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Speaker 1: Let us pray, and there came a voice from heaven, saying,

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Speaker 1: thou art my beloved son, in whom I am well pleased.

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Speaker 1: Mark one eleven. As I step into my purpose, I

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Speaker 1: thank you that, like Jesus, I am being baptized into

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Speaker 1: my new life and mission here on earth before I

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Speaker 1: even begin. I thank you that, also, like Jesus, you

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Speaker 1: have affirmed and validated me as your child. With my

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Speaker 1: identity secured, I know that even as I walk through

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Speaker 1: the deserts of temptation, you are with me and have

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Speaker 1: equipped me to overcome the lies of Satan. When I

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Speaker 1: am tempted with comfort instead of commitment, I will remind

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Speaker 1: Satan of your word and command him to flee. When

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Speaker 1: Satan tries to get me to doubt my identity, I

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Speaker 1: will remind him that I am fearfully and wonderfully made.

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Speaker 1: When Satan tempts me with the luxury and fame of

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Speaker 1: this world, I will remind him that the source of

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Speaker 1: my fulfillment comes from you, Lord, and that it is

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Speaker 1: you who elevates me, and I will command him to flee.

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Speaker 1: I thank you, Lord, that through your word I have

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Speaker 1: supernatural steadfastness and resolve. Satan has no authority over my life,

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Speaker 1: and through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus, I

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Speaker 1: have complete victory in Jesus name. Amen. Listening to these

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Speaker 1: daily prayers strengthens your relationship with God. Continue hearing from

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Speaker 1: the Lord by listening to Today's Bible in a Year

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Speaker 1: brought to you by Bibleaneyear dot com.

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Speaker 2: You know your principles, priorities, and practical healthcare needs better

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Speaker 2: than anyone else. That's why Christian Healthcare Ministries empowers you

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Speaker 2: by fellow believers who share the same values. Learn more

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Speaker 2: by visiting Cchministries dot org, slash.

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Speaker 3: Pray, Baptism and Temptation, and our Last Story. We peered

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Speaker 3: into the childhood of Jesus. Even as a young boy,

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Speaker 3: his purpose was clear. He was to teach the word

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Speaker 3: of God and turn people's hearts of stone into hearts

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Speaker 3: of flesh. Although his family did not entirely understand, Jesus

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Speaker 3: grew up with purpose and omission. He grew in strength

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Speaker 3: and wisdom, worked as a carpenter and waited to begin

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Speaker 3: his ministry. Now we see John preparing the way of

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Speaker 3: Christ through baptism. He preached repentance until the day of

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Speaker 3: the Lord finally arrived. Then before his very eyes, God

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Speaker 3: enters in. Inspired by the Gospels.

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Speaker 4: In our last episode, we heard how Jesus, at just

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Speaker 4: twelve years of age, was full of wisdom and insight

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Speaker 4: and in perfect fellowship with God. His desire was to

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Speaker 4: be near to the Father, and when his parents went

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Speaker 4: to Jerusalem for Passover, Jesus spent his days in the temple,

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Speaker 4: sitting with teachers and rabbis, answering questions, but also sharing

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Speaker 4: the depth of his understanding, so that all around him

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Speaker 4: were amazed. From an early just twelve, it was clear

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Speaker 4: that he knew his purpose, even when others didn't understand it.

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Speaker 4: Today we'll see John the Baptist preaching repentance and baptizing people,

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Speaker 4: preparing the way for Jesus' ministry to begin. God was

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Speaker 4: using him to soften the hearts of his people, turning

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Speaker 4: them back to him and getting them ready to meet

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Speaker 4: the Messiah. Then we'll hear how Jesus came onto the

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Speaker 4: scene God's very presence Immanuel among his people, the lamb

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Speaker 4: that would take away the sin of the world. Let's

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Speaker 4: listen now to the reading of God's word.

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Speaker 3: John rose to the sounds of birds chirping in the trees.

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Speaker 3: Crawling out of his makeshift hut, he could see the

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Speaker 3: morning light peeking through the edge of the forest. He

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Speaker 3: stretched his lean and muscular arms to the sky, breathing

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Speaker 3: in the cool morning air. He walked down to the

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Speaker 3: brook nearby and washed his shaggy hair. Then he ate

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Speaker 3: his breakfast, cooked locusts from the desert with honey he

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Speaker 3: foraged from the trees. John prayed to the Lord after

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Speaker 3: his meal, calling upon him for favor and anointing. He

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Speaker 3: strapped his cloak of camel fur securely around his waist

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Speaker 3: and ventured off to the Jordan River. A multitude of

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Speaker 3: people gathered by the Jordan waiting for John. They had

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Speaker 3: been meeting him for weeks, now listening to him proclaiming

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Speaker 3: the way of the Lord. John scanned the sea of

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Speaker 3: faces and stepped into the river. The water was cool

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Speaker 3: and refreshing. He turned around to the people and raised

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Speaker 3: his voice repent for the Kingdom of Heaven is near.

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Speaker 3: He yelled One by one, the people walked into the

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Speaker 3: water with John and were baptized. The submersion in the

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Speaker 3: water represented a turning away from sin and idolatry. It

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Speaker 3: was often accustomed gentiles would undergo to come into the

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Speaker 3: family of God. Yet Jews flocked to John to be baptized.

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Speaker 3: Their hearts were softening towards the Lord, and they knew

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Speaker 3: they needed to turn from their selfish ways and be restored.

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Speaker 3: John would reach the truth of God to thousands of

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Speaker 3: people daily. Then he would baptize those whose hearts were

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Speaker 3: ready to receive the restoration. John would baptize each person

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Speaker 3: and the crowd would erupt in cheeves. A revival was

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Speaker 3: beginning in the heart of Israel. John knew that the

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Speaker 3: day of the Lord was coming very soon. As John

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Speaker 3: was baptizing, he saw a group of hooded figures coming

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Speaker 3: towards the water. It was the Pharisees and Satacees, the

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Speaker 3: religious elite responsible for upholding the law. They stared at

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Speaker 3: John with scornful eyes. They had spent their entire lives

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Speaker 3: sowing seeds of shame into the people of God. Yet

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Speaker 3: John would not allow them to poison his followers. John

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Speaker 3: marched out of the water and pointed towards them, brood

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Speaker 3: of vipers. He shouted, do not presume you are secure

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Speaker 3: with the Lord because you are children of Abraham. God

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Speaker 3: could make these rocks children of Abraham if he pleased.

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Speaker 3: The men said nothing. They only glared at John with

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Speaker 3: us loathing. John continued, saying, come and bear fruit worthy

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Speaker 3: of repentance, for a day will come when all that

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Speaker 3: does not bear good fruit will be cut off. The

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Speaker 3: people marveled at John's words. John's eloquence and bravery stirred

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Speaker 3: the children of God. They began to mumble rumors of

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Speaker 3: him being the promised Messiah. John paused for a long moment,

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Speaker 3: and the people were silent as they waited for him

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Speaker 3: to speak. John touched the water and let it fall

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Speaker 3: out of his hands. I baptize you with water, John said, calmly.

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Speaker 3: But the one who comes after me will baptize you

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Speaker 3: with the fire of the Holy Spirit. John's words were

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Speaker 3: interrupted as he saw a man standing in the crowd.

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Speaker 3: John's eyes widened and his lower lip began to quiver.

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Speaker 3: The man stepped forward from the group of people standing

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Speaker 3: on the shore. A few tears streamed down John's hairy

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Speaker 3: face as he watched Jesus walk into the water. John

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Speaker 3: could barely speak. His entire purpose in life was to

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Speaker 3: prepare the way of God's chosen and here he was

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Speaker 3: standing before him. Behold the lamb of God, who takes

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Speaker 3: away the sins of the world, he whispered to himself.

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Speaker 3: Jesus smiled and held his cousin's shoulder. Would you baptize me, John,

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Speaker 3: he asked. John shook his head. Let it not be so,

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Speaker 3: my lord, It is you who should be baptizing me.

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Speaker 3: Jesus held up his hand and grinned.

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Speaker 4: Let it be so.

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Speaker 3: It is fitting to fulfill what is about to take place.

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Speaker 3: So John agreed and led Jesus deeper into the water.

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Speaker 3: John held the middle of Jesus's back with one hand

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Speaker 3: and his arm in another. Then John slowly dipped Jesus

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Speaker 3: back into the water. The crowd watched silently as Jesus

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Speaker 3: went under the river. As John brought Jesus back up,

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Speaker 3: the skies opened up. A bright light shone like a

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Speaker 3: second sun, and the Holy Spirit descended down in the

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Speaker 3: form of a dove. All in attendance awed as they

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Speaker 3: heard the voice of God speak for the first time

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Speaker 3: in over four hundred years. This is my beloved son.

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Speaker 3: It is with him I am pleased. This event marked

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Speaker 3: the beginning of Jesus's ministry. The favor of the Father

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Speaker 3: and the presence of the Spirit dwelled richly with the

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Speaker 3: promised son. In his baptism, Jesus modeled repentance for the

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Speaker 3: rest of humanity. He identified with sinful and broken man.

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Speaker 3: Yet he was not sinful nor broken. Already Jesus was

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Speaker 3: beginning to take on the dirtiness of mankind. The Holy

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Speaker 3: Spirit dwelled with Jesus richly, and it was by his

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Speaker 3: guiding presence that Jesus departed the Jordan into the wilderness.

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Speaker 3: Jesus hiked the hills outside Judea. There he fasted for

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Speaker 3: forty days, seeking the presence and wisdom of God. Jesus

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Speaker 3: fixed his gaze on the nation of Israel. A gentle

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Speaker 3: wind blew rustling the tall grasp besides him. He was

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Speaker 3: hungry for food. Yes, however, Jesus was more hungry for

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Speaker 3: the restoration of his people. As he was praying to

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Speaker 3: the Lord, a slithering presence entered his midst. Jesus looked

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Speaker 3: over his shoulder to find the accuser behind him. The

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Speaker 3: author of deception, disguised as an angel of light, loomed

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Speaker 3: over Jesus as he sat. This was the same enemy

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Speaker 3: that spoke to Eve in the garden, Satan. The two

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Speaker 3: did not stand as equals. However, Satan, in his pride,

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Speaker 3: believed he could trick Jesus into compromising his heart. He

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Speaker 3: knew Jesus was hungry from fasting, so he drew in

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Speaker 3: close to Jesus and whispered, what good is the son

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Speaker 3: of God? If he cannot feed himself? Why not just

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Speaker 3: make these stones into bread? Surely you are able. Jesus

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Speaker 3: was fully God and fully mad, so the human side

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Speaker 3: of him hurt from hunger. However, he would not be swayed.

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Speaker 3: Man does not live by bread alone, he said, but

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Speaker 3: every word that pours forth from the.

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Speaker 4: Voice of God.

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Speaker 3: Satan spat and took Jesus up into a high place

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Speaker 3: to gaze at the kingdom of the earth. You see

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Speaker 3: those kingdoms, Jesus, Look at those people. They are ready

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Speaker 3: to be ruled, to be conquered. I am in the

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Speaker 3: ears of every king in the world. If you bow

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Speaker 3: to me, all of it shall be yours. Satan's words

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Speaker 3: were soft and cunning. However, they dripped with poison. Jesus

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Speaker 3: turned away and looked deeply into the angel's eyes. It

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Speaker 3: is written you shall worship God, and God alone. Only

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Speaker 3: he is worthy to serve, he said. Jesus's voice was

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Speaker 3: strong and resolute. Growing angry, Satan took Jesus to the

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Speaker 3: edge of the Mighty Temple. Below, there were thousands of people.

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Speaker 3: He had Jesus gaze upon the multitudes. He whispered softly

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Speaker 3: in Jesus's ears, saying, if you truly are the son

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Speaker 3: of God, why not throw yourself over. The angels will

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Speaker 3: come to your rescue. They will see it too. The people,

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Speaker 3: they will see your glory. Jesus looked down at the

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Speaker 3: people below. He did not need them to watch a spectacle.

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Speaker 3: He wanted their hearts to turn towards him and be

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Speaker 3: saved from their own sin. You shall not test the Lord,

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Speaker 3: your God, Jesus said. His last answer was a rebuke

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Speaker 3: as well. So Satan crawled back into the shadows. So

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Speaker 3: Jesus returned to the people. After forty long days he ate.

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Speaker 3: He gathered his strength and marched towards Galilee.

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Speaker 4: As we begin today's reading, we meet a very unusual man.

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Speaker 4: John the Baptizer didn't fit the mold of society. He

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Speaker 4: lived in the desert, eating insects and honey and wearing

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Speaker 4: camel's hair. But this was no madman. His voice was

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Speaker 4: strong and sure. He spoke boldly, proclaiming that the Kingdom

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Speaker 4: of God was on the way, and each day he

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Speaker 4: grew larger and larger crowds Jews and others whose hearts

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Speaker 4: were being warmed toward God. And as they heard Jod's

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Speaker 4: call for repentance, they came to be baptized as a

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Speaker 4: sign of their commitment to turn away from their sin

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Speaker 4: and begin a brand new commitment to God. God worked

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Speaker 4: powerfully through John the Baptist, just as he said he would,

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Speaker 4: to prepare the way of the Lord, the Messiah to

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Speaker 4: begin his ministry. This was a threat to the religious establishment,

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Speaker 4: the powerful and oppressive Pharisees and Sadducees, who wielded power

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Speaker 4: and control over the Jews with dogma and burdensome rules.

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Speaker 4: They watched from a distance, sneering, seething at this man

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Speaker 4: who preached repentance and forgiveness from sin, not religion. But

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Speaker 4: John did not cower before them. He was courageous. He

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Speaker 4: called them out. He called them actually a brute of vipers,

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Speaker 4: poisonous snakes threats. John called them to repent us as well,

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Speaker 4: warning them that the day was coming when they would

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Speaker 4: be cut off from bearing any fruit. His boldness impressed

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Speaker 4: the crowds, and they began to wonder if he was

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Speaker 4: the messiah. The people were ready for a savior, and

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Speaker 4: they wanted John to be their hero. But he was

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Speaker 4: quick to correct their misconception. His baptism was with water,

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Speaker 4: but the one who was to come would baptize them

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Speaker 4: with the fire of God's spirit. It would signify a

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Speaker 4: deeper change of life. And then one day, suddenly Jesus

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Speaker 4: came through the crowd. John knew exactly who he was,

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Speaker 4: even if others didn't. This was the very moment for

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Speaker 4: which John had been born, and he didn't miss it.

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Speaker 4: Here was the savior the world needed, and he announced loudly,

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Speaker 4: boldly that Jesus was the lamb that would take away

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Speaker 4: the sins of the world. Then what Jesus did shocked John.

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Speaker 4: He asked to be baptized, and John was incredible. He

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Speaker 4: in fact protested, shouldn't Jesus be the one baptizing him.

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Speaker 4: But Jesus assured him that this was what must take place,

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Speaker 4: and so Jesus submitted to the baptism of John to

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Speaker 4: fulfill all righteousness. And then something supernatural happened. God spoke

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Speaker 4: from heaven. The voice from the heavens gave the people

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Speaker 4: a clear message that we find in Matthew three point seventeen.

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Speaker 4: And behold, a voice from heaven said, this is my

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Speaker 4: beloved son, with whom I am well pleased. As God

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Speaker 4: the Father spoke, God's Spirit in the form of a dove,

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Speaker 4: descended and rested on Jesus. So here we see the Trinity,

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Speaker 4: the Triune God, all three persons, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

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Speaker 4: The meeting was abundantly clear to everyone present, and it

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Speaker 4: should be to us this one the savior of the world.

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Speaker 4: Jesus was more than a prophet or a teacher. He

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Speaker 4: was God's one and only son, and God's Spirit anointed

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Speaker 4: him and appointed him to be the savior of the world.

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Speaker 4: Immediately after this event, Jesus went alone, filled with God's spirit,

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Speaker 4: to the wilderness. He fasted forty days and was tempted

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Speaker 4: by God's adversary, the devil Satan. Knew that Jesus' presence

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Speaker 4: and ministry would spell his end, his ultimate defeat, so

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Speaker 4: he attacked him at the very outset of his ministry,

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Speaker 4: trying to destroy the mission of God, just as he

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Speaker 4: had done with Adam and Eve. Satan twisted God's word,

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Speaker 4: but Jesus stood firm against every attack, each temptation. He

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Speaker 4: fired back with scripture, showing that with God's word we

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Speaker 4: overcome the enemy. The word of God is like a weapon,

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Speaker 4: It is a sword, the sword of the spirit. This

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Speaker 4: was real temptation, This was more than just the testing

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Speaker 4: of Jesus's mind and mettle. In this moment, Jesus demonstrates

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Speaker 4: that he can identify with us and the temptations we face,

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Speaker 4: because just as he faced and overcame temptations in his life,

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Speaker 4: empowers us now by his spirit to overcome every temptation.

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Speaker 4: He went to the cross and died for our sins

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Speaker 4: so that we no longer need to be bound by

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Speaker 4: our sins. Satan is soundly defeated, and now we can

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Speaker 4: live in the victory that is ours in Christ. Thank

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Speaker 4: you Jesus for coming to this earth to take away

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Speaker 4: our sins. We know that you are the Lamb of God.

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Speaker 4: The precious One who gave your life on the cross

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Speaker 4: so that we could be forgiven. Thank you for taking

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Speaker 4: on every temptation of the enemy so that we could

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Speaker 4: live in the promise and in the peace of victory

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Speaker 4: in you. And we pray this in your powerful and

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Speaker 4: saving name. Amen. Thank you for listening to today's Bible

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Speaker 4: in a year. I'm Pastor Jack Graham from Dallas, Texas.

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Speaker 4: You can download the pray dot com app and make

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Speaker 4: Bible study in prayer the priority of your life. And

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Speaker 4: if you appreciate this podcast, please share it with someone else.

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Speaker 4: I also want to encourage you to go to Jack

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Speaker 4: dot org. That's Jack Graham dot org for we have

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Speaker 4: resources that are free and available for you so that

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Speaker 4: you may know Christ and grow in Him. God bless you.