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Speaker 1: Let us pray, and after six days, Jesus taketh Peter

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Speaker 1: James and John his brother, and bringeth them up into

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Speaker 1: a high mountain apart, and was transfigured before them Matthew

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Speaker 1: seventeen one and two. Like Peter, James and John, I

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Speaker 1: thank you, Jesus that you are giving me uncommon access

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Speaker 1: to understanding and experiencing you in new and powerful ways.

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Speaker 1: I praise you for your continued desire to take me

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Speaker 1: higher and deeper into the things of the Lord. In

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Speaker 1: the same way that you were transfigured, Jesus, I thank

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Speaker 1: you that I am being transformed into the very likeness

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Speaker 1: and image of You, in the same way our heavenly

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Speaker 1: Father validated your purpose Jesus with John the Baptist, I

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Speaker 1: also am recognizing the validor I have from You Lord

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Speaker 1: to be seen and heard, transform me from the inside out,

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Speaker 1: and let me bring others who are close to me

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Speaker 1: in on the journey of a transformed life in Jesus name. Amen,

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Speaker 1: thank you for praying with us today. Continue your time

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Speaker 1: with God by listening to today's Bible story, brought to

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Speaker 1: you by Bible in a Year dot com.

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Speaker 2: A beautiful transfiguration in our last story Jesus healed a

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Speaker 2: man who was blind from birth. The young man who

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Speaker 2: was healed was questioned by the Pharisees, for they did

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Speaker 2: not want to admit that Jesus was truly good and

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Speaker 2: had the power to heal. The once blind man stood

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Speaker 2: firm and declaring that no evil man could do what

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Speaker 2: Jesus did. Now we get a glimpse of Jesus's true glory.

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Speaker 2: It emerges forth on a mountain, and three of the

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Speaker 2: disciples come in contact with the true holiness of Christ himself.

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Speaker 2: Inspired by the Gospels.

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Speaker 3: Hello, I'm pastor Jack Graham with today's episode of The

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Speaker 3: Bible in a Year. In our last episode, we heard

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Speaker 3: how Jesus healed a beggar who had been blind since birth.

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Speaker 3: He used the opportunity to teach his disciples an important

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Speaker 3: lesson about God's compassion and to correct their wrong thinking

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Speaker 3: about the cause of illness and disease. He also used

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Speaker 3: it as an opportunity to show the Pharisees their own

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Speaker 3: lack of compassion and spiritual vision. Today we'll hear how

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Speaker 3: Peter demonstrates a deeper understanding of who Jesus is. Then

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Speaker 3: we'll learn how Jesus gives three of his closest disciples

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Speaker 3: and opportunity to see his true glory and a mountaintop

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Speaker 3: experience that would lead them both terrified and in wonder

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Speaker 3: at the same time. Let's listen now to the gospel reading.

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Speaker 2: The fire crackled under the evening stars. Jesus and his

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Speaker 2: disciples lounged around the warm flames. Jesus was praying silently

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Speaker 2: to the Lord. The disciples were staring into flickering light.

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Speaker 2: Jesus lifted his eyes to the disciples. What do people

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Speaker 2: say that I am?

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Speaker 3: He asked.

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Speaker 2: The disciples shrugged. Some say that you are John the

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Speaker 2: Baptist that he has said while poking the fire. Others

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Speaker 2: say you are Elisha. Some would even say you are

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Speaker 2: one of the prophets of old that has risen from

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Speaker 2: the dead, James answered. Jesus looked deep into the flames.

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Speaker 2: But who do you say that I am? He asked.

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Speaker 2: It was a serious question, a question that required thought.

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Speaker 2: Peter lifted his gaze to Jesus. He was not known

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Speaker 2: as a deep thinker. In fact, Peter was often known

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Speaker 2: for his fast mouth and brash actions. However, Peter was

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Speaker 2: sure of what he was about to say, he knew

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Speaker 2: it in his bones. Peter looked deeply through the flames

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Speaker 2: towards Jesus. You are the Christ, he said, the son

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Speaker 2: of God. It was early the next morning, and the

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Speaker 2: sun had not yet peered over the horizon. Darkness still

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Speaker 2: shrouded the cool morning, and Jesus gently woke Peter, James,

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Speaker 2: and John, not waking the other disciples, Jesus led them

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Speaker 2: up a hill it overlooked the first moments of sunrise.

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Speaker 2: As Peter, James, and John stood over the valley below,

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Speaker 2: a bright light emerged from Jesus. The brightness was piercing,

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Speaker 2: and his face shone like the rising sun itself. It

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Speaker 2: was as if his humanity was unzipped and the essence

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Speaker 2: of his deity shone through the cracks. It was too

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Speaker 2: amazing and too terrifying for the three men to describe.

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Speaker 2: Emerging from the light was Moses and Elijah themselves. The

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Speaker 2: three men watched as Jesus spoke with them, yet they

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Speaker 2: were not as equals. The two historic men of faith

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Speaker 2: bowed to Christ as their lord and spoke to him

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Speaker 2: as God. It was too great for Peter's heart to handle.

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Speaker 2: He spoke up and said, Lord, it is good that

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Speaker 2: we are here. Let us make three tenths up here

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Speaker 2: for you, Moses and Elijah, then we can. As Peter

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Speaker 2: was speaking, a bright light consumed Peter and the others completely.

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Speaker 2: A cloud of holy radiance swirled around them like a tempest.

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Speaker 2: Peter shrunk on the floor into a fetal position, covering

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Speaker 2: his eyes from the light. A voice like thunder boomed

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Speaker 2: from the clouds, saying, this is my beloved son, with

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Speaker 2: whom I am pleased. Hear him and only him. The

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Speaker 2: voice sent all the disciples onto their faces. Then the

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Speaker 2: light disappeared. The disciples opened their eyes to see Jesus

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Speaker 2: standing alone on the top of the hill. They saw

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Speaker 2: Jesus only without his radiance, but equally holy. He helped

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Speaker 2: them to his feet and led them down the hill.

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Speaker 2: The sun was beginning to rise, and they could see

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Speaker 2: the other disciples beginning to stir awake. Tell no one

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Speaker 2: of what you saw this morning. Jesus commanded the three

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Speaker 2: not until the Son of Man is raised from the dead.

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Speaker 2: As they were descending down, one of the disciples asked,

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Speaker 2: isn't it said that Elijah will return before the Son

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Speaker 2: of Man. Jesus nodded and said it is true, but

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Speaker 2: Elijah has already come back. You just did not recognize him.

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Speaker 2: The disciples understood who he was referring to. John the

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Speaker 2: Baptist was a voice crying from the wilderness. He was

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Speaker 2: the one who came before Jesus declaring the way of

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Speaker 2: the Lord.

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Speaker 3: We began today's reading with Jesus and his disciples sitting

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Speaker 3: by a fire. By this point, they've seen their teacher

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Speaker 3: do amazing things, from healing the crippled lame and even

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Speaker 3: raising the dead, to feeding thousands in a miraculous display

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Speaker 3: of God's provision. They've heard him speak to the Pharisees,

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Speaker 3: challenging their understanding of God's law and the purpose of

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Speaker 3: God's law. So Jesus begins with a simple question, who

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Speaker 3: do people say I am? The disciples are quick to reply,

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Speaker 3: Some say he's Elijah, others that he's John the Baptist.

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Speaker 3: There seems to be no general consensus or true understanding

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Speaker 3: among many as to who is Jesus. So then he

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Speaker 3: asked the harder question, who do you say that I am?

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Speaker 3: They've been closer to Jesus than anyone. They've seen him

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Speaker 3: in public, spoken to him in private. If anyone is

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Speaker 3: to grasp his true nature. It should be them. I

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Speaker 3: can almost hear the crickets as the question hung in

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Speaker 3: the air silence, but not for long. If there's one

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Speaker 3: thing you can say about Simon Peter is that he's

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Speaker 3: quick to jump up and speak his mind. So he says,

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Speaker 3: you are the Christ, the Son of God. Jesus replied

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Speaker 3: that Peter was correct, but as Jesus continued, he told

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Speaker 3: him that the insight did not come from Peter's own understanding.

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Speaker 3: God had revealed this truth the foundation of the church.

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Speaker 3: God would one day build the truth that Jesus is

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Speaker 3: the Son of God, the Messiah, the Savior of the world,

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Speaker 3: is the core of the Christian faith. Less than a

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Speaker 3: week later, Jesus took Peter, John and James with him

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Speaker 3: to the top of a high mountain. As we've seen before,

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Speaker 3: these three men had a very special closeness with and

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Speaker 3: access to Jesus, but nothing they'd seen so far had

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Speaker 3: prepared them for what was about to happen. There on

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Speaker 3: top of the mountain, Jesus was transformed right before their eyes. Jesus,

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Speaker 3: the light of the world, shone brightly around them. His

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Speaker 3: face was bright as the sun, and his clothes shone

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Speaker 3: in brilliant white. The disciples were amazed at what they

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Speaker 3: were seeing, but there was more to come. Then Elijah

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Speaker 3: and Moses were standing with Jesus talking to him. The

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Speaker 3: moment was so spectacular that Peter had an idea. Why

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Speaker 3: don't we just stay here forever? He asked. It's understandable

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Speaker 3: when we experience something incredible in life, changing our desires

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Speaker 3: often to capture that moment and never let it end.

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Speaker 3: But to do so would have been self serving. This

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Speaker 3: moment was meant to move these disciples to greater things

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Speaker 3: in the future. Everything that Jesus is on the inside

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Speaker 3: is now radiating on the outside. It is a metamorphosis,

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Speaker 3: a transfiguration, and they the disciples, would then be empowered

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Speaker 3: to take Jesus, the light of the world, to every

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Speaker 3: person they could. It's a reminder for all of us

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Speaker 3: to take these high mountaintop experiences when we feel very

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Speaker 3: close to God and allow them to strengthen us and

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Speaker 3: encourage us so that we would pursue God and share

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Speaker 3: his love with others. No sooner had Peter spoken that

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Speaker 3: a cloud came up over them, just as a cloud

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Speaker 3: had covered Israel in the days of Moses in the desert.

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Speaker 3: God's voice thundered out of that cloud, repeating what God

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Speaker 3: had said when Jesus was baptized by John the Baptist.

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Speaker 3: This is my son, with whom I am well pleased.

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Speaker 3: But this time the identification of Jesus as God's son

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Speaker 3: came with a command. And that command is this, listen

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Speaker 3: to him. If there had been any question in their

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Speaker 3: minds that Jesus had come from heaven, that he is

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Speaker 3: the son of God, now all doubt was wiped away.

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Speaker 3: This realization filled Peter, James and John with fear because

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Speaker 3: they were in the presence of God. But then we

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Speaker 3: see in Matthew seventeen and verse seven, but Jesus came

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Speaker 3: and touched them, saying, rise and have no fear. They

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Speaker 3: had nothing to fear because Jesus was with them, And

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Speaker 3: the same is true today. Because of Christ, we do

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Speaker 3: not have to fear the presence of God. We can

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Speaker 3: fear Him properly and respect him and revere him. But

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Speaker 3: fear real fear. The fear of God is love on

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Speaker 3: its knees and worship of our God. As they descended

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Speaker 3: the mouth, and Jesus told them to keep what had

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Speaker 3: happened to themselves until the Son of Man had risen

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Speaker 3: from the dead. This command likely perplexed them, as they

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Speaker 3: still did not fully understand what Jesus was going to do.

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Speaker 3: One of the disciples asked why some say Elijah must

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Speaker 3: return before the Son of Man, and Jesus explained that

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Speaker 3: in a way, this had already happened. John the Baptist

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Speaker 3: had completed the ministry of Elijah, preparing the way of

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Speaker 3: the Lord. But just as the people failed to recognize Jesus,

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Speaker 3: they did not recognize that John the Baptist was the

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Speaker 3: one declaring the arrival of the Savior. Dear God, we

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Speaker 3: thank you for your word, which is light and life

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Speaker 3: to us. Thank you that you are the Savior, the

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Speaker 3: Son of God, who is the light of the world.

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Speaker 3: Help us to remember that in mountaintop experiences, when we

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Speaker 3: see you clearly that it's not enough for us to

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Speaker 3: remain there, but we are to go and tell others

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Speaker 3: of your love and your grace. We pray this in

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Speaker 3: the name of Jesus. Amen. Thank you for listening once

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Speaker 3: again to today's Bible in a Year podcast. I'm Jack

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Speaker 3: Graham from Dallas, Texas. Please download thepray dot com app

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Speaker 3: and make prayer and Bible study the priority of your life.

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Speaker 3: And if you enjoyed this podcast, share it with someone

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Speaker 3: you love because by sharing this word of God, you

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Speaker 3: can make a difference in someone's life. And if you

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Speaker 3: want more resources on how to tap into God's power

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Speaker 3: for living the Christian life, be sure to visit us

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Speaker 3: at Jack Graham dot org. God bless