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Speaker 1: Welcome into the Wednesday Bible Study.

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Speaker 2: My name is Rick Burgess and I'm grateful that you

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Speaker 2: have taken time to be with us, whether that be

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Speaker 2: live or on the archive. I am the host of

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Speaker 2: the Rick Burgess Show. That's my day job Monday through Friday.

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Speaker 2: Find out all the details about that at Rick Burgessshow

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Speaker 2: dot com. Also the director of the Manchurch dot Com.

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Speaker 2: This is a hub for a men's discipleship strategy. I

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Speaker 2: mean completely ongoing, sustainable and as men grow studying the

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Speaker 2: Word of God through our multiple forty week curriculum. I mean,

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Speaker 2: if you were to go to the Manchurch dot com

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Speaker 2: and say, hey, I'm in help my church, help my

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Speaker 2: community group, we could get you turn key, ready to

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Speaker 2: go where you are challenging and then equipping the men

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Speaker 2: in your church in your community for the next six

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Speaker 2: years and never have to worry again, Well, I wonder

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Speaker 2: what we're gonna study next, and we're more than willing

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Speaker 2: to help you with that. You can go to the

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Speaker 2: Manchurch dot com and all the inn is there, and

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Speaker 2: you can also look at events and if you see

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Speaker 2: a gathering, you can actually be there. If it's near

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Speaker 2: you plug in and kind of get a feel of

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Speaker 2: it there and even plug into that group if it's

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Speaker 2: somewhere near you.

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Speaker 1: Now we do that the forty week curriculus. I gave

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Speaker 1: you that. I got six of those.

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Speaker 2: But we also we supplement with devotionals that are thirty

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Speaker 2: one days forty days. We even have one full length

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Speaker 2: book that you can read through. And we have a

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Speaker 2: brand new devotional that is available right now. It is

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Speaker 2: based on the Book of James. It is called Proven.

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Speaker 2: The Book of James is a challenging book. As a

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Speaker 2: matter of fact, Martin Luther even how to struggle with

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Speaker 2: this book and James challenging the church to say, where

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Speaker 2: is the proof of your redemption? And this book writing

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Speaker 2: a book about my dad, men don't run in the rain.

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Speaker 2: Obviously the most personal thing I've ever done. This one

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Speaker 2: would have to be number two, because this was the

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Speaker 2: book of the Bible that God.

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Speaker 1: Used to redeem me.

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Speaker 2: I was a cultural Christian, had been away from the

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Speaker 2: church and out of the Word of God for thirteen years,

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Speaker 2: still claiming that I was redeemed because I believed the

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Speaker 2: right things. I wasn't an agnostic, I wasn't an atheist,

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Speaker 2: and there was nothing about the Gospel I didn't believe

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Speaker 2: to be true. But I had not been transformed because

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Speaker 2: I had never truly been redeemed. And it took the

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Speaker 2: words of James to rattle me out of that false

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Speaker 2: illusion of redemption into true redemption. And I will forever

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Speaker 2: be grateful for this wonderful book of the Bible. So

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Speaker 2: I was able to the guys that are in here.

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Speaker 2: We did a Bible study on this many years ago,

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Speaker 2: in this very same Bible study, and this thirty one

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Speaker 2: day devotional was taken from those studies and organized into

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Speaker 2: a thirty one day devotional. So if you want to

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Speaker 2: go to the Manchurch dot Com, it's right there on

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Speaker 2: the home that's easy. Today we're going to be We're

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Speaker 2: only going to go through a few verses because there's

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Speaker 2: so much here. This is our study in Ephesians. We're

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Speaker 2: in chapter six today and we're really not going to

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Speaker 2: go any further than ten through thirteen because I believe

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Speaker 2: that fourteen through twenty is going to need its own

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Speaker 2: Bible study, if not multiple gatherings. So as we talk

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Speaker 2: about the Armor of God today, it's why we need

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Speaker 2: the Armor of God. And this comes from the Apostle Paul.

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Speaker 2: This is going to deal with spiritual warfare today. This

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Speaker 2: is a topic that a lot of times the Church

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Speaker 2: can be a little squeamish about, and you know it's

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Speaker 2: not something to be squeamish about because the Bible has

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Speaker 2: included it. It's something that we need to know. There's

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Speaker 2: nothing that can make you less prepared for a battle

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Speaker 2: to not be told the battle even existed. So we're

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Speaker 2: going to talk about that today because Paul certainly is

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Speaker 2: doubling down saying I must give you a warning about

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Speaker 2: the battle that you face in the supernatural realm. So

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Speaker 2: let's open up in a word of prayer, and I'll

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Speaker 2: tell you about another podcast that we're doing now on

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Speaker 2: this very topic as part of us getting started.

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Speaker 1: But let's pray. Lord, Thank you, We need you. We

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Speaker 1: are just asking for your presence. We're asking for your discernment.

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Speaker 1: We're asking for your clarity on.

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Speaker 2: Some really really deep, difficult supernatural things. You have are

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Speaker 2: our creator, but we know that you also created angels,

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Speaker 2: and we know that angels are real. We know that

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Speaker 2: the ultimate angel Lucifer is real. We know about his rebellion,

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Speaker 2: we know about those that rebelled against you with him,

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Speaker 2: and we know about the supernatural realm is all around us,

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Speaker 2: but we as humans limited in our ability to do

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Speaker 2: anything supernatural. Lord, don't need your help to understand how

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Speaker 2: we are to battle this and and or just be

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Speaker 2: with us today as we unpack it. And your holy name,

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Speaker 2: we pray Amen. So we started doing a podcast a

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Speaker 2: little over a year ago, about a year maybe exactly

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Speaker 2: ago that we started a new podcast with Blaze Media

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Speaker 2: called Strange Encounters. I was approached about doing this podcast,

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Speaker 2: and at first, in complete transparency, I was approached because

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Speaker 2: the supernatural podcasts get a lot of a lot of downloads.

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Speaker 2: So when that I was approached about that, I turned

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Speaker 2: it down. I said, I don't have any desire to

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Speaker 2: do a podcast about ghost and bigfoot and space aliens.

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Speaker 1: And all that. Even though I know it's.

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Speaker 2: Really popular and it's intriguing to a lot of people,

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Speaker 2: I don't want any part of it because I don't

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Speaker 2: believe any of it, you know. And and so they

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Speaker 2: they came back and said, what do you think about

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Speaker 2: supernatural podcasts from the Bible?

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Speaker 1: And I said, well, now that that I'm interested in.

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Speaker 2: And so to their credit, they have given me a

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Speaker 2: full green light to do a podcast about the supernatural

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Speaker 2: involving what the Bible has to say about it, angels

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Speaker 2: and demons and Satan, and of course God, the Trinity,

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Speaker 2: which we'll talk about. I mean, it's all the supernatural

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Speaker 2: you can handle. So I don't I don't need bigfoot,

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Speaker 2: I don't need space aliens, I don't need ghosts. I

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Speaker 2: got all the supernatural I can stand in the Holy

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Speaker 2: Word of God, and it's plenty to deal with. So

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Speaker 2: this is gonna kind of mesh together because a lot

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Speaker 2: of what we're going to talk about even this week

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Speaker 2: on that podcast that comes out most every weekend called

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Speaker 2: Strange Encounters wherever you get podcasts. We're gonna talk a

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Speaker 2: little bit about this, and have talked about it quite

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Speaker 2: a bit already. So Paul is going to start out,

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Speaker 2: and I think verse ten a lot of times, what

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Speaker 2: is kind of gloss over that because we want to

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Speaker 2: get into all this supernatural stuff and then get into

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Speaker 2: the armor of God that a lot of us are

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Speaker 2: familiar with. And I will tell you that, way way

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Speaker 2: back when we were doing the Bible study years and

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Speaker 2: years ago, we did do one Bible study on the

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Speaker 2: different weapons for spiritual warfare. We did a Bible study

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Speaker 2: series on spiritual warfare. But it was a really, really

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Speaker 2: long time ago and it was from a book that

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Speaker 2: Tony Evans put out. But we're going to jump into

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Speaker 2: these scriptures again and kind of because I've learned a

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Speaker 2: lot more since we did that that maybe we can

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Speaker 2: talk about in greater depth even this round.

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Speaker 1: But this first verse is really really important.

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Speaker 2: Have you ever had something coming up that was going

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Speaker 2: to be challenging and whoever was trying to maybe been

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Speaker 2: there before, said now, I want to.

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Speaker 1: Give your heads up this this this is going to

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Speaker 1: be a big bite for you. You need to be ready.

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Speaker 1: You know, there's nothing worse than for well.

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Speaker 2: I talked about this on the show today when I

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Speaker 2: on my day job, when I first went from high

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Speaker 2: school football to college football, I didn't know what kind

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Speaker 2: of step that was gonna be. And there was a

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Speaker 2: there was a time in my first ever winter because

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Speaker 2: I thought, well, August is over, for the season's over.

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Speaker 2: This other part can't be too bad. And I noticed

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Speaker 2: that a lot of the veterans were really nauseated about

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Speaker 2: the thought of the winter workouts, and I thought, well,

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Speaker 2: how how hard can that possibly be? And they seemed

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Speaker 2: real trouble by it. And and and I was, so

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Speaker 2: we had this thing called the matt room. I'm sure

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Speaker 2: it's been called other things at other colleges and all that.

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Speaker 1: Uh and and it was and I.

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Speaker 2: Said, well, what we talking about here? And they said,

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Speaker 2: what's it's it's it's thirty minutes. I said, thirty minutes.

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Speaker 2: How hard can thirty minutes be? And they just began

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Speaker 2: to laugh at me, and they said, this is going

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Speaker 2: to be hell on earth? And I'm like, for thirty

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Speaker 2: minutes thirty minutes, I said, we do two and a

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Speaker 2: half hour practices.

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Speaker 1: We did, we did, we did two A days back then.

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Speaker 1: You know, I'm like that old man said making eye

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Speaker 1: my day.

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Speaker 2: We had real two A days, which is also why

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Speaker 2: my memory is fading.

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Speaker 1: Uh but uh but anyway, so.

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Speaker 2: So I they would let the skilled guys go in

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Speaker 2: first to do it because it was in a it

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Speaker 2: was a dungeon. It was underneath the gym at UH

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Speaker 2: at Troy University it was called Troy State then. And

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Speaker 2: underneath that gem were these giant cement columns, no windows,

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Speaker 2: no anything, concrete floor and you're you're in the bottom

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Speaker 2: of the You're in hell.

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Speaker 1: I mean, it was like, uh.

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Speaker 2: And so they couldn't get everybody in. There wasn't big

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Speaker 2: enough for the whole team to go, so you had

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Speaker 2: to go in two groups with the The first group

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Speaker 2: was which I always took issue with, being an alignman.

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Speaker 2: They called them the skill players, which I never understood.

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Speaker 2: We were always like, you think it'll take skill?

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Speaker 1: Do we do? But anyway that you know what I mean.

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Speaker 2: It was your running backs, your receivers, your defensive backs,

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Speaker 2: your quarterbacks, and whatever kickers do, okay, And so I

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Speaker 2: had never been around full time kickers. And I remember

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Speaker 2: the first time I was in a practice and I

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Speaker 2: was asking, I said, who are these people?

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Speaker 1: Because we didn't have that in high school. We didn't

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Speaker 1: have special kickers in the eighties.

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Speaker 2: And they said, well, those are the kickers And I said, well,

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Speaker 2: what else do they do? And they said, well they

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Speaker 2: just kick and so they're over there doing their own thing.

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Speaker 2: And I said, so they're on the team and they

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Speaker 2: just kick, and they said that's all they do. And

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Speaker 2: I said, should they be smoking? Because I looked that

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Speaker 2: in them. The punter he's got a cigarette, you know,

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Speaker 2: he's got his helveing off, you know. And so so anyway,

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Speaker 2: this bunch goes in to the thirty minute workout, and

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Speaker 2: we're standing outside waiting. We had a free safety that

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Speaker 2: had joined the team from the Marines. He served his

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Speaker 2: duty to the Marines and then they were going to

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Speaker 2: give him a college education. So he's now playing free safety.

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Speaker 2: About one two percent body fat, about six foot two, you.

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Speaker 1: Know, about one hundred and ninety pounds.

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Speaker 2: So they all go down there and we're standing out

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Speaker 2: there and I look and all the other linemen, I mean,

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Speaker 2: some of them are praying. Some of them are like

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Speaker 2: calling their folks, you know, on the payphone because we

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Speaker 2: didn't have cell phones then. And I said, is it

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Speaker 2: really this bad? And they're like, man, you just don't

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Speaker 2: know what you're in store for. So they come out here,

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Speaker 2: come to skill people out. Well, I focus on the marine.

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Speaker 2: I just a lock on him as he's coming out,

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Speaker 2: and he's kind of going, he's kind of breathing, and

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Speaker 2: he doesn't look like he's in dress, and I said, okay,

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Speaker 2: and a see he.

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Speaker 1: Goes and he just starts throwing up.

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Speaker 2: And I thought to myself, there's no way that I

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Speaker 2: will be able to do this. And so that was

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Speaker 2: when I realized what was ahead of me was something

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Speaker 2: that I needed to be prepared for and I wasn't okay,

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Speaker 2: and it did not go well. I went in there

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Speaker 2: and I just clawed to sort. I even found a

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Speaker 2: way to hide behind one of the cement pillars so

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Speaker 2: that the coach couldn't see me so I could skip around.

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Speaker 2: And the other players wanted to tell on me, but

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Speaker 2: then they thought, that's genius, and and uh, this kid

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Speaker 2: has come in here. Instead of focusing on to get

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Speaker 2: ready for the workout, he's focused on how to get

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Speaker 2: around it. And they and nobody told on me. And

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Speaker 2: then they found that spot and they would start hiding

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Speaker 2: as well, and I was carried out of that workout

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Speaker 2: like Rudy that day. It was one of my few

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Speaker 2: contributions to that university. So so Paul is saying, before

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Speaker 2: I go into what's next, he says, you know, you

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Speaker 2: look up at what he's been talking about before. He said, now,

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Speaker 2: this is the final thing I want to talk to

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Speaker 2: you about. He's talking to the church at Ephesus. This

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Speaker 2: is my final thing. And look what he says. He says,

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Speaker 2: be strong in the Lord and in the strength of

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Speaker 2: his mic. That's a big statement.

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Speaker 1: I can you imagine that going all right, Rick, what

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Speaker 1: are we gonna do next?

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Speaker 2: I said, before I talk about this next thing, let

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Speaker 2: me tell you got to do first. You better get

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Speaker 2: strong in the might of the Lord. And you're like

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Speaker 2: the next thing that we do, I have to be.

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Speaker 2: The only way I can survive it is with the

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Speaker 2: strength of the Lord God Almighty. Yes, So you better

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Speaker 2: grab hold of it, you better access it for what's next.

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Speaker 2: So it's a word of encouragement, but it's also a

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Speaker 2: word of warning. He's now telling us, because this is

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Speaker 2: a letter to us too now that we got to

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Speaker 2: be strong. And I think that is a problem. I

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Speaker 2: know I was part of it. I was part of

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Speaker 2: the problem. And some of this has come from a

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Speaker 2: theme that we pound on in here is treating justification

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Speaker 2: like the end and not treating it like the beginning.

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Speaker 1: CS Lewis talked about this. You've heard me mention this.

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Speaker 2: He said, you'll never know the strength of the Nazis

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Speaker 2: as long as you just keep going along with them.

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Speaker 2: When you want to know the strength of the Nazis,

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Speaker 2: you oppose them. And he said, this is the same

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Speaker 2: way with your flesh. It's the same way with your

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Speaker 2: sin nature. You know, before you were redeemed, your sin

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Speaker 2: nature had no competition. So you thought you understood h

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Speaker 2: the demonic realm. You thought you understand stood the darkness

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Speaker 2: of the world. You thought you did, but your spirit

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Speaker 2: was dead, so your flesh is all you know.

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Speaker 1: So you thought you knew the strength of this.

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Speaker 2: But once you were redeemed and that dead spirit was

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Speaker 2: made alive by the very seed of the one and

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Speaker 2: only living God, now your sin nature and the demonic

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Speaker 2: forces of this world will come at you in a

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Speaker 2: way that you've never experienced before. C. S. Lewis even said,

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Speaker 2: your just your sin nature will begin to fight for

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Speaker 2: its life. Anybody ever had that experience?

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Speaker 1: My hand is up.

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Speaker 2: Well, you thought, oh I finally got all this done.

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Speaker 2: I guess I've arrived now uh And and all of

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Speaker 2: a sudden, Paul said, hey, now you've got to grab

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Speaker 2: You have access to.

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Speaker 1: The strength of the Lord, and you're gonna need it.

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Speaker 2: So what happens so many times is that the Christian

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Speaker 2: I'm using that phrase, the redeemed the follower of Jesus. Usually,

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Speaker 2: if somebody has gotten to the point where they call

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Speaker 2: themselves a follower of Jesus, they're not weak anymore because

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Speaker 2: that's a whole new statement, then Christian. You can get

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Speaker 2: away with using Christian and really not upset anybody more sadly, but.

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Speaker 1: There's nothing wrong with that word. Don't hear me say that.

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Speaker 2: But most are just looking for justification. They're just looking

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Speaker 2: to stay out of hell. And then they go wandering

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Speaker 2: out on the battlefield as a weak Christian. They're not

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Speaker 2: strong at all. And that's why they fold like a cup.

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Speaker 2: I mean, the first time they face a little opposition,

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Speaker 2: the first time they have a little bit of difficulty,

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Speaker 2: they fail to show the world the strength of God.

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Speaker 2: They look just like everybody else because they have not

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Speaker 2: learn to access the strength of the Lord. We listen,

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Speaker 2: we need to be strong in the Lord. And that

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Speaker 2: has nothing to do with how long we have been redeemed.

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Speaker 2: Our strength is from God, it's not from ourselves. We

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Speaker 2: are to be strong in His mighty power. My goodness.

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Speaker 2: Paul already talked about this back in chapter one. The

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Speaker 2: first time we set down to study Ephesians. He said

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Speaker 2: that in Ephesians one nineteen, the power that raised Christ

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Speaker 2: from the dead, that strength is available to us. Do

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Speaker 2: you believe that? Do you know that? Do you access that?

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Speaker 2: Let me say that again. The Holy Spirit is the

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Speaker 2: strength of God and the trying God.

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Speaker 1: The Holy Spirit.

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Speaker 2: Raised Jesus from the dead, and we have access to that,

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Speaker 2: and we live like we don't. And so why would

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Speaker 2: he say that it's time for us? Why is he

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Speaker 2: going to remind us about the strength of the Lord.

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Speaker 2: I thought about Acts nine, Acts nine twenty two. You

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Speaker 2: don't have to turn to it. I'll read it to you.

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Speaker 2: Acts nine twenty two. We have all this going on.

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Speaker 2: We got Paul out there proclaiming Jesus and the synagogues,

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Speaker 2: and it's not going well. He's out there, everybody's upset

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Speaker 2: with him, everybody's mad at him. But he said in

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Speaker 2: verse twenty two, but Saul said, or Paul, it increased

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Speaker 2: all the more in strength and confounded the Jews who

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Speaker 2: lived in Damascus by proving that Jesus was the Christ.

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Speaker 2: So when they came after him, he said, I got

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Speaker 2: bad news for you. I've got access to the strength

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Speaker 2: of the Lord. Now you can't beat me. It says,

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Speaker 2: he just got even bolder. He just went in access

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Speaker 2: the strength of the Lord, and he confounded the Jews

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Speaker 2: at Damascus, and before they knew what was happening. He

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Speaker 2: was proclaiming Jesus is Lord. And let me just tell

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Speaker 2: you this from experience. I want to encourage you. I

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Speaker 2: had somebody tell me at my own church this week,

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Speaker 2: and and I'm gonna stand that. Never mind, I will

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Speaker 2: just say this, No, I'll say this.

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Speaker 1: Okay.

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Speaker 2: Maybe I needed to hear it. Okay, I didn't. I

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Speaker 2: didn't receive it like I should have. But maybe now

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Speaker 2: I'm starting to receive it. It takes a few days sometimes

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Speaker 2: on things like this with me. But anyway, so I

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Speaker 2: want to encourage you.

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Speaker 1: Okay.

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Speaker 2: I have a bit of a reputation for challenging and

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Speaker 2: challenging but not encouraging enough. So I try to be encouraging.

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Speaker 2: I hope I'm encouraging. But anyway, so let me encourage

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Speaker 2: you on this. So if you when the world comes

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Speaker 2: after you because you're devoted to Jesus, now here comes

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Speaker 2: a little conviction for all of us.

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Speaker 1: For all of us, don't.

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Speaker 2: Don't ignore the letters to Timothy from Paul when he

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Speaker 2: said all who choose to live a godly life will

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Speaker 2: be persecuted. So I'm here to tell you, brother and

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Speaker 2: sisters out there. I'm here to tell you if you're

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Speaker 2: not getting any pushback from a dying dark world. It

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Speaker 2: could be because you don't live a godly life. Because

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Speaker 2: what we just heard from Paul is that not some

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Speaker 2: all who choose to live a godly life, the world

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Speaker 2: will persecute.

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Speaker 1: They will.

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Speaker 2: But let me tell you about the strength of the Lord.

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Speaker 2: And some of you know this, and some of you

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Speaker 2: have this in your own life. If not, you will

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Speaker 2: that you know. There's been times that that difficult times

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Speaker 2: that my wife and I have had to take take

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Speaker 2: a stand on the truth of the Word of God

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Speaker 2: and not compromise for anybody, including our own family, and

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Speaker 2: and and stand against some of the most wicked, vile

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Speaker 2: people that have ever come after you say, I mean,

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Speaker 2: I'm talk about people want you to want you to die,

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Speaker 2: want you to be dead. Don't mind saying that publicly.

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Speaker 2: And can I tell you something, Let meet you how

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Speaker 2: pathetic they are if you just won't move. And every

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Speaker 2: time which Paul was talking about an acts, every time

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Speaker 2: the Jews attacked him, what did he do, explained the gospel?

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Speaker 2: They were better off not to attack him because it

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Speaker 2: gave him a platform to talk about the gospel. So

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Speaker 2: what we did is every time we were attacked, we

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Speaker 2: would publicly defend why we believe what we believe, and

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Speaker 2: we would share the gospel again.

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Speaker 1: And eventually, I'm serious, this group said leave them along.

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Speaker 1: It didn't do the good.

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Speaker 2: Every time we try to destroy them, they just take

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Speaker 2: the platform that we've given them and tell everybody about Jesus.

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Speaker 2: If you'll just leave them along, they never get talk

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Speaker 2: about Jesus. So that's the strength of the Lord. Eventually,

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Speaker 2: all the arrows just fell harmlessly to the ground, not

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Speaker 2: because of who we were, but because of the one

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Speaker 2: that we were proclaiming, the strength of the Lord. And

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Speaker 2: so that's what Paul was saying, cling to the strength

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Speaker 2: of the Lord.

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Speaker 1: Don't go out there by yourself.

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Speaker 2: So why is he making sure that they know that,

396
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Speaker 2: because he is about to hurl us into a battle

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Speaker 2: against a mighty, tireless, relentless, un yielding, deeply hostile enemy.

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Speaker 2: And the first thing you know, he's saying, don't underestimate

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Speaker 2: your enemy. Now, like that day when all those veterans

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Speaker 2: they were coming to me, going, don't underestimate this workout.

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Speaker 2: Now you may think it's just thirty minutes, but it's

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Speaker 2: gonna be the hardest thirty minutes you've ever.

403
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Speaker 1: Been through, don't underestimate the enemy.

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Speaker 2: How many of you have been destroyed by Satan because

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Speaker 2: you underestimated him. Both my hands are up and he

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Speaker 2: don't have anything new, Guys, he don't have anything new.

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Speaker 1: Don't you see it coming a mile away? You ever?

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Speaker 2: Just chuckle sometimes when you see him running that play

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Speaker 2: against you again? And you know why he keeps running

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Speaker 2: it because he keeps scoring. Right, That's one thing I

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Speaker 2: learned from my daddy. Keep running it till they stop it,

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Speaker 2: you know? And so you have you ever been like

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Speaker 2: cheering for your team and you know that your team

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Speaker 2: can't stop a play, and you just think, maybe they

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Speaker 2: won't run it anymore. We've never stopped it. I just

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Speaker 2: hope they don't do it anymore. We can't seem to

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Speaker 2: stop up it. Uh But but that's what Satan does.

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Speaker 2: If you can't stop it, he just keeps running it.

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Speaker 2: But we can see it coming. Is there any can

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Speaker 2: y'all think of any new way that Satan is I'll

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Speaker 2: just say it, ladies, men in the room, how many

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Speaker 2: anytime you hear that a man of faith has fallen?

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Speaker 1: Don't you always know what the story is gonna be.

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Speaker 1: I know it.

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Speaker 2: Every time they gonna be a woman involved, it's gonna

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Speaker 2: be something sexual usually right, either head or homosexual. It's

427
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Speaker 2: gonna be something like that. Most men that are destroyed

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Speaker 2: or destroyed what by sexual deviancy just about every time.

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Speaker 1: And you would think eventually you would go, well, I

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Speaker 1: see what he's doing here, and uh and and and.

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Speaker 2: The reason why most men fail there's two reasons that

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Speaker 2: happens every time.

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Speaker 1: And it's just what Boss talking about. And I know

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Speaker 1: this like the back of my hand.

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Speaker 2: Anytime you see someone with a platform that has fallen,

436
00:22:51,359 --> 00:22:53,119
Speaker 2: two things have happened just about every time.

437
00:22:53,680 --> 00:22:56,000
Speaker 1: They have rejected accountability.

438
00:22:57,040 --> 00:23:00,000
Speaker 2: They've removed all people from their inner circle that are

439
00:23:00,000 --> 00:23:02,040
Speaker 2: afraid to tell them they're wrong. They're not afraid to

440
00:23:02,040 --> 00:23:05,040
Speaker 2: tell them they wrong, and they replace them with people

441
00:23:05,040 --> 00:23:09,639
Speaker 2: who are enamored with them. Always accountability leaves enamored people

442
00:23:09,680 --> 00:23:14,200
Speaker 2: come in. That's one number two. They always underestimate their

443
00:23:14,600 --> 00:23:18,080
Speaker 2: potential for depravity. They always think that that will never

444
00:23:18,080 --> 00:23:20,960
Speaker 2: happen to them. They don't have to put those boundaries

445
00:23:21,000 --> 00:23:23,600
Speaker 2: up because they never be in that. And it doesn't

446
00:23:23,600 --> 00:23:26,080
Speaker 2: help because now when you're taking the boundaries down, you

447
00:23:26,080 --> 00:23:27,760
Speaker 2: don't have anybody to tell you not to because you've

448
00:23:27,760 --> 00:23:28,280
Speaker 2: gotten rid of.

449
00:23:28,240 --> 00:23:32,520
Speaker 1: All of them too. So there were your boundaries. They're gone.

450
00:23:32,920 --> 00:23:34,920
Speaker 2: So now you just got a bunch of enamored people

451
00:23:34,920 --> 00:23:36,600
Speaker 2: around you that want to tell you whatever you want

452
00:23:36,640 --> 00:23:38,320
Speaker 2: to hear because they want something from you, and they

453
00:23:38,320 --> 00:23:40,560
Speaker 2: don't love you. They don't love you, They just want

454
00:23:40,560 --> 00:23:43,640
Speaker 2: something from you. They want to be close to whatever

455
00:23:43,800 --> 00:23:47,879
Speaker 2: is happening with the platform, and then you start to

456
00:23:48,040 --> 00:23:55,080
Speaker 2: become delusional about your potential for depravity. Those two things happen,

457
00:23:55,600 --> 00:23:58,639
Speaker 2: it's the end of whoever standing there. Satan just says,

458
00:24:00,080 --> 00:24:03,320
Speaker 2: we're gonna take this one down easy. So this is

459
00:24:03,359 --> 00:24:05,200
Speaker 2: the kind of warning that he's given us. So let's

460
00:24:05,200 --> 00:24:08,000
Speaker 2: talk about the next thing. He wants to enlighten us

461
00:24:08,000 --> 00:24:11,280
Speaker 2: a little bit about our protection. Okay, where we're supposed

462
00:24:11,320 --> 00:24:13,040
Speaker 2: to be. So he's already told us to be strong

463
00:24:13,080 --> 00:24:15,120
Speaker 2: in the Lord and in the strength of his mind.

464
00:24:15,160 --> 00:24:16,280
Speaker 1: Now look at look at eleven.

465
00:24:16,640 --> 00:24:20,080
Speaker 2: Put on the whole armor of God, that you may

466
00:24:20,119 --> 00:24:25,480
Speaker 2: be able to stand against the schemes underline that of

467
00:24:25,600 --> 00:24:30,160
Speaker 2: the devil. So he says, put on the whole armor

468
00:24:30,240 --> 00:24:34,320
Speaker 2: of God. Now keep in mind just about everybody who

469
00:24:34,480 --> 00:24:37,479
Speaker 2: studied the history of Paul's ministry. And with these are

470
00:24:37,520 --> 00:24:40,600
Speaker 2: the prison letters. Okay, so we know he's in prison

471
00:24:41,040 --> 00:24:43,480
Speaker 2: when he's writing this letter. We're only gonna do prison

472
00:24:43,560 --> 00:24:47,720
Speaker 2: letters here for the next several weeks. So many people,

473
00:24:48,040 --> 00:24:51,480
Speaker 2: even getting to the Armor of God, have said all

474
00:24:51,600 --> 00:24:54,280
Speaker 2: history points that he was chained to a Roman soldier,

475
00:24:54,800 --> 00:24:57,600
Speaker 2: so he's looking at a Roman soldier when he's talking

476
00:24:57,640 --> 00:25:01,960
Speaker 2: about this armor, and they I think this was the

477
00:25:03,760 --> 00:25:07,600
Speaker 2: idea that he uses to kind of give us the

478
00:25:07,640 --> 00:25:12,480
Speaker 2: imagery of the Christian armor. So the Roman armor protects

479
00:25:12,520 --> 00:25:16,560
Speaker 2: the body, the Christian armor protects the soul. God has

480
00:25:16,600 --> 00:25:21,159
Speaker 2: provided all that we need for complete protection of our mind,

481
00:25:21,720 --> 00:25:26,480
Speaker 2: of our heart, of our soul, our spirit, our conscious,

482
00:25:26,880 --> 00:25:28,600
Speaker 2: and also our will.

483
00:25:29,359 --> 00:25:32,120
Speaker 1: But we must put it on.

484
00:25:33,920 --> 00:25:41,159
Speaker 2: Peace by peace, deliberately, thoughtfully, and intelligently. So I've got to,

485
00:25:41,359 --> 00:25:44,280
Speaker 2: first of all, I've got to deliberately say I will

486
00:25:44,320 --> 00:25:45,959
Speaker 2: put on the whole armor of God.

487
00:25:46,119 --> 00:25:50,639
Speaker 1: Now, if you're like me, I've learned. I've learned the

488
00:25:50,680 --> 00:25:52,120
Speaker 1: hard way.

489
00:25:52,240 --> 00:25:54,840
Speaker 2: Even when I first became a follower of Jesus, I

490
00:25:54,880 --> 00:25:58,679
Speaker 2: thought to myself, I'll put on some of the armor. Now,

491
00:25:58,680 --> 00:26:00,400
Speaker 2: ain't putting all of it on. My goodness, I mean,

492
00:26:01,119 --> 00:26:03,720
Speaker 2: this seems to be an exhaustive list here, but I'll

493
00:26:03,760 --> 00:26:04,439
Speaker 2: put some of it on.

494
00:26:04,560 --> 00:26:05,080
Speaker 1: That'll be good.

495
00:26:05,080 --> 00:26:08,240
Speaker 2: That's better than nothing. But Paul never says that. He

496
00:26:08,280 --> 00:26:10,280
Speaker 2: never says, put on some of the armor. He says,

497
00:26:10,280 --> 00:26:11,840
Speaker 2: put it all on. You got to put on the

498
00:26:11,880 --> 00:26:14,840
Speaker 2: whole armor of God. And see, that's that thing where

499
00:26:14,880 --> 00:26:20,480
Speaker 2: we start going, what I call the buffet of justification.

500
00:26:20,960 --> 00:26:22,120
Speaker 2: You go over and you go.

501
00:26:22,280 --> 00:26:24,479
Speaker 1: God says, all right, you've been justified. Now here's how

502
00:26:24,520 --> 00:26:25,120
Speaker 1: you live your life.

503
00:26:25,119 --> 00:26:29,840
Speaker 2: And you look and go, Okay, I'm going to be

504
00:26:30,000 --> 00:26:30,960
Speaker 2: somewhat obedient.

505
00:26:31,280 --> 00:26:33,520
Speaker 1: Jesus says, if you love me, you'll obey my commands.

506
00:26:35,119 --> 00:26:38,200
Speaker 2: You know, once you were Peter, once you lived in ignorance,

507
00:26:38,280 --> 00:26:40,800
Speaker 2: you were ignorant children. You're not ignorant anymore. You now

508
00:26:40,880 --> 00:26:42,680
Speaker 2: know what is right and wrong. So you must have

509
00:26:42,720 --> 00:26:45,680
Speaker 2: become holy and all your conduct, and we go all

510
00:26:45,720 --> 00:26:48,800
Speaker 2: of it. So I get carried away some of it.

511
00:26:49,760 --> 00:26:51,840
Speaker 2: The things that I don't really care about anyway, I'm

512
00:26:51,840 --> 00:26:55,680
Speaker 2: glad to get rid of, okay, But there's some things

513
00:26:55,680 --> 00:26:58,600
Speaker 2: that I still love more than you, Jesus, and I

514
00:26:58,680 --> 00:27:02,920
Speaker 2: haven't I haven't decided that my life will be as

515
00:27:03,040 --> 00:27:07,439
Speaker 2: enjoyable with you, and not that I want to have

516
00:27:07,480 --> 00:27:10,360
Speaker 2: you and that, but you keep saying I can't have you,

517
00:27:10,440 --> 00:27:12,360
Speaker 2: and hang on to this, and there comes the fight,

518
00:27:12,480 --> 00:27:14,719
Speaker 2: right that's when you start just putting on some of it.

519
00:27:14,920 --> 00:27:16,760
Speaker 2: I'm gonna get rid of some things in my life

520
00:27:16,920 --> 00:27:19,400
Speaker 2: that are a detriment to me, but not all of it.

521
00:27:20,280 --> 00:27:22,720
Speaker 2: Some of it I'm still gonna cling to. Well, that

522
00:27:23,640 --> 00:27:27,160
Speaker 2: ain't ever gonna work. That takes sanctification, just stunts it completely.

523
00:27:27,200 --> 00:27:29,320
Speaker 2: You can't go anywhere until you're willing to put on

524
00:27:29,400 --> 00:27:32,440
Speaker 2: the whole armor of God. And can I just save

525
00:27:32,480 --> 00:27:34,400
Speaker 2: all your lot of trouble from an idiot that's made

526
00:27:34,400 --> 00:27:37,760
Speaker 2: a bunch of mistakes even in my sanctification. Okay, and

527
00:27:37,920 --> 00:27:40,960
Speaker 2: live like an idiot before my justification. Go ahead and

528
00:27:40,960 --> 00:27:43,960
Speaker 2: give in to him. Do what he says. Can I

529
00:27:44,040 --> 00:27:47,160
Speaker 2: just be Solomon for a minute, who tried everything under

530
00:27:47,160 --> 00:27:47,440
Speaker 2: the sun.

531
00:27:47,720 --> 00:27:48,960
Speaker 1: Just do what he says.

532
00:27:49,359 --> 00:27:52,639
Speaker 2: He is not a kill joy. He actually created you,

533
00:27:52,920 --> 00:27:55,800
Speaker 2: and he created us for a life that he had

534
00:27:55,840 --> 00:27:58,199
Speaker 2: for us. And then when we decided that we couldn't

535
00:27:58,200 --> 00:28:00,159
Speaker 2: trust him to decide what was right and wrong in

536
00:28:00,160 --> 00:28:03,520
Speaker 2: the garden, and we got suckered in by the adversary saying,

537
00:28:03,560 --> 00:28:05,880
Speaker 2: why don't you just get to decide it for yourself?

538
00:28:06,680 --> 00:28:08,560
Speaker 2: You think, well, why should he have to get to

539
00:28:08,560 --> 00:28:10,040
Speaker 2: decide it. Don't you want to have a say in it?

540
00:28:10,119 --> 00:28:12,600
Speaker 2: We said, yes, we do, will decide what is right

541
00:28:12,640 --> 00:28:17,159
Speaker 2: and wrong. And you know what happened. He's not a

542
00:28:17,240 --> 00:28:22,200
Speaker 2: killed joy. He actually has the best life. He said,

543
00:28:22,400 --> 00:28:24,399
Speaker 2: if you live life the way I said, how many

544
00:28:24,520 --> 00:28:26,439
Speaker 2: raise your hand right now if you want to not

545
00:28:26,520 --> 00:28:28,640
Speaker 2: you raise it in your heart. All of you out there.

546
00:28:29,119 --> 00:28:31,640
Speaker 2: My hands are going up, both of them. How many

547
00:28:31,680 --> 00:28:34,399
Speaker 2: problems in your life? Not all? Some of them are

548
00:28:34,720 --> 00:28:36,920
Speaker 2: part of refinement and you know and all that, but

549
00:28:37,240 --> 00:28:40,280
Speaker 2: there's some How many of you can raise your hand

550
00:28:40,320 --> 00:28:42,600
Speaker 2: and say you could have avoided some of the pitfalls

551
00:28:42,600 --> 00:28:44,680
Speaker 2: in your life if you had done things the way

552
00:28:44,720 --> 00:28:49,880
Speaker 2: God said, okay, yeah, exactly, so, so he knows what

553
00:28:49,920 --> 00:28:53,480
Speaker 2: he's doing, and so he also knows what he's doing, saying, well,

554
00:28:53,560 --> 00:28:56,640
Speaker 2: I can't go back now I've got I'm redeeming you

555
00:28:56,680 --> 00:28:59,360
Speaker 2: through my son. I'm going to give you this life back.

556
00:28:59,560 --> 00:29:01,680
Speaker 2: But until we get to the end of all this,

557
00:29:02,040 --> 00:29:05,760
Speaker 2: you're in a battle. I have not destroyed loose for yet,

558
00:29:05,880 --> 00:29:08,560
Speaker 2: so we're in a battle. I have not destroyed all

559
00:29:08,600 --> 00:29:09,040
Speaker 2: those that.

560
00:29:09,040 --> 00:29:12,360
Speaker 1: Were with him yet, the demons that he's got, they're

561
00:29:12,400 --> 00:29:14,600
Speaker 1: still in play. You're still in the battle.

562
00:29:14,680 --> 00:29:17,200
Speaker 2: I'm gonna work this thing out and one day this

563
00:29:17,240 --> 00:29:20,760
Speaker 2: fight's gonna be over. But right now you've only been justified.

564
00:29:20,760 --> 00:29:23,280
Speaker 2: But let me tell you something. The adversary stands in

565
00:29:23,320 --> 00:29:27,000
Speaker 2: the way of you being sanctified. And if he can't

566
00:29:27,040 --> 00:29:29,360
Speaker 2: take away your redemption, he's gonna try to render you

567
00:29:29,400 --> 00:29:32,800
Speaker 2: to be inadequate on pointing anybody else to Jesus.

568
00:29:33,800 --> 00:29:34,719
Speaker 1: And that's the battle.

569
00:29:35,800 --> 00:29:38,400
Speaker 2: And we're trying to become more like Jesus, and he

570
00:29:38,440 --> 00:29:41,520
Speaker 2: wants us to become more like him. And sometimes our

571
00:29:41,560 --> 00:29:44,320
Speaker 2: sin nature is it's a lot easier to mold it

572
00:29:44,360 --> 00:29:46,680
Speaker 2: to Satan, that is the mold itt to Jesus. But

573
00:29:46,720 --> 00:29:49,000
Speaker 2: we now have the strength of the Lord. So we

574
00:29:49,120 --> 00:29:52,320
Speaker 2: put it on, put on all the armor peace by peace.

575
00:29:52,360 --> 00:29:54,760
Speaker 2: We do it deliberately, we do it thoughtfully, and we

576
00:29:54,840 --> 00:30:00,280
Speaker 2: do it what informed intelligently. How much longer are we

577
00:30:00,400 --> 00:30:03,800
Speaker 2: just going to be okay with remaining infants of the faith.

578
00:30:05,280 --> 00:30:06,720
Speaker 2: I don't know what to do because I just I

579
00:30:06,800 --> 00:30:09,480
Speaker 2: just refuse to learn, I refuse to grow. I won't

580
00:30:09,480 --> 00:30:12,600
Speaker 2: get in a small Bible study. You guys do praise

581
00:30:12,600 --> 00:30:14,040
Speaker 2: God for that. I'm gonna tell you one of the

582
00:30:14,080 --> 00:30:16,520
Speaker 2: things that encourages me the most is those of you

583
00:30:16,600 --> 00:30:19,400
Speaker 2: that are here week after week after week after week.

584
00:30:19,720 --> 00:30:22,680
Speaker 2: I can't tell you how much that means to me. Okay,

585
00:30:22,680 --> 00:30:24,200
Speaker 2: because I'm gonna be here to teach it whether you

586
00:30:24,240 --> 00:30:27,120
Speaker 2: come or not. Okay, because I'm benefiting from it even

587
00:30:27,160 --> 00:30:30,080
Speaker 2: if you don't want to. But but but those of

588
00:30:30,120 --> 00:30:32,760
Speaker 2: you that are here getting serious about it, you already

589
00:30:32,800 --> 00:30:36,640
Speaker 2: made that decision. But many people of the faith want

590
00:30:36,680 --> 00:30:39,400
Speaker 2: to be justified and just stay right there and remain

591
00:30:39,440 --> 00:30:42,960
Speaker 2: an infant for the rest of their life on earth.

592
00:30:43,000 --> 00:30:46,040
Speaker 2: And that's a dangerous place to be. So who are

593
00:30:46,080 --> 00:30:49,320
Speaker 2: we fighting next? He says, Hey, you got a protagonist here.

594
00:30:50,160 --> 00:30:52,880
Speaker 2: You got the evil one. You got the devil and Satan.

595
00:30:52,960 --> 00:30:55,200
Speaker 2: Now where did these two names come from? We know

596
00:30:55,280 --> 00:30:59,800
Speaker 2: this is from Lucifer, who rebelled against God. Devil just

597
00:30:59,800 --> 00:31:03,200
Speaker 2: say simply, mes means he's now our accuser. That's what

598
00:31:03,240 --> 00:31:07,440
Speaker 2: that means. Constantly is sailing us before God. So keep

599
00:31:07,480 --> 00:31:10,320
Speaker 2: that in mind everything that you start thinking I'm doing

600
00:31:10,360 --> 00:31:11,040
Speaker 2: a little bit better.

601
00:31:11,440 --> 00:31:12,040
Speaker 1: I'm growing.

602
00:31:12,160 --> 00:31:14,960
Speaker 2: Satan is standing there before God every day talking about

603
00:31:14,960 --> 00:31:15,760
Speaker 2: how worthless we are.

604
00:31:17,160 --> 00:31:19,920
Speaker 1: Look at look at these I mean, can you and

605
00:31:19,960 --> 00:31:21,280
Speaker 1: you know what he'll get up in your ear?

606
00:31:21,440 --> 00:31:23,680
Speaker 2: I tell you, I always know that I'm ready to

607
00:31:23,720 --> 00:31:26,280
Speaker 2: teach and preach is when I know that the whatever

608
00:31:26,360 --> 00:31:29,440
Speaker 2: I don't think I rank Satan, But whatever demon he

609
00:31:29,520 --> 00:31:31,840
Speaker 2: sends my way, what that demon.

610
00:31:31,520 --> 00:31:33,760
Speaker 1: Knows how to work like his lord a loocier?

611
00:31:33,760 --> 00:31:35,680
Speaker 2: And you know what, they start saying, you're gonna teach

612
00:31:35,680 --> 00:31:39,840
Speaker 2: somebody of all the horrible things you've done, you shouldn't

613
00:31:39,880 --> 00:31:42,239
Speaker 2: even open your mouth. Why don't you just keep your

614
00:31:42,280 --> 00:31:44,520
Speaker 2: mouth shut? I mean, who even knows if God's really

615
00:31:44,560 --> 00:31:47,720
Speaker 2: forgiving you? How can he look at the horrible things

616
00:31:47,760 --> 00:31:51,080
Speaker 2: you've done? What have you got to tell anybody? And

617
00:31:51,160 --> 00:31:52,640
Speaker 2: you know what I do, I just say, you're right,

618
00:31:54,520 --> 00:31:58,239
Speaker 2: none of us are worthy to teach. We're gonna talk

619
00:31:58,240 --> 00:32:00,920
Speaker 2: about the one who is worthy. There's there's not a

620
00:32:00,960 --> 00:32:04,200
Speaker 2: flawless teacher out there. Uh, we're all gonna be equal,

621
00:32:04,440 --> 00:32:06,480
Speaker 2: equal at the foot of the cross. And as Adrian

622
00:32:06,560 --> 00:32:08,560
Speaker 2: Rogers said, ain't none of us gonna strut into heaven?

623
00:32:09,120 --> 00:32:11,880
Speaker 2: So so he says, So this is who you're you're facing.

624
00:32:12,040 --> 00:32:15,600
Speaker 2: Satan means that that he's not just our accuser. He's

625
00:32:15,640 --> 00:32:20,240
Speaker 2: our adversary, the one who opposed God and constantly seeks

626
00:32:20,520 --> 00:32:24,960
Speaker 2: to prevent us from entering into the birthright that we

627
00:32:25,080 --> 00:32:28,560
Speaker 2: now have in Jesus as children of God. So he says,

628
00:32:28,600 --> 00:32:29,680
Speaker 2: against the schemes?

629
00:32:29,720 --> 00:32:33,480
Speaker 1: Are are are the the the wiles of the devil? Uh?

630
00:32:33,520 --> 00:32:38,600
Speaker 2: These deceptive strategies full of evil tricks and and and

631
00:32:38,640 --> 00:32:42,560
Speaker 2: you know we don't know them all because Satan is

632
00:32:42,560 --> 00:32:46,680
Speaker 2: is is stronger than us, but God knows them. Okay,

633
00:32:46,840 --> 00:32:50,920
Speaker 2: it all started in the garden with deception and lies.

634
00:32:51,320 --> 00:32:54,440
Speaker 2: Remember what we've already talked about. Eve was deceived and

635
00:32:54,560 --> 00:32:59,520
Speaker 2: Adam was disobedient. She was deceived, but he was disobedient.

636
00:33:00,240 --> 00:33:02,600
Speaker 2: And so that's where it all started. And what did

637
00:33:02,600 --> 00:33:03,600
Speaker 2: it start with us?

638
00:33:03,720 --> 00:33:06,320
Speaker 1: King? Deception?

639
00:33:07,080 --> 00:33:11,320
Speaker 2: Lies? What did Jesus tell us about Lucifer? That's his language.

640
00:33:12,320 --> 00:33:14,360
Speaker 2: And if you're a liar, you're speaking the language of

641
00:33:14,400 --> 00:33:18,240
Speaker 2: the devil. He always lies, he always deceives, He's always

642
00:33:18,400 --> 00:33:21,040
Speaker 2: you know you've all seen this, I have you know,

643
00:33:21,080 --> 00:33:23,840
Speaker 2: when you get tempted either by your sin nature, by

644
00:33:23,840 --> 00:33:27,320
Speaker 2: some demonic force. You give in to it, and you're

645
00:33:27,360 --> 00:33:29,680
Speaker 2: kind of sneaking around, and you think, all right, if

646
00:33:29,720 --> 00:33:32,800
Speaker 2: I do this, there's no way anybody's gonna know about this,

647
00:33:33,480 --> 00:33:35,800
Speaker 2: no way, you know, you have to forget that God

648
00:33:35,800 --> 00:33:37,760
Speaker 2: sees it. But but I mean, but as far as

649
00:33:37,800 --> 00:33:41,200
Speaker 2: like anybody, it's not gonna hurt anybody else. And all

650
00:33:41,200 --> 00:33:43,000
Speaker 2: this kind of stuff. And then what's the first thing

651
00:33:43,040 --> 00:33:44,840
Speaker 2: that happens when you give into your sin?

652
00:33:45,920 --> 00:33:49,240
Speaker 1: Everybody's gonna know. I'm gonna tell everybody about it. I'm

653
00:33:49,240 --> 00:33:50,080
Speaker 1: gonna out you for it.

654
00:33:50,560 --> 00:33:53,080
Speaker 2: He lied, he drew you in, and then he got

655
00:33:53,080 --> 00:33:54,600
Speaker 2: you to commit something. It's just you and me, man,

656
00:33:54,640 --> 00:33:56,920
Speaker 2: we hang you out. We you know, don't do all this.

657
00:33:57,000 --> 00:33:59,480
Speaker 2: You don't want to be self righteous and sanctimonious and

658
00:33:59,520 --> 00:34:01,360
Speaker 2: the holier and now and all that stuff. You're right,

659
00:34:01,400 --> 00:34:02,920
Speaker 2: I don't need to get carried away. And then all

660
00:34:02,960 --> 00:34:05,200
Speaker 2: of a sudden, you do something stupid, and then the

661
00:34:05,200 --> 00:34:06,880
Speaker 2: first thing he says is you're awful. Look what you've

662
00:34:06,880 --> 00:34:12,160
Speaker 2: done to God. I bet he's man probably gonna get

663
00:34:12,239 --> 00:34:14,560
Speaker 2: rid of you. There's no telling what he's gonna do

664
00:34:14,560 --> 00:34:16,680
Speaker 2: to you now. And he lured you right into it.

665
00:34:17,400 --> 00:34:20,000
Speaker 2: So this is the stuff we have to understand. We

666
00:34:20,040 --> 00:34:22,600
Speaker 2: can't fall for that, but you're gonna fall for it

667
00:34:22,840 --> 00:34:24,560
Speaker 2: if you don't understand the enemy.

668
00:34:25,120 --> 00:34:27,080
Speaker 1: Now here's the enablement.

669
00:34:27,160 --> 00:34:30,000
Speaker 2: Now, Now that's going to continue on in verses that

670
00:34:30,040 --> 00:34:32,840
Speaker 2: we're not gonna get to today. But now Paul's gonna

671
00:34:32,840 --> 00:34:35,759
Speaker 2: turn and he's gonna say, now, understand for we do

672
00:34:35,920 --> 00:34:41,480
Speaker 2: not wrestle against flesh and blood. You hear that you're

673
00:34:41,480 --> 00:34:46,359
Speaker 2: not wrestling against flesh and blood. Let's talk about the arena. Now,

674
00:34:46,520 --> 00:34:50,720
Speaker 2: this is not an ordinary battle. Our enemies are not people.

675
00:34:52,000 --> 00:34:56,760
Speaker 2: Our enemies are not people. I'm gonna say that again.

676
00:34:57,640 --> 00:35:00,680
Speaker 2: It'll really help you and it's helped me because people

677
00:35:00,760 --> 00:35:05,200
Speaker 2: and I can be can be so frustrating. You gotta

678
00:35:05,320 --> 00:35:08,520
Speaker 2: learn to look beyond people and look at the source

679
00:35:08,560 --> 00:35:12,640
Speaker 2: of what's happening. People can be used by demons, but

680
00:35:12,680 --> 00:35:16,279
Speaker 2: the demons are the problem, not the people. You gotta

681
00:35:16,320 --> 00:35:19,640
Speaker 2: look beyond that. We're not battling people. We must see

682
00:35:19,680 --> 00:35:24,640
Speaker 2: beyond people. Satan, yes, use this people to persecute us,

683
00:35:24,680 --> 00:35:27,239
Speaker 2: to lie to us, to hurt us, even kill us.

684
00:35:27,840 --> 00:35:31,400
Speaker 2: But the real enemy lurks in the shadows of the

685
00:35:31,520 --> 00:35:37,240
Speaker 2: unseen world, moving people like pawns on a chessboard of time.

686
00:35:37,719 --> 00:35:40,960
Speaker 2: As long as we see people as our enemy and

687
00:35:41,040 --> 00:35:46,520
Speaker 2: we wrestle against them, we will spend our strength in vain.

688
00:35:47,239 --> 00:35:50,480
Speaker 2: This is not an ordinary battle. We are in a

689
00:35:50,520 --> 00:35:54,720
Speaker 2: greater arena, a greater arena than we can even see.

690
00:35:55,960 --> 00:35:58,560
Speaker 2: I'm gonna say that again. It's been said before. If

691
00:35:58,600 --> 00:36:00,960
Speaker 2: all of a sudden, in this room right now and

692
00:36:01,000 --> 00:36:03,640
Speaker 2: for wherever all of you out there are, if God

693
00:36:03,680 --> 00:36:06,000
Speaker 2: decided I'm about to turn the light on for them,

694
00:36:06,600 --> 00:36:08,239
Speaker 2: I'm gonna let them see what it's all around them.

695
00:36:08,760 --> 00:36:12,920
Speaker 2: That we wouldn't sleep again if we could see the

696
00:36:13,040 --> 00:36:16,600
Speaker 2: unseen world and what's going on around us, you'd never

697
00:36:16,680 --> 00:36:21,720
Speaker 2: lay down in peace again. It's it's that scary, it's

698
00:36:21,840 --> 00:36:26,839
Speaker 2: that difficult. And he saying, you've got to understand. You

699
00:36:26,880 --> 00:36:29,239
Speaker 2: can't fight this battle the way that you get into

700
00:36:29,239 --> 00:36:33,000
Speaker 2: some bar fight and punch somebody into face. It ain't it.

701
00:36:33,040 --> 00:36:36,200
Speaker 2: Ain't that kind of battle. You're not gonna win it

702
00:36:36,280 --> 00:36:40,160
Speaker 2: like that. You win it by standing and accessing the

703
00:36:40,200 --> 00:36:43,200
Speaker 2: strength of the Lord. You win it by standing under

704
00:36:43,200 --> 00:36:46,560
Speaker 2: the authority of Christ. You win it by using the

705
00:36:46,600 --> 00:36:51,840
Speaker 2: power of the Holy Spirit. And you denounce all these

706
00:36:52,040 --> 00:36:55,040
Speaker 2: enemies that are coming against you, and you denounce them

707
00:36:55,080 --> 00:36:59,120
Speaker 2: in the power of the one who redeemed you. That's

708
00:36:59,200 --> 00:37:03,560
Speaker 2: where we are. It's we wrestle not against flesh and blood,

709
00:37:03,560 --> 00:37:06,240
Speaker 2: but against And then he starts running the list about

710
00:37:06,440 --> 00:37:09,840
Speaker 2: the occult battle that is going on, and he lists

711
00:37:09,840 --> 00:37:16,960
Speaker 2: four distinct Satanic crowned dignities. Okay, so he starts off,

712
00:37:17,000 --> 00:37:20,600
Speaker 2: and according to what English interpretation you have, I teach

713
00:37:20,840 --> 00:37:25,040
Speaker 2: normally out of the the ESV, but there's other great

714
00:37:25,560 --> 00:37:27,400
Speaker 2: I'm not saying that's the best one or anything like that.

715
00:37:27,440 --> 00:37:29,759
Speaker 2: It's just the way my mind works. I like a

716
00:37:29,800 --> 00:37:33,120
Speaker 2: more literal translation. I don't need all the poetic stuff

717
00:37:33,640 --> 00:37:36,239
Speaker 2: for me to learn. Now. I enjoy and I'm inspired

718
00:37:36,640 --> 00:37:39,240
Speaker 2: by the others. But but when I'm studying, I usually

719
00:37:39,239 --> 00:37:45,319
Speaker 2: stay right here. So mine says against against the rulers.

720
00:37:45,360 --> 00:37:51,520
Speaker 2: Yours may say principalities are authorities. So we're talking about

721
00:37:52,920 --> 00:37:56,760
Speaker 2: the principalities, or like mine says the rulers, we're talking

722
00:37:56,800 --> 00:38:01,760
Speaker 2: about authorities. You may have that in there are mind,

723
00:38:01,760 --> 00:38:02,760
Speaker 2: does I have authority?

724
00:38:02,840 --> 00:38:07,319
Speaker 1: Next? Cosmic powers? I have? Next, and and and that

725
00:38:07,360 --> 00:38:07,960
Speaker 1: one as well.

726
00:38:08,080 --> 00:38:12,239
Speaker 2: So we're talking about the rulers of this world and

727
00:38:12,320 --> 00:38:15,719
Speaker 2: the darkness and wicked spirits on high or in the

728
00:38:15,760 --> 00:38:16,640
Speaker 2: heavenly places.

729
00:38:16,920 --> 00:38:17,560
Speaker 1: That's four.

730
00:38:17,960 --> 00:38:22,320
Speaker 2: So we can't see them unless they desire to be seen.

731
00:38:25,400 --> 00:38:29,319
Speaker 2: I'm not I'm not looking for that. I don't need

732
00:38:29,320 --> 00:38:32,279
Speaker 2: them to show themselves to me. I think that I

733
00:38:32,400 --> 00:38:39,880
Speaker 2: have probably I've experienced. I have experienced their present, their presence,

734
00:38:40,120 --> 00:38:44,120
Speaker 2: no question about that. I have experienced a battle in

735
00:38:44,160 --> 00:38:48,239
Speaker 2: the demonic realms so powerful one time that one of

736
00:38:48,239 --> 00:38:50,520
Speaker 2: the brothers that was with me as we were fighting them,

737
00:38:51,080 --> 00:38:56,040
Speaker 2: was blinded, couldn't see uh and regained his sight, thankfully,

738
00:38:56,040 --> 00:38:59,200
Speaker 2: But there was in the middle of the battle completely blinded.

739
00:39:00,120 --> 00:39:04,399
Speaker 2: I actually one time they appeared to me as as

740
00:39:04,520 --> 00:39:08,320
Speaker 2: kind of really rough looking old men.

741
00:39:08,480 --> 00:39:09,239
Speaker 1: I didn't at first.

742
00:39:09,239 --> 00:39:11,000
Speaker 2: I just thought it was some rough looking old men

743
00:39:11,160 --> 00:39:14,440
Speaker 2: that happened in Waco, Texas. Uh. And I was talking

744
00:39:14,480 --> 00:39:17,080
Speaker 2: about and I was in I knew I was under

745
00:39:17,480 --> 00:39:20,040
Speaker 2: a spiritual attack, and I was wearing myself out, and

746
00:39:20,040 --> 00:39:22,800
Speaker 2: I was very tired, and I was struggling with the

747
00:39:22,840 --> 00:39:25,280
Speaker 2: speaking engagement. I wasn't handling it very well.

748
00:39:25,800 --> 00:39:26,000
Speaker 1: Uh.

749
00:39:26,040 --> 00:39:27,480
Speaker 2: So there was you know, there was a lot going

750
00:39:27,520 --> 00:39:29,480
Speaker 2: on with sherrying me too, because we were trying to

751
00:39:29,520 --> 00:39:31,920
Speaker 2: work it out, and she was frustrated with me for

752
00:39:32,120 --> 00:39:35,160
Speaker 2: not balancing it well. And she was completely right, and

753
00:39:35,239 --> 00:39:37,399
Speaker 2: so I was. I was, I had all that going

754
00:39:37,440 --> 00:39:40,320
Speaker 2: on too. And I was there and I was looking

755
00:39:40,320 --> 00:39:44,160
Speaker 2: at the tables and as I came around, it was weird.

756
00:39:44,640 --> 00:39:47,920
Speaker 2: I was talking about the death of my son and

757
00:39:47,960 --> 00:39:50,400
Speaker 2: as I'm talking about that, and every person guy's in there,

758
00:39:50,440 --> 00:39:54,360
Speaker 2: they got tears in their eyes. It's a very very tough,

759
00:39:54,480 --> 00:39:57,080
Speaker 2: tough moment that I was sharing. And I looked and

760
00:39:57,120 --> 00:40:01,200
Speaker 2: there were like two old looking me, really weird looking

761
00:40:01,200 --> 00:40:04,359
Speaker 2: in their faces, and they're laughing at me. They were

762
00:40:04,360 --> 00:40:07,160
Speaker 2: really pointing at me and laughing. And I was like,

763
00:40:07,200 --> 00:40:09,879
Speaker 2: why would these two men be laughing? And I thought

764
00:40:09,880 --> 00:40:11,520
Speaker 2: that was weird. And I even stopped for a minute

765
00:40:11,560 --> 00:40:13,719
Speaker 2: and I said, do y'all think this is funny? And

766
00:40:13,760 --> 00:40:16,759
Speaker 2: of course the rest of the crowd starts going. They're

767
00:40:16,800 --> 00:40:19,359
Speaker 2: looking around, They're like, well, who's he talking to? And

768
00:40:19,400 --> 00:40:22,800
Speaker 2: so I went back around and I finished the message

769
00:40:22,840 --> 00:40:27,960
Speaker 2: and they actually, God had a great response, and so

770
00:40:28,040 --> 00:40:30,839
Speaker 2: I went back to find them and I couldn't find them,

771
00:40:30,840 --> 00:40:34,040
Speaker 2: and I went over to the team. I said, did

772
00:40:34,040 --> 00:40:36,640
Speaker 2: you see the two old men that were sitting you know,

773
00:40:36,719 --> 00:40:39,279
Speaker 2: actually they were here. They were sitting over here at

774
00:40:39,280 --> 00:40:42,279
Speaker 2: like one o'clock. And they were like, no, what are

775
00:40:42,320 --> 00:40:44,719
Speaker 2: you talking about? And I went over here the guys.

776
00:40:44,760 --> 00:40:46,359
Speaker 2: I said, this table right here, where they're not two

777
00:40:46,400 --> 00:40:49,319
Speaker 2: old men sitting here. And the guys were like no.

778
00:40:50,640 --> 00:40:53,000
Speaker 2: And I said, so, y'all, nobody saw two old men

779
00:40:53,440 --> 00:40:56,719
Speaker 2: sitting here that were right here at this table, these

780
00:40:56,760 --> 00:40:59,000
Speaker 2: in these seats which they were now different men there now.

781
00:40:59,360 --> 00:40:59,879
Speaker 1: And they were like.

782
00:41:01,360 --> 00:41:04,160
Speaker 2: And so I realized then that it was just it

783
00:41:04,200 --> 00:41:06,880
Speaker 2: was taunting. It was it wasn't you know whatever. And

784
00:41:07,120 --> 00:41:09,600
Speaker 2: that's not something that's happened to me a lot, thank goodness.

785
00:41:09,760 --> 00:41:12,799
Speaker 2: But but there, but there have been times where their

786
00:41:12,840 --> 00:41:17,160
Speaker 2: presence was was certainly there. And some of you may

787
00:41:17,320 --> 00:41:20,560
Speaker 2: experience some some things. But in the name of Jesus,

788
00:41:20,640 --> 00:41:23,360
Speaker 2: they only could go so far. He set the boundaries.

789
00:41:23,680 --> 00:41:26,080
Speaker 2: And it didn't stop the response of the men that night.

790
00:41:26,120 --> 00:41:29,600
Speaker 2: It didn't stop men coming to Christ. What was interesting

791
00:41:29,719 --> 00:41:31,880
Speaker 2: is the guy had even it was weird.

792
00:41:31,960 --> 00:41:32,319
Speaker 1: That night.

793
00:41:32,360 --> 00:41:33,680
Speaker 2: The guy was telling me he didn't want me to

794
00:41:33,680 --> 00:41:36,839
Speaker 2: do a time of a decision, remember that story, and

795
00:41:36,840 --> 00:41:39,360
Speaker 2: and and so I just did it.

796
00:41:39,400 --> 00:41:42,080
Speaker 1: Anyway. And and I know that that's shocking to a

797
00:41:42,120 --> 00:41:44,640
Speaker 1: lot of you that know me, but but it was. Uh.

798
00:41:44,760 --> 00:41:46,719
Speaker 2: But as he was, but as he was, he was

799
00:41:46,760 --> 00:41:48,880
Speaker 2: literally walking up on the stage to stop me.

800
00:41:49,719 --> 00:41:49,879
Speaker 1: Uh.

801
00:41:49,880 --> 00:41:53,000
Speaker 2: And he had a great ministry as far as fellowship,

802
00:41:53,440 --> 00:41:55,920
Speaker 2: but there was no discipleship. There was no Bible study.

803
00:41:55,920 --> 00:41:57,640
Speaker 2: And it was just a bunch of guys getting together,

804
00:41:58,120 --> 00:42:01,439
Speaker 2: which is great. We need fellowship, but it's not discipleship.

805
00:42:02,000 --> 00:42:05,160
Speaker 2: And and he was walking up to stop me, uh,

806
00:42:05,200 --> 00:42:06,800
Speaker 2: because he didn't want me to do the time of Decision.

807
00:42:06,840 --> 00:42:09,399
Speaker 2: And I got to Acts chapter two, and I said,

808
00:42:09,480 --> 00:42:12,000
Speaker 2: and they asked Peter, what are they supposed to do?

809
00:42:12,080 --> 00:42:15,279
Speaker 2: Their hearts were cut, and they cried out, what are

810
00:42:15,280 --> 00:42:16,080
Speaker 2: we supposed to do?

811
00:42:16,160 --> 00:42:17,560
Speaker 1: And I'd already seen these whatever.

812
00:42:17,560 --> 00:42:19,880
Speaker 2: They were laughing, and I turned to him and I said,

813
00:42:19,960 --> 00:42:22,840
Speaker 2: and let me tell you what Peter didn't do. He

814
00:42:22,920 --> 00:42:25,400
Speaker 2: did not tell them just to go home and that

815
00:42:25,480 --> 00:42:28,600
Speaker 2: God would work it out. He said for them to repent.

816
00:42:28,640 --> 00:42:30,920
Speaker 2: That's what he said. That's in the Bible. There's nothing

817
00:42:30,920 --> 00:42:32,239
Speaker 2: I'm saying. It's not in the doable. I'm not even

818
00:42:32,239 --> 00:42:34,160
Speaker 2: looking at here anymore. I'm just looking at that guy

819
00:42:34,800 --> 00:42:36,560
Speaker 2: and uh, and I said, so that's what we're gonna

820
00:42:36,600 --> 00:42:39,239
Speaker 2: do now, We're gonna do what What was good enough

821
00:42:39,280 --> 00:42:42,400
Speaker 2: at Pentecost is good enough right now. And uh and

822
00:42:42,480 --> 00:42:45,560
Speaker 2: so and to his credit, he walked back down the steps.

823
00:42:46,040 --> 00:42:49,319
Speaker 2: You know, we had a great response and uh, which

824
00:42:49,400 --> 00:42:51,920
Speaker 2: is glory to the Lord because obviously you know what.

825
00:42:52,000 --> 00:42:55,360
Speaker 2: It wasn't me, it was what I was saying. And

826
00:42:55,360 --> 00:42:56,840
Speaker 2: and so after it was over, to his credit, he

827
00:42:56,880 --> 00:43:00,480
Speaker 2: came up and apologized and ended up saying, Hey, I'd

828
00:43:00,520 --> 00:43:02,319
Speaker 2: like to get stuff from the man church. Can we

829
00:43:02,360 --> 00:43:04,560
Speaker 2: get some stuff for our small groups? We do need

830
00:43:04,560 --> 00:43:07,040
Speaker 2: to get in small groups. So God changed him. But

831
00:43:07,040 --> 00:43:09,440
Speaker 2: but I will tell you I was I was in

832
00:43:09,480 --> 00:43:11,719
Speaker 2: a war and there was a battle going on.

833
00:43:12,320 --> 00:43:12,680
Speaker 1: Uh.

834
00:43:12,719 --> 00:43:16,480
Speaker 2: And so this is real. But again, what what won?

835
00:43:16,640 --> 00:43:19,200
Speaker 2: You just keep going, You just keep you just keep

836
00:43:19,280 --> 00:43:22,520
Speaker 2: talking about Jesus. You just keep pointing to his authority,

837
00:43:22,560 --> 00:43:25,440
Speaker 2: you keep pointing to his strength, as we've been told.

838
00:43:25,560 --> 00:43:27,920
Speaker 2: So so he tells us that we can't see them

839
00:43:28,000 --> 00:43:32,440
Speaker 2: unless they want to be seen. So the remember that

840
00:43:32,480 --> 00:43:35,760
Speaker 2: these demons in the beginning, that they actually were good

841
00:43:35,960 --> 00:43:39,920
Speaker 2: and glorious. They came from God's hand, They took their

842
00:43:39,920 --> 00:43:43,680
Speaker 2: place around God's throne. You know, they sang his praises.

843
00:43:44,239 --> 00:43:44,479
Speaker 1: Uh.

844
00:43:44,560 --> 00:43:47,040
Speaker 2: We know there's ranks when it comes to angels, so

845
00:43:47,320 --> 00:43:49,640
Speaker 2: there would be ranks when they come to demons. If

846
00:43:49,800 --> 00:43:53,360
Speaker 2: if if ranked angels, a third of them go with Satan,

847
00:43:53,560 --> 00:43:56,160
Speaker 2: then probably in that third would be the different ranks.

848
00:43:56,160 --> 00:43:58,600
Speaker 1: I would think. We saw this and we studied Daniel.

849
00:43:58,640 --> 00:44:01,520
Speaker 2: You remember that when when Gabriel said there was one

850
00:44:01,560 --> 00:44:04,960
Speaker 2: particular demon he couldn't defeat with that Michael, because Michael,

851
00:44:05,000 --> 00:44:07,960
Speaker 2: being an arch angel, was the extra strength that he needed.

852
00:44:08,320 --> 00:44:12,799
Speaker 2: That tells me that Gabriel ran into angel that outranked him. Uh.

853
00:44:12,920 --> 00:44:16,120
Speaker 2: That went with say, but but but Michael was able

854
00:44:16,160 --> 00:44:20,840
Speaker 2: to overcome that. So just as the angels are arch angels,

855
00:44:21,040 --> 00:44:24,279
Speaker 2: we we have you know, your messenger angels. Gabriel is

856
00:44:24,280 --> 00:44:28,200
Speaker 2: one of those are Herald Angel. We have the Cherubem,

857
00:44:28,480 --> 00:44:31,640
Speaker 2: the Cherubim, we have the Seraphim. So you know, and

858
00:44:31,680 --> 00:44:33,640
Speaker 2: at the head of all of these at one time,

859
00:44:34,160 --> 00:44:38,120
Speaker 2: all these created angels, that the head of all of

860
00:44:38,160 --> 00:44:42,279
Speaker 2: them was the supreme creature, and the ranks of all

861
00:44:42,360 --> 00:44:45,800
Speaker 2: the angels was Lucifer, called the Sun of the Morning,

862
00:44:45,920 --> 00:44:50,080
Speaker 2: the anointed cherub. He was the best of the best.

863
00:44:50,360 --> 00:44:53,480
Speaker 2: He was the strongest angel that you got. Now it's

864
00:44:53,480 --> 00:44:56,520
Speaker 2: a big gap between the strongest angel and the creator

865
00:44:56,560 --> 00:44:57,240
Speaker 2: of the angels.

866
00:44:57,480 --> 00:44:58,120
Speaker 1: And we have to.

867
00:44:58,080 --> 00:45:01,200
Speaker 2: Remember that he's not a homecoming game. But he is

868
00:45:01,239 --> 00:45:05,279
Speaker 2: not the dark side of God. So there's a big

869
00:45:05,360 --> 00:45:10,120
Speaker 2: gap between creator and created, even for Lucifer. But we

870
00:45:10,200 --> 00:45:12,880
Speaker 2: don't run off and take on Lucifer in these demons

871
00:45:13,320 --> 00:45:14,560
Speaker 2: without Jesus.

872
00:45:15,640 --> 00:45:17,320
Speaker 1: I mean, we we got no chance.

873
00:45:17,920 --> 00:45:20,759
Speaker 2: Uh so, so we we we don't do that, and

874
00:45:20,800 --> 00:45:23,400
Speaker 2: I know we've tried it. So when he fell and

875
00:45:24,400 --> 00:45:28,520
Speaker 2: the heavenly hosts divided, some went with him. He's now

876
00:45:28,600 --> 00:45:34,160
Speaker 2: their lord, and they were cast out of heaven with him.

877
00:45:34,400 --> 00:45:37,400
Speaker 2: I don't know the validity of this, but I was

878
00:45:37,680 --> 00:45:41,160
Speaker 2: hearing a testimony of someone that I trust their testimony

879
00:45:41,920 --> 00:45:45,920
Speaker 2: that actually was encountering a demon possessed man. It was

880
00:45:45,960 --> 00:45:50,279
Speaker 2: in over in Turkey, and and and when the man

881
00:45:50,440 --> 00:45:52,319
Speaker 2: was acting the way he was acting, he went over

882
00:45:52,360 --> 00:45:54,400
Speaker 2: to him and started talking to him about Jesus. And

883
00:45:54,440 --> 00:45:56,839
Speaker 2: in the name of Jesus, he wanted to, you know,

884
00:45:56,960 --> 00:46:00,120
Speaker 2: to to help the man. And he asked, you know,

885
00:46:01,080 --> 00:46:02,120
Speaker 2: leave this man along.

886
00:46:02,239 --> 00:46:02,879
Speaker 1: Who are you?

887
00:46:02,960 --> 00:46:05,000
Speaker 2: And he said that the man actually sat down calm

888
00:46:05,040 --> 00:46:06,880
Speaker 2: for a minute and looked at him and said, we

889
00:46:06,880 --> 00:46:14,320
Speaker 2: were deceived. And he was like, we were deceived, and

890
00:46:14,760 --> 00:46:17,880
Speaker 2: we know we're doomed, but now all we're doing is

891
00:46:17,920 --> 00:46:23,640
Speaker 2: just reacon have it. And so there seems to be

892
00:46:23,880 --> 00:46:28,319
Speaker 2: if there's validity to that. And Lucifer may still think

893
00:46:28,360 --> 00:46:32,960
Speaker 2: he's gonna win this thing, but it looks more like

894
00:46:33,080 --> 00:46:35,680
Speaker 2: they know they're doomed. And one of the angers that

895
00:46:35,760 --> 00:46:38,880
Speaker 2: burns against human beings is that we've been offered redemption

896
00:46:38,960 --> 00:46:43,680
Speaker 2: and they weren't. I mean, we all deserve to be

897
00:46:43,719 --> 00:46:48,000
Speaker 2: with them, but we were offered redemption through Jesus. God

898
00:46:48,040 --> 00:46:51,600
Speaker 2: did not offer them redemption. They were cast down there done,

899
00:46:52,760 --> 00:46:56,600
Speaker 2: and eventually we'll be completely destroyed. And apparently some of

900
00:46:56,640 --> 00:46:59,160
Speaker 2: the worst ones from Genesis six he's holding in a

901
00:46:59,160 --> 00:47:02,960
Speaker 2: special place load the euphrates right now. Uh but but

902
00:47:03,040 --> 00:47:05,360
Speaker 2: their time to get out and reakh Havoc is coming

903
00:47:05,840 --> 00:47:08,799
Speaker 2: against all those that look, you don't want to be.

904
00:47:08,719 --> 00:47:11,600
Speaker 1: There for that, go ahead and get this right now.

905
00:47:11,800 --> 00:47:13,879
Speaker 2: Okay, you don't want to be when those people say,

906
00:47:13,920 --> 00:47:15,919
Speaker 2: I think I'll just wait and see if I can't

907
00:47:16,160 --> 00:47:17,960
Speaker 2: if it really goes bad, and I see the tribulation

908
00:47:18,080 --> 00:47:20,439
Speaker 2: coming I repent, then you really you really don't want

909
00:47:20,440 --> 00:47:23,040
Speaker 2: that plan. Now, Praise God, people will come to faith

910
00:47:23,120 --> 00:47:25,960
Speaker 2: in the tribulation. I'm glad that's better than not. But

911
00:47:26,080 --> 00:47:28,120
Speaker 2: you don't want that plan. You don't want to go

912
00:47:28,160 --> 00:47:30,520
Speaker 2: through that, and and it's arrogant of it. You think

913
00:47:30,520 --> 00:47:32,839
Speaker 2: you would survive it. Uh, go ahead and get right

914
00:47:32,880 --> 00:47:35,040
Speaker 2: with Jesus. Now, go ahead and access to strength of

915
00:47:35,080 --> 00:47:38,200
Speaker 2: the Lord now because you're in the battle now, so

916
00:47:38,320 --> 00:47:41,120
Speaker 2: access the strength to win in Jesus.

917
00:47:41,520 --> 00:47:42,840
Speaker 1: So this is what he's saying.

918
00:47:43,000 --> 00:47:46,480
Speaker 2: So that just as there's ranks you know in the UH,

919
00:47:46,760 --> 00:47:49,880
Speaker 2: in the Angelic armies who stayed loyal, there are ranks

920
00:47:49,920 --> 00:47:53,520
Speaker 2: in those who rebelled as well. Principalities would be the

921
00:47:53,560 --> 00:47:57,400
Speaker 2: authorities UH in the world. You know how how demons

922
00:47:57,440 --> 00:48:00,000
Speaker 2: will till we see this without history, you've got people

923
00:48:00,120 --> 00:48:02,239
Speaker 2: that are human beings that are in places of authority.

924
00:48:02,600 --> 00:48:05,359
Speaker 2: They have rejected the redemption of Christ and they've been

925
00:48:05,360 --> 00:48:07,520
Speaker 2: possessed or old pressed by demons.

926
00:48:07,560 --> 00:48:08,920
Speaker 1: So that's your principalities.

927
00:48:09,960 --> 00:48:13,520
Speaker 2: So then the next thing that he talks about is

928
00:48:13,560 --> 00:48:15,239
Speaker 2: he starts talking about, you know.

929
00:48:15,280 --> 00:48:16,880
Speaker 1: The the authorities of the world.

930
00:48:17,800 --> 00:48:20,960
Speaker 2: With this sometimes if you look through scripture and some

931
00:48:21,000 --> 00:48:23,960
Speaker 2: of the things we studied in Daniel usually to go

932
00:48:24,000 --> 00:48:29,680
Speaker 2: get those high influential places. It seems this is just speculation,

933
00:48:30,160 --> 00:48:33,239
Speaker 2: but it seems the highest ranking angels seem to get that.

934
00:48:33,280 --> 00:48:35,200
Speaker 1: I mean, demons seem to go there.

935
00:48:36,280 --> 00:48:39,400
Speaker 2: The highest ranking ones will what possess the highest ranking people.

936
00:48:39,880 --> 00:48:42,160
Speaker 2: So that's when you hear things like Prince of Persia

937
00:48:42,239 --> 00:48:44,640
Speaker 2: and things like that. So the powers, that's kind of

938
00:48:44,640 --> 00:48:48,839
Speaker 2: your deputies. Uh, they're they're they're still very powerful. Uh,

939
00:48:48,880 --> 00:48:51,600
Speaker 2: they still do their work, but they almost work underneath

940
00:48:51,680 --> 00:48:57,839
Speaker 2: the direction of the the principalities and the authorities. And then, uh,

941
00:48:57,880 --> 00:49:02,120
Speaker 2: when when you think about the other parts that we're

942
00:49:02,120 --> 00:49:06,000
Speaker 2: talking about the highest ranking, most powerful, and also we

943
00:49:06,440 --> 00:49:08,680
Speaker 2: know he's been called the Prince of the air. When

944
00:49:08,719 --> 00:49:11,799
Speaker 2: you start talking about in the highest places, even in

945
00:49:11,840 --> 00:49:16,000
Speaker 2: the heavenlyes, you're really talking here more about Lucifer himself.

946
00:49:16,520 --> 00:49:19,839
Speaker 2: Maybe some that would be just one click down from him.

947
00:49:20,239 --> 00:49:26,000
Speaker 2: Because Satan is powerful, he's diabolical, he's clever, he's tireless.

948
00:49:26,239 --> 00:49:29,239
Speaker 2: But let me tell you what he's not. He's not omniscient.

949
00:49:30,160 --> 00:49:32,719
Speaker 2: He does make mistakes. We've even seen this that he's

950
00:49:32,760 --> 00:49:35,960
Speaker 2: made mistakes. He tried to do god men on his

951
00:49:36,040 --> 00:49:37,360
Speaker 2: own in Genesis six.

952
00:49:37,400 --> 00:49:37,960
Speaker 1: He failed.

953
00:49:38,520 --> 00:49:41,400
Speaker 2: He didn't keep Jesus from going to the cross. He

954
00:49:41,440 --> 00:49:44,960
Speaker 2: didn't get Jesus to be disobedient. So he's omniscient, He's

955
00:49:45,000 --> 00:49:51,239
Speaker 2: not omniscient. He's not all powerful. He's not omnipotent. He

956
00:49:51,880 --> 00:49:54,759
Speaker 2: is defeated by God. And here's the one we got

957
00:49:54,800 --> 00:49:58,839
Speaker 2: to know. He's not omnipresent. Now, James, back to this

958
00:49:58,960 --> 00:50:02,040
Speaker 2: new devotional, James kind of calls us out on that

959
00:50:02,760 --> 00:50:04,600
Speaker 2: y'all keep blaming a lot of things on the devil,

960
00:50:05,800 --> 00:50:08,759
Speaker 2: when really it's just your own sin nature. It's your

961
00:50:08,800 --> 00:50:11,279
Speaker 2: own desire to see and that keeps tempting you, not

962
00:50:11,360 --> 00:50:14,480
Speaker 2: the devil. Look, I'm just not arrogant enough to think

963
00:50:14,520 --> 00:50:18,240
Speaker 2: that Satan himself comes after me. I have a feeling

964
00:50:18,560 --> 00:50:22,680
Speaker 2: that whatever limits he's got, he's spending time somewhere else

965
00:50:22,719 --> 00:50:23,359
Speaker 2: other than here.

966
00:50:24,000 --> 00:50:25,040
Speaker 1: But now, when you.

967
00:50:25,000 --> 00:50:28,680
Speaker 2: Think about all the demonic forces out there, now, we're

968
00:50:28,719 --> 00:50:33,399
Speaker 2: all susceptible to demons and our own sin nature. So

969
00:50:33,440 --> 00:50:37,080
Speaker 2: he tries to use all these demons to compensate for

970
00:50:37,160 --> 00:50:40,200
Speaker 2: the fact that he can't be omnipresent. So he just

971
00:50:40,239 --> 00:50:44,680
Speaker 2: sends them everywhere, and we've seen that throughout scripture. If

972
00:50:44,719 --> 00:50:47,520
Speaker 2: you look at the chaos of the world right now,

973
00:50:48,440 --> 00:50:50,920
Speaker 2: and everybody, don't you hate that? When everybody's like, oh,

974
00:50:50,960 --> 00:50:53,879
Speaker 2: I can't believe and it's horrible. I can't believe there's

975
00:50:53,880 --> 00:50:57,040
Speaker 2: spend another school shooting. I can't believe the horror that

976
00:50:57,080 --> 00:50:59,440
Speaker 2: we discovered that was being done to these children. I

977
00:50:59,480 --> 00:51:03,239
Speaker 2: can't believe that somebody, you know, killed their wife and

978
00:51:03,280 --> 00:51:04,800
Speaker 2: cut her up in a bunch of little pieces and

979
00:51:05,320 --> 00:51:06,600
Speaker 2: shift her all over the world.

980
00:51:07,560 --> 00:51:10,120
Speaker 1: How can we? Well, what is all this? I'll tell

981
00:51:10,120 --> 00:51:13,719
Speaker 1: you what it is. It's demons, It's evil spirits all

982
00:51:13,760 --> 00:51:14,640
Speaker 1: over the world.

983
00:51:15,040 --> 00:51:20,520
Speaker 2: It's chaos, it's it's it's grotesque, it's evil, it's wicked,

984
00:51:20,800 --> 00:51:27,480
Speaker 2: it's demonic. And so they're very capable deceivers the darkness

985
00:51:27,480 --> 00:51:32,719
Speaker 2: in this world, world rulers of the darkness deception. So

986
00:51:32,800 --> 00:51:34,759
Speaker 2: you're saying, well, where are we seeing this? Look at

987
00:51:34,760 --> 00:51:38,040
Speaker 2: some of the outrageous beliefs out there right now, some

988
00:51:38,080 --> 00:51:40,799
Speaker 2: of the ideologies out there right now. Look at the

989
00:51:40,920 --> 00:51:46,520
Speaker 2: false theories keeping people in darkness, trying to hide them

990
00:51:46,560 --> 00:51:49,719
Speaker 2: from access to the light and the truth. Look at

991
00:51:49,719 --> 00:51:54,200
Speaker 2: all the false religions even inside what some people call Christianity.

992
00:51:54,840 --> 00:51:56,919
Speaker 2: You know, to me, that's some of his most dangerous work,

993
00:51:57,600 --> 00:52:00,839
Speaker 2: that the demons, these versions of Christians, indeed they're just

994
00:52:00,880 --> 00:52:03,160
Speaker 2: a little bit off. And then when you look in

995
00:52:03,239 --> 00:52:04,839
Speaker 2: it's not a little bit off, it's a lot off.

996
00:52:05,480 --> 00:52:07,799
Speaker 2: But they're so nice people, they're so kind, they're so

997
00:52:08,160 --> 00:52:09,200
Speaker 2: they seem so nice.

998
00:52:10,440 --> 00:52:12,320
Speaker 1: And what de scripture tell us.

999
00:52:12,160 --> 00:52:16,520
Speaker 2: Many times these demons learn from their Lord to appear

1000
00:52:17,080 --> 00:52:22,280
Speaker 2: as angels of light when they're actually demons of darkness, deception,

1001
00:52:23,400 --> 00:52:25,879
Speaker 2: you know. And as Adrian Rogers again, I'll quote him again,

1002
00:52:25,920 --> 00:52:29,360
Speaker 2: and others have said this, be careful, listen, be careful,

1003
00:52:29,920 --> 00:52:32,759
Speaker 2: little things like that. I know, I got to be

1004
00:52:32,760 --> 00:52:38,680
Speaker 2: careful with this. Just these little subtle corrections, demonic corrections,

1005
00:52:38,719 --> 00:52:43,640
Speaker 2: I call them, which means they're lies. Have you ever

1006
00:52:43,719 --> 00:52:45,600
Speaker 2: you ever really sit there since hasn't heard some of

1007
00:52:45,640 --> 00:52:50,319
Speaker 2: the modern worship songs. You're like, I don't think that's

1008
00:52:50,360 --> 00:52:58,399
Speaker 2: good theology. God is reckless, that's chaos, he said he

1009
00:52:58,440 --> 00:53:08,040
Speaker 2: was older, reckless, he's recklessly radiation Rick not according to scripture,

1010
00:53:09,800 --> 00:53:15,680
Speaker 2: not recklessly, he's order. Oh but it's such a sweet song, precious,

1011
00:53:15,680 --> 00:53:19,480
Speaker 2: It gets to my emotions. Be careful about those emotions.

1012
00:53:19,480 --> 00:53:22,920
Speaker 2: They get manipulated real easy. And the demons know it,

1013
00:53:24,080 --> 00:53:26,920
Speaker 2: don't they They go, they'd rather sing a song with

1014
00:53:27,000 --> 00:53:29,719
Speaker 2: bad theology that plays to their emotions, into sing one

1015
00:53:29,719 --> 00:53:30,279
Speaker 2: a little more.

1016
00:53:30,160 --> 00:53:32,760
Speaker 1: Stoic that has real good theology.

1017
00:53:32,960 --> 00:53:37,040
Speaker 2: See, the good theology are to inspire us, not the melody,

1018
00:53:37,640 --> 00:53:41,440
Speaker 2: not the chord progression. And be careful with them chord progressions.

1019
00:53:43,000 --> 00:53:45,600
Speaker 2: Lucifer loves to manipulate them. Been doing that for a

1020
00:53:45,640 --> 00:53:49,279
Speaker 2: long time, you know what, So and this is the

1021
00:53:49,360 --> 00:53:52,160
Speaker 2: kind of stuff. But this is the deception that he's

1022
00:53:52,200 --> 00:53:56,640
Speaker 2: talking about. He says, you know, you are fighting against rulers,

1023
00:53:56,680 --> 00:54:01,520
Speaker 2: against authorities, against cosmic powers over this darkness, against the

1024
00:54:01,600 --> 00:54:06,600
Speaker 2: spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. There's a

1025
00:54:06,680 --> 00:54:11,800
Speaker 2: spiritual wickedness in the high places in the heavenlys, swarming

1026
00:54:11,880 --> 00:54:16,719
Speaker 2: demons all around, in slaving people usually what through sexual

1027
00:54:17,320 --> 00:54:22,920
Speaker 2: sensual sins, perversions of every kind, and you know, and

1028
00:54:23,000 --> 00:54:27,239
Speaker 2: taking this and promoting it. They oppose all things that

1029
00:54:27,280 --> 00:54:31,240
Speaker 2: are of God. They are waiting and they are looking

1030
00:54:31,680 --> 00:54:37,439
Speaker 2: for someone to either possess or to oppress. And they're

1031
00:54:37,480 --> 00:54:40,440
Speaker 2: always looking for an end. I told you all this

1032
00:54:40,560 --> 00:54:43,080
Speaker 2: I told you all this after I came back from

1033
00:54:43,080 --> 00:54:44,799
Speaker 2: the experience. I told you I'm gonna bring you all

1034
00:54:44,800 --> 00:54:48,640
Speaker 2: back around the old men laughing at me and what

1035
00:54:48,760 --> 00:54:52,080
Speaker 2: we went through in Waco, Texas. As soon as I

1036
00:54:52,160 --> 00:54:56,200
Speaker 2: came back, I sent out a letter to everybody involved

1037
00:54:56,239 --> 00:54:58,839
Speaker 2: in the Manchurch dot com, every single person, and I said,

1038
00:54:58,840 --> 00:55:02,560
Speaker 2: they're coming for us. And if you are on this

1039
00:55:02,719 --> 00:55:10,400
Speaker 2: team and you are the way in, they're coming for you.

1040
00:55:11,360 --> 00:55:17,120
Speaker 2: If you're living a secret life, they know they're gonna

1041
00:55:17,120 --> 00:55:20,160
Speaker 2: find their way in this ministry. Don't let it be

1042
00:55:20,320 --> 00:55:26,080
Speaker 2: through you, because they're coming for us. And by the

1043
00:55:26,080 --> 00:55:31,239
Speaker 2: grace of God, the people who needed to go were

1044
00:55:31,239 --> 00:55:34,719
Speaker 2: brought into the light and they're and they're gone. One

1045
00:55:34,760 --> 00:55:38,520
Speaker 2: has come to redemption, and I think it's fully back

1046
00:55:38,520 --> 00:55:39,279
Speaker 2: where he needs to be.

1047
00:55:39,760 --> 00:55:42,879
Speaker 1: The other we'll see.

1048
00:55:44,560 --> 00:55:51,480
Speaker 2: But they're always looking. They're always looking, and they're and

1049
00:55:51,480 --> 00:55:53,400
Speaker 2: they're waiting for that. Just so you know we have

1050
00:55:53,440 --> 00:55:56,680
Speaker 2: to do. Don't give them the end. You know, when

1051
00:55:56,680 --> 00:55:58,719
Speaker 2: you sit there and say that you're such a godly man,

1052
00:55:58,760 --> 00:56:01,880
Speaker 2: you can sit down and watch porn on some ridiculous

1053
00:56:01,920 --> 00:56:03,960
Speaker 2: movie and you think I'm good.

1054
00:56:04,719 --> 00:56:05,600
Speaker 1: I never will forget.

1055
00:56:05,680 --> 00:56:08,200
Speaker 2: I never forget the first time I heard that from

1056
00:56:08,239 --> 00:56:11,839
Speaker 2: a guy that I had respect for. And they told

1057
00:56:11,880 --> 00:56:18,480
Speaker 2: me some really, really raunchy movie that they had watched.

1058
00:56:19,440 --> 00:56:20,960
Speaker 2: I'm not trying to be approved. I'm telling you this

1059
00:56:21,040 --> 00:56:26,480
Speaker 2: wasn't even up for debate, okay. And I said, I'm

1060
00:56:26,520 --> 00:56:30,160
Speaker 2: surprised you watched that. And he said something that he

1061
00:56:30,200 --> 00:56:33,680
Speaker 2: thought was arrogant that was supposed to reassure me, and

1062
00:56:33,719 --> 00:56:36,320
Speaker 2: it troubled me even more. He said, all that stuff

1063
00:56:36,360 --> 00:56:43,400
Speaker 2: don't bother me, Yeah, but it should. I would have

1064
00:56:43,480 --> 00:56:45,919
Speaker 2: liked to have heard that you are so in the

1065
00:56:45,960 --> 00:56:49,879
Speaker 2: spirit and that you feed the spirit so much.

1066
00:56:49,960 --> 00:56:51,880
Speaker 1: That it nauseated you to sit in front of that.

1067
00:56:52,520 --> 00:56:53,839
Speaker 2: I can tell you that a lot of times, because

1068
00:56:53,880 --> 00:56:55,320
Speaker 2: I mean, I know me, I got all kinds of

1069
00:56:55,320 --> 00:56:57,799
Speaker 2: problems being drawn to the wrong thing. If it's not

1070
00:56:57,880 --> 00:56:59,799
Speaker 2: for the Holy Spirit to make me sick about something,

1071
00:56:59,800 --> 00:57:02,200
Speaker 2: I'll wonder right into it. I can't tell you how

1072
00:57:02,200 --> 00:57:04,799
Speaker 2: many times that I have stayed away from sin because

1073
00:57:04,800 --> 00:57:06,920
Speaker 2: the Holy Spirit just made me so uncomfortable I couldn't

1074
00:57:06,920 --> 00:57:07,400
Speaker 2: do it anymore.

1075
00:57:08,360 --> 00:57:09,120
Speaker 1: I'd like to tell you.

1076
00:57:09,160 --> 00:57:10,680
Speaker 2: That I never went there because I made a great

1077
00:57:10,680 --> 00:57:13,600
Speaker 2: decision not to be in a bad situation. But normally

1078
00:57:13,640 --> 00:57:15,640
Speaker 2: the Holy Spirit gets me out of a bad situation.

1079
00:57:15,840 --> 00:57:19,240
Speaker 2: And sometimes look still, I'm growing. There's times the Holy

1080
00:57:19,280 --> 00:57:23,120
Speaker 2: Spirit screaming we shouldn't. This is not a way to go,

1081
00:57:23,760 --> 00:57:27,480
Speaker 2: and I've just said, I don't beat you, kind of

1082
00:57:27,480 --> 00:57:30,640
Speaker 2: punch in the funds on today. You know, I appreciate

1083
00:57:30,680 --> 00:57:32,360
Speaker 2: the redemption and all that. We'll get back to it,

1084
00:57:32,400 --> 00:57:35,480
Speaker 2: but right now I'm taking a pause, and I always

1085
00:57:35,480 --> 00:57:36,000
Speaker 2: regret it.

1086
00:57:36,200 --> 00:57:37,840
Speaker 1: And then you go back to pray to the Lord

1087
00:57:37,880 --> 00:57:39,800
Speaker 1: and thank God he's merciful and gracious.

1088
00:57:40,120 --> 00:57:41,880
Speaker 2: And you know what, I can never say to the Lord,

1089
00:57:41,960 --> 00:57:45,200
Speaker 2: you didn't help me. You know what I say, thank

1090
00:57:45,200 --> 00:57:46,840
Speaker 2: you for trying to help me. And I wouldn't listen

1091
00:57:49,400 --> 00:57:51,720
Speaker 2: because you always are telling me what's right and wrong.

1092
00:57:52,320 --> 00:57:55,880
Speaker 2: I just pay attention. Sometimes sometimes I don't. But when

1093
00:57:55,880 --> 00:57:57,640
Speaker 2: you know you got the spirit is when you don't,

1094
00:57:57,640 --> 00:57:59,920
Speaker 2: you're convicted and you can't be okay with it.

1095
00:58:00,840 --> 00:58:05,560
Speaker 1: You're corrected, and He's always faithful to forgive.

1096
00:58:07,440 --> 00:58:11,680
Speaker 2: But when it comes to these oppositions, so look what

1097
00:58:11,720 --> 00:58:13,200
Speaker 2: he says, and this will take us in the next

1098
00:58:13,200 --> 00:58:16,920
Speaker 2: week thirty four therefore, and I'll come back and repeat

1099
00:58:16,960 --> 00:58:20,960
Speaker 2: this again next week. Based on everything I said, Therefore,

1100
00:58:21,080 --> 00:58:24,480
Speaker 2: that's what it's there for. Take up the whole armor

1101
00:58:24,520 --> 00:58:28,520
Speaker 2: of God, that you may be able to withstand in

1102
00:58:28,560 --> 00:58:34,880
Speaker 2: the evil day and have done all to stand firm.

1103
00:58:35,080 --> 00:58:38,440
Speaker 1: So we want to stand firm, guys, we don't want

1104
00:58:38,440 --> 00:58:40,840
Speaker 1: any part of the enemy.

1105
00:58:42,440 --> 00:58:45,080
Speaker 2: Then we got to go access the power that Jesus

1106
00:58:45,240 --> 00:58:48,960
Speaker 2: has given us and our justification and our redemption, and

1107
00:58:49,080 --> 00:58:52,280
Speaker 2: go grab that strength of the Lord and take the

1108
00:58:52,360 --> 00:58:59,000
Speaker 2: whole armor of God and put it on, deliberately, put

1109
00:58:59,040 --> 00:59:05,640
Speaker 2: it on, faithfully, put it on intelligently, and then walk

1110
00:59:05,680 --> 00:59:09,160
Speaker 2: out onto the battlefield. There really shouldn't be a day

1111
00:59:10,040 --> 00:59:13,520
Speaker 2: I've done it. There shouldn't be a day that we

1112
00:59:13,640 --> 00:59:18,280
Speaker 2: ever think, well, today, on this obscure, obscure Wednesday, I

1113
00:59:18,320 --> 00:59:20,120
Speaker 2: can walk out without the armor on today, I'll be.

1114
00:59:21,840 --> 00:59:25,000
Speaker 1: That's exactly what those demons are hoping. You'll say.

1115
00:59:26,600 --> 00:59:30,240
Speaker 2: Let's pray, Lord, thank you for today, thank you for

1116
00:59:30,320 --> 00:59:33,680
Speaker 2: the faithfulness of these men. Thank you Lord for their encouragement,

1117
00:59:34,240 --> 00:59:38,000
Speaker 2: and thank you for them taking their faith serious. I

1118
00:59:38,080 --> 00:59:40,120
Speaker 2: pray Lord that you continue to protect us from the

1119
00:59:40,160 --> 00:59:42,920
Speaker 2: evil One and all those that went with him in

1120
00:59:42,960 --> 00:59:46,520
Speaker 2: the angelic realm. We desperately need you, Lord. We know

1121
00:59:46,520 --> 00:59:49,680
Speaker 2: they're defeated under the name above all names, the name

1122
00:59:49,760 --> 00:59:52,560
Speaker 2: we pray in the name of Jesus Amen