Mark O’Grady – Born of the Spirit – Class 6 – The Spirit in All

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We bring the subject to a
conclusion as we look at a

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spectacular element of the work
of the Holy Spirit.

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And this is actually where the
theme of the Holy Spirit becomes

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rather personal and very intense
in terms of its involvement in

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our daily lives.
It’s when we come face to face

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with the realization that the
Holy Spirit is involved in all

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aspects of our life, in the
truth, and it becomes quite

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emotionally impactful as we
realise the the wrap around

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involvement, the all consuming
involvement of God in our own

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personal lives.
It’s also where we we pause and

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we become very conscious of the
way in which we let our Heavenly

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Father down in his work with us
from day-to-day.

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You know those words in Hebrews
4 when the apostle is speaking

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about the the mind of God and
the word he says in verse 13 of

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Hebrews 4.
Neither is there any creature

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that’s not manifest in his
sight, but all things are naked

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and open unto the eyes of whom
we have to do so.

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We’re living our lives under the
ever awake and ever watchful

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eyes of God.
The ESV says no creature is

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hidden from his sight, but all
are naked and exposed to the

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eyes of Him to whom we must give
account.

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So, brothers and sisters, that
means he sees everything.

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Deep, deep, deep down inside our
own secret thoughts, behind

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every closed door, inside every
embarrassing thought, every

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motive read.
There’s nothing hidden from our

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God.
And faced with that realization,

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I suspect all of us would come
to the conclusion I need help.

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And so the apostle moved
straight on the next verses to

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say, seeing we have a great high
priest, Jesus, the Son of God,

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who’s passed into the heavens,
one who feels our infirmities,

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He tells us we can then come
with confidence to the throne of

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grace to obtain mercy and find
grace to help in time of need.

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So that’s our journey today,
brothers and sisters, as we look

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at the theme of the Spirit of
God, the work of the Holy Spirit

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as he’s working together in our
lives, personally providing him

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with that help.
We can ask him for that help.

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Now I’d like you to come back,
back with me to Psalm 139, which

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is a passage we’ve looked at
already a few times in our

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studies together.
It’s the passage that speaks of

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the Spirit of God being
everywhere, and we can’t go

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anywhere outside of His
presence, that He’s before us,

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He’s behind us, He’s above us.
We can go to the uttermost parts

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of the sea, and we’re still
surrounded by the presence of

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God.
But let’s just pick up a little

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phrase in Psalm 139, in verse 9
and 10, he says, if I take the

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wings of the morning and dwell
on the uttermost parts of the

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sea, even there shall thy hand
lead me, and thy right hand

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shall hold me.
Question how?

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How does God lead us?
How does His hand actually hold

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us?
What does that actually mean?

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We know that we don’t have the
Holy Spirit gifts.

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We’ve discovered as we’ve gone
through that we don’t have the

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Holy Spirit dwelling in US
saying hey, walk this way, walk

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that way.
We’ve learnt that we can develop

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the mind of God or the Spirit of
God in us through the through

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the pages of the word, a godly
way of thinking, a spiritual way

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of thinking.
We know that the Spirit of God

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sustains us and keeps us alive.
But is that the only way that he

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actually leads us?
Is that the only way in which

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his hand upholds us?
And the answer to that, of

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course he’s not.
The Holy Spirit is actively,

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actively working in our daily
lives.

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That doesn’t mean we have the
power of the Holy Spirit, But

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never, never, ever forget that
the Holy Spirit is actively

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involved in our daily personal
lives.

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This is God, because of course
we can’t separate God’s Holy

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Spirit power from himself.
This is God active in our

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personal daily lives.
And so we want to finish our

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studies this morning, brothers
and sisters, encouraged by the

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fact that God’s work is ongoing
in our daily lives, His hand is

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actually there.
Through all the events that

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swirl around us, all the
distractions of life, God’s hand

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is there.
And we can rest confident in

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that assurance.
And that’s really our theme

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tonight, brothers and sisters,
that we can return home

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falsified by an unshakable
conviction that God’s hand is

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still working out his work of
salvation in our personal lives.

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So I’d like us to get underway
with a rather challenging topic

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that comes up in Ephesians
chapter 1.

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If you could please turn there
for us.

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We’ve talked in our studies so
far about the importance of of

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free will, that God wants us to
submit to him in a voluntary

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way.
We voluntarily commit to

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believing and obeying him
because that’s what brings

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honour and glory to our heavenly
Father.

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But let’s not forget that God
does still influence us in that

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journey.
He’s been doing so actually in

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our lives for a very long time.
So let’s start with Ephesians 1.

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He talks about the blessing that
we have in verse 3, in verse 4,

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according as He has chosen us in
Him before the foundation of the

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world, that we should be
holding, and without blame

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before Him, and love having
predestinated us unto the

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adoption of children by Jesus
Christ to Himself, according to

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the good pleasure of His will.
The word predestinated pro

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arisa.
It means for ordain

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predetermined or decided
beforehand.

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That’s a challenging concept and
the apostle is saying that God

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preordained that we would
receive the adoption of children

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from the foundation of the
world.

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Now let’s just think about it.
Does that mean, brother or

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sister, that God chose you
personally more than 6000 years

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ago?
It’s an interesting thought.

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Let’s go to Romans 8 again, an
epistle and a chapter that we’ve

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looked at quite a lot over the
course of these studies because

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Romans 8 speaks about the Spirit
of God and how we need to

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develop the Spirit of God within
our hearts so that the Spirit of

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Christ can then dwell in us.
Let’s pick up the record in

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verse 28.
We know Romans 8 verse 28, we

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know that all things work
together for good to them that

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love God, to them who are the
called according to His purpose.

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And so we stop and we just
marvel at this concept of

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everything working together
towards a good outcome.

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Now, that means, by definition,
that God’s interactively engaged

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in the things that are happening
in our own personal lives with

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the events that surround us.
It also tells us that he has a

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positive objective in mind.
He actually wants there to be a

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good outcome from all the things
that are happening to us.

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But it’s also a concept that’s
very challenging when things go

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wrong in life, and sometimes
things go catastrophically wrong

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in life.
How can all things be working

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together for good in those
circumstances?

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And yet it’s giving us the
reassurance that God has an

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objective for an ultimate
positive outcome.

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All things work together for
good to those who love God and

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are called according to His
purpose.

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But if that’s not challenging
enough as a concept, look at the

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next couple of verses.
He said the call according to

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His purpose in verse 28, verse
29.

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For whom He did for now He also
did predestinate, to be

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conformed to the image of His
Son, that He might be the first

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born among many brethren.
Moreover, whom He did

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predestinate them He also
called, and whom He called them

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He also justified.
And whom He justified then He

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also glorified.
Now these are very challenging

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concepts.
God knew in advance that He was

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going to call you, and for
millennia He’s been working to

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bring it to parts.
He knew who your great, great,

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great grandparents would be.
He knew when your forebears

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would immigrate to this country.
He knew what circumstances would

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apply before you were born.
He set in motion a whole train

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of events that would lead to us
coming into existence.

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Now in Psalm 139 and Speaking of
the work of the Lord Jesus

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Christ, but Speaking of God’s
involvement, he said my

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substance was not hid from me
when I was made in secret in thy

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book all my members were written
when as yet there was none of

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them interesting concept that he
actually knows in advance

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everything about the existence
of his children.

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So he knew that we would be
born.

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He knew that we would be called.
He knew that we would come to

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hear about the truth.
It was His plan that we would be

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baptized as some of His chosen.
So how’s that for Ford planning?

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And by the way, he doesn’t make
it a secret.

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He says it over and over and
over again in the word 2nd

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Thessalonians 2 verse 13.
God hath from the beginning

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chosen you to salvation through
sanctification of the Spirit and

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belief of the truth.
Well, what about Romans 17 verse

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8 which speaks of names written
in the book of life?

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The phrase written in the book
of life from the foundation of

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the world.
So it tells us categorically

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that in God’s purpose He
identified us by name more than

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6000 years ago.
So before Noah built the ark,

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God knew that you would be
called.

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When David was a shepherd boy
wandering the hills of Israel,

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God had already included you in
his purpose.

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He’s real brothers and sisters,
and He’s involved in our own

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personal daily lives.
And since our birth, He’s been

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involved every step of the way,
shaping and moulding our

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characters, teaching us to
respond.

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It’s an incredible thought for
us to get our head around.

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That is the work of the spirit
that surrounds us individually

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today.
Now, what that tells us,

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brothers and sisters, is that if
we love him, he has a good

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outcome in mind.
So all of the things that

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happened to us in life, never
forget.

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God has a good outcome in mind.
That’s his purpose, that’s his

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objective.
Now, obviously going through the

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whole subject of predestination
is not our plan today, but

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suffice it to say, God knows
everything in advance and He’s

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predetermined certain things in
advance.

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Our core is one of those.
But the outcome is not

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guaranteed for us, brothers and
sisters, salvation is not

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guaranteed.
It’s not a case, as the churches

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teach, once saved, always saved.
It is possible for us, if we so

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choose, to live in a way that
has the names blotted out of the

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book of life.
But I love the fact that God’s

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perspective is that our names
are already there.

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As I said to the Tangs, we’re
talking to them this morning.

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It’s not like there’s a ladder
of righteousness and that we

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have to somehow claw our way up
to a certain level before God

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will grudgingly say, oh, you’ve
reached enough of a height.

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I’ll now give you the light, the
Kingdom.

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Our names are already in the
book of life, and our Father

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wants us to respond in love and
obedience so that our names stay

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written in the book of life and
don’t get blotted out.

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So the question for us this
morning is if God’s been working

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for thousands of years, bringing
about the events that would

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bring us into existence and
bring us to a point where we

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could hear about and accept the
gospel call, Is he still working

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in our daily lives?
Well, of course, to ask the

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question is to answer it, isn’t
it?

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Philippians one verse 6 being
confident of this very thing

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that he which hath begun a good
work in you will perform it

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until the day of Christ.
He never stops that work.

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Brothers and sisters, he’s
working in our lives and he will

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keep performing that until the
day when our Lord actually

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returns.
So how is God working in our

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lives today?
Let’s have a look at a few

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passages, and I’d like us to,
and they’re passages we’re

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familiar with, but I’d like us
just to think through the

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implications of what this
requires in terms of God’s

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involvement in our daily life.
And actually, we’re going to

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look at, I don’t know, maybe
half a dozen passages.

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The Scriptures are bound with
statements like this, and every

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one of them beg us to stop and
think, what are the implications

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of these little passages?
Let’s start with this one.

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The Lord’s Prayer, part of the
Lord’s Prayer, lead us not into

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00:14:54,920 –> 00:14:58,160
temptation, but deliver us from
evil.

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00:14:59,120 –> 00:15:04,200
What’s being asked for here and
how does God actually going to

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00:15:04,200 –> 00:15:08,400
do this?
Well, possibly through the word

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00:15:08,400 –> 00:15:13,680
will help, but how does God lead
us in a way that avoids

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00:15:13,680 –> 00:15:18,080
temptation?
Does God literally actually

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00:15:18,080 –> 00:15:23,000
deliver us from evil?
This implies that God’s changing

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00:15:23,000 –> 00:15:28,520
events that happen in our lives.
The implications of this are

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00:15:28,520 –> 00:15:33,280
actually quite far reaching.
Or another little passage we’re

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00:15:33,280 –> 00:15:35,480
really familiar with, Hebrews
12, verse 5.

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00:15:36,440 –> 00:15:38,920
You’ve forgotten the excitation
which speaks unto you as

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00:15:38,920 –> 00:15:43,440
children, my son, despise not
thou the chastening of the Lord,

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00:15:44,080 –> 00:15:46,000
nor faint when thou art rebuked
of him.

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00:15:46,000 –> 00:15:50,240
For whom the Lord loveth, He
chasteneth, and scourgeth every

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00:15:50,240 –> 00:15:53,320
son whom he receiveth.
He’s drawing on the analogy of a

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00:15:53,320 –> 00:15:56,400
father training and developing a
child.

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00:15:56,720 –> 00:16:00,360
But we look at those words and
we ask ourselves the question,

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00:16:00,920 –> 00:16:05,120
how?
How does God actually chasten

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00:16:05,120 –> 00:16:09,320
us?
How does God actually scourge

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00:16:09,320 –> 00:16:11,480
us?
And we have to come to the

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00:16:11,480 –> 00:16:15,320
conclusion this is through
events and things that happen in

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00:16:15,320 –> 00:16:18,680
life.
They might be things that people

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00:16:18,680 –> 00:16:23,560
say, they might be events that
take place, but God’s clearly

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00:16:23,760 –> 00:16:29,320
changing and making use of a
whole series of events in our

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00:16:29,320 –> 00:16:34,240
own personal lives.
But when we stop and think about

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00:16:34,240 –> 00:16:39,280
it, imagine all of the different
things that he had to manage to

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00:16:39,280 –> 00:16:46,600
bring that event to pass.
Imagine that I don’t know 1250

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00:16:46,600 –> 00:16:52,760
things, 13,000 things that God
did to bring about an outcome

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00:16:53,040 –> 00:16:55,400
from a particular set of
circumstances.

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00:16:55,640 –> 00:16:59,840
The complexity of what that
requires is quite extraordinary

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00:17:00,040 –> 00:17:02,240
to stop and think about.
Or what about this one?

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00:17:04,240 –> 00:17:07,400
There is no temptation that’s
taken you, but such as is common

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00:17:07,400 –> 00:17:11,599
to man, God’s faithful, He won’t
suffer us to be tempted above

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00:17:11,599 –> 00:17:15,640
for what we are able, but He
will with the temptation also

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00:17:15,640 –> 00:17:19,720
make a way to escape that we
might be able to bear it.

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00:17:21,440 –> 00:17:23,720
Now, there’s lots of
implications that come from that

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00:17:23,720 –> 00:17:25,800
passage.
It means that when we run into

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00:17:25,800 –> 00:17:30,920
challenges in life and they test
our faithfulness or our

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00:17:30,920 –> 00:17:34,640
commitment to the principles of
God’s holiness, He’s saying

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00:17:34,640 –> 00:17:36,720
there that God makes a way to
escape.

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00:17:37,800 –> 00:17:43,800
The question for us this morning
is how is it a comment that a

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00:17:43,800 –> 00:17:46,040
brother or sister makes to us
that helps?

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00:17:47,240 –> 00:17:50,320
Is it something we happened to
read in the daily readings that

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00:17:50,320 –> 00:17:53,880
time?
Is it the result of influence of

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00:17:53,880 –> 00:17:57,600
other events that have caused us
to think a certain way so that

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00:17:57,600 –> 00:18:01,760
we have the ability to overcome
that trial or temptation when

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00:18:01,760 –> 00:18:07,440
it’s placed in front of us?
How does God make a way to

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00:18:07,440 –> 00:18:11,040
escape this?
Is this is bringing us face to

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00:18:11,040 –> 00:18:15,840
face with the reality of a God
who’s actually working actively

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00:18:16,040 –> 00:18:19,960
in all the things that we that
we have or come across in daily

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00:18:19,960 –> 00:18:22,720
life, all the all the
experiences, all the thoughts

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00:18:22,720 –> 00:18:26,000
that flood into our minds.
This is a very active end.

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00:18:26,560 –> 00:18:29,600
It’s encompassing.
It’s swerving around us in the

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00:18:29,600 –> 00:18:31,880
various events.
All right, well, what about this

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00:18:31,880 –> 00:18:34,040
one?
The rod of the wicked will not

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00:18:34,040 –> 00:18:37,120
rest upon the lot of the
righteous, lest the righteous

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00:18:37,120 –> 00:18:39,440
put forth their hands into
iniquity.

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00:18:40,040 –> 00:18:43,400
So what he’s basically saying is
that yes, things will happen in

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00:18:43,400 –> 00:18:46,040
life.
There are wicked people around.

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00:18:46,280 –> 00:18:49,640
The consequences of that will be
felt like a rod, which feels

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00:18:49,640 –> 00:18:53,640
like it’s beating us at times.
But he says the rod of the

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00:18:53,640 –> 00:18:59,200
wicked will not rest so heavily
that the righteous are forced to

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00:18:59,200 –> 00:19:02,240
iniquity.
So how does that work?

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00:19:03,720 –> 00:19:07,400
That means God’s working in the
life of the wicked person or

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00:19:07,400 –> 00:19:13,360
events around them or in our
life to release the pressure

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00:19:13,680 –> 00:19:16,320
that would otherwise have broken
us.

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00:19:17,400 –> 00:19:20,240
This simple little statement,
Scriptures are bound with them.

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00:19:20,440 –> 00:19:24,440
But the implications of all of
these little phrases that it

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00:19:24,440 –> 00:19:27,520
tells us, it brings us face to
face with the fact that there’s

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00:19:27,520 –> 00:19:31,400
a God who through his Spirit,
through his power, is working

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00:19:31,440 –> 00:19:34,280
actively in all the events of
daily life.

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00:19:34,680 –> 00:19:36,160
Here’s another one that we’re
familiar with.

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00:19:37,520 –> 00:19:41,240
Paul says at the end of his
life, the Lord will deliver me

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00:19:41,440 –> 00:19:46,600
from every evil work and will
preserve me unto his heavenly

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00:19:46,600 –> 00:19:49,200
Kingdom.
So now we have the work of the

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00:19:49,200 –> 00:19:52,680
Spirit in our own lives, brother
and sisters, working with the

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00:19:52,680 –> 00:19:56,040
Saints to bring them safely to
his Kingdom.

293
00:19:57,280 –> 00:20:00,080
So there’s something which is
happening in the life of God’s

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00:20:00,080 –> 00:20:04,800
people, something which is more
than just the influence of the

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00:20:04,800 –> 00:20:07,800
Bible.
In something which is more than

296
00:20:07,800 –> 00:20:11,560
just God’s Holy Spirit power or
his Spirit power energizing and

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00:20:11,560 –> 00:20:15,360
sustaining everything in this
universe, what we’re coming face

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00:20:15,360 –> 00:20:19,560
to face with now is God’s
personal hand involved in our

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00:20:19,560 –> 00:20:22,120
lives.
It’s what we rather goodly refer

300
00:20:22,120 –> 00:20:27,800
to as Providence.
And Providence is something we

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00:20:27,800 –> 00:20:30,240
say yes, here we understand that
God works in our lives.

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00:20:30,440 –> 00:20:36,400
Do we, do we really think
through what it means to have

303
00:20:36,400 –> 00:20:41,600
God’s hand involved in all of
these different facets of our

304
00:20:41,640 –> 00:20:47,640
own personal lives when the
Bible says, in all thy ways

305
00:20:47,720 –> 00:20:50,640
acknowledge Him and he shall
direct thy paths?

306
00:20:50,640 –> 00:20:55,720
Proverbs 3, verse 6, How does
God actually direct our paths?

307
00:20:56,520 –> 00:20:58,560
And what we’re now going to look
at is the way in which the

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00:20:58,560 –> 00:21:02,480
Spirit of God works in the lives
of His people through the work

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00:21:02,600 –> 00:21:06,400
of the angels, because they’re
the instruments of His Holy

310
00:21:06,400 –> 00:21:08,560
Spirit power.
They are spirit beings.

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00:21:08,720 –> 00:21:11,720
This is God’s spirit power
working in our lives and He

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00:21:11,720 –> 00:21:16,160
works through the agency of
these immortal beings that we

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00:21:16,160 –> 00:21:21,320
know of as the angels, an
extraordinary army in heaven and

314
00:21:21,320 –> 00:21:25,440
in earth.
You know, the subject of the

315
00:21:25,440 –> 00:21:27,120
angels is such an interesting
one.

316
00:21:27,840 –> 00:21:31,440
We just get blinked by all the
mundane things of daily life and

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00:21:31,440 –> 00:21:35,600
it’s, it’s so seldom that we
stop and look back and as it

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00:21:35,600 –> 00:21:40,120
were, see the the heavenly host
at work in our daily lives.

319
00:21:41,400 –> 00:21:44,880
Dothan, Remember the incident at
Dothan?

320
00:21:46,080 –> 00:21:49,160
The Syrian Army came and
surrounded the city because they

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00:21:49,160 –> 00:21:52,640
wanted to capture one particular
person in the city, so they

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00:21:52,640 –> 00:21:55,400
besieged it.
Who’s the person they’re after?

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00:21:55,400 –> 00:21:58,840
Anybody know?
Brother Danny?

324
00:21:59,520 –> 00:22:01,520
Elisha.
So Elisha’s in the city.

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00:22:01,520 –> 00:22:04,680
The Assyrian, the Syrian king,
sorry, wants to come and capture

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00:22:04,680 –> 00:22:06,600
Elisha.
So he besieges the city.

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00:22:06,600 –> 00:22:08,880
And in the morning, Elisha’s
servant gets up.

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00:22:08,880 –> 00:22:12,200
He looks over the wall and he
sees all of the armies of the

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00:22:12,200 –> 00:22:15,280
Syrians around him.
And he absolutely panics.

330
00:22:15,600 –> 00:22:18,880
When he turns to his master,
he’s just sitting there carrying

331
00:22:18,880 –> 00:22:22,440
on with daily life, looking
completely unconcerned, quite

332
00:22:22,440 –> 00:22:24,840
relaxed.
Master, master, look at all the

333
00:22:24,840 –> 00:22:30,800
armies around us.
And Elisha says armies of him,

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00:22:32,040 –> 00:22:34,120
we’ve got more for us than there
be for them.

335
00:22:35,040 –> 00:22:38,520
And then he does a little pray.
He said just open his eyes will

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00:22:38,520 –> 00:22:42,640
you please and and the scales
drop from the servant’s eyes and

337
00:22:42,880 –> 00:22:48,280
suddenly he sees this host of
horses and Chariots and soldiers

338
00:22:48,280 –> 00:22:53,000
of fire on all the hills all
roundabout wasn’t extraordinary

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00:22:53,000 –> 00:22:57,320
thing.
Do we see them?

340
00:22:59,560 –> 00:23:04,320
Are they there today?
Well, we can go through the

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00:23:04,320 –> 00:23:10,040
Psalmist says in Psalm 103 verse
some where is it Psalm 34, verse

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00:23:10,080 –> 00:23:16,280
7, the Angel of Yahweh encampeth
round about them that fear him

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00:23:16,960 –> 00:23:19,480
and delivereth them.
Do we believe it?

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00:23:21,080 –> 00:23:25,760
It’s telling us that what the
servant at Dauphin saw is there

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00:23:25,760 –> 00:23:31,200
today, that the angels of Yahweh
are encamping round about us.

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00:23:32,040 –> 00:23:35,600
Unfortunately, like the servant,
we can’t see them, but they’re

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00:23:35,600 –> 00:23:38,640
there.
And that’s an extraordinary

348
00:23:38,640 –> 00:23:40,080
concept for us to get our heads
around.

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00:23:40,080 –> 00:23:42,280
Brothers and sisters, they are
there.

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00:23:43,160 –> 00:23:46,200
So let’s just clothe this
concept with a little more

351
00:23:46,200 –> 00:23:50,240
detail and hopefully that’ll
help us see the angels a little

352
00:23:50,240 –> 00:23:52,640
more clearly in terms of our
daily lives.

353
00:23:52,640 –> 00:23:54,840
First of all, the word Angel
means messenger.

354
00:23:55,360 –> 00:23:57,640
These are God’s servants who do
His will.

355
00:23:58,720 –> 00:24:03,280
They’re described in Psalm 104,
verse 4 as being angels or

356
00:24:03,280 –> 00:24:06,480
spirits.
His ministers are flaming fire.

357
00:24:06,600 –> 00:24:10,680
Well, that’s what the servant of
Elijah in Dothan actually saw.

358
00:24:11,320 –> 00:24:14,320
He saw the flaming fire.
So they’re described here as

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00:24:14,320 –> 00:24:17,840
being God’s ministers.
He’s made His angels spirits.

360
00:24:17,840 –> 00:24:21,480
The word spirits is our word
ruach, the Hebrew word for

361
00:24:21,480 –> 00:24:25,240
spirit, the breathing out, the
concept of an energy source

362
00:24:25,240 –> 00:24:28,960
that’s come from God.
This is God’s spirit now

363
00:24:28,960 –> 00:24:32,600
embodied in spirit beings.
He’s made His ministers A

364
00:24:32,640 –> 00:24:36,240
flaming fire for Psalm 103,
verse 20.

365
00:24:36,240 –> 00:24:41,240
Bless Yahweh, ye his angels that
excel in strength, that do His

366
00:24:41,240 –> 00:24:43,720
commandments hearkening to the
voice of His Word.

367
00:24:43,720 –> 00:24:49,280
Bless ye Yahweh or ye His host,
the ministers of his that do His

368
00:24:49,280 –> 00:24:53,520
pleasure.
When it says angels excel in

369
00:24:53,520 –> 00:24:56,680
strength, the Word excel the
idea of Gabor the mighty

370
00:24:56,680 –> 00:25:00,560
warrior, but they excel in
strength.

371
00:25:00,560 –> 00:25:02,560
That word strength is an
interesting one.

372
00:25:02,880 –> 00:25:07,080
Co-op, the theological word
book, says in a static sense.

373
00:25:07,440 –> 00:25:11,240
It suggests the capacity to
endure, but more commonly

374
00:25:11,240 –> 00:25:15,280
expresses potency and capacity
to produce.

375
00:25:16,280 –> 00:25:19,800
These angels, brothers and
sisters around us are mighty

376
00:25:19,800 –> 00:25:25,440
warriors who are patent, potent,
sorry, should I say potent.

377
00:25:25,760 –> 00:25:29,240
They have their potency, the
ability to actually deliver what

378
00:25:29,240 –> 00:25:32,240
it is that God wants them to
actually do.

379
00:25:33,200 –> 00:25:35,680
They’re mighty warriors with
enormous potency.

380
00:25:36,680 –> 00:25:38,720
So.
So let’s sit back, as it were,

381
00:25:38,720 –> 00:25:41,560
in our seats and see those
angels at work.

382
00:25:41,800 –> 00:25:45,600
They could be in the room here.
They certainly surround us, and

383
00:25:45,600 –> 00:25:48,360
they’re involved in our daily
lives day by day.

384
00:25:48,960 –> 00:25:51,760
I’d like you to come with me,
please, to Hebrews one.

385
00:25:52,920 –> 00:25:56,000
First of all, in Hebrews 1, the
apostle picks up this one of

386
00:25:56,000 –> 00:25:59,240
those quotes that we’ve just
looked at from the Psalms,

387
00:25:59,280 –> 00:26:04,120
Hebrews 1.
Talking about the angels being

388
00:26:04,400 –> 00:26:11,520
flaming spirits of fire.
Hebrews 1, And we’ll pick up the

389
00:26:11,520 –> 00:26:19,920
record in verse seven of the
angels he saith, Who maketh his

390
00:26:19,920 –> 00:26:23,880
Angel spirits and his ministers
a flame of fire.

391
00:26:24,000 –> 00:26:26,600
So there’s the quote from Psalm
104, but this time, of course,

392
00:26:26,600 –> 00:26:28,720
it’s using the word numa or
pnephma.

393
00:26:29,160 –> 00:26:33,600
He makes his Angel spirits the
numa, a flame of fire.

394
00:26:33,800 –> 00:26:36,480
Look at how he describes him at
the end of the chapter, verse

395
00:26:36,480 –> 00:26:39,320
14.
Are they not all ministering

396
00:26:39,320 –> 00:26:42,640
spirits sent forth to minister
for them?

397
00:26:42,640 –> 00:26:45,000
Who shall be the heirs of
salvation?

398
00:26:45,560 –> 00:26:49,840
So if we’re heirs of salvation,
the angel’s been sent forth to

399
00:26:49,840 –> 00:26:53,080
be ministering spirits.
The word spirits is pneuma

400
00:26:53,080 –> 00:26:56,120
again.
But the word ministering letter

401
00:26:56,120 –> 00:26:59,520
jicos, I have no idea how to
pronounce it in the Greek.

402
00:26:59,720 –> 00:27:02,360
It’s a word that’s got 12
letters in it, but it has the

403
00:27:02,360 –> 00:27:06,760
idea actually of a public
servant, someone who’s been

404
00:27:06,760 –> 00:27:11,640
engaged by the state to work on
behalf of the state in public

405
00:27:11,640 –> 00:27:14,560
service.
And so these public servants

406
00:27:14,560 –> 00:27:18,640
have been chosen, he said, to
minister diaconia, which we get

407
00:27:18,680 –> 00:27:22,640
we’re Deacon from, to be
servants for those who are heirs

408
00:27:22,640 –> 00:27:25,200
of salvation.
So this introduces to us the

409
00:27:25,200 –> 00:27:29,320
concept of the angels actually
working actively in our daily

410
00:27:29,320 –> 00:27:34,400
lives as we’re heirs of
salvation and they’re there on

411
00:27:34,400 –> 00:27:37,800
behalf of the Saints.
Interesting to use that word,

412
00:27:37,800 –> 00:27:42,640
servants of the angels working
on behalf of the Saints.

413
00:27:45,440 –> 00:27:48,120
So think about the angels who
are involved in our personal

414
00:27:48,120 –> 00:27:52,480
lives.
I, I wonder if they have names.

415
00:27:54,480 –> 00:27:58,080
Probably there are angels in
Scripture who are named.

416
00:27:59,840 –> 00:28:04,160
So there are angels that are
actually personally involved in

417
00:28:04,280 –> 00:28:08,320
our daily lives, and it makes us
quite thoughtful because on one

418
00:28:08,320 –> 00:28:12,920
hand they’re described as being
ministering servants, and on the

419
00:28:12,920 –> 00:28:16,840
other hand they’re being
described as a flame of fire.

420
00:28:18,560 –> 00:28:22,360
Those are the beings that God’s
working through in our own daily

421
00:28:22,360 –> 00:28:24,520
lives.
Of course, they’re not visible

422
00:28:24,720 –> 00:28:27,240
to our mortal eyes, but one day
they will be.

423
00:28:28,280 –> 00:28:32,160
Now these angels are intensely
and passionately involved in

424
00:28:32,160 –> 00:28:35,600
their work, and so our Lord gave
that little warning in Matthew

425
00:28:35,640 –> 00:28:38,440
18.
Take heed that ye despise not

426
00:28:38,440 –> 00:28:42,160
one of these little ones, for I
say unto you that in heaven

427
00:28:42,160 –> 00:28:45,040
they’re angels.
Do always behold the face of my

428
00:28:45,040 –> 00:28:48,720
Father, which is in heaven.
Now there’s a lot of

429
00:28:48,720 –> 00:28:51,000
implications from that simple
little statement.

430
00:28:52,120 –> 00:28:53,840
How do we treat our brothers and
sisters?

431
00:28:54,160 –> 00:28:56,440
How do we interact with those
around us?

432
00:28:56,720 –> 00:29:00,600
Do we do things which cause
offence or stumbling blocks to

433
00:29:00,600 –> 00:29:03,760
make somebody else’s journey to
the Kingdom a little harder?

434
00:29:03,760 –> 00:29:07,600
And when he says don’t cause
offence, he says because they’re

435
00:29:07,600 –> 00:29:10,320
angels.
Behold the face of my Father in

436
00:29:10,320 –> 00:29:12,760
heaven.
What’s he implying?

437
00:29:15,560 –> 00:29:19,320
It’s a warning.
There’s a threat actually

438
00:29:19,360 –> 00:29:23,000
implied in those words.
But if we harm our brothers and

439
00:29:23,000 –> 00:29:27,280
sisters, they’re angels will
communicate directly with God

440
00:29:27,280 –> 00:29:31,560
about, and that tells us how
intensely active the angels are

441
00:29:31,760 –> 00:29:35,280
in caring for each one of us.
And it also brings very clearly

442
00:29:35,280 –> 00:29:38,720
home to us our responsibilities
to care for one another in

443
00:29:38,720 –> 00:29:42,360
ecclesial life, because we’re
working together with the Elohim

444
00:29:42,360 –> 00:29:46,120
who surround us and are involved
in the daily life of our

445
00:29:46,120 –> 00:29:49,400
brothers and sisters.
You know, in Psalm 91, there’s a

446
00:29:49,440 –> 00:29:52,800
passage which is is a prophecy
of the work of the Lord Jesus

447
00:29:52,800 –> 00:29:55,320
Christ.
He quotes it in his temptation,

448
00:29:55,760 –> 00:29:58,200
Psalm 91, verse 11.
And in fact, actually it’s

449
00:29:58,200 –> 00:30:01,240
quoted against him.
Should I say in in in his

450
00:30:01,240 –> 00:30:05,400
temptation, it’s written, He
shall give his angels charge

451
00:30:05,440 –> 00:30:08,520
over thee to keep thee in all
thy ways.

452
00:30:09,080 –> 00:30:11,240
But just think about the words
themselves.

453
00:30:11,240 –> 00:30:18,480
Psalm 91 verse 11 He gives his
angels charge over thee to keep

454
00:30:18,520 –> 00:30:22,280
thee in all thy ways.
Now does that apply only to

455
00:30:22,280 –> 00:30:25,880
Christ?
Or has God-given instructions to

456
00:30:25,880 –> 00:30:31,000
the angels to keep us as well?
Well, the psalmist uses the

457
00:30:31,000 –> 00:30:33,520
exact same expression in
relation to himself.

458
00:30:33,760 –> 00:30:38,480
Psalm 71 verse 1 Be thou sorry.
Verse 3 Be thou my strong

459
00:30:38,480 –> 00:30:43,000
habitation, whereunto I may
continually resort, Thou hast

460
00:30:44,000 –> 00:30:48,760
given commandment to save me.
It’s that same phrase, given a

461
00:30:48,760 –> 00:30:52,720
charge.
Well, when God gave a charge to

462
00:30:52,720 –> 00:30:54,360
save David, who did he give it
to?

463
00:30:55,280 –> 00:30:59,360
To the angels.
So God’s actively involved in

464
00:30:59,360 –> 00:31:03,200
our personal life through the
work of these very angels.

465
00:31:03,520 –> 00:31:06,920
The words of Brother Roberts.
The doctrine of angelic

466
00:31:06,920 –> 00:31:12,600
supervision is therefore not a
mere drapery of description.

467
00:31:13,080 –> 00:31:16,440
This is not some sort of
rhetorical flourish to talk

468
00:31:16,440 –> 00:31:19,080
about angelic supervision, he
said.

469
00:31:19,080 –> 00:31:24,520
It’s the revelation of a literal
fact in which the children of

470
00:31:24,520 –> 00:31:29,720
God are invited to place their
faith, and of which God’s

471
00:31:29,720 –> 00:31:34,400
vouchsafed vouchsafed numerous
palpable illustrations in the

472
00:31:34,400 –> 00:31:36,880
ages that have passed.
In fact, the book Ways of

473
00:31:36,880 –> 00:31:41,200
Providence is predominantly
tracking through the examples in

474
00:31:41,200 –> 00:31:44,760
Scripture of how God’s
providential work actually does

475
00:31:44,840 –> 00:31:46,640
work and apply.
It’s a great book.

476
00:31:46,680 –> 00:31:48,840
It’s actually a comparatively
easy one to read.

477
00:31:49,240 –> 00:31:52,720
And it just takes us through the
sweep of history and shows how

478
00:31:52,720 –> 00:31:56,400
God, through his angels,
providentially works in the life

479
00:31:56,600 –> 00:32:00,360
of men and women who have become
his sons and daughters.

480
00:32:00,560 –> 00:32:04,360
And as he says, he’s about to
grant the most striking of all

481
00:32:04,360 –> 00:32:07,840
exemplifications when the Lord
Jesus Christ returns with a

482
00:32:07,840 –> 00:32:11,640
multitudinous revenue of the
glorious host.

483
00:32:12,960 –> 00:32:15,120
So we ask ourselves the question
again.

484
00:32:15,760 –> 00:32:21,160
And the light of those concepts
is God’s Spirit working in our

485
00:32:21,160 –> 00:32:24,920
personal lives today?
And the answer is emphatically

486
00:32:24,920 –> 00:32:27,520
yes.
God’s Holy Spirit, embodied in

487
00:32:27,520 –> 00:32:31,800
spirit beings, is actually
involved through all the

488
00:32:31,800 –> 00:32:36,280
circumstances of daily life,
moving events, moving people to

489
00:32:36,280 –> 00:32:40,520
achieve God’s purpose for us.
So how do I do that?

490
00:32:40,520 –> 00:32:44,240
Well, what we’re going to do now
is just consider a few examples,

491
00:32:44,960 –> 00:32:47,880
just a couple of examples from
Scripture, which show us the way

492
00:32:47,880 –> 00:32:50,080
in which God moves and changes
events.

493
00:32:50,320 –> 00:32:54,240
Now let’s start with kings,
those that and often we think

494
00:32:54,240 –> 00:32:57,280
about Providence as yes, God’s
hands are working and moving all

495
00:32:57,280 –> 00:33:00,920
the big events of the nations,
appointing this ruler, removing

496
00:33:00,920 –> 00:33:03,800
that ruler, moving these nations
and that those nations.

497
00:33:03,960 –> 00:33:06,840
And that’s true, but we’ll go
from there to the small things

498
00:33:06,880 –> 00:33:09,160
of life.
So let’s pick up first of all,

499
00:33:09,160 –> 00:33:14,000
Daniel chapter 2, verse 21.
He God changes the times and the

500
00:33:14,000 –> 00:33:16,000
seasons.
He gives wisdom to the wise.

501
00:33:16,200 –> 00:33:18,960
He removes kings and sets up
kings.

502
00:33:19,520 –> 00:33:24,840
So the question is how, What
does it mean that he changes

503
00:33:24,840 –> 00:33:29,640
times in seasons?
Does that mean he speeds some

504
00:33:29,640 –> 00:33:32,840
things up?
He slows some things down?

505
00:33:34,560 –> 00:33:38,040
He gives wisdom to the wise.
That’s an that’s a combination

506
00:33:38,040 –> 00:33:40,760
of things.
It can be wisdom that comes from

507
00:33:40,760 –> 00:33:43,480
the word of God.
It can be wisdom that’s learnt

508
00:33:43,760 –> 00:33:47,080
through experiences.
But he removes kings.

509
00:33:47,560 –> 00:33:51,800
He sets up kings and then when
the King’s on the throne,

510
00:33:52,200 –> 00:33:55,480
Proverbs 21 tells us the King’s
heart is in the hand of Yahweh,

511
00:33:55,800 –> 00:33:59,000
like the rivers of water.
He turns it with us, whoever he

512
00:33:59,000 –> 00:34:01,160
will.
In the South Island in New

513
00:34:01,160 –> 00:34:03,600
Zealand, we have these things
called braided rivers.

514
00:34:04,320 –> 00:34:07,920
They’re quite wide river beds.
They’re full of shingle.

515
00:34:08,400 –> 00:34:12,639
The widest, 1, is about 1.6
kilometres wide when you cross

516
00:34:12,639 –> 00:34:15,199
it across the Rukai River on
bridge.

517
00:34:15,199 –> 00:34:19,199
So these are big riverbeds.
When they’re in flood, they’re

518
00:34:19,199 –> 00:34:23,000
back-to-back.
Then when the flood reduces,

519
00:34:23,280 –> 00:34:26,239
you’ve got these braided
streams, ribbons of water, which

520
00:34:26,239 –> 00:34:27,800
just flow through the shingle
bed.

521
00:34:28,199 –> 00:34:30,920
Next time there’s a flood, that
changes course, and I look at

522
00:34:30,920 –> 00:34:33,960
those and I look at this
passage, and God just turns the

523
00:34:33,960 –> 00:34:37,040
heart of the kings in the same
way that those rivers just

524
00:34:37,040 –> 00:34:40,120
change their course, meandering
down those riverbeds.

525
00:34:40,360 –> 00:34:45,080
God’s totally in control of
these kings and what they

526
00:34:45,080 –> 00:34:47,639
actually do.
Now, there’s a wonderful

527
00:34:47,639 –> 00:34:49,520
illustration of that.
We won’t turn it up.

528
00:34:49,520 –> 00:34:51,000
It’s a passage we’re familiar
with.

529
00:34:51,360 –> 00:34:53,440
But there’s a wonderful
illustration of that in Daniel

530
00:34:53,440 –> 00:34:58,400
chapter 10, which also
emphasizes again how God works

531
00:34:59,640 –> 00:35:02,440
so that when his Spirit is
involved in working in the lives

532
00:35:02,440 –> 00:35:06,320
of people, when angelically
providentially he’s supervising,

533
00:35:06,560 –> 00:35:11,280
he never overrules the concept
of someone’s free will, their

534
00:35:11,280 –> 00:35:14,880
ability to make choices.
There are consequences if they

535
00:35:14,880 –> 00:35:16,960
make this decision.
There are consequences if they

536
00:35:16,960 –> 00:35:19,880
make that one.
But he doesn’t go in and just

537
00:35:19,880 –> 00:35:23,440
tweak to force them to do
something involuntarily.

538
00:35:24,160 –> 00:35:28,600
And the classic example of that
is in in Daniel chapter 10,

539
00:35:28,600 –> 00:35:33,440
verse 13, when the Angel said to
Daniel that the reason he hadn’t

540
00:35:33,440 –> 00:35:38,240
come for 21 days was because the
Prince of Persia had been

541
00:35:38,240 –> 00:35:41,800
withstanding him for 21 days.
Now just think about what that

542
00:35:41,800 –> 00:35:45,000
means in terms of God’s work in
the life of the Prince of

543
00:35:45,000 –> 00:35:49,040
Persia.
Did God have the ability to

544
00:35:49,040 –> 00:35:52,800
reach in and go, you know what?
I want the king to do this twig

545
00:35:52,800 –> 00:35:58,520
and the king does it.
So why did he take 21 days?

546
00:36:00,520 –> 00:36:04,520
Because he was working in the
circumstances around the king

547
00:36:05,080 –> 00:36:08,120
for the king to make the call
that God wanted him to make.

548
00:36:09,160 –> 00:36:12,200
How does he do that?
Did he bring some people in to

549
00:36:12,200 –> 00:36:15,160
say something before?
Was it a health issue that

550
00:36:15,160 –> 00:36:17,760
arose?
Was it some circumstance that

551
00:36:17,760 –> 00:36:20,320
happened in the Kingdom?
Was it a natural event that

552
00:36:20,320 –> 00:36:23,320
happened here?
Or was it a combination of 5000

553
00:36:23,320 –> 00:36:28,280
of those things as he works on
the heart of the King of Persia

554
00:36:28,480 –> 00:36:32,320
to do what God wanted him to
actually do without working in

555
00:36:32,320 –> 00:36:36,720
there and going in a nanosecond
tweak and just forcing him to do

556
00:36:36,720 –> 00:36:39,440
something in particular because
that’s not God’s way.

557
00:36:41,000 –> 00:36:46,880
And if three weeks seems like a
long time, I suspect sometimes

558
00:36:46,920 –> 00:36:50,880
it takes the angels more than
three weeks to get us to respond

559
00:36:51,520 –> 00:36:53,720
on things which he wants us to
do.

560
00:36:55,040 –> 00:36:58,800
It’s an ongoing process of God’s
work with us in daily life.

561
00:36:59,040 –> 00:37:02,160
All right, try this one For
sheer omnipotence in scale.

562
00:37:03,400 –> 00:37:07,200
You see these things come up in
all these different little looks

563
00:37:07,200 –> 00:37:09,920
and crannies of Scripture.
So Israel were told that they

564
00:37:09,920 –> 00:37:13,680
had to go up 3 * a year to
worship God, but that was going

565
00:37:13,680 –> 00:37:18,040
to cause a problem, a risk.
What about all the nations

566
00:37:18,040 –> 00:37:19,680
around you?
Imagine if you were one of

567
00:37:19,680 –> 00:37:22,880
Israel’s enemies and you lived
just across the back fence and

568
00:37:22,880 –> 00:37:25,160
you knew that all the men were
going to disappear down to

569
00:37:25,160 –> 00:37:29,400
Jerusalem on this day.
When would you time your

570
00:37:29,400 –> 00:37:33,200
invasion?
Oh, this is a problem.

571
00:37:33,760 –> 00:37:36,440
And so God says Exodus 34 verse
23.

572
00:37:36,680 –> 00:37:39,880
Neither shall any man desire.
Sorry, it should be thy land,

573
00:37:40,040 –> 00:37:43,520
desire thy land when thou shalt
go up to appear before Yahweh

574
00:37:43,520 –> 00:37:47,520
thy God three times in a year.
How exactly did God achieve

575
00:37:47,520 –> 00:37:50,200
that?
So that nobody in their enemies

576
00:37:50,200 –> 00:37:54,080
countries, their kings, they’re
soldiers, they’re captains,

577
00:37:54,080 –> 00:37:57,800
they’re populists, none of them
decided to take advantage of the

578
00:37:57,800 –> 00:38:02,600
fact that all the men had gone
to Jerusalem 3 * a year on

579
00:38:02,600 –> 00:38:06,840
predetermined dates.
God just made sure that none of

580
00:38:06,840 –> 00:38:10,920
those enemies decided to desire
that outcome at that particular

581
00:38:10,920 –> 00:38:13,320
point in time.
Just little passages like this

582
00:38:13,320 –> 00:38:17,200
show us the scale on which God’s
hand was involved.

583
00:38:17,400 –> 00:38:19,560
Well, let’s go very small on our
personal lives.

584
00:38:20,040 –> 00:38:23,440
The steps of a good man are
ordered by Yahweh.

585
00:38:24,200 –> 00:38:27,680
He delights in his ways.
Though he fall, He shall not be

586
00:38:27,680 –> 00:38:31,720
utterly cast down, for Yahweh
upholdeth him with His hand.

587
00:38:32,560 –> 00:38:42,160
That little phrase, the steps
that’s small, that’s each little

588
00:38:42,160 –> 00:38:48,200
choice, each little step that we
take in life, the steps of a

589
00:38:48,200 –> 00:38:54,520
good man are ordered by Yah.
When we fall God’s hands there

590
00:38:54,800 –> 00:38:59,000
to lift us back up again.
How does that work, Brothers and

591
00:38:59,000 –> 00:39:01,320
sisters?
Let’s get our not just our head,

592
00:39:01,320 –> 00:39:06,280
but also our heart around the
concept of God working that

593
00:39:06,280 –> 00:39:09,600
minutely in our personal daily
lives.

594
00:39:12,600 –> 00:39:14,960
So what’s the point that comes
from this, brothers and sisters?

595
00:39:16,320 –> 00:39:21,000
The point that comes from this
is that we must never lose sight

596
00:39:22,160 –> 00:39:25,000
of the work, that angelic
presence, the work of

597
00:39:25,000 –> 00:39:28,760
Providence, God’s Spirit working
in our daily lives.

598
00:39:30,040 –> 00:39:34,200
And the objective of us
considering this topic is to try

599
00:39:34,200 –> 00:39:39,040
and clothe with reality the
things that we can’t see.

600
00:39:41,800 –> 00:39:44,920
Moses was able to endure an
enormous amount.

601
00:39:44,920 –> 00:39:47,160
He made some very big choices in
life.

602
00:39:47,720 –> 00:39:53,920
He turned his back on the riches
of Egypt and he wasn’t scared of

603
00:39:53,920 –> 00:39:58,680
the anger of a mighty Pharaoh.
Why Hebrews 11 verse 27?

604
00:39:59,240 –> 00:40:03,800
He endured as seeing Him who is
invisible.

605
00:40:05,320 –> 00:40:08,040
Now sometimes we see the hand of
Providence in in the big things

606
00:40:08,040 –> 00:40:10,920
of life.
We see spectacular examples of

607
00:40:10,920 –> 00:40:13,560
someone on their journey of
being brought to a knowledge of

608
00:40:13,560 –> 00:40:14,960
the truth.
And we say that’s that’s

609
00:40:15,160 –> 00:40:19,440
tremendously wonderful.
But actually the work of the

610
00:40:19,440 –> 00:40:23,280
countless myriads of the angels
involved in their own daily life

611
00:40:23,360 –> 00:40:28,640
is just mind boggling to try and
comprehend that little phrase.

612
00:40:28,760 –> 00:40:31,760
Lead us not into temptation, but
deliver us from evil.

613
00:40:32,680 –> 00:40:34,320
Does God do that once in your
life?

614
00:40:35,320 –> 00:40:38,080
Is he going to do it in 2026 on
the 17th of March?

615
00:40:39,640 –> 00:40:45,000
Or is that a daily thing?
How many times a day does God

616
00:40:45,200 –> 00:40:49,320
deliver us from evil?
How many times a day does God

617
00:40:49,320 –> 00:40:52,320
help lead us away from
temptations that we may not have

618
00:40:52,320 –> 00:40:56,400
been able to actually withstand?
And I suspect the work of the

619
00:40:56,440 –> 00:41:00,520
angels is a much more integral
part of our daily life than we

620
00:41:00,520 –> 00:41:05,080
often stop and think about.
When God wants a given outcome,

621
00:41:05,520 –> 00:41:11,600
a given choice or decision, how
many years does he begin to work

622
00:41:11,640 –> 00:41:16,320
in advance to achieve that on
that particular day when we make

623
00:41:16,320 –> 00:41:18,480
that particular fateful
decision?

624
00:41:19,520 –> 00:41:23,200
And in how many other people’s
lives has he also been working

625
00:41:23,520 –> 00:41:27,240
to bring about that particular
circumstance?

626
00:41:28,160 –> 00:41:31,000
And when he’s doing that, he’s
doing that in all the

627
00:41:31,000 –> 00:41:35,520
circumstances of life, but not
just for you, for all our

628
00:41:35,520 –> 00:41:38,120
brothers and sisters.
And at the same time, he’s

629
00:41:38,120 –> 00:41:40,840
managing all the affairs of the
of the nations to bring about

630
00:41:40,840 –> 00:41:45,640
the return of his son.
Outstanding concepts to think

631
00:41:45,640 –> 00:41:49,360
about brothers and sisters, mind
blowing things to actually think

632
00:41:49,360 –> 00:41:53,760
about now.
It’s very, it’s very reassuring

633
00:41:53,760 –> 00:41:56,600
and it’s very humble to think of
the work of the angels like

634
00:41:56,600 –> 00:41:59,400
that.
But if that’s impressive and

635
00:41:59,400 –> 00:42:03,080
thought provoking, what happens
when we stop to think about the

636
00:42:03,080 –> 00:42:08,600
role of our Lord Jesus Christ in
that particular work, and we

637
00:42:08,600 –> 00:42:13,360
can’t actually properly
comprehend the subject without

638
00:42:13,360 –> 00:42:16,880
thinking about the work of
Christ in this particular

639
00:42:16,880 –> 00:42:19,080
passage.
I’d like you to come with me

640
00:42:19,080 –> 00:42:24,320
actually to Hebrews 2.
In Hebrews 2 we’re told that in

641
00:42:24,320 –> 00:42:29,200
the days of our mortality our
Lord was made a little lower

642
00:42:29,200 –> 00:42:32,720
than the angels.
Hebrews 2 and we’ll pick it up.

643
00:42:32,800 –> 00:42:39,120
In verse 9 we see Jesus, Jesus,
who was made a little lower than

644
00:42:39,120 –> 00:42:41,120
the angels for the suffering of
death.

645
00:42:41,960 –> 00:42:43,520
Now cremant with glory and
honor.

646
00:42:43,680 –> 00:42:47,200
Or in verse 16, verily He took
not on him the nature of angels,

647
00:42:47,440 –> 00:42:50,280
but He took on Him the seed of
Abraham.

648
00:42:51,160 –> 00:42:55,360
So our Lord, when He came in the
days of His mortality, was made

649
00:42:55,400 –> 00:43:02,320
a little lower than the angels.
But now, as it says in Hebrews

650
00:43:02,320 –> 00:43:08,200
one, if you turn back Hebrews
one, verse three, who being in

651
00:43:08,200 –> 00:43:11,560
the brightness of his glory, the
express image of His person,

652
00:43:11,560 –> 00:43:15,240
upholding all things by the word
of his power, when He had by

653
00:43:15,240 –> 00:43:18,800
himself purged our sins, sat
down on the right hand of the

654
00:43:18,800 –> 00:43:23,520
majesty on high, being made so
much better than the angels, as

655
00:43:23,520 –> 00:43:27,080
He’s obtained by inheritance a
more excellent name than they.

656
00:43:27,720 –> 00:43:31,400
So the record’s telling us that
to begin with, He was made lower

657
00:43:31,400 –> 00:43:34,280
than the angels.
Now it says that he’s now being

658
00:43:34,280 –> 00:43:37,240
made so much more than the
angels.

659
00:43:37,360 –> 00:43:41,200
That’s a radical change.
And in his words to the

660
00:43:41,200 –> 00:43:44,720
disciples, Matthew 28, So this
is after his resurrection,

661
00:43:44,920 –> 00:43:48,600
Matthew 28, verse 18, Jesus came
and spoke to him saying all

662
00:43:48,600 –> 00:43:52,000
power is given to me in heaven
and earth.

663
00:43:52,160 –> 00:43:57,120
So now all power is put into the
hands of the Lord, and we’re

664
00:43:57,120 –> 00:44:00,160
told him first to Peter that
explicitly includes the work of

665
00:44:00,160 –> 00:44:02,400
the angels.
He’s gone into heaven.

666
00:44:02,640 –> 00:44:06,040
He’s on the right hand of God,
angels and authorities and

667
00:44:06,040 –> 00:44:08,480
powers being made subject unto
Him.

668
00:44:08,760 –> 00:44:13,520
First of Peter three and verse 2
that tells us, brothers and

669
00:44:13,520 –> 00:44:18,400
sisters, that our Lord now is
personally in control of the

670
00:44:18,400 –> 00:44:23,440
work of the angels.
He’s taking a direct personal

671
00:44:23,560 –> 00:44:29,080
interest in that work in our own
daily lives, and our Lord wants

672
00:44:29,240 –> 00:44:33,040
us to allow Him.
And I’m using these words

673
00:44:33,040 –> 00:44:38,880
carefully to allow Him into our
daily lives to work with us.

674
00:44:40,000 –> 00:44:41,760
You know how it’s described in
Scripture.

675
00:44:43,560 –> 00:44:53,200
It’s described as Him knocking
on the door asking us to open

676
00:44:53,200 –> 00:44:55,840
our lives up so that He can do
that work.

677
00:44:56,520 –> 00:44:59,720
Revelation 3, verse 20.
Behold, I stand at the door and

678
00:44:59,720 –> 00:45:02,760
knock.
If any man hear my voice and

679
00:45:02,760 –> 00:45:04,800
open the door, I’ll come into
it.

680
00:45:05,840 –> 00:45:10,600
And then ultimately we’ll suck
with Him and he with me, the

681
00:45:12,000 –> 00:45:15,040
brothers and sisters.
Our Lord says he wanted to do

682
00:45:15,040 –> 00:45:18,880
that with our brothers and
sisters in Maya, to see him,

683
00:45:19,760 –> 00:45:27,600
Richard, miserable, poor, blind
and naked.

684
00:45:29,800 –> 00:45:31,240
That’s what he wanted to do with
them.

685
00:45:33,280 –> 00:45:39,440
So what’s he wanting to do with
us and the subject of Christ

686
00:45:39,520 –> 00:45:46,280
abiding in US, Christ dwelling
in US or God abiding in US is

687
00:45:46,280 –> 00:45:49,160
actually quite a theme in the
New Testament, quite a beautiful

688
00:45:49,160 –> 00:45:53,520
thing.
He wants His Spirit to dwell in

689
00:45:53,520 –> 00:45:58,840
us now, His way of thinking, so
that He can actually rule in our

690
00:45:58,840 –> 00:46:01,840
hearts.
That passage we’ve looked at

691
00:46:01,840 –> 00:46:05,320
before, Romans 8, verse nine.
Yeah, not in the flesh, but in

692
00:46:05,320 –> 00:46:08,560
the Spirit.
If so be that the Spirit of God

693
00:46:08,560 –> 00:46:11,680
dwell in you.
Now if any man have not the

694
00:46:11,680 –> 00:46:14,120
Spirit of Christ, he is none of
his.

695
00:46:15,400 –> 00:46:20,920
So as Christ is supervising that
work, how does Christ come to

696
00:46:20,920 –> 00:46:23,680
dwell in US?
And there’s a wonderful theme in

697
00:46:23,680 –> 00:46:29,120
Scripture of Christ abiding in
us as the Word comes to dwell in

698
00:46:29,120 –> 00:46:33,800
US and we change to start
thinking like him and like God.

699
00:46:34,240 –> 00:46:39,920
Look at these passages Ephesians
3 verse 17 that Christ might

700
00:46:39,920 –> 00:46:47,560
dwell in your hearts by faith.
For John 14 verse 23, Jesus

701
00:46:47,560 –> 00:46:53,720
answered and said unto him, If a
man loves me, he’ll keep my

702
00:46:53,960 –> 00:47:00,720
words, and my Father will love
him, and we will come unto him

703
00:47:01,720 –> 00:47:06,880
and make our abode with him.
This is the sense in which

704
00:47:06,880 –> 00:47:11,920
Christ wants to dwell in us now
as we learn from the Word, and

705
00:47:11,920 –> 00:47:15,920
their minds change, and we start
working with the Lord dwelling

706
00:47:15,920 –> 00:47:20,280
in US.
Or Colossians 3 verse 16, Let

707
00:47:20,280 –> 00:47:24,560
the word of Christ dwell in you
richly in all wisdom.

708
00:47:26,760 –> 00:47:32,120
Or 1 John 2 verse 24.
There’s actually three different

709
00:47:32,120 –> 00:47:35,760
words there in the English.
It’s all the same Greek word for

710
00:47:35,760 –> 00:47:39,480
abide.
Let that therefore abide in you,

711
00:47:40,160 –> 00:47:42,400
which you’ve heard from the
beginning.

712
00:47:42,840 –> 00:47:46,680
Notice the emphasis here on the
word and hearing what’s being

713
00:47:46,680 –> 00:47:48,040
said.
You’ve heard this from the

714
00:47:48,040 –> 00:47:50,560
beginning.
If that which you’ve heard from

715
00:47:50,560 –> 00:47:55,480
the beginning shall abide in
you, ye also shall abide in the

716
00:47:55,480 –> 00:48:02,440
Son and in the Father.
If ye abide in me, and my words

717
00:48:02,440 –> 00:48:07,520
abide in you, you shall ask what
you will, and it shall be done

718
00:48:07,920 –> 00:48:12,600
unto you.
And as Christ continues to work

719
00:48:12,600 –> 00:48:16,360
in our life, as the Spirit of
Christ dwells in US, brothers

720
00:48:16,360 –> 00:48:20,280
and sisters, as our minds are
renewed, the spirit of our mind

721
00:48:20,280 –> 00:48:22,160
is renewed.
As we’ve looked at during our

722
00:48:22,160 –> 00:48:27,360
studies, that work continues,
that work of angelic supervision

723
00:48:27,360 –> 00:48:32,160
continues until the point that
our Lord, our Lord actually

724
00:48:32,160 –> 00:48:36,000
returns.
You know, we’re in Hebrews.

725
00:48:36,000 –> 00:48:38,440
Just go back to Hebrews 2 verse
10.

726
00:48:40,440 –> 00:48:43,640
He’s Speaking of the captain of
this, of our salvation made

727
00:48:43,640 –> 00:48:46,560
perfect through suffering.
But there’s a little phrase

728
00:48:46,560 –> 00:48:48,880
there, Hebrews 2 verse 10, which
I want to pick up on.

729
00:48:49,240 –> 00:48:54,200
It became him for whom are all
things, by whom are all things

730
00:48:54,640 –> 00:48:58,120
in bringing, in bringing many
sons to glory, to make the

731
00:48:58,120 –> 00:49:01,400
captain of their salvation
perfect through sufferings.

732
00:49:01,840 –> 00:49:08,280
Let’s pick up that little phrase
in bringing many sons to glory.

733
00:49:10,000 –> 00:49:11,640
That’s the process, that’s the
objective.

734
00:49:11,640 –> 00:49:13,200
That’s actually what this is
about.

735
00:49:15,520 –> 00:49:18,200
The work of our Lord as the
captain of our salvation is to

736
00:49:18,200 –> 00:49:22,120
actually bring many sons and
daughters, many children of God

737
00:49:22,120 –> 00:49:25,640
through that process, bringing
many sons to glory.

738
00:49:26,000 –> 00:49:30,880
And when our Lord returns, if he
sees a reflection, a reflection

739
00:49:30,880 –> 00:49:35,360
of his Spirit in us, if he sees
that the way he thinks is now

740
00:49:35,360 –> 00:49:40,600
dwelling in us, then he will
complete that process of

741
00:49:40,600 –> 00:49:43,240
bringing many sons and daughters
to glory.

742
00:49:44,920 –> 00:49:47,120
And there’s a couple of passages
to look at now, brothers and

743
00:49:47,120 –> 00:49:50,640
sisters, because it shows us
that actually there’s a basis,

744
00:49:50,640 –> 00:49:53,360
there’s a set of principles upon
which that happens.

745
00:49:53,760 –> 00:49:56,960
This first one relates to the
Lord Jesus Christ himself,

746
00:49:58,120 –> 00:50:00,800
concerning his Son, Jesus Christ
our Lord, which was made of the

747
00:50:00,800 –> 00:50:06,120
seed of David according to the
flesh, declared to be the Son of

748
00:50:06,120 –> 00:50:11,080
God with power.
And note these words according

749
00:50:11,080 –> 00:50:14,880
to the spirit of holiness by the
resurrection from the dead.

750
00:50:14,880 –> 00:50:17,000
It’s an interesting little
statement.

751
00:50:18,040 –> 00:50:21,800
So here’s the Lord Jesus Christ,
who also was made perfect

752
00:50:21,800 –> 00:50:24,680
through suffering in bringing
many sons to glory.

753
00:50:24,840 –> 00:50:27,480
He’s been declared to be the Son
of God with power.

754
00:50:27,480 –> 00:50:30,520
Why?
Well, it was according to that

755
00:50:30,520 –> 00:50:34,360
spirit of holiness that was our
Lord.

756
00:50:35,040 –> 00:50:37,280
He exhibited that spirit of
holiness.

757
00:50:37,800 –> 00:50:41,040
And according to that spirit of
holiness, he’s now been

758
00:50:41,680 –> 00:50:45,240
resurrected from the dead and
declared to be the Son of God

759
00:50:45,240 –> 00:50:48,720
with power.
And what he wants to develop

760
00:50:48,720 –> 00:50:52,640
within us, brothers and sisters,
is that same spirit dwelling in

761
00:50:52,640 –> 00:50:56,840
US, that spirit of holiness, so
that then he can take us through

762
00:50:56,840 –> 00:50:59,640
the same process.
Now look at this passage now

763
00:50:59,680 –> 00:51:07,680
from Romans 8.
If the spirit of him that raised

764
00:51:07,680 –> 00:51:12,280
up Jesus from the dead dwells in
you, that’s the spirit mind that

765
00:51:12,280 –> 00:51:14,920
we’ve looked at, learning to
think in a different way,

766
00:51:15,240 –> 00:51:20,080
learning to show the Spirit of
Christ, learn from His Word in

767
00:51:20,080 –> 00:51:23,720
our hearts and minds.
If that Spirit dwells in us,

768
00:51:24,760 –> 00:51:28,760
then he that raised up Christ
from the dead will also give

769
00:51:28,760 –> 00:51:33,360
life to our mortal bodies.
And in the AV it says buy his

770
00:51:33,360 –> 00:51:35,120
spirit that dwelleth in you.
If you have a look in the

771
00:51:35,120 –> 00:51:40,840
margin, it says because of as
the phrase means because of his

772
00:51:40,840 –> 00:51:44,960
spirit that dwelleth in you.
And there’s a guarantee for us,

773
00:51:44,960 –> 00:51:48,280
brothers and sisters, that as
the Spirit of Christ comes to

774
00:51:48,280 –> 00:51:54,480
dwell in us, as he said, if that
spirit dwells in us, then the

775
00:51:54,480 –> 00:51:58,320
same God who raised up Christ
from the dead will give life to

776
00:51:58,320 –> 00:52:02,920
our mortal bodies because of his
Spirit that dwells in us.

777
00:52:03,040 –> 00:52:07,440
He will see that reflection in
our own weak, feeble ways as

778
00:52:07,440 –> 00:52:10,800
we’re learning to reflect and
change our mind to be more like

779
00:52:10,800 –> 00:52:12,440
that.
He’ll look at us, brothers and

780
00:52:12,440 –> 00:52:14,800
sisters, and he’ll say I love
that spirit.

781
00:52:15,640 –> 00:52:19,920
And because of that spirit, the
power that raised up his son

782
00:52:19,920 –> 00:52:24,960
from the dead and made him the
king over all, that same power

783
00:52:25,120 –> 00:52:29,080
will grant us immortality.
It’s an extraordinary thought of

784
00:52:29,720 –> 00:52:33,640
the thing to think about on
account the Berean literal Bible

785
00:52:33,640 –> 00:52:37,760
says He will give life to your
water bodies on account of His

786
00:52:37,760 –> 00:52:43,240
Spirit dwelling in US.
We’re running short on time.

787
00:52:43,240 –> 00:52:45,960
I was going to turn up Second of
the Corinthians, chapter 3.

788
00:52:45,960 –> 00:52:47,840
It’s a passage you’ll be
familiar with, so I’m going to

789
00:52:47,840 –> 00:52:51,480
read it out to you now.
The Lord is that spirit.

790
00:52:51,480 –> 00:52:53,920
So think about this brothers and
sisters, in terms of the topic

791
00:52:54,080 –> 00:52:56,800
that we’ve been looking at.
The Lord is that Spirit.

792
00:52:56,800 –> 00:53:02,200
He said where the Spirit of the
Lord is, there is freedom.

793
00:53:02,560 –> 00:53:08,240
Liberty in what sense?
This deliverance, brothers and

794
00:53:08,240 –> 00:53:12,640
sisters, from the bondage of sin
and death, this freedom from the

795
00:53:12,640 –> 00:53:15,400
trials of life which bear us
down?

796
00:53:15,600 –> 00:53:18,520
Where the Spirit of the Lord is,
there is freedom.

797
00:53:18,680 –> 00:53:22,360
But we all with open face,
beholding as in a glass the

798
00:53:22,360 –> 00:53:31,160
glory of the Lord, are changed
into the same image from glory

799
00:53:31,160 –> 00:53:35,920
to glory, even as by the Spirit
of the Lord or as the words

800
00:53:35,920 –> 00:53:40,720
littering them by the Lord.
The Spirit, the ESV translates

801
00:53:40,720 –> 00:53:42,480
it now to the Lord is the
Spirit.

802
00:53:43,920 –> 00:53:46,560
Where the Spirit of the Lord is,
there’s freedom.

803
00:53:47,760 –> 00:53:52,680
We all with unveiled face, we’re
beholding the glory of the Lord.

804
00:53:53,720 –> 00:54:01,040
We’re being transformed into the
same image from 1° of glory to

805
00:54:01,040 –> 00:54:06,160
another.
For this comes from the Lord who

806
00:54:06,200 –> 00:54:09,840
is the Spirit.
And what that tells us, brothers

807
00:54:09,840 –> 00:54:13,440
and sisters, is that as we go
through this changing process,

808
00:54:13,640 –> 00:54:17,600
this transforming process of the
work of the Spirit that’s

809
00:54:17,600 –> 00:54:22,000
working with clay or oven
vessels, men and women like us,

810
00:54:22,360 –> 00:54:25,480
as God’s taking us or the Lord
is taking us through this

811
00:54:25,480 –> 00:54:29,440
process, it’s changing and
transforming us.

812
00:54:29,840 –> 00:54:37,320
And ultimately will be changed
from glory to glory in the image

813
00:54:37,880 –> 00:54:41,480
of that glory.
And ultimately our glorious Lord

814
00:54:41,480 –> 00:54:44,760
will transform us through the
Spirit to be like Himself.

815
00:54:45,280 –> 00:54:49,400
Philippians 320 Who shall change
our vile body, that it may be

816
00:54:49,400 –> 00:54:53,120
fashioned like unto His glorious
body, according to the working

817
00:54:53,120 –> 00:54:56,040
whereby He’s able to subdue all
things to Himself?

818
00:54:56,920 –> 00:55:00,960
Or what?
1st Corinthians 15 verse 45 The

819
00:55:00,960 –> 00:55:06,400
last Adam was made into a life
giving spirit.

820
00:55:06,600 –> 00:55:08,760
When we see our Lord return,
brothers and sisters, you know

821
00:55:08,800 –> 00:55:11,800
what we’ll see?
We’ll see a life giving spirit,

822
00:55:12,120 –> 00:55:15,480
because the last Adam has been
made a life giving spirit.

823
00:55:15,480 –> 00:55:18,400
Well, what about the words of
our Lord to Nicodemus?

824
00:55:18,520 –> 00:55:22,040
Now those words come to a
conclusion when the Lord says

825
00:55:23,000 –> 00:55:26,840
that which is born of spirit is
spirit.

826
00:55:27,560 –> 00:55:30,320
That’s the ultimate destiny,
brothers and sisters, as we

827
00:55:30,320 –> 00:55:34,160
become spirit beings.
So that’s the journey of the

828
00:55:34,160 –> 00:55:38,200
spirit, the journey that our
Heavenly Father is taking us

829
00:55:38,200 –> 00:55:42,720
through.
So we’ve we’ve scratched the

830
00:55:42,720 –> 00:55:47,880
surface, as it were, of a rather
extraordinary journey and topic

831
00:55:48,000 –> 00:55:51,160
this week.
There’s God’s spirit work in the

832
00:55:51,160 –> 00:55:54,280
universe, in the creation, in
the life of the Saints, in the

833
00:55:54,280 –> 00:55:57,680
power of the word to transform
us, to develop the mind of God

834
00:55:57,720 –> 00:56:00,600
in us.
But actually what we’ve seen

835
00:56:00,600 –> 00:56:05,120
today is that that hand also
works in the lives of very

836
00:56:05,120 –> 00:56:10,840
flawed individuals, people like
you and me, as he’s actually

837
00:56:10,840 –> 00:56:14,480
working to help us in that
transforming process.

838
00:56:15,680 –> 00:56:19,440
He’s trying to develop His
spirit within us and He wants to

839
00:56:19,440 –> 00:56:22,600
change us into spirit beings for
all eternity.

840
00:56:24,840 –> 00:56:31,400
Now, as we all know, life can be
full of challenges and sometimes

841
00:56:31,600 –> 00:56:37,440
we lose hope.
Events get too big, or our

842
00:56:37,440 –> 00:56:43,880
failures are too overwhelming,
or the behaviour of others can

843
00:56:43,880 –> 00:56:47,640
be too discouraging, or we can
just lose sight.

844
00:56:49,560 –> 00:56:51,680
This topic gives us the
reassurance, brothers and

845
00:56:51,680 –> 00:56:55,920
sisters, that He continues to
work with us.

846
00:56:57,160 –> 00:57:00,480
It’s through His power that
these things become possible.

847
00:57:01,840 –> 00:57:05,040
So in conclusion, I’d like us to
turn back to a passage we’ve

848
00:57:05,040 –> 00:57:07,000
referred to and looked at many
times.

849
00:57:07,440 –> 00:57:12,320
Romans chapter 8.
The passage when he speaks of

850
00:57:12,320 –> 00:57:17,600
God’s Spirit dwelling in US.
The passage where he speaks of

851
00:57:17,640 –> 00:57:20,200
all things working together for
good.

852
00:57:21,080 –> 00:57:25,400
The passage where he speaks in
Romans 8 of God calling us

853
00:57:25,760 –> 00:57:28,920
because He knew that He would
bring us into the saving name of

854
00:57:28,920 –> 00:57:33,120
Christ thousands of years before
we were even born.

855
00:57:34,560 –> 00:57:39,000
In verse 29 he speaks of us
being conformed to the image of

856
00:57:39,040 –> 00:57:42,200
His Son.
We’ve looked at the concept of

857
00:57:42,200 –> 00:57:49,000
His foreknowledge and pre
destination and overwhelmed by

858
00:57:49,000 –> 00:57:52,720
those thoughts of the work of
the Spirit.

859
00:57:54,080 –> 00:57:56,040
Paul concludes with these
thoughts.

860
00:57:56,040 –> 00:57:59,560
Verse 31.
What should we then say to these

861
00:57:59,560 –> 00:58:03,160
things?
Brothers and sisters, if God be

862
00:58:03,160 –> 00:58:10,480
for us, who can be against us?
He that spared not his own Son,

863
00:58:10,480 –> 00:58:15,240
but delivered Him up for us all,
how shall He not with Him also

864
00:58:15,240 –> 00:58:21,920
freely give us all things?
He gave his Son for our lives,

865
00:58:22,880 –> 00:58:25,200
so won’t He give us everything
that’s necessary?

866
00:58:26,240 –> 00:58:28,600
Who’s going to lay anything to
the charge of God’s elect?

867
00:58:28,600 –> 00:58:31,760
Who’s going to charge us with
things?

868
00:58:32,360 –> 00:58:35,560
God?
Who justifies is the question.

869
00:58:35,680 –> 00:58:38,880
Surely not, He said.
Or verse 34.

870
00:58:38,920 –> 00:58:41,400
Who’s going to condemn us?
Christ?

871
00:58:41,400 –> 00:58:42,760
Well, Christ condemn us, he
said.

872
00:58:43,320 –> 00:58:46,240
Christ is the one who died and
has risen again.

873
00:58:46,360 –> 00:58:49,360
He’s at the right hand of God.
He’s making a decision for us.

874
00:58:49,520 –> 00:58:51,480
He won’t sit there and condemn
us.

875
00:58:51,640 –> 00:58:55,160
Who’s going to separate us from
the love of Christ in

876
00:58:55,160 –> 00:59:01,040
tribulation or distress or
persecution or famine or

877
00:59:01,040 –> 00:59:04,880
nakedness or parent or sword?
He said.

878
00:59:04,880 –> 00:59:06,920
That’s all.
That’s all written in advance in

879
00:59:06,920 –> 00:59:09,000
Scripture.
For thy sake we’re killed all

880
00:59:09,000 –> 00:59:10,440
the day long.
No, he said.

881
00:59:10,440 –> 00:59:12,680
In all of these things we’re
more than conquerors.

882
00:59:12,920 –> 00:59:17,000
Through him that loved us.
All of these things are going to

883
00:59:17,000 –> 00:59:20,640
happen, says Paul.
This is going to be our life,

884
00:59:20,760 –> 00:59:23,080
says Paul.
Will that remove our hope?

885
00:59:23,080 –> 00:59:27,080
No, he said.
I am persuaded.

886
00:59:27,080 –> 00:59:33,240
He said in verse 38 that neither
death nor life, nor angels, nor

887
00:59:33,240 –> 00:59:36,800
principalities, nor powers,
things present or things to

888
00:59:36,800 –> 00:59:41,040
come, Nothing that happens in
the future, no height, no depth,

889
00:59:41,280 –> 00:59:46,240
nothing, no other creation will
be able to separate us from the

890
00:59:46,240 –> 00:59:50,280
love of God, which is in Christ
Jesus our Lord.

891
00:59:53,120 –> 00:59:59,200
Even death, he said, or life
won’t separate us from Christ.

892
01:00:00,520 –> 01:00:04,240
No matter what powers, what
events, what enormous things are

893
01:00:04,240 –> 01:00:08,440
swirling around in our lives,
nothing is able to actually

894
01:00:08,440 –> 01:00:10,760
separate us from the lump of
Christ.

895
01:00:12,640 –> 01:00:15,960
So what that tells us, brothers
and sisters, is that there is

896
01:00:15,960 –> 01:00:22,080
nothing so big or so
overwhelming that God can’t

897
01:00:22,640 –> 01:00:26,080
still work to achieve His
purpose and save us.

898
01:00:26,280 –> 01:00:30,440
Nothing can separate us from the
love of God in Christ Jesus.

899
01:00:31,440 –> 01:00:34,200
So let’s be energized by that
thought, brothers and sisters,

900
01:00:34,200 –> 01:00:37,880
let’s be reassured as we resume
our journey through all trials

901
01:00:37,880 –> 01:00:43,280
of life, the journey of the
Spirit, rejoicing in our

902
01:00:43,280 –> 01:00:47,680
confidence that God is actually
working through our daily lives

903
01:00:47,680 –> 01:00:52,160
to accomplish His work, and by
God’s grace will be able to

904
01:00:52,160 –> 01:00:57,320
fully participate in His Spirit
power when it fills the whole

905
01:00:57,320 –> 01:00:59,000
universe with its glory.