understood that exact kind of experience.

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Speaker 1: That's something that he was well acquainted with throughout the

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Speaker 1: course of his life and his ministry when he wrote

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Speaker 1: Second Corinthians. By the way, keep in mind, this was

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Speaker 1: the church that Paul loved deeply. But they also they

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Speaker 1: had some challenges, and they had some very negative cultural

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Speaker 1: influences that Paul would oftentimes speak against. But here when

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Speaker 1: he wrote Second Corinthians, he wasn't writing from a place

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Speaker 1: of easy comfort. I think sometimes people think that the

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Speaker 1: Christian life is one of just easy comfort, and that's

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Speaker 1: not what's presented for us here, because Paul at this

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Speaker 1: point had already endured persecution and danger and rejection, and

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Speaker 1: you could also see examples of physical suffering, and it

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Speaker 1: was all for the sake of the gospel. Paul endured

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Speaker 1: all of it for the sake of the Gospel. And

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Speaker 1: yet and the opening words of this letter he begins

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Speaker 1: with praise. He doesn't begin with a complaint, he doesn't

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Speaker 1: begin with like a statement pointing all eyes on himself.

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Speaker 1: He opens this letter with praise. And again it's not

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Speaker 1: because his life had been easy, but because he had

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Speaker 1: come to know God in the midst of difficulty. He

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Speaker 1: says this in verses three and four, he says, blessed

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Speaker 1: be the God and Father of our Lord, Jesus Christ,

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Speaker 1: the Father of mercies and the God of all comfort,

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Speaker 1: who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we

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Speaker 1: may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction.

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Speaker 1: So when you look at this passage, I think this

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Speaker 1: passage helps us understand something important about the Christian life,

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Speaker 1: and it's something that we don't always catch on to

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Speaker 1: right away, but it's something that eventually we need to

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Speaker 1: catch on to. God does not promise us a life

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Speaker 1: without suffering. I remember when I was a new Christian,

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Speaker 1: I seem to have this idea that in following Christ,

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Speaker 1: I was going to have the blessing of experiencing a

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Speaker 1: life life without suffering. And then as time went on

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Speaker 1: and challenges came, I remember thinking at one point, I

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Speaker 1: remember being confused by it because I thought I sort

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Speaker 1: of thought that following Christ was going to take those

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Speaker 1: challenges away. And then you look at what scripture actually

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Speaker 1: reveals and you realize that God does not promise us

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Speaker 1: an earthly life without suffering. That's not something we've been promised.

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Speaker 1: But what he does promise is his presence, and he

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Speaker 1: also promises his comfort, and he also promises his purpose

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Speaker 1: with whatever we end up dealing with. And So what

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Speaker 1: I want to walk through this morning, what I felt

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Speaker 1: led to speak about today just in the midst of

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Speaker 1: you know, I know that there's challenges and suffering and

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Speaker 1: grief and things like that that have very recently and

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Speaker 1: presently are being experienced by members of our church family.

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Speaker 1: I just want to look at this passage together today

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Speaker 1: it's the right thing for us to look at today

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Speaker 1: because we'll see how this ultimately points us to Jesus.

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Speaker 1: And I find great comfort in assage of scripture like this. Now,

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Speaker 1: Paul begins by praising the God and Father of our Lord,

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Speaker 1: Jesus Christ. So you notice that right off the bat.

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Speaker 1: I think that phrase reminds us that the comfort that

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Speaker 1: Paul describes here is something that he's saying this flows

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Speaker 1: directly from a relationship with Jesus. That when you have

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Speaker 1: a relationship with Jesus Christ, you experience a divine level

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Speaker 1: of comfort that is available to you in the midst

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Speaker 1: of whatever grief you may experience. Because of Christ, we

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Speaker 1: know that God is not merely our creator. He's our

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Speaker 1: father and he provides comfort. And Paul even calls him

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Speaker 1: here the father of mercies. You notice that statement calls

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Speaker 1: him the father of mercies. So the word mercies here

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Speaker 1: is it's being used. It actually points to God's compassion

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Speaker 1: toward people who are weak and hurting. If he's the

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Speaker 1: father of mercies, it's speaking about God's compassion to people

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Speaker 1: who are weak and hurting. And scripture consistently describes the

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Speaker 1: Lord this way. This isn't the only portion of scripture

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Speaker 1: that shows us that this is actually the heart of God.

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Speaker 1: In Psalm one h three, Verse thirteen, David says this.

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Speaker 1: He says, as a father shows compassion to his children,

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Speaker 1: so the Lord shows compassion to those who fear him.

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Speaker 1: Then you go into the Book of Lamentations written by

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Speaker 1: the prophet Jeremiah, and Lamentations chapter three, Jeremiah says this.

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Speaker 1: He says, the steadfast love of the Lord never ceases,

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Speaker 1: and his mercies never come to an end. They are

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Speaker 1: new every morning. Now keep in mind, specifically related to

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Speaker 1: those words that I just read from Jeremiah, in the

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Speaker 1: Book of Lamentation's words Jeremiah spoke. Those words were written

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Speaker 1: during one of the darkest periods in Israel's history. It

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Speaker 1: was after Jerusalem had been destroyed. And yet even in

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Speaker 1: the midst of devastation, you have the Prophet Jeremiah in

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Speaker 1: the Book of Lamentations recognizing the steady mercy of God,

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Speaker 1: the steady hand of God's mercy. And I think that

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Speaker 1: same compassionate heart is what Paul is celebrating here when

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Speaker 1: he opens up this portion of Second Corinthians. He's saying,

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Speaker 1: God is not distant from your suffering. God is not

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Speaker 1: distant from my sol He's the father of mercies who

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Speaker 1: moves toward his children with compassion in the midst of

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Speaker 1: those circumstances. And by the way, we see that compassion

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Speaker 1: most clearly in Jesus himself, because when Jesus encountered the herding,

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Speaker 1: what did he do? You look throughout the gospels, Matthew, Mark, Luke, John,

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Speaker 1: you see this over and over again. When Jesus encountered

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Speaker 1: the herding, he didn't turn away. We're told that he

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Speaker 1: healed the sick. We're told that he welcomed the outcast.

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Speaker 1: He even wept at Lazarus's tomb. If you like trivia,

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Speaker 1: the shortest verse in scripture just two words, Jesus wept.

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Speaker 1: You find that in John eleven thirty five if Jesus

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Speaker 1: weeping even though he knew he was going to raise

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Speaker 1: Lazarus from death. At the same time, he shares a

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Speaker 1: moment of compassion with those who are grieving the passing

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Speaker 1: of Lazarus. Other times we also see moments where Jesus

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Speaker 1: saw crowds that were spiritually lost, and the scripture says,

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Speaker 1: particularly in Matthew nine, it says Jesus had compassion on

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Speaker 1: them because they were harassed and helpless. So he's looking

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Speaker 1: at people dealing with all sorts of difficulties. He's looking

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Speaker 1: at people that at that point really didn't understand what

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Speaker 1: the solution for those problems happened to be the fact

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Speaker 1: that he was the solution right there in their midst.

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Speaker 1: And we're told he had compassion on them. And what

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Speaker 1: was Jesus doing. Jesus, who is God in the flesh,

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Speaker 1: He's showing us what the heart of God is actually like.

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Speaker 1: So when you're going through a season that feels heavy,

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Speaker 1: understand you worship a God who's the father of all mercies,

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Speaker 1: who looks at you with compassion and moves toward you,

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Speaker 1: not away from you, but toward you in the midst

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Speaker 1: of the things that you're wrestling with. And then Paul

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Speaker 1: continues by describing God in an additional way. He calls

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Speaker 1: him the God of all comfort. Says He's the God

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Speaker 1: of all comfort. Now that phrase actually means more than

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Speaker 1: the fact that God is the source of comfort. And

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Speaker 1: we do believe that God is the source of comfort,

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Speaker 1: don't we. I believe that God is the source of comfort,

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Speaker 1: But it actually means a bit more than that, it's

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Speaker 1: talking about the fact that he's the ultimate source, that

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Speaker 1: every genuine comfort we experience traces back to Him. And

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Speaker 1: in fact, the Greek words that we translate in English

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Speaker 1: here comfort, it actually carries the idea of coming alongside

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Speaker 1: someone to strengthen and encourage them. So it uses the

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Speaker 1: word comfort. We're familiar with that word comfort, but it

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Speaker 1: means to come alongside somebody in the moment of need

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Speaker 1: and strengthen and encourage them while you're at their side.

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Speaker 1: It's the same root that when you look at what

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Speaker 1: Jesus says in John fourteen related to the Holy Spirit.

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Speaker 1: He refers to the Holy Spirit as the helper, and

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Speaker 1: it's the same word, like the same concept, the same root,

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Speaker 1: same concept, this idea of comforting, coming alongside want in

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Speaker 1: need to strengthen them, come and help them and empower them.

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Speaker 1: And that's what the Holy Spirit does to us. And

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Speaker 1: in John fourteen Jesus in fact promises that the Holy

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Speaker 1: Spirit will come to dwell with believers. He lives within believers.

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Speaker 1: He provides comfort to us. So that means that God's

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Speaker 1: comfort is more than just emotional reassurance. When we're talking

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Speaker 1: about comfort, the way Scripture is actually using that concept.

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Speaker 1: It literally means that God is actively present in our

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Speaker 1: life to strengthen us when we're weak. That's what it's

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Speaker 1: talking about. He's actively present. He's not passively present, he's

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Speaker 1: not distant. He's actively present, right there at your side

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Speaker 1: to strengthen you in moments of weakness. Now this isn't

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Speaker 1: the only portion of scripture that illustrates this, because the

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Speaker 1: Old Testament repeatedly, and I don't have slides for all

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Speaker 1: these things, but I'm going to reference a few scriptures

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Speaker 1: that I think are relevant to this. The Old Testament

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Speaker 1: repeatedly describes the Lord comforting his people in exactly this way.

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Speaker 1: In Isaiah chapter forty, verse one, that portion of scripture

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Speaker 1: begins with the command like this, It says, comfort comfort

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Speaker 1: my people. Says You're God, comfort comfort my people. That's

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Speaker 1: what God says. And then later in that very same book,

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Speaker 1: when you get to Isaiah sixty six, verse thirteen, the

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Speaker 1: Lord says this as one whom his mother comforts, so

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Speaker 1: I will comfort you, God, describing his merciful, nurturing heart

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Speaker 1: toward his children. Now, again, those promises they find their

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Speaker 1: fullest fulfillment in Christ because Jesus is the one who

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Speaker 1: ultimately brings God's comfort to lost humanity. And when Jesus

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Speaker 1: invited weary people to come to him, he said it

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Speaker 1: this way. In Matthew eleven twenty eight, which for many

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Speaker 1: people is one of their favorite verses in the entire Bible,

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Speaker 1: Jesus made this statement, he said, come to me all

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Speaker 1: who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give

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Speaker 1: you what's the word, you know it, right? Rest? That's

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Speaker 1: what he says. Come to me, all who labor and

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Speaker 1: are heavy laden. So when you're burdened with things and

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Speaker 1: you're exhausted from it, he says, come to me, I'll

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Speaker 1: give you rest. That's his promise. Is that a favorite

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Speaker 1: verse for anyone in our church family today? I thought, so,

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Speaker 1: I'm not surprised. I have good news. That's not just

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Speaker 1: an invitation for two thousand years ago. It's an invitation

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Speaker 1: that stands for us today. And so that means when

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Speaker 1: life weighs heavy on us, and you're going to go

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Speaker 1: through seasons like that, and I know some of you

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Speaker 1: are going through that right now. So understand that when

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Speaker 1: life weighs heavy on us, you don't have to carry

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Speaker 1: that burden alone. That's what Jesus is saying. I have

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Speaker 1: to tell you that in my life, I have noticed

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Speaker 1: the times that I feel most weary, right to use

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Speaker 1: the word that Scripture uses. The times I feel most weary,

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Speaker 1: or the times that I feel most anxious, always come

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Speaker 1: back to when I'm trying to carry a burden myself

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Speaker 1: that is supposed to be a shared burden, a burden

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Speaker 1: that I'm supposed to unload before the Lord, and yet

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Speaker 1: I try and carry it, a burden that I'm also

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Speaker 1: supposed to expect and utilize the support of my brothers

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Speaker 1: and sisters in Christ. But usually this is how it

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Speaker 1: goes in my own thinking. And maybe you do this too.

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Speaker 1: People have their own problems. Don't want to burnen them

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Speaker 1: with mine. Do you do that? Seeing a few faces smile? Brad?

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Speaker 1: I saw your face smiles first, all right, So you

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Speaker 1: must do that too, do you? I do that all

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Speaker 1: the time. I don't want to burn other people. I

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Speaker 1: don't want to burn other people with my issues. I'll

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Speaker 1: just keep it to myself. So then this is what

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Speaker 1: I do. And apparently Brad does this too. And Brad,

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Speaker 1: it's not just me and you. We just like you

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Speaker 1: just suffer in silence. You suffer in silence, and then

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Speaker 1: and the suffering takes longer because you were supposed to

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Speaker 1: unload it to the Lord and you were supposed to

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Speaker 1: share it with your brothers and sisters in Christ. And

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Speaker 1: then it starts coming out in weird ways in your

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Speaker 1: life where it could have come out with healthy grief,

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Speaker 1: or it could have come out with healthy uh expression,

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Speaker 1: but then it comes out in weird ways. It sometimes

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Speaker 1: turns into bitterness, and it turns into all sorts of

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Speaker 1: unhealthy things that the Lord doesn't want hanging around in

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Speaker 1: my life or your life, or anyone's life. And what

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Speaker 1: does Jesus say? He tells us come to me. It's like, now, Jesus,

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Speaker 1: I know you're busy. I can solve all my problems, right.

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Speaker 1: That's also called arrogance. By the way, anytime I've effectively

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Speaker 1: done that, that's arrogance, that's pride. That's not something God

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Speaker 1: wants in my life. Jesus says, no, come to me

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Speaker 1: all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will

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Speaker 1: give you rest, meaning I'm not going to find that

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Speaker 1: rest if I try and supply it to myself. And

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Speaker 1: I'm not going to find that rest if I don't

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Speaker 1: share that burden with the people, that Jesus is actively

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Speaker 1: brought into my life. So when life weighs heavily on us,

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Speaker 1: we don't have to carry those burdens alone. And we

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Speaker 1: all try and do that, or many of us do.

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Speaker 1: But then notice what Bread, or excuse me, what Prat says? Bread?

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Speaker 1: Did you write part of the New Testament? And now

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Speaker 1: I'm saying your name? What Paul says? I promise that's

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Speaker 1: the last time I'm going to bring you up today?

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Speaker 1: All right? Knows what Paul says. When you look at

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Speaker 1: verse four and notice it carefully, we're told us here

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Speaker 1: God comforts us in all our affliction. God comforts us

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Speaker 1: in all our affliction. But also notice that it doesn't

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Speaker 1: say God prevents all affliction. Says God comforts us in

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Speaker 1: all our affliction. He meets us in it, but he

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Speaker 1: doesn't prevent it. It's kind of interesting because this particular

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Speaker 1: verse aligns with what scripture teaches us elsewhere in the

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Speaker 1: Old Testament. Elsewhere in the New Testament shows us that

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Speaker 1: God often allows his people to walk through difficult seasons.

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Speaker 1: He often will allow you to go through moments like that,

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Speaker 1: but he also reveals to us that He's not going

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Speaker 1: to abandon you there and Psalm thirty four nineteen. David

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Speaker 1: said this. He says, many are the afflictions of the righteous,

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Speaker 1: but the Lord delivers him out of them all. But

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Speaker 1: notice the first part. Many are the afflictions of whom

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Speaker 1: the righteous. Many are the afflictions of the righteous, Psalm

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Speaker 1: thirty four, nineteen, But the Lord delivers him out of

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Speaker 1: them all. Now that same pattern. On Wednesday nights, we've

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Speaker 1: been studying the end chapters of the Book of j Genesis,

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Speaker 1: and lately we've been looking at the life of Joseph.

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Speaker 1: And one of the things we've been talking about is

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Speaker 1: the fact that Joseph endured a variety of things. He

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Speaker 1: endured betrayal by his family, he endured slavery, he endured imprisonment,

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Speaker 1: and that was all before God elevated him to leadership

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Speaker 1: in Egypt. And looking back at all of this, Joseph

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Speaker 1: didn't get bitter about it. This is what he said

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Speaker 1: to his brothers at the end of the Book of Genesis.

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Speaker 1: At the end of Joseph's life, he has this perspective,

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Speaker 1: and even as he prepares for that, So we'll say,

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Speaker 1: before the end of his life, he develops his perspective.

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Speaker 1: But he says, you meant evil against me, but God

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Speaker 1: meant it for good. You meant evil against me, but

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Speaker 1: God meant it for good. So what does that reveal

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Speaker 1: to us about how God operates? Well, it tells us

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Speaker 1: that the Lord has always been working through suffering for

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Speaker 1: his purposes. And the truth is, there's nowhere else that

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Speaker 1: that is more clearly displayed for us than at the Cross,

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Speaker 1: because Jesus endured the deepest suffering imaginable. There is no

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Speaker 1: suffering more deep than what Jesus endured. He was rejected,

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Speaker 1: he was beaten, he was mocked, and he was crucified.

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Speaker 1: And yet through that suffering, including the spiritual aspects of that,

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Speaker 1: that he endured on our behalf. Through christ suffering, God

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Speaker 1: accomplished the greatest act of redemption in human history, and

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Speaker 1: world history and forever history all accomplished in that context.

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Speaker 1: In fact, Isaiah fifty three five says it this way.

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Speaker 1: Speaking of Jesus, it says, but he was pierced for

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Speaker 1: our transgressions, and he was crushed for our iniquities. So

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Speaker 1: because Jesus suffered for us, our suffering is never meaningless

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Speaker 1: when you go through suffering, it's never meaningless. Then look

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Speaker 1: at what Paul says as he continues in tewod Corinthians one,

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Speaker 1: Paul explains one of the most important purposes is behind

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Speaker 1: God's comfort. He says, God comforts us so that we

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Speaker 1: may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction.

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Speaker 1: So that means our suffering and our healing both become

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Speaker 1: tools that God uses to minister to others. Have you

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Speaker 1: ever prayed to the Lord and asked them, Lord, please

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Speaker 1: use me for your purposes. Please use me to be

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Speaker 1: a blessing to others. Please help me to be useful

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Speaker 1: in your service. Do you ever pray things like that?

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Speaker 1: Do you realize that your suffering is part of that training?

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Speaker 1: If you actually want the Lord to answer that prayer,

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Speaker 1: You're going to have to go through some stuff. You're

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Speaker 1: not going to be ready to help other people in

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Speaker 1: the midst of the things they're going through. If you

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Speaker 1: don't taste a few things yourself, your suffering isn't meaningless,

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Speaker 1: but you're suffering in your Your suffering and the healing

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Speaker 1: that God brings you through, they're tools that the Lord

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Speaker 1: will use to speak through your life and your testimony

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Speaker 1: and your words into the lives of others. So when

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Speaker 1: someone's walk through grief, the end result is that they

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Speaker 1: often have a deeper ability to comfort another grieving person.

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Speaker 1: When someone's experienced anxiety and then discovered God's faithfulness on

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Speaker 1: the other side of that anxiety or in the midst

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Speaker 1: of that anxiety, we could even say they could speak

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Speaker 1: with credibility to someone else who feels overwhelmed. They could say,

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Speaker 1: I can tell you what that's like. I know what

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Speaker 1: it's like, and I've gone through it. Meaning God doesn't

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Speaker 1: waste your pain. Whatever you go through, God doesn't waste

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Speaker 1: He's not going to waste it. He actually transforms it

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Speaker 1: into ministry. He will qualify you for specific acts of

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Speaker 1: ministry toward your brothers and sisters in Christ. And he

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Speaker 1: will use the suffering that you've experienced and then the

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Speaker 1: deliverance that He's given you in the midst of it,

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Speaker 1: to be a source of comfort for the people that

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Speaker 1: He brought He brings into your life. I think the

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Speaker 1: Old Testament offers a very powerful example of this in

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Speaker 1: the life of David. There's other examples as well, but

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Speaker 1: many of the Psalms, it's the longest book of the Bible,

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Speaker 1: and many of the psalms were actually written during seasons

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Speaker 1: of what celebration, No, some of them were, but many

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Speaker 1: of them were actually written during seasons of distress. The

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Speaker 1: longest book of the Bible, many of the psalms were

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Speaker 1: written during seasons of distress. And yet it's those very

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Speaker 1: same psalms that have comforted believers for thousands and thousands

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Speaker 1: of years. Think of Psalm twenty three. A lot of

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Speaker 1: times when you go into different places, even people, if

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Speaker 1: they don't know the scriptures, oftentimes they know portions of

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Speaker 1: Psalm twenty three, and you know what portion they often

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Speaker 1: can quote. They'll say, all right, even though I walk

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Speaker 1: through the valley of the shadow of death, I will

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Speaker 1: fear no evil, for you are with me. Culturally, that

429
00:23:31,000 --> 00:23:33,680
Speaker 1: is a well known verse that's not just known among believers.

430
00:23:33,720 --> 00:23:37,040
Speaker 1: Culturally people know that, yea, even though I walk through

431
00:23:37,119 --> 00:23:39,120
Speaker 1: the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear

432
00:23:39,160 --> 00:23:42,800
Speaker 1: no evil, for you are with me. What's David expressing? There?

433
00:23:44,200 --> 00:23:48,359
Speaker 1: You have David he's experienced God's presence in the midst

434
00:23:48,359 --> 00:23:53,440
Speaker 1: of hardship. The Holy Spirit inspired him to write this down,

435
00:23:53,760 --> 00:23:57,760
Speaker 1: and it's become a source of encouragement for three thousand years,

436
00:23:59,000 --> 00:24:02,600
Speaker 1: for three thousand years. Well, in the very same way

437
00:24:02,640 --> 00:24:04,560
Speaker 1: the comfort that God gives us right now, in the

438
00:24:04,600 --> 00:24:08,360
Speaker 1: midst of our current context, He's doing that to equip

439
00:24:08,440 --> 00:24:11,680
Speaker 1: us to come alongside people who are in the midst

440
00:24:11,680 --> 00:24:14,160
Speaker 1: of their seasons of hurting. And sometimes the most powerful

441
00:24:14,200 --> 00:24:18,240
Speaker 1: ministry may actually be not always words. Sometimes it's the

442
00:24:18,240 --> 00:24:21,560
Speaker 1: words you say, but oftentimes it's something in addition to that,

443
00:24:21,720 --> 00:24:23,879
Speaker 1: or something in place of that. Sometimes I could just

444
00:24:24,200 --> 00:24:26,480
Speaker 1: simply be saying, with your presence, you know what, I've

445
00:24:26,520 --> 00:24:28,200
Speaker 1: been there. God carried me through, and I'm going to

446
00:24:28,240 --> 00:24:31,520
Speaker 1: sit with you in the midst of this grief. So

447
00:24:31,600 --> 00:24:34,199
Speaker 1: sometimes it's words, sometimes it's your presence. Sometimes it's a

448
00:24:34,240 --> 00:24:37,920
Speaker 1: combination of both. Then, coming back to Second Corinthians one,

449
00:24:37,960 --> 00:24:39,720
Speaker 1: Paul goes on a little bit further. When you get

450
00:24:39,720 --> 00:24:43,480
Speaker 1: into verse five, he says, for as we share abundantly

451
00:24:43,680 --> 00:24:49,080
Speaker 1: in Christ's sufferings, so through Christ we share abundantly in comfort. Now.

452
00:24:49,720 --> 00:24:51,280
Speaker 1: So what he's saying here is that the Christian life

453
00:24:51,280 --> 00:24:55,560
Speaker 1: involves sharing in both Christ's effort, Christ's sufferings and his comfort.

454
00:24:57,720 --> 00:25:00,359
Speaker 1: So the Christian life involves both suffering and comfort. I

455
00:25:00,400 --> 00:25:04,240
Speaker 1: don't always hear it presented that way. I think some

456
00:25:04,280 --> 00:25:06,440
Speaker 1: people are afraid that if you present the Christian life

457
00:25:06,520 --> 00:25:08,560
Speaker 1: like it really is, that's going to chase people away.

458
00:25:09,440 --> 00:25:11,240
Speaker 1: But you know what, when I hear people present a

459
00:25:11,359 --> 00:25:14,520
Speaker 1: paper thin version of what they want Christianity to be

460
00:25:14,680 --> 00:25:16,800
Speaker 1: like instead of what it's actually like, I think that

461
00:25:16,960 --> 00:25:20,840
Speaker 1: chases people away. I think instinctively we can tell what's

462
00:25:21,200 --> 00:25:23,800
Speaker 1: true and what's real and what is I mean Paul

463
00:25:23,880 --> 00:25:28,560
Speaker 1: saying here that the Christian life involves both Christ's sufferings,

464
00:25:28,960 --> 00:25:33,480
Speaker 1: so sharing in those sufferings and sharing in comfort. And

465
00:25:33,560 --> 00:25:36,320
Speaker 1: sometimes we think people probably just want the comfort, right,

466
00:25:36,480 --> 00:25:38,520
Speaker 1: maybe just speak about the comfort. No, it actually talks

467
00:25:38,560 --> 00:25:40,600
Speaker 1: about the suffering too. And in fact, if you read

468
00:25:40,600 --> 00:25:43,600
Speaker 1: the Gospel word for word, line for line, you go

469
00:25:43,640 --> 00:25:46,040
Speaker 1: through the Gospel of John in particular, you'll get to

470
00:25:46,119 --> 00:25:49,040
Speaker 1: John chapter fifteen, and then you'll find yourself at verse twenty.

471
00:25:49,040 --> 00:25:51,959
Speaker 1: And what did Jesus say, if they persecuted me, they

472
00:25:52,000 --> 00:25:55,320
Speaker 1: will persecute you. He's like, do you want to know

473
00:25:55,359 --> 00:25:57,520
Speaker 1: what it's like to follow me? Here? It is, if

474
00:25:57,520 --> 00:26:04,720
Speaker 1: they persecuted me, they will persecute you. So what does

475
00:26:04,760 --> 00:26:07,760
Speaker 1: he also say? So come follow me, and we'll experience

476
00:26:07,800 --> 00:26:11,639
Speaker 1: it together. And yet the suffering that we experience for Christ,

477
00:26:11,680 --> 00:26:14,160
Speaker 1: if you experience suffering for Christ on a small level,

478
00:26:14,160 --> 00:26:17,040
Speaker 1: on a large level something in between, understand that even

479
00:26:17,080 --> 00:26:19,840
Speaker 1: that isn't the end of the story. The same Jesus

480
00:26:19,920 --> 00:26:25,880
Speaker 1: who suffered also rose from the grave, which reminds us

481
00:26:27,480 --> 00:26:30,800
Speaker 1: that his resurrection. We see it. In his resurrection. It

482
00:26:30,920 --> 00:26:34,440
Speaker 1: reminds us that suffering doesn't have the final word. Suffering

483
00:26:34,520 --> 00:26:36,800
Speaker 1: is a seasonal thing, not a permanent thing for those

484
00:26:36,800 --> 00:26:40,560
Speaker 1: who are in Christ. In Romans chapter eight, verse seventeen,

485
00:26:40,640 --> 00:26:45,040
Speaker 1: Paul says this that believers are airs with Christ, provided

486
00:26:45,080 --> 00:26:48,160
Speaker 1: we suffer with Him in order that we may also

487
00:26:48,200 --> 00:26:51,320
Speaker 1: be glorified with him. That's what he says in Romans

488
00:26:51,359 --> 00:26:56,640
Speaker 1: eight seventeen. So again, following Jesus may actually at times

489
00:26:57,359 --> 00:27:00,919
Speaker 1: result in you experience certain hardships that your life in

490
00:27:00,960 --> 00:27:03,400
Speaker 1: this world might be, even in some respects a little

491
00:27:03,400 --> 00:27:05,919
Speaker 1: bit easier if you'd chose not to follow Jesus, because

492
00:27:06,040 --> 00:27:08,159
Speaker 1: people would just make life easier for you, wouldn't have

493
00:27:08,160 --> 00:27:12,600
Speaker 1: to endure scorn and persecution and criticism for your faith.

494
00:27:12,640 --> 00:27:16,240
Speaker 1: And yet you look at what Jesus reveals, what the

495
00:27:16,280 --> 00:27:19,400
Speaker 1: Holy Spirit reveals through the apostle Paul in Romans eight,

496
00:27:20,119 --> 00:27:24,000
Speaker 1: where airs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in

497
00:27:24,080 --> 00:27:27,560
Speaker 1: order that we may also be glorified with him. We

498
00:27:27,600 --> 00:27:30,439
Speaker 1: share in that suffering, we share in that comfort, we

499
00:27:30,520 --> 00:27:34,120
Speaker 1: share in the glory. It's a beautiful thing. Coming back

500
00:27:34,119 --> 00:27:36,800
Speaker 1: again to Tewod Corinthians one and verses eight through nine,

501
00:27:37,200 --> 00:27:40,840
Speaker 1: there you have Paul sharing something very personal about his suffering.

502
00:27:41,240 --> 00:27:44,160
Speaker 1: He says, for we do not want you to be unaware, brothers,

503
00:27:44,240 --> 00:27:48,160
Speaker 1: of the affliction we experienced in Asia, For we were

504
00:27:48,280 --> 00:27:53,959
Speaker 1: so utterly burdened beyond our strength that we despaired of

505
00:27:54,000 --> 00:27:59,680
Speaker 1: life itself. That is a powerful admission. We are so

506
00:28:00,040 --> 00:28:03,840
Speaker 1: utterly burdened beyond our strength that we despaired of life itself.

507
00:28:03,840 --> 00:28:06,560
Speaker 1: Paul was an apostle. Aren't apostles supposed to be strong?

508
00:28:07,320 --> 00:28:09,840
Speaker 1: Paul was a missionary. Later this month, we have one

509
00:28:09,840 --> 00:28:12,120
Speaker 1: of our missionaries planning to visit us here. Well, I've

510
00:28:12,160 --> 00:28:13,680
Speaker 1: known him for a good long time. I've known him

511
00:28:13,680 --> 00:28:16,159
Speaker 1: for about thirty years. I gotta tell you, I've always

512
00:28:16,359 --> 00:28:18,840
Speaker 1: thought of the missionary that's coming to visit us pretty strong.

513
00:28:18,920 --> 00:28:22,160
Speaker 1: Paul's a missionary strong, He's an apostle. You think, yeah,

514
00:28:22,320 --> 00:28:24,679
Speaker 1: got to be strong. He's also a recognized leader in

515
00:28:24,680 --> 00:28:26,399
Speaker 1: the early Church's got to be a strong guy. And

516
00:28:26,440 --> 00:28:28,439
Speaker 1: yet what does he do? He openly says that there

517
00:28:28,440 --> 00:28:30,800
Speaker 1: were moments where he felt like the pressure was overwhelming.

518
00:28:33,400 --> 00:28:35,400
Speaker 1: I think many believers, if we're honest, if we're willing

519
00:28:35,480 --> 00:28:38,040
Speaker 1: to be honest, we can relate to that feeling. Can

520
00:28:38,080 --> 00:28:42,720
Speaker 1: you relate to that? There are seasons when you don't

521
00:28:42,720 --> 00:28:46,240
Speaker 1: just have one problem right. There are seasons where problems

522
00:28:46,240 --> 00:28:49,600
Speaker 1: sometimes feel like they start to stack up, like there's

523
00:28:49,720 --> 00:28:53,920
Speaker 1: multiple things happening at once. There's also seasons where grief lingers,

524
00:28:53,960 --> 00:28:56,760
Speaker 1: where grief doesn't just go away really quickly. We can't

525
00:28:56,800 --> 00:28:59,040
Speaker 1: just like scrub it out really quickly and then get

526
00:28:59,080 --> 00:29:03,080
Speaker 1: over it. And then there's also circumstances that you look

527
00:29:03,120 --> 00:29:05,000
Speaker 1: at and you're like, that's a circumstance that is beyond

528
00:29:05,080 --> 00:29:08,240
Speaker 1: my capacity to fix. I like fixing things. Do you

529
00:29:08,320 --> 00:29:11,680
Speaker 1: like fixing stuff? I'll look at some of the guys

530
00:29:12,200 --> 00:29:15,320
Speaker 1: you like fixing stuff. When someone presents a problem to you,

531
00:29:15,720 --> 00:29:18,440
Speaker 1: is your instinct to sit in the problem or fix

532
00:29:18,480 --> 00:29:20,560
Speaker 1: the problem? I already know the answer. It's to fix

533
00:29:20,600 --> 00:29:23,200
Speaker 1: the problem and then you come across certain circumstances that

534
00:29:23,240 --> 00:29:28,600
Speaker 1: you realize I can't fix that. And then, if we're

535
00:29:28,600 --> 00:29:32,560
Speaker 1: really honest with all the deep stuff, what do we know.

536
00:29:33,480 --> 00:29:37,840
Speaker 1: I can't fix that, but we know the one who can,

537
00:29:39,280 --> 00:29:44,200
Speaker 1: and he does. So, Paul continues. He says in verse

538
00:29:44,360 --> 00:29:46,040
Speaker 1: He's like, why does the Lord let us go through

539
00:29:46,080 --> 00:29:49,920
Speaker 1: this stuff? He's like, I was so utterly filled with despair?

540
00:29:49,960 --> 00:29:51,920
Speaker 1: Why is the Lord let me go through this? Why

541
00:29:51,920 --> 00:29:53,720
Speaker 1: does the Lord let you go through stuff like that?

542
00:29:53,920 --> 00:29:56,120
Speaker 1: Paul gives the answer here as the Holy Spirit speaks

543
00:29:56,120 --> 00:29:57,959
Speaker 1: through him. He says, but that was to make us

544
00:29:58,000 --> 00:30:03,200
Speaker 1: rely not on ourselves but on God, who raises the dead,

545
00:30:03,800 --> 00:30:06,800
Speaker 1: and he delivered us from such a deadly peril, and

546
00:30:06,880 --> 00:30:09,640
Speaker 1: he will deliver us. And then he says on him

547
00:30:09,720 --> 00:30:12,680
Speaker 1: we have set our hope that he will deliver us again.

548
00:30:14,080 --> 00:30:16,080
Speaker 1: I love that portion of scripture because here you have

549
00:30:16,080 --> 00:30:18,960
Speaker 1: Paul realizing something through his suffering that I think only

550
00:30:19,480 --> 00:30:21,040
Speaker 1: or then most of us only learn the hard way.

551
00:30:21,080 --> 00:30:22,560
Speaker 1: I think in my life I've only learned it the

552
00:30:22,600 --> 00:30:24,120
Speaker 1: hard way. I don't think I ever learned this lesson

553
00:30:24,160 --> 00:30:26,920
Speaker 1: the easy way, and I think I'm still in process

554
00:30:27,040 --> 00:30:32,840
Speaker 1: of learning it. I think difficult moments, difficult seasons, any difficulty,

555
00:30:32,840 --> 00:30:34,960
Speaker 1: I think that exposes just how much we've been relying

556
00:30:34,960 --> 00:30:38,840
Speaker 1: on ourselves instead of relying on God. I think when

557
00:30:38,840 --> 00:30:42,400
Speaker 1: life is comfortable, certainly, like when I go through seasons

558
00:30:42,400 --> 00:30:44,760
Speaker 1: where I feel like everything's comfortable, I think it's very

559
00:30:44,800 --> 00:30:47,280
Speaker 1: easy for me to buy into this illusion that somehow

560
00:30:47,320 --> 00:30:50,600
Speaker 1: I'm in control. And so I'll make some plans, I'll

561
00:30:50,600 --> 00:30:54,360
Speaker 1: set some goals, and I'll assume that things will unfold

562
00:30:54,560 --> 00:30:57,800
Speaker 1: exactly as I expect. I've done that my whole life,

563
00:30:58,280 --> 00:31:00,280
Speaker 1: no joke, I've done that my whole life now. And

564
00:31:00,320 --> 00:31:02,920
Speaker 1: then things come out exactly like I expected. And then

565
00:31:02,920 --> 00:31:04,920
Speaker 1: that feeds my thinking where I'm like, see, yeah, I

566
00:31:04,960 --> 00:31:06,600
Speaker 1: had that planned out. I already knew that was going

567
00:31:06,680 --> 00:31:09,800
Speaker 1: to happen. I guess I must be in control, James,

568
00:31:09,840 --> 00:31:12,160
Speaker 1: I must be in control. I guess I have control

569
00:31:12,200 --> 00:31:13,680
Speaker 1: over this. And then you have some hardship, and what

570
00:31:13,720 --> 00:31:16,840
Speaker 1: does it do? Strips that all away? You go through

571
00:31:16,880 --> 00:31:19,920
Speaker 1: something and it strips it all away, and it reminds me,

572
00:31:20,080 --> 00:31:23,480
Speaker 1: and it reminds you that our strength is limited. You

573
00:31:23,560 --> 00:31:26,280
Speaker 1: have strength, but it's limited strength. And so then Paul

574
00:31:26,320 --> 00:31:27,840
Speaker 1: looks at this, and he says, and Paul was like

575
00:31:27,880 --> 00:31:32,000
Speaker 1: a type a planner as well, so he knew. But

576
00:31:32,040 --> 00:31:36,520
Speaker 1: Paul says, his suffering forced him to rely on God

577
00:31:36,600 --> 00:31:39,800
Speaker 1: who raises the dead. And what's he saying there, He's saying,

578
00:31:40,000 --> 00:31:42,360
Speaker 1: God who raises the dead, meaning God who does the

579
00:31:42,440 --> 00:31:44,640
Speaker 1: impossible thing that I don't have the ability to do.

580
00:31:45,120 --> 00:31:46,800
Speaker 1: He says, that's what I had to learn. I had

581
00:31:46,800 --> 00:31:48,760
Speaker 1: to learn to rely on him. And I think that

582
00:31:48,800 --> 00:31:51,520
Speaker 1: phrase is powerful because it points directly to the central

583
00:31:51,560 --> 00:31:55,600
Speaker 1: truth of the Gospel. The God we trust isn't merely

584
00:31:55,640 --> 00:32:00,880
Speaker 1: a God who improves difficult circumstances. The God who raises

585
00:32:00,920 --> 00:32:04,880
Speaker 1: the dead. So if he has power to bring life

586
00:32:04,960 --> 00:32:07,600
Speaker 1: out of death, that means there is no situation that

587
00:32:07,720 --> 00:32:13,160
Speaker 1: is beyond his ability to redeem. And throughout the Old

588
00:32:13,160 --> 00:32:15,480
Speaker 1: Testament and throughout the New Testament, we see glimpses of

589
00:32:15,480 --> 00:32:18,040
Speaker 1: that life giving power. He shows us time and time

590
00:32:18,080 --> 00:32:20,800
Speaker 1: again examples of that in the lives of other people,

591
00:32:20,840 --> 00:32:22,320
Speaker 1: so that you and I would take hope in the

592
00:32:22,320 --> 00:32:25,320
Speaker 1: midst of our circumstances. Again, going back to Genesis, think

593
00:32:25,320 --> 00:32:31,120
Speaker 1: about Abraham. Abraham was asked to sacrifice Isaac, and he

594
00:32:31,200 --> 00:32:33,120
Speaker 1: trusted He's like, all right, if God's asked me to

595
00:32:33,160 --> 00:32:35,440
Speaker 1: do this, I've got to trust that God can raise

596
00:32:35,480 --> 00:32:38,280
Speaker 1: this child from the dead if necessary. And in Hebrews

597
00:32:38,360 --> 00:32:41,680
Speaker 1: chapter eleven, verse nineteen, that's actually revealed it. It reflects

598
00:32:41,680 --> 00:32:44,320
Speaker 1: on Abraham's faith and it says he considered that God

599
00:32:44,400 --> 00:32:48,760
Speaker 1: was able even to raise him from the dead. Again,

600
00:32:48,880 --> 00:32:51,400
Speaker 1: going back to Paul's thoughts here in tewod Corinthians one,

601
00:32:51,480 --> 00:32:55,760
Speaker 1: we worship the God who raises the dead. That confidence

602
00:32:55,760 --> 00:32:59,320
Speaker 1: in God's power, that's what allowed Abraham to obey in

603
00:32:59,360 --> 00:33:01,600
Speaker 1: his context, and that's something that should allow us to

604
00:33:01,640 --> 00:33:05,080
Speaker 1: obey in our context as well. How about this later on,

605
00:33:05,120 --> 00:33:07,080
Speaker 1: the prophet Elijah, what did he do? He prays over

606
00:33:07,120 --> 00:33:09,600
Speaker 1: a lifeless boy and the Lord restores the child's life.

607
00:33:09,600 --> 00:33:13,200
Speaker 1: We see that in First First Kings seventeen. You have

608
00:33:13,200 --> 00:33:16,320
Speaker 1: the prophet Elisha experiencing something similar when the Lord raised

609
00:33:16,320 --> 00:33:19,720
Speaker 1: the shu Shootamite woman's son. See that in Second King's four.

610
00:33:21,240 --> 00:33:25,200
Speaker 1: But each of those moments pointed to the ultimate demonstration

611
00:33:25,280 --> 00:33:28,720
Speaker 1: of God's power over death. Because Jesus didn't just talk

612
00:33:28,760 --> 00:33:34,480
Speaker 1: about resurrection, he embodied it. He is it right? He says,

613
00:33:34,560 --> 00:33:40,200
Speaker 1: I am the resurrection. I am the life. So after

614
00:33:40,240 --> 00:33:44,360
Speaker 1: being crucified for our sins, Jesus rose from the grave.

615
00:33:44,400 --> 00:33:48,480
Speaker 1: On the third day, the empty tomb declares that death

616
00:33:48,520 --> 00:33:53,000
Speaker 1: itself has been defeated. Because Jesus lives, our hope isn't

617
00:33:53,000 --> 00:33:55,240
Speaker 1: limited to this life. There many people that you and

618
00:33:55,320 --> 00:33:57,040
Speaker 1: I know that go throughout life and their hope is

619
00:33:57,080 --> 00:33:59,400
Speaker 1: anchored to what happens in this life. If life has

620
00:33:59,440 --> 00:34:02,880
Speaker 1: good circumstances, they're happy. If life has difficult circumstances, they

621
00:34:02,880 --> 00:34:06,000
Speaker 1: complain and blame God. And then you look at what

622
00:34:06,040 --> 00:34:10,080
Speaker 1: scripture reveals, and it reveals that we worship a resurrected

623
00:34:10,160 --> 00:34:12,400
Speaker 1: Jesus and our hope is not limited to this life.

624
00:34:12,560 --> 00:34:15,719
Speaker 1: Our hope stretches into eternity. So when Paul says that

625
00:34:15,760 --> 00:34:18,120
Speaker 1: he learned to rely on the God who raises the dead,

626
00:34:18,160 --> 00:34:21,040
Speaker 1: he says, I learned to rely on God who raises

627
00:34:21,120 --> 00:34:23,759
Speaker 1: the dead. He's pointing to the fact that hope is

628
00:34:23,760 --> 00:34:26,719
Speaker 1: bigger than any earthly circumstance, that you could trust God

629
00:34:26,760 --> 00:34:30,839
Speaker 1: to do things that, naturally speaking, are absolutely impossible. Even

630
00:34:30,840 --> 00:34:33,640
Speaker 1: when situations look impossible, God is still able to act.

631
00:34:34,000 --> 00:34:35,920
Speaker 1: And even if you're in the midst of a season

632
00:34:35,920 --> 00:34:37,839
Speaker 1: that feels so heavy and so difficult that you think

633
00:34:37,880 --> 00:34:41,360
Speaker 1: I will never recover from this. You look at this

634
00:34:41,440 --> 00:34:47,080
Speaker 1: and you realize, yes, I will, because I worship the

635
00:34:47,080 --> 00:34:49,919
Speaker 1: God who can do the miracle. I worship the God

636
00:34:49,960 --> 00:34:53,279
Speaker 1: who can take the lowest moment and turn it into

637
00:34:53,320 --> 00:34:57,440
Speaker 1: the greatest demonstration of love and faithfulness that this world

638
00:34:57,440 --> 00:35:00,840
Speaker 1: has ever seen. So you have Paul reflecting then on

639
00:35:00,920 --> 00:35:04,120
Speaker 1: God's faithfulness across time. He talks about the fact. He

640
00:35:04,120 --> 00:35:06,480
Speaker 1: says he delivered us from such a deadly peril, and

641
00:35:06,520 --> 00:35:08,839
Speaker 1: he will deliver us, and on him we have set

642
00:35:08,880 --> 00:35:10,919
Speaker 1: our hope that he will deliver us again. So what's

643
00:35:10,920 --> 00:35:13,600
Speaker 1: he doing. He's saying God has delivered us in the past,

644
00:35:14,400 --> 00:35:17,399
Speaker 1: he is delivering us in the present, and he will

645
00:35:17,440 --> 00:35:20,480
Speaker 1: deliver us in the future. Past, present, in future. Are

646
00:35:20,520 --> 00:35:24,080
Speaker 1: God's a deliverer? And Paul's confidence isn't based on optimism,

647
00:35:24,080 --> 00:35:27,240
Speaker 1: It's not based on wishful thinking. It's actually it's based

648
00:35:27,280 --> 00:35:30,200
Speaker 1: on God's proven character. It's based on just looking at

649
00:35:30,200 --> 00:35:32,000
Speaker 1: what God has already said he would do, and then

650
00:35:32,040 --> 00:35:34,319
Speaker 1: what he did in response to what he said he

651
00:35:34,320 --> 00:35:37,480
Speaker 1: would do. He fulfilled what he promised us he was

652
00:35:37,520 --> 00:35:40,920
Speaker 1: going to do. The Old Testament has pattern after pattern.

653
00:35:40,960 --> 00:35:42,560
Speaker 1: You see this in the Exodus, you see this in

654
00:35:42,560 --> 00:35:45,120
Speaker 1: the Life of Daniel. Over and over again, God proved

655
00:35:45,120 --> 00:35:47,319
Speaker 1: that he was able to rescue his people. He did

656
00:35:47,360 --> 00:35:49,719
Speaker 1: it then, and he does it now. And every one

657
00:35:49,760 --> 00:35:52,799
Speaker 1: of those deliverances ultimately points us to the rescue that

658
00:35:52,840 --> 00:35:55,920
Speaker 1: we have in Jesus Christ, the ultimate rescue. In fact,

659
00:35:55,960 --> 00:35:59,120
Speaker 1: in Colossians Chapter one, it's explained to us this way.

660
00:35:59,360 --> 00:36:02,040
Speaker 1: Think about this. It's not just in a theological sense.

661
00:36:02,080 --> 00:36:04,279
Speaker 1: Think about this in a personal sense, because there it

662
00:36:04,320 --> 00:36:07,839
Speaker 1: says in Colossians one, Verses thirteen and fourteen, he has

663
00:36:07,920 --> 00:36:12,160
Speaker 1: delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us

664
00:36:12,840 --> 00:36:15,480
Speaker 1: to the kingdom of his beloved son, in whom we

665
00:36:15,560 --> 00:36:20,600
Speaker 1: have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. We've been delivered from

666
00:36:20,600 --> 00:36:22,800
Speaker 1: the domain of darkness, meaning you don't have to operate

667
00:36:22,840 --> 00:36:25,600
Speaker 1: in the domain of darkness any longer, because you've been

668
00:36:25,640 --> 00:36:30,640
Speaker 1: transferred into the kingdom of Jesus. That's where you live,

669
00:36:30,719 --> 00:36:34,000
Speaker 1: not just future, but right now. Because of Christ, our

670
00:36:34,120 --> 00:36:38,440
Speaker 1: greatest problem has already been solved. Our sins are forgiven,

671
00:36:38,680 --> 00:36:42,040
Speaker 1: our relationship with God is restored, our future is secured.

672
00:36:42,320 --> 00:36:44,360
Speaker 1: I think that truth is meant to give us confidence

673
00:36:44,400 --> 00:36:47,120
Speaker 1: even when life is uncertain. But coming back one more

674
00:36:47,160 --> 00:36:49,920
Speaker 1: time to Second Corinthians one, the final verse of the

675
00:36:49,960 --> 00:36:53,200
Speaker 1: passage we're looking at today, verse eleven, says this you

676
00:36:53,400 --> 00:36:57,120
Speaker 1: also must help us by prayer, so that many will

677
00:36:57,120 --> 00:37:00,800
Speaker 1: give thanks on our behalf for the bl lasting granted

678
00:37:00,880 --> 00:37:06,000
Speaker 1: us through the prayers of many. I love what this

679
00:37:06,120 --> 00:37:08,359
Speaker 1: verse reminds us of as well. I think that verse

680
00:37:08,400 --> 00:37:12,960
Speaker 1: reminds us that we aren't meant to walk through hardship alone.

681
00:37:13,640 --> 00:37:16,240
Speaker 1: So Paul, despite the fact that he's a spiritual leader,

682
00:37:16,239 --> 00:37:19,960
Speaker 1: he openly asks other believers to pray for him, by

683
00:37:19,960 --> 00:37:24,160
Speaker 1: the way, not so selfishly. I would love to know

684
00:37:24,200 --> 00:37:27,120
Speaker 1: that you're praying for me, praying for my family. Know

685
00:37:27,200 --> 00:37:29,040
Speaker 1: that I pray for you, and I pray for your

686
00:37:29,080 --> 00:37:32,200
Speaker 1: family as well. I'd also like us as a church family,

687
00:37:32,560 --> 00:37:34,440
Speaker 1: in particular, if you're not part of it, If you

688
00:37:34,560 --> 00:37:38,359
Speaker 1: use Facebook, join our prayer group. Some deep things get

689
00:37:38,360 --> 00:37:41,359
Speaker 1: shared in there. There's a separate prayer group for prayer

690
00:37:41,400 --> 00:37:43,120
Speaker 1: requests with the church. And one of the things that

691
00:37:43,440 --> 00:37:45,799
Speaker 1: I take great delight in is seeing how our church

692
00:37:45,840 --> 00:37:52,360
Speaker 1: family faithfully prays for one another. And it's particularly interesting

693
00:37:53,040 --> 00:37:55,799
Speaker 1: when you think, Lord, what can I do? What would

694
00:37:55,800 --> 00:37:58,839
Speaker 1: be helpful? Honestly, sometimes the most helpful thing that any

695
00:37:58,880 --> 00:38:00,439
Speaker 1: of us could ever do for each other or lift

696
00:38:00,440 --> 00:38:03,600
Speaker 1: each other up in prayer. You can feel it when

697
00:38:03,600 --> 00:38:07,080
Speaker 1: people are praying for you. You know it. You can

698
00:38:07,120 --> 00:38:12,120
Speaker 1: see the hand of God in this verse. Here again

699
00:38:12,160 --> 00:38:14,920
Speaker 1: Paul saying you also must help us. How Paul, how

700
00:38:14,920 --> 00:38:16,880
Speaker 1: can we help you? You could help us by prayer,

701
00:38:16,880 --> 00:38:20,000
Speaker 1: He's saying to the Corinthian Church, so that many will

702
00:38:20,000 --> 00:38:22,520
Speaker 1: give thanks on our behalf for the blessing granted us

703
00:38:22,880 --> 00:38:27,239
Speaker 1: through the prayers of many asking other believers to pray.

704
00:38:27,680 --> 00:38:30,080
Speaker 1: And he knew that prayer wasn't a last resort. That's

705
00:38:30,080 --> 00:38:32,080
Speaker 1: not what you do when you've tried everything else out.

706
00:38:32,520 --> 00:38:34,839
Speaker 1: It's one of the primary ways that God works through

707
00:38:34,840 --> 00:38:37,720
Speaker 1: his people. Throughout Scripture, we see the power of prayer

708
00:38:37,760 --> 00:38:40,320
Speaker 1: during times of trouble. We see it over and over

709
00:38:40,719 --> 00:38:44,720
Speaker 1: and over again. Prayer invites us to depend on God.

710
00:38:45,280 --> 00:38:50,359
Speaker 1: Together together, we get to do that, and when God

711
00:38:50,400 --> 00:38:52,799
Speaker 1: comforts us and he rescues us, the result should be

712
00:38:52,840 --> 00:38:56,799
Speaker 1: gratitude that spreads throughout the community of believers, where we

713
00:38:56,880 --> 00:38:59,720
Speaker 1: celebrate the hand of God at work in our lives

714
00:38:59,760 --> 00:39:03,360
Speaker 1: and in the lives of those that we love. We

715
00:39:03,520 --> 00:39:07,960
Speaker 1: just finished with a few final thoughts. When you look

716
00:39:07,960 --> 00:39:10,320
Speaker 1: at Paul's words at two Corinthians, chapter one, it's a

717
00:39:10,360 --> 00:39:13,319
Speaker 1: portion of scripture I visited many times just in my

718
00:39:13,360 --> 00:39:15,200
Speaker 1: own life, and maybe some of you have as well.

719
00:39:16,440 --> 00:39:17,799
Speaker 1: I think there's a lot of things here that are

720
00:39:17,840 --> 00:39:21,400
Speaker 1: particularly relevant for your life and my life today, and

721
00:39:21,440 --> 00:39:25,640
Speaker 1: I think it's particularly relevant for our church family right now,

722
00:39:25,680 --> 00:39:28,760
Speaker 1: knowing some of the burdens that many of our church

723
00:39:29,280 --> 00:39:33,279
Speaker 1: members are church family are carrying. Understand this. If you're

724
00:39:33,320 --> 00:39:35,560
Speaker 1: going through a season of suffering, I hope you'll remember this.

725
00:39:36,680 --> 00:39:39,600
Speaker 1: Suffering is not a sign that God has abandoned you.

726
00:39:40,960 --> 00:39:43,239
Speaker 1: He hasn't abandoned you. In fact, it's often the place

727
00:39:43,239 --> 00:39:51,959
Speaker 1: where you're going to experience his presence most clearly. You'll

728
00:39:52,000 --> 00:39:55,080
Speaker 1: see Him in a moment like that. I know the

729
00:39:55,520 --> 00:39:58,080
Speaker 1: seasons of my own life where I feel like my

730
00:39:58,160 --> 00:40:03,080
Speaker 1: faith was both stretched and grew happened in seasons of suffering,

731
00:40:03,360 --> 00:40:06,640
Speaker 1: not during seasons where I felt like everything was going

732
00:40:06,719 --> 00:40:13,520
Speaker 1: according to my plan. Second, God's comfort isn't meant to

733
00:40:13,600 --> 00:40:17,520
Speaker 1: stop with us. Now. Why am I saying that? Well,

734
00:40:17,680 --> 00:40:20,239
Speaker 1: what I'm saying is the encouragement that he gives us

735
00:40:21,480 --> 00:40:24,560
Speaker 1: is a way in which he resources you. He's equipping

736
00:40:24,560 --> 00:40:27,880
Speaker 1: you so that you can then use that encouragement to

737
00:40:27,960 --> 00:40:30,120
Speaker 1: be a blessing to others who are in the midst

738
00:40:30,120 --> 00:40:33,520
Speaker 1: of a season of hurting. Third thing I want us

739
00:40:33,560 --> 00:40:36,680
Speaker 1: to keep in mind from this passage is this that

740
00:40:36,719 --> 00:40:40,320
Speaker 1: when you go through hardship, if you are a person

741
00:40:40,320 --> 00:40:45,000
Speaker 1: who is sometimes overly self reliant, like I think I

742
00:40:45,160 --> 00:40:49,080
Speaker 1: in my it feels like strong moments, it's actually weak moments.

743
00:40:49,320 --> 00:40:51,440
Speaker 1: I think I can be overly self reliant. I think

744
00:40:51,520 --> 00:40:55,760
Speaker 1: hardship teaches us to rely on God instead of relying

745
00:40:55,760 --> 00:41:00,279
Speaker 1: on ourselves. So your own strength is gonna run Now

746
00:41:00,920 --> 00:41:06,239
Speaker 1: ask me how I know and when that happens, and

747
00:41:06,280 --> 00:41:10,000
Speaker 1: it will happen. So when your own strength runs out,

748
00:41:10,880 --> 00:41:14,400
Speaker 1: you're reminded to trust the one who raises the dead.

749
00:41:15,239 --> 00:41:17,600
Speaker 1: That's the one. You're reminded to trust the one who

750
00:41:17,680 --> 00:41:21,960
Speaker 1: raises the dead. You can't do that, so you're asked

751
00:41:22,000 --> 00:41:26,400
Speaker 1: to trust the only one who can. And as we

752
00:41:26,440 --> 00:41:28,480
Speaker 1: look at all of this and all of Scripture, understand

753
00:41:28,480 --> 00:41:31,400
Speaker 1: that ultimately our hope rests in Jesus because what did

754
00:41:31,480 --> 00:41:35,240
Speaker 1: Jesus do. He entered our suffering. He carried our sins

755
00:41:35,239 --> 00:41:37,919
Speaker 1: to the cross, not other people sins. Our sins, right,

756
00:41:38,600 --> 00:41:41,200
Speaker 1: everyone sins. Don't just look at other people's. Yes, he

757
00:41:41,280 --> 00:41:44,200
Speaker 1: carried theirs two, but think of it in a personal way.

758
00:41:44,239 --> 00:41:46,480
Speaker 1: It's my sin, it's your sin. He carried that to

759
00:41:46,560 --> 00:41:48,920
Speaker 1: the cross. Then he also rose from the grave so

760
00:41:49,000 --> 00:41:52,080
Speaker 1: that we could experience the victory he secured, and then

761
00:41:52,160 --> 00:41:56,000
Speaker 1: walk in that victory. So even though we go through suffering,

762
00:41:56,040 --> 00:41:57,680
Speaker 1: we know that suffering isn't the end of the story

763
00:41:57,760 --> 00:42:00,640
Speaker 1: because we've already seen what He does with suffering. He

764
00:42:00,760 --> 00:42:05,000
Speaker 1: defeats it, even the things that feel most overwhelming. He's

765
00:42:05,000 --> 00:42:07,840
Speaker 1: still at work. God is at work. So if we're honest,

766
00:42:09,560 --> 00:42:12,279
Speaker 1: I know that we would probably say that we would

767
00:42:12,320 --> 00:42:14,800
Speaker 1: prefer a life without difficulty, and that we would choose

768
00:42:14,800 --> 00:42:18,960
Speaker 1: a life of comfort over hardship. Anytime I understand that,

769
00:42:19,040 --> 00:42:20,880
Speaker 1: I think that's probably what I would do. I like

770
00:42:20,920 --> 00:42:23,280
Speaker 1: the benefits of the hardship, but I don't like the process.

771
00:42:24,920 --> 00:42:26,560
Speaker 1: And then when we look back over our lives, we

772
00:42:26,600 --> 00:42:30,720
Speaker 1: often realize that the seasons that came about that enabled

773
00:42:30,800 --> 00:42:32,719
Speaker 1: us to grow the most were the seasons when we

774
00:42:32,760 --> 00:42:36,399
Speaker 1: had to learn to depend on God the most. That's

775
00:42:36,400 --> 00:42:38,200
Speaker 1: what he's teaching us through our suffering, that we can

776
00:42:38,280 --> 00:42:41,040
Speaker 1: depend on him. And I actually think that sometimes that's

777
00:42:41,040 --> 00:42:45,839
Speaker 1: when our prayers become even more sincere. I think that's

778
00:42:45,840 --> 00:42:48,439
Speaker 1: when the scripture starts to feel even more alive, when

779
00:42:48,440 --> 00:42:51,160
Speaker 1: you watch the Lord bring through, bring others through something

780
00:42:51,239 --> 00:42:52,680
Speaker 1: that you're going through, and you're like, well, he brought

781
00:42:52,719 --> 00:42:57,040
Speaker 1: Abraham through this, brought David through this. See the things

782
00:42:57,040 --> 00:43:00,520
Speaker 1: that he did and first kings and second kings, see

783
00:43:00,520 --> 00:43:03,960
Speaker 1: the things he did in the lives of the early followers.

784
00:43:04,480 --> 00:43:10,080
Speaker 1: Those are things that really happened. God is dependable, isn't he? Yeah?

785
00:43:10,120 --> 00:43:12,960
Speaker 1: He is. So I say this, if you're walking through

786
00:43:12,960 --> 00:43:15,640
Speaker 1: a difficult season right now, I say, if they already

787
00:43:15,680 --> 00:43:18,879
Speaker 1: know that some of us are, and some of us

788
00:43:18,880 --> 00:43:20,920
Speaker 1: it's what's going on directly to you. And for some

789
00:43:21,000 --> 00:43:23,120
Speaker 1: of you, the difficult season is because you care deeply

790
00:43:23,160 --> 00:43:27,000
Speaker 1: about someone else in our church family. And I understand

791
00:43:27,040 --> 00:43:31,880
Speaker 1: that if you're walking through a difficult season for yourself,

792
00:43:32,040 --> 00:43:34,600
Speaker 1: for a family member, for someone else you love right now,

793
00:43:34,640 --> 00:43:38,640
Speaker 1: remember what Paul teaches in this passage. God sees your struggle.

794
00:43:38,920 --> 00:43:41,400
Speaker 1: He's the Father of all mercies. He's the God of

795
00:43:41,440 --> 00:43:44,360
Speaker 1: all comfort, and he's the God who raises the dead,

796
00:43:44,880 --> 00:43:50,960
Speaker 1: and through Jesus Christ, he's already secured the ultimate victory,

797
00:43:51,320 --> 00:43:54,840
Speaker 1: and that victory is one he delights to share with you.

798
00:43:55,680 --> 00:44:00,680
Speaker 1: Let's pray, Lord, thank you, thank you so much for

799
00:44:00,760 --> 00:44:03,120
Speaker 1: your word and for the fact that we can look

800
00:44:03,160 --> 00:44:06,760
Speaker 1: at a portion of scripture like this and say, Lord,

801
00:44:07,320 --> 00:44:12,359
Speaker 1: you are just so so good to us. Lord, I

802
00:44:12,400 --> 00:44:16,279
Speaker 1: am absolutely amazed at the many ways that we could

803
00:44:16,320 --> 00:44:20,319
Speaker 1: trace your hand at work throughout human history, throughout the

804
00:44:20,360 --> 00:44:23,640
Speaker 1: history of the Church, and throughout our individual lives and

805
00:44:23,680 --> 00:44:25,600
Speaker 1: the lives of those that we love and care about.

806
00:44:26,480 --> 00:44:28,200
Speaker 1: And so Lord, we know that you tell us in

807
00:44:28,239 --> 00:44:30,240
Speaker 1: your word that you are the God of all comfort.

808
00:44:30,280 --> 00:44:32,440
Speaker 1: You comfort us in our affliction so that we can

809
00:44:32,440 --> 00:44:35,399
Speaker 1: comfort others. And so Father, we pray that you would

810
00:44:35,440 --> 00:44:38,680
Speaker 1: comfort those who are afflicted, and that you would strengthen

811
00:44:38,719 --> 00:44:41,080
Speaker 1: those who have been through affliction so that they can

812
00:44:41,120 --> 00:44:44,000
Speaker 1: comfort others, and that that would be used of you

813
00:44:44,239 --> 00:44:47,840
Speaker 1: in such a way that your kingdom is ultimately built

814
00:44:48,640 --> 00:44:50,640
Speaker 1: that more and more and more that people would be

815
00:44:50,680 --> 00:44:55,399
Speaker 1: added to your family, men and women and children who

816
00:44:55,440 --> 00:44:59,759
Speaker 1: recognize that we worship the God who can do the impossible.

817
00:45:00,040 --> 00:45:03,520
Speaker 1: Worship the God who can raise the dead. And Lord,

818
00:45:03,560 --> 00:45:05,839
Speaker 1: you give us that reminder in your word in part

819
00:45:05,920 --> 00:45:07,759
Speaker 1: so that we would understand that you can do the

820
00:45:07,800 --> 00:45:10,279
Speaker 1: things that we cannot do. We try to do things

821
00:45:10,320 --> 00:45:12,560
Speaker 1: in our own strength and in our own power, and

822
00:45:12,600 --> 00:45:15,080
Speaker 1: then we come to an end where we recognize that

823
00:45:15,120 --> 00:45:18,080
Speaker 1: I've run out of strength, or I've run out of ideas,

824
00:45:18,239 --> 00:45:20,960
Speaker 1: or there are certain circumstances I don't have the human

825
00:45:21,000 --> 00:45:23,719
Speaker 1: capacity to fix that. I can't change minds, I can't

826
00:45:23,760 --> 00:45:28,160
Speaker 1: change hearts. I can't solve all problems. But we know you,

827
00:45:29,160 --> 00:45:31,279
Speaker 1: and we know that you are the one who can.

828
00:45:31,480 --> 00:45:33,560
Speaker 1: And what you're trying to teach us in the midst

829
00:45:33,560 --> 00:45:36,520
Speaker 1: of these things as we go through them, is that

830
00:45:36,560 --> 00:45:38,879
Speaker 1: you can be relied upon to do that very thing.

831
00:45:39,680 --> 00:45:42,759
Speaker 1: You are the God who raises the dead, and so

832
00:45:42,880 --> 00:45:47,840
Speaker 1: we worship the very one who brings resurrection. Thank you

833
00:45:48,120 --> 00:45:50,799
Speaker 1: that that's the one that you are. Thank you for

834
00:45:50,840 --> 00:45:54,919
Speaker 1: the fact that that's what you have promised us as

835
00:45:55,040 --> 00:45:57,960
Speaker 1: our future. Thank you for the fact that in the

836
00:45:57,960 --> 00:46:00,840
Speaker 1: midst of whatever we experience this of heaven, we have

837
00:46:00,880 --> 00:46:04,400
Speaker 1: the hope of heaven. We know that whatever suffering we

838
00:46:04,480 --> 00:46:08,080
Speaker 1: may face right now, that it is a temporary circumstance

839
00:46:08,480 --> 00:46:12,319
Speaker 1: that ultimately results in you receiving praise and glory in

840
00:46:12,400 --> 00:46:18,000
Speaker 1: us thanking you for how your hand perfectly works, orchestrating

841
00:46:18,000 --> 00:46:21,480
Speaker 1: events throughout the course of human history so that more

842
00:46:21,560 --> 00:46:25,560
Speaker 1: and more people would be pointed toward you. Thank you, Lord,

843
00:46:25,800 --> 00:46:28,640
Speaker 1: that in your mercy and in your grace you allow

844
00:46:28,760 --> 00:46:33,279
Speaker 1: us to be part of that process. You tell us

845
00:46:33,320 --> 00:46:35,759
Speaker 1: in your word that you've called us to be ministers

846
00:46:35,800 --> 00:46:39,319
Speaker 1: of reconciliation. So Lord, thank you that that's what you

847
00:46:39,360 --> 00:46:41,879
Speaker 1: allow us to be, and we pray that we would

848
00:46:41,920 --> 00:46:45,719
Speaker 1: be used of that capacity even now and again, Father,

849
00:46:45,800 --> 00:46:47,520
Speaker 1: we thank you for the hope that we have beyond

850
00:46:47,520 --> 00:46:50,680
Speaker 1: this world through your son Jesus Christ, the one who

851
00:46:50,800 --> 00:46:54,080
Speaker 1: defeated hell, the one who defeated sin, the one who

852
00:46:54,080 --> 00:46:57,960
Speaker 1: defeated death, the one who shares that victory with us

853
00:46:58,800 --> 00:47:01,799
Speaker 1: as were united to years. So we are reconciled to you,

854
00:47:02,160 --> 00:47:05,160
Speaker 1: and we have hope beyond this world. And in the meantime,

855
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Speaker 1: knowing that it's going to be challenging for us, knowing

856
00:47:08,200 --> 00:47:11,439
Speaker 1: that we're going to suffer and experience difficulty, You've sent

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00:47:11,520 --> 00:47:16,120
Speaker 1: your spirit, to help us, to indwell us, to walk

858
00:47:16,160 --> 00:47:20,359
Speaker 1: alongside of us, to give us comfort and guidance and empowerment,

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00:47:21,080 --> 00:47:24,080
Speaker 1: to help us through the seasons that we endure. So, Father,

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00:47:24,160 --> 00:47:26,279
Speaker 1: we're grateful for these things, and we're grateful for your

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00:47:26,280 --> 00:47:29,480
Speaker 1: presence with us today. We commit ourselves to you now,

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00:47:29,560 --> 00:47:33,440
Speaker 1: and we pray this all in Jesus' name. Amen.