The Fruits of the Holy Spirit (BIBLESPEAK)

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Hey, everyone. Welcome to the Faith and Mission

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podcast. Great to have you today. We are a podcast

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that's talking about all kinds of topics about

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the Christian faith, theology and culture. And

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we're here today to be able to help equip you

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in your walk in following Jesus Christ. Today,

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we're going to be covering episode number two

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of the Bible Speaks series all about the Holy

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Spirit. This is where we allow the Bible to speak

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for itself. You see, scripture has a voice and

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we need to allow it to tell us what the faith

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is about. It's all about searching for truth.

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Today with me, I've got some friends and leaders

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in our ministry to help unpack the scripture

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about the Holy Spirit. Now, if you saw part one

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of the Holy Spirit series, we spoke all about

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who the Holy Spirit is and what the ministry

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of the Holy Spirit is. And today, in part two,

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we're going to be covering more of that, but

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we're going to specifically be speaking about

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one of the most important topics concerning the

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Holy Spirit, and that is called the fruits of

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the Spirit. We have with me today, who is also

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in our part one series, we have Steve Paul, who

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is one of our house church leaders. We've got

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Pastor Pat, who also leads a house church in

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the ministry. And we've got our dear friend and

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brother, Jeff Palamaro. And we're excited because,

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guys, we're all on a journey, aren't we? We're

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all trying to understand scripture together.

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And that's why I'm encouraging you to join the

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conversation and to grab your Bible, grab a notebook,

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grab a cup of coffee, and let's dig into the

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scripture together. so that we can really grow

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in our understanding of the Holy Spirit. Well,

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the primary text that we're going to be jumping

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into today, guys, is all about the fruits of

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the Spirit versus the works of the flesh. So

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turn with us to Galatians chapter 5, and we're

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going to begin reading in verse number 16. This

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is Paul's letter. He's an apostle. He's sent

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by God to preach the gospel. And he wrote 13

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of all the New Testament letters. And Paul the

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apostle is writing this region called Galatia.

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And these are new believers. He's just establishing

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them in the faith. And they're just learning

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what it's like to no longer live without Christ.

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They're learning who Christ is, and now they're

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learning about the Holy Spirit. And you know,

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Paul is really addressing this idea that you

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are no longer going to live the way you used

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to live. Now that you've encountered Jesus Christ,

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there is a new way of living. Maybe you've even

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heard the idea of being born again and being

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made new in Christ and these verses that say

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that old things have passed away, but behold,

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all things are new. Well, it's not just theory.

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It actually is supposed to show up in our everyday

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life, marriage, even our work. So if you're somebody

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that has been Desiring to experience change in

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your life. And you may be saying, I am going

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to church, but I'm not experiencing the change

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that I like. Well, you're really going to love

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this conversation. So again, open up to Galatians

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chapter five, verse 16. I'm going to begin reading

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that. It says, I say then walk in the spirit

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and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh

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for the flesh lusts against the spirit. And the

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spirit. against the flesh. And these are contrary

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to one another, so that you do not do the things

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that you wish. Well, let's kick off our conversation

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here with the first question. What does Paul

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mean by walk in the spirit? He says, walk in

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the spirit and you shall not fulfill the lust

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of the flesh. What is this phrase walk in the

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spirit referred to? I think he's talking about

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the way that we live, the way that we conduct

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ourselves day by day, the actions that we take,

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and that we're not living according to the way

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the world says that. we should live, not listening

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to the news and the things that the world is

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telling us, but we're in the Word of God and

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understanding by the Holy Spirit that we can

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live a different way. And if we follow the Word

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of God and listen to the Holy Spirit, we are

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walking in the Spirit. That's good. Other thoughts?

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What does walking in the Spirit mean, guys? Well,

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for me, it's going against what the norm is,

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what I used to live my life like. So Galatians

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really does hit home because it literally is

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walking out new life, you know, behaving in a

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way that is not what I used to be like, you know,

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and it's beautiful. Yeah. You know, one of the

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things I think about walking in the Spirit is

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that there is behavior change, but it isn't just

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our strength. It's not like we're trying to force

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a change in our behavior with our willpower.

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This is, Pastor Pat, like you said, like we're

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walking or living in the Spirit. So there's a

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work of the Spirit that's involved here, not

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just our human effort. Yeah. Why do we think

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that's important that it's not just our effort?

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Well, it reminds me of a scripture in the book

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of Acts where it says that in Him we live and

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move. and have our being. He was talking to people

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who were idolaters. I mean, they grew up surrounded

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by all kinds of idols, all kinds of gods, in

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whose spirit they might be walking in. Maybe

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I'll walk in the spirit, the spirit of thunder,

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the spirit of whatever. And then the truth comes.

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There's one spirit, this unknown God that you

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aren't sure about. He is the God of all gods,

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and in Him we live and we move and we have our

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being. So it's more than just some God that we

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worship from afar off. It's not just an idol

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that we bow down to, but our whole being is meant

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to be within the Spirit of God. We were created

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for that. We would create it. And in fact, He

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even says in that portion that God established

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everything so that we would seek after Him. There's

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something deep within us that from the time we're

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born, it's seeking after God. But we don't know

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until we hear the gospel. Once we hear the gospel,

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we know the good news that we can live and move

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and have our very being in Him. It's good you're

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making me think about this idea because in episode

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number one or part one of the series, We spoke

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about how the Holy Spirit is not just a cloud,

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not just a concept, but He's God. So do you think

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it'd be accurate, Steve, that it's saying like

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walk in the Spirit is literally to walk in God.

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Yeah. Yeah, that's a, you know, a different level

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than just us walking in our strength. Yeah. Jeff,

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when you were first, you refer to your old life

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before you knew. My BC days. Yeah, before Christ,

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your BC days. When you were doing that, did you

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try to change in your own stride? Absolutely.

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I mean, for 38 years. I mean, that's why I identify

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with that scripture so much about the man with

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infirmities. But for 38 years, I tried to do

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things by my own strength. I had false identity

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throughout my whole life, you know, changing

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how I dressed, who I hung out with, what I listened

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to. You know, I practiced witchcraft. I practiced

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Satanism. I mean, I did Buddhism, astrology,

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you name it. I tried it all and it never worked

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out. You know, I was always seeking something

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like, like, like, like Mr. Steven was saying,

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you know, you're seeking something, but you just

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don't know that you're supposed to be seeking

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God. Yeah. So powerful. When I found God, he

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found me. You know, it literally put to death

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that whole false identity. Yeah. You know? Yeah.

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Yeah. I remember for the first 19, 20 years of

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my life, I kept trying to stop worrying. Like

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even as a child, I had a lot of worry and anxiety

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and things. And telling me to stop worrying was

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telling me to grow taller in front of you, no

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matter how hard I tried. But when I became a

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child of God, by God's grace through faith in

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Jesus, I had peace. I have peace in us. We're

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going to see it's one of the fruits of the Spirit.

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That's right. So, you know, it's really important

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that we understand that living in God, walking

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in God, walking in the Spirit is something that

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is not walking in our own limited strength. We

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are not trying to create these changes. It's

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the Spirit inside of us. Pastor Pack, could you

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read from verse 18 to 21 because You know, Paul

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is going to talk about this idea of the works

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of the flesh. Why don't you read for us? I'm

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reading from the New American Standard. But if

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you are led by the Spirit, you're not under the

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law. Now the deeds of the flesh are evident,

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which are immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry,

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sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts

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of anger, disputes, dissensions. factions, envying,

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drunkenness, carousing, and things like these,

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of which I forewarn you, just as I have forewarned

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you, that those who practice such things shall

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not inherit the kingdom of God. Wow. We talked

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a little bit about walking in the Spirit. How

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would we define this idea of works of the flesh?

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Like I said before, when I was living in that

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former life, and all those things that we just

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listed, that's how I was living my life. You

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know, that's the flesh. Yeah, I know you you

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were actually going down this list when you were

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describing your before Christ life. Yeah, yeah.

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That's my former resume. Yeah. So works of the

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flesh. Like, how would we define flesh here?

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Like, is it talking about our natural bodies?

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Or is it talking about something else? Talking

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about our craving, our desire? Yeah. Well, what

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we're going after. we're going after, and I see

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that he's broken it down into three categories

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here. He talks about moral impurity first, and

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then he talks about false worship, and a lot

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of people are looking for a God, you know, like

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you spoke of before. They're looking for that

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one, and they get sidetracked into idolatry and

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witchcraft. And then he talks about personal

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and social relationships, how we interact with

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other people and react out of our carnal nature,

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out of our flesh. And instead of responding to

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them appropriately, we react. You said something

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really key. You said carnal, carnal nature. Maybe

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for those who are listening, we need to just

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address that. So what would that mean, Steve?

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Well, I thought of it this way. You almost could

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say that we're all born with the kind of heart

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disease from our father, Adam. And so when he

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sinned, he brought down our whole race, really,

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you could say. And from that moment, there was

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this incurable heart disease that I had. And

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in this heart disease, the Bible says that our

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hearts are deceitfully wicked, that because of

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the fall, because of sin, there is within me

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not only this desire to reach out to know God,

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because I know I need to be in the presence of

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God, but there is also these desires that we

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have, that we inherited from Adam. these desires

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that are played out in these works of the flesh.

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So you have the desires of the spirit, but we

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have the desires of the flesh and they're worked

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out in all of these things. This is how you see

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the nature of the heart disease that we have

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that can only be cured in Christ. It is curable.

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Only in Christ. Only in Christ. So, you know,

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a lot of people think that when we're first born

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that we're kind of really born with a clean slate.

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that we're inherently good and inherently pure.

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But the Bible doesn't teach that. It describes

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that this heart disease is coming down as almost

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like, like you said from Adam, like it's a spiritual,

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like a spiritual gene that's going all the way

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through. So we're actually born with natures

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that are bent away from God. I heard Charles

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Stanley, the late Charles Stanley describe it

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like that, as I was a new believer. I never forgot

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how he described it. You know, a nature that's

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bent away from God. It's not following God. It's

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not from God. So, in a way, would it be accurate

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to say that these works of the flesh are the

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normal behaviors, desires, like you're saying,

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that belong to the corrupted, fallen nature that's

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the opposite of God. It's kind of scary, though,

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when you think about it. These works of the flesh

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are what people deal with every day. That's right.

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You know, I like the way the NASB reads it. It

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says the deeds, the deeds of the flesh are evident.

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And even, you know, like this is our culture,

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isn't it? Immorality, impurity, sensualities

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everywhere in the media, social media, movies

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everywhere. Yes. This idea of anger, jealousy.

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disputes, contentions. Sort of normal behavior.

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Accepted behavior. It reminds me of that saying,

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a fish doesn't know the water it's swimming in.

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And this is just the water I was swimming in

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until I encountered Christ. It was all just normal

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to me. This is because I was not living in him,

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I was living in the lust of the flesh and carrying

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out the deeds of the flesh. And you didn't know

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there was another way to live. I didn't know

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there was another. I thought this was normal

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for me. See, I think that that's a big point,

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right? We think we actually are normal by doing

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these things and normal to have to deal with

00:14:45.129 --> 00:14:46.769
these things. So marriages are, I mean, just

00:14:46.769 --> 00:14:48.629
think about what kind of marriage do you have

00:14:48.629 --> 00:14:54.789
if your spouse has anger and sensuality and adultery?

00:14:55.430 --> 00:14:57.710
and what kind of marriage you're going to have,

00:14:57.769 --> 00:14:59.389
what kind of workplace you're going to have,

00:14:59.610 --> 00:15:02.149
if your employees are dishonest and immoral,

00:15:02.269 --> 00:15:07.610
and there's contentions and office gossip. But

00:15:07.610 --> 00:15:10.269
we have to ask the flip, what would it look like

00:15:10.269 --> 00:15:13.669
if we weren't doing these things? And the Bible

00:15:13.669 --> 00:15:16.669
doesn't describe this as like a choice in the

00:15:16.669 --> 00:15:20.210
old nature. Nature means that it's just being

00:15:20.210 --> 00:15:24.759
who it is. Like in Texas, they say you could

00:15:24.759 --> 00:15:27.120
put a bow tie on a pig. That's right. It's still

00:15:27.120 --> 00:15:30.539
a pig, right? So many times we try to gloss things,

00:15:30.720 --> 00:15:34.899
make ourselves look, but inside we're still having

00:15:34.899 --> 00:15:42.039
these urges, desires for things that are not

00:15:42.039 --> 00:15:45.379
good. Right. Yeah. Yeah. I'm so thankful that

00:15:45.379 --> 00:15:47.779
God showed me that there's another way. That

00:15:47.779 --> 00:15:49.500
way that I was living before was like loving

00:15:49.500 --> 00:15:53.179
hell. Yeah. And that was... Like you said, it

00:15:53.179 --> 00:15:56.279
seemed normal. So this is how I live my life.

00:15:56.840 --> 00:16:00.179
God showed me another way. Let's read about it.

00:16:00.600 --> 00:16:03.059
Let's go to chapter five and Steve, why don't

00:16:03.059 --> 00:16:04.720
you go ahead and read those remaining verses

00:16:04.720 --> 00:16:09.759
there. Starting at 22 Galatians 5 22 in the New

00:16:09.759 --> 00:16:14.340
King James, but the fruit of the spirit is love,

00:16:14.740 --> 00:16:19.799
joy, peace, long suffering, kindness, goodness,

00:16:20.679 --> 00:16:26.059
faithfulness. gentleness, self -control. Against

00:16:26.059 --> 00:16:30.500
such there is no law. And those who are Christ's

00:16:30.500 --> 00:16:34.159
have crucified the flesh with its passions and

00:16:34.159 --> 00:16:38.259
desires. If we live in the Spirit, let us also

00:16:38.259 --> 00:16:42.580
walk in the Spirit. All right, let's go through

00:16:42.580 --> 00:16:44.580
this for a minute. Jeff, I'd love for you to

00:16:44.580 --> 00:16:48.360
kind of talk about your experience here because

00:16:48.360 --> 00:16:51.059
you went through a difficult time in your life.

00:16:51.129 --> 00:16:52.909
Right. Maybe you could share a little bit about

00:16:52.909 --> 00:16:57.110
that, how bad it got. Where do I start? I mean,

00:16:57.110 --> 00:17:00.330
from from my childhood into adulthood, I dealt

00:17:00.330 --> 00:17:05.329
with, you know, physical and sexual abuse. My

00:17:05.329 --> 00:17:08.009
dad left when I was 13, so I had no father figure.

00:17:08.650 --> 00:17:10.410
My mother had to work all the time at the hospital,

00:17:10.430 --> 00:17:13.269
so I had no supervision, which led me to hang

00:17:13.269 --> 00:17:16.089
out with the wrong crowd, making bad decision

00:17:16.089 --> 00:17:19.190
after bad decision, falling into drugs, addiction.

00:17:19.549 --> 00:17:24.390
um and living that immoral carnal life um and

00:17:24.390 --> 00:17:27.849
it was it was pain and it was walking the earth

00:17:27.849 --> 00:17:31.190
feeling lost while trying to find a home trying

00:17:31.190 --> 00:17:35.549
to find purpose find find identity um which ultimately

00:17:35.549 --> 00:17:38.849
led me to try to commit suicide you know i i

00:17:38.849 --> 00:17:41.869
almost succeeded but by the grace of god thank

00:17:41.869 --> 00:17:45.700
god that um my brother michael was able to answer

00:17:45.700 --> 00:17:47.700
the call to the dream that he received from the

00:17:47.700 --> 00:17:52.640
Lord and reached out to me. And he brought me

00:17:52.640 --> 00:17:54.920
here. He brought me to this family. He brought

00:17:54.920 --> 00:17:58.940
me to his kingdom. He showed me a different way

00:17:58.940 --> 00:18:03.500
of living. I don't have to identify what that

00:18:03.500 --> 00:18:07.420
is. What happened to me throughout my whole life

00:18:07.420 --> 00:18:12.460
was not who I am. What happened to me was not

00:18:12.460 --> 00:18:17.369
who I am. Yeah, I think that's so powerful, Jeff.

00:18:17.789 --> 00:18:20.410
And I think a lot of people, you need to hear

00:18:20.410 --> 00:18:25.210
that, especially you who have maybe been abused,

00:18:26.990 --> 00:18:30.910
mistreated, gone through things. That's not you.

00:18:31.529 --> 00:18:35.170
Those are things that happen to you. God has

00:18:35.170 --> 00:18:38.309
a better way. So, you know, he describes that

00:18:38.309 --> 00:18:42.210
there's fruits of the spirit. These are different

00:18:42.210 --> 00:18:45.940
from works. These are not even deeds, right?

00:18:45.960 --> 00:18:48.299
The first time we spoke about the deeds in the

00:18:48.299 --> 00:18:51.339
NASB, right? The deeds. The New King James says

00:18:51.339 --> 00:18:57.640
the works. What's the idea of a fruit? What is

00:18:57.640 --> 00:19:00.700
the Bible meaning when Paul is saying the fruit

00:19:00.700 --> 00:19:04.019
of the spirit? I feel like that's the change

00:19:04.019 --> 00:19:07.769
in your character. uh from shifting from who

00:19:07.769 --> 00:19:10.029
you used to be to who you are now who you're

00:19:10.029 --> 00:19:12.549
intended to be yeah you know but putting death

00:19:12.549 --> 00:19:15.869
the old characteristics and behaviors and mannerisms

00:19:15.869 --> 00:19:19.309
and your whole mindset your heart changes yeah

00:19:19.309 --> 00:19:22.190
everything changes it's good it's good what else

00:19:22.190 --> 00:19:26.329
does what do we mean by fruit of the spirit it's

00:19:26.329 --> 00:19:28.430
good well fruit is something that develops over

00:19:28.430 --> 00:19:33.180
time It's not like, okay, fruit. Hey, put the

00:19:33.180 --> 00:19:34.859
plants in the ground. Oh, there's fruit. No,

00:19:35.160 --> 00:19:40.279
it's over time. Now, when Jesus took me out of

00:19:40.279 --> 00:19:43.559
the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of his

00:19:43.559 --> 00:19:47.140
beloved son, there was an immediate thing. And

00:19:47.140 --> 00:19:50.099
I knew right away that my whole life was different,

00:19:50.519 --> 00:19:53.259
that everything had changed. But that was just

00:19:53.259 --> 00:19:55.400
the beginning. You know, it's like they say,

00:19:55.480 --> 00:19:57.640
you know, the The wedding is just the beginning.

00:19:57.799 --> 00:20:01.240
The marriage is what comes after. So it's not

00:20:01.240 --> 00:20:05.619
enough to just be free. But there is now a new

00:20:05.619 --> 00:20:08.039
way to walk. There is a walk. And but the good

00:20:08.039 --> 00:20:12.059
news is there's power to walk in that, you know,

00:20:12.319 --> 00:20:15.039
always was addressing people who had who heard

00:20:15.039 --> 00:20:17.839
this false teaching. Well, you have to do this.

00:20:17.920 --> 00:20:19.759
That's the law says you have to do that. That's

00:20:19.759 --> 00:20:21.880
the law says thou shall not do that. You shall

00:20:21.880 --> 00:20:24.019
do this, this, this. And they were they were

00:20:24.019 --> 00:20:26.690
into a works. They believe that they could be

00:20:26.690 --> 00:20:29.390
right with God if they did certain things. And

00:20:29.390 --> 00:20:31.509
it's actually very true today, but I don't want

00:20:31.509 --> 00:20:34.069
to digress. The point is, he said to him, we

00:20:34.069 --> 00:20:38.130
have liberty now, but that liberty is not just

00:20:38.130 --> 00:20:40.970
to do whatever the heck you please, because as

00:20:40.970 --> 00:20:43.390
we discussed, there's other things going on,

00:20:43.390 --> 00:20:47.089
unless it's of the flesh. So now we can walk.

00:20:47.390 --> 00:20:51.769
in the Spirit, and as we walk, what gets developed

00:20:51.769 --> 00:20:55.130
are these roots. There's a result of this ongoing

00:20:55.130 --> 00:20:57.769
walking and this nurturing and this continuing

00:20:57.769 --> 00:21:01.930
on. So when we first receive Jesus Christ, we

00:21:01.930 --> 00:21:04.210
come to Him, we realize that He's the Son of

00:21:04.210 --> 00:21:07.369
God, we receive His sacrifice for us on the cross,

00:21:08.049 --> 00:21:10.230
that happens in a moment that we become saved.

00:21:10.789 --> 00:21:13.609
But it sounds like you're saying, that's the

00:21:13.609 --> 00:21:16.960
moment, that's the instant. But now you're working

00:21:16.960 --> 00:21:20.980
that out. And now the spirit is cultivating.

00:21:22.160 --> 00:21:26.740
He's developing within us. And then these things

00:21:26.740 --> 00:21:30.240
come forth from our lives. It's really the work

00:21:30.240 --> 00:21:33.039
of the spirit. It's the work of the spirit. There

00:21:33.039 --> 00:21:36.720
is no fruit produced in a positive way without

00:21:36.720 --> 00:21:40.180
the Spirit of God. He's the one doing it. It's

00:21:40.180 --> 00:21:44.619
nothing that we can... I can't make it happen.

00:21:44.759 --> 00:21:47.579
I can't make it happen. I have to let him do

00:21:47.579 --> 00:21:52.440
it in me. That's, I think, one of the most powerful

00:21:52.440 --> 00:21:55.420
points of this text. It's the fruits of the spirit,

00:21:56.700 --> 00:22:00.680
not fruits of my effort, not fruits of me trying.

00:22:01.900 --> 00:22:03.640
So in order to bear fruit, you have to abide.

00:22:03.980 --> 00:22:06.319
You have to be in the tree. You have to be in

00:22:06.319 --> 00:22:09.319
the vine. Other thoughts about fruit of the spirit?

00:22:09.880 --> 00:22:12.140
I agree with that, you know, with any growth

00:22:12.140 --> 00:22:14.819
that I've had with the Lord these past almost

00:22:14.819 --> 00:22:17.279
three years has always been when I surrendered.

00:22:18.380 --> 00:22:20.680
Not when I tried. That's so good. Always when

00:22:20.680 --> 00:22:22.039
I was like, you know, God, I don't know what

00:22:22.039 --> 00:22:25.059
I'm doing. Help me. Yeah. You know, it's always

00:22:25.059 --> 00:22:27.500
been from surrender. Yeah. Jeff, how long have

00:22:27.500 --> 00:22:29.559
you been walking with the Lord? This October

00:22:29.559 --> 00:22:32.220
will be three years. Three years. Yeah. So, you

00:22:32.220 --> 00:22:34.680
know, in some ways, you're three years old in

00:22:34.680 --> 00:22:37.160
the Lord. There are people in the Lord for 30

00:22:37.160 --> 00:22:40.339
years, 40, 50 years. that need to relearn that.

00:22:40.779 --> 00:22:43.420
Yes, right. Yeah, guys, I want to tell you, you

00:22:43.420 --> 00:22:46.059
know, often when we are brand new in the faith

00:22:46.059 --> 00:22:48.740
and we've surrendered our life to Jesus Christ,

00:22:49.119 --> 00:22:52.519
it's the fastest time of growth in many people.

00:22:52.859 --> 00:22:55.500
But then we begin to what we pull it back. We

00:22:55.500 --> 00:22:57.599
start to get involved. We forget that we're walking

00:22:57.599 --> 00:23:00.259
in the spirit. We forget that it's fruits of

00:23:00.259 --> 00:23:04.859
the spirit. So this Holy Spirit who is God has

00:23:04.859 --> 00:23:10.059
a ministry to produce. Yes. inside of us, right?

00:23:10.700 --> 00:23:14.779
Let's go back to the text in verse 22, and let's

00:23:14.779 --> 00:23:19.660
just look at these things. The first fruit is

00:23:19.660 --> 00:23:23.599
love. Let's just take the first three the way

00:23:23.599 --> 00:23:29.460
you broke them up, Pastor Pat. Love, joy, and

00:23:29.460 --> 00:23:33.210
peace. And this is what everybody's trying to

00:23:33.210 --> 00:23:35.910
go after in their life. Yes. That's the exact

00:23:35.910 --> 00:23:38.650
order of how I experienced God when I first came.

00:23:38.890 --> 00:23:40.690
When I first came here, I walked up to you and

00:23:40.690 --> 00:23:42.730
I said, I never felt so much love in one place

00:23:42.730 --> 00:23:45.069
in my entire life. I remember. And then I had

00:23:45.069 --> 00:23:49.529
joy and I had peace. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Like this

00:23:49.529 --> 00:23:53.029
is massive. The world is really, they've got

00:23:53.029 --> 00:23:55.130
more anxiety now in the world than there's ever

00:23:55.130 --> 00:23:56.730
been before. Oh my goodness, yes. Even though

00:23:56.730 --> 00:23:58.990
we have more technology, right? Even though we

00:23:58.990 --> 00:24:00.690
have more access to more information than we've

00:24:00.690 --> 00:24:05.000
ever had. The world has less love, less joy,

00:24:06.099 --> 00:24:08.759
and less peace. Anybody want to kind of share

00:24:08.759 --> 00:24:11.299
how the fruits of the Spirit impacted or changed

00:24:11.299 --> 00:24:15.160
your life, your marriage, or anything? I know

00:24:15.160 --> 00:24:18.559
I've forgiven my family, and I've grown closer

00:24:18.559 --> 00:24:21.460
with my mother. I've forgiven the people who

00:24:21.460 --> 00:24:23.740
have harmed me in my past, and I was even able

00:24:23.740 --> 00:24:26.089
to spend last Christmas Eve with my family. first

00:24:26.089 --> 00:24:28.710
time in a couple of years that I did that. So,

00:24:29.309 --> 00:24:32.470
forgiveness and peace. You know, God just restores

00:24:32.470 --> 00:24:34.589
things that I didn't think were ever going to

00:24:34.589 --> 00:24:37.130
be able to be restored. Yeah, and the Holy Spirit

00:24:37.130 --> 00:24:40.309
producing them. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. How about you

00:24:40.309 --> 00:24:44.430
guys? Oh, loving, loving, loving the unlovely.

00:24:45.390 --> 00:24:47.430
I had a professor once who used to call them

00:24:47.430 --> 00:24:50.890
sandpaper people. You know, people that rub you

00:24:50.890 --> 00:24:55.769
the wrong way. And yeah, just to be able to love

00:24:55.769 --> 00:24:58.210
them and know that that love was not something

00:24:58.210 --> 00:25:01.329
I could produce. It didn't come from me, that

00:25:01.329 --> 00:25:04.549
I had to receive that from the spirit in order

00:25:04.549 --> 00:25:07.210
to be able to relate to that person, to be able

00:25:07.210 --> 00:25:10.410
to hear what they're speaking to me. and not

00:25:10.410 --> 00:25:13.309
get agitated, not get angry, not get annoyed

00:25:13.309 --> 00:25:16.170
with them or impatient. I knew that there was

00:25:16.170 --> 00:25:19.809
a spirit doing that inside of me. Yeah. Yeah.

00:25:19.809 --> 00:25:23.490
You know, I heard it this way one time, to live

00:25:23.490 --> 00:25:26.970
above with saints in love, wouldn't that be glory?

00:25:27.109 --> 00:25:30.329
But to live below with saints we know, well,

00:25:30.329 --> 00:25:32.990
that's another story. That's right. I heard that.

00:25:33.210 --> 00:25:39.759
So for me, the walking out what love means. has

00:25:39.759 --> 00:25:43.420
definitely been important and critical so that

00:25:43.420 --> 00:25:46.480
I don't become critical. Like Jeff said, you

00:25:46.480 --> 00:25:50.470
can sense love. But now we have the opportunity

00:25:50.470 --> 00:25:53.410
to walk that out. And there's that sandpaper

00:25:53.410 --> 00:25:55.269
where sometimes, you know, iron sharpens iron.

00:25:55.410 --> 00:25:58.309
We like to quote that as men. But yeah, there's

00:25:58.309 --> 00:26:00.769
that working out of what does it really mean?

00:26:00.809 --> 00:26:03.470
What does it look like to walk out love? And

00:26:03.470 --> 00:26:07.390
that's very, it's central, of course, it's the

00:26:07.390 --> 00:26:08.750
first thing. And when you walk in love, then

00:26:08.750 --> 00:26:11.730
the joy and peace come because you're at peace

00:26:11.730 --> 00:26:14.029
with everybody. God teaches you how to become

00:26:14.029 --> 00:26:19.960
love. Yes, right. indicators of Christian maturity

00:26:19.960 --> 00:26:23.200
is how much love have we received from the Lord?

00:26:23.640 --> 00:26:27.680
How much love are we given? And how do we see

00:26:27.680 --> 00:26:31.660
our enemies? What does Jesus say? Love for your

00:26:31.660 --> 00:26:35.380
enemies, right? And joy, right? I mean, one of

00:26:35.380 --> 00:26:38.000
the biggest earmarks of a strong church is how

00:26:38.000 --> 00:26:41.140
much joy are in the people, right? This is life

00:26:41.140 --> 00:26:45.079
in the Spirit. And I testified before about peace.

00:26:46.459 --> 00:26:52.420
I used to be peaceful when everything was okay

00:26:52.420 --> 00:26:55.579
for a moment. You don't have a test to take,

00:26:55.759 --> 00:26:57.220
you don't have a this, you don't have a that.

00:26:58.240 --> 00:27:02.259
But now peace comes from within, not from outside.

00:27:02.980 --> 00:27:04.400
And I have to remember this all the time because

00:27:04.400 --> 00:27:07.059
even as a leader, sometimes people think that,

00:27:07.059 --> 00:27:08.960
well, if you lead the podcast and you're a pastor

00:27:08.960 --> 00:27:11.259
maybe... Maybe you're always walking on clouds.

00:27:13.240 --> 00:27:15.440
No, not necessarily. We're getting attacked.

00:27:15.559 --> 00:27:18.720
The mind's getting attacked. And when I surrender,

00:27:18.799 --> 00:27:21.640
like you said, Jeff, to the work of the Spirit

00:27:21.640 --> 00:27:25.319
in my life, many times before He's even giving

00:27:25.319 --> 00:27:30.940
me answers, He's restoring my soul. He's helping

00:27:30.940 --> 00:27:33.680
me to think properly and come back to these.

00:27:33.839 --> 00:27:36.440
When that chaos comes about, I always think about

00:27:36.440 --> 00:27:40.400
Peter walking on the water. You know, it just

00:27:40.400 --> 00:27:42.480
makes me, like, when things get a little crazy

00:27:42.480 --> 00:27:45.339
around me, I'm like, all right, don't focus on

00:27:45.339 --> 00:27:48.759
that. Focus on God. Focus on God. Focus on Him.

00:27:48.900 --> 00:27:52.960
He will give you peace. So, let me just read

00:27:52.960 --> 00:27:55.099
through the other ones real briefly. Long -suffering,

00:27:55.140 --> 00:28:03.359
which means patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,

00:28:05.940 --> 00:28:11.500
gentleness. self -control. Against such there

00:28:11.500 --> 00:28:16.220
is no law. So, you know, when we're taking all

00:28:16.220 --> 00:28:20.779
these things together, the thing that really

00:28:20.779 --> 00:28:23.599
impresses upon me is that these are not just

00:28:23.599 --> 00:28:27.519
inanimate characteristics. I think we need to

00:28:27.519 --> 00:28:30.420
put them all together. And I think that when

00:28:30.420 --> 00:28:33.900
we put them together, we're actually seeing God.

00:28:36.040 --> 00:28:41.319
We're seeing what he's like. His image, yeah,

00:28:41.500 --> 00:28:46.359
that's the makeup of his character, these very

00:28:46.359 --> 00:28:50.339
traits here, so that when we see those in one

00:28:50.339 --> 00:28:53.279
another, we're actually seeing Jesus, we're actually

00:28:53.279 --> 00:28:56.799
seeing him revealed. And that's our goal, right,

00:28:56.799 --> 00:29:00.920
to show Jesus to the world who he is, because

00:29:00.920 --> 00:29:05.259
if they don't see him in us, where will they

00:29:05.259 --> 00:29:08.119
see him? I mean, I could attest to that. I mean,

00:29:08.220 --> 00:29:11.380
with just the testimony of what God has done

00:29:11.380 --> 00:29:13.700
in my life, people from my past that don't even

00:29:13.700 --> 00:29:15.799
live in this state have been reaching out to

00:29:15.799 --> 00:29:19.160
me, asking me about Jesus. Yeah, there you go.

00:29:19.460 --> 00:29:22.880
That's it. So they're not seeing the Jeff that

00:29:22.880 --> 00:29:25.279
they used to know. They're seeing Jesus. It's

00:29:25.279 --> 00:29:27.400
not me that they're seeing. I was just ministering

00:29:27.400 --> 00:29:31.109
in another country last week. the driver, one

00:29:31.109 --> 00:29:33.710
of the guys that was driving us around to all

00:29:33.710 --> 00:29:38.069
the different places, he said, he's a successful

00:29:38.069 --> 00:29:40.930
businessman and doing very, very well financially

00:29:40.930 --> 00:29:45.509
and things. He said, if I only knew how good,

00:29:46.450 --> 00:29:51.329
because he's a newer believer, how good it is

00:29:51.329 --> 00:29:54.220
to be with Jesus. He said, I would have become

00:29:54.220 --> 00:29:58.799
a Christian so many years ago because he's tasting

00:29:58.799 --> 00:30:02.680
these things. Right. Right. Yeah. You know, when

00:30:02.680 --> 00:30:05.380
you read this, it's a description of Jesus, like

00:30:05.380 --> 00:30:07.740
you were saying, Pastor Pat. And when you think

00:30:07.740 --> 00:30:11.039
about it, it makes a lot of sense, right? Because

00:30:11.039 --> 00:30:14.180
we inherited certain things from Adam, but that

00:30:14.180 --> 00:30:17.059
wasn't God's original plan. When God created

00:30:17.059 --> 00:30:20.119
stuff, He created everything to multiply. He

00:30:20.119 --> 00:30:22.599
said, be fruitful and multiply everything that

00:30:22.599 --> 00:30:25.339
He made. So when He made the trees, He made them

00:30:25.339 --> 00:30:30.119
so that they would multiply. So we get to have

00:30:30.119 --> 00:30:33.480
the character of Christ so that can multiply

00:30:33.480 --> 00:30:39.640
on the earth. This is the goal. We're not actually

00:30:39.640 --> 00:30:42.839
supposed to be witnesses to know a lot of things.

00:30:43.420 --> 00:30:46.660
we're supposed to multiply God's image. And this

00:30:46.660 --> 00:30:48.839
is a massive teaching that I do about what church

00:30:48.839 --> 00:30:51.220
should look like, even in our house churches

00:30:51.220 --> 00:30:54.619
that we have. And for those who don't know, we're

00:30:54.619 --> 00:30:58.500
doing our best to live out the, not only the

00:30:58.500 --> 00:31:00.859
teaching of scripture, but actually the practices

00:31:00.859 --> 00:31:03.859
of scripture. And so our ministry and our churches,

00:31:04.440 --> 00:31:06.420
we're a church of house churches that meet throughout

00:31:06.420 --> 00:31:09.299
the week and we gather on Sunday. But in those

00:31:09.299 --> 00:31:11.799
house churches, when we're actually sharing a

00:31:11.799 --> 00:31:15.460
meal together, praying for one another, getting

00:31:15.460 --> 00:31:18.960
involved in each other's lives, not just preaching

00:31:18.960 --> 00:31:22.519
from a pulpit and people listening. We're able

00:31:22.519 --> 00:31:26.779
not only to receive these things, but we're able

00:31:26.779 --> 00:31:31.640
to minister them. Has this impact, I mean, you

00:31:31.640 --> 00:31:33.099
guys are leading house churches, Jeff, you've

00:31:33.099 --> 00:31:35.920
been part of them for a while. Do you see the

00:31:35.920 --> 00:31:38.519
house churches someplace that... we really get

00:31:38.519 --> 00:31:40.960
to live this out in a special way? Absolutely,

00:31:41.140 --> 00:31:43.559
yeah. Because, you know, when you're in a house

00:31:43.559 --> 00:31:47.579
church, it's a family setting, and it's not intimidating.

00:31:47.900 --> 00:31:50.619
You know, you have a few people in a living room

00:31:50.619 --> 00:31:53.799
together or around a table, and they're opening

00:31:53.799 --> 00:31:56.599
up to one another, and you can speak into their

00:31:56.599 --> 00:31:59.079
lives in an easy way and have them share what's

00:31:59.079 --> 00:32:01.750
going on in their life so that you know... where

00:32:01.750 --> 00:32:04.190
they're hurting, you know what their needs are

00:32:04.190 --> 00:32:07.430
in their life, and you can address that. It's

00:32:07.430 --> 00:32:10.829
just a comfortable, wonderful place to be in

00:32:10.829 --> 00:32:13.930
the body of Christ. And it changes lives. Yes,

00:32:13.990 --> 00:32:17.009
it does. Yes. Yeah, I mean, you know, COVID had

00:32:17.009 --> 00:32:20.890
everybody so isolated. And to be able to come

00:32:20.890 --> 00:32:23.789
together in a house church, it's just such a...

00:32:23.579 --> 00:32:25.880
There's there's hard. It's hard to come up with

00:32:25.880 --> 00:32:29.240
words to how that how how important that is,

00:32:29.240 --> 00:32:31.319
because then, like you saying, Pastor Pat, we

00:32:31.319 --> 00:32:33.940
get to interact with with one another, because

00:32:33.940 --> 00:32:36.779
I'll tell you, I'm not I'm not going to be good

00:32:36.779 --> 00:32:40.039
mentally all by myself, isolated. I'll tell you,

00:32:40.240 --> 00:32:43.039
that's for sure. I need other brothers and sisters,

00:32:43.240 --> 00:32:46.000
not just way out there somewhere, not on Zoom.

00:32:46.140 --> 00:32:48.960
That can be good, too. But but to to be able

00:32:48.960 --> 00:32:52.220
to share a meal, to be face to face, look eyeball

00:32:52.220 --> 00:32:54.779
to eyeball, just That's so good for me. I need

00:32:54.779 --> 00:32:58.319
that. And sometimes a physical hand. Yes, that's

00:32:58.319 --> 00:33:00.180
right. Looking in your eyes, I say, I love you.

00:33:00.380 --> 00:33:03.660
Yeah, that's right. Right. Yeah. It's meaningful.

00:33:04.339 --> 00:33:06.339
We need that. We were made to be relational.

00:33:06.440 --> 00:33:08.539
And we don't always get a chance to do that on

00:33:08.539 --> 00:33:11.539
Sunday. Yes. Yeah. I know when I opened up my

00:33:11.539 --> 00:33:15.220
home, my first year when I got a home. because

00:33:15.220 --> 00:33:17.240
I came back and fought it with nothing. And God

00:33:17.240 --> 00:33:19.140
gave me that home. But when I opened it up to

00:33:19.140 --> 00:33:20.759
the house church and everybody came and we're

00:33:20.759 --> 00:33:23.079
sharing food and we're laughing together, crying

00:33:23.079 --> 00:33:25.240
together. And, you know, they got me a little

00:33:25.240 --> 00:33:28.400
sign that says together we make a family. I still

00:33:28.400 --> 00:33:31.140
get emotional thinking about it. God gave me

00:33:31.140 --> 00:33:33.519
a family. Yeah, and you know, family is a place

00:33:33.519 --> 00:33:36.079
of security, isn't it? Because sometimes somebody

00:33:36.079 --> 00:33:38.900
burns the roast. Sometimes a brother or sister

00:33:38.900 --> 00:33:42.119
does something. Listen, we get in the flesh.

00:33:42.460 --> 00:33:44.940
We sometimes get in the flesh, and we need a

00:33:44.940 --> 00:33:47.539
family to hold us accountable. And here's a core

00:33:47.539 --> 00:33:49.920
truth that I think we always need to remind ourselves

00:33:49.920 --> 00:33:56.579
of. Verse 25. I'm sorry, verse 24. And those

00:33:56.579 --> 00:34:02.750
who are Christ's have crucified the flesh. with

00:34:02.750 --> 00:34:06.750
its passions and desires. I think we need to

00:34:06.750 --> 00:34:08.869
hold each other accountable in a good positive

00:34:08.869 --> 00:34:13.889
way to go, hey, you know, you're acting BC. You're

00:34:13.889 --> 00:34:17.150
acting like you did before Christ. In Christ,

00:34:17.989 --> 00:34:22.730
we're not supposed to be under the works of the

00:34:22.730 --> 00:34:26.489
flesh. We're supposed to conquer it. And what

00:34:26.489 --> 00:34:30.860
does the Bible say? We've crucified. the flesh.

00:34:30.940 --> 00:34:36.300
We have to take up our cross every day. So I

00:34:36.300 --> 00:34:39.559
want to issue a challenge to us and to you who

00:34:39.559 --> 00:34:43.639
are listening right now. Are we trying to counsel

00:34:43.639 --> 00:34:48.579
the works of the flesh? Are we trying to educate

00:34:48.579 --> 00:34:52.179
ourselves out of the work of the flesh? Do we

00:34:52.179 --> 00:34:56.079
think somehow by studying why we're angry that

00:34:56.079 --> 00:34:59.030
that's going to be the ultimate answer? You know,

00:34:59.110 --> 00:35:02.349
I think counseling and shepherding and things

00:35:02.349 --> 00:35:06.670
are often essential, but I think they're meant

00:35:06.670 --> 00:35:13.070
to bring us to this verse, that eventually those

00:35:13.070 --> 00:35:16.949
passions and desires, selfish ambition, lust,

00:35:17.750 --> 00:35:20.130
anger, all these things that we read, they need

00:35:20.130 --> 00:35:22.449
to meet the cross. Yeah, they need to die. We

00:35:22.449 --> 00:35:25.800
need to kill them. We need to bring him to Christ,

00:35:25.900 --> 00:35:27.139
and Christ is going to say, bring him to the

00:35:27.139 --> 00:35:30.619
cross. Yeah. Yeah, the entry point to all the

00:35:30.619 --> 00:35:32.880
blessings of the fruit of the Spirit is through

00:35:32.880 --> 00:35:52.110
the cross. how to forgive and come back and talk

00:35:52.110 --> 00:35:56.409
things through and get past that and just respond

00:35:56.409 --> 00:35:58.150
with love. And you've experienced this in our

00:35:58.150 --> 00:36:00.389
church family. I mean, we all have where, you

00:36:00.389 --> 00:36:02.489
know, you can have some conflict with people

00:36:02.489 --> 00:36:04.369
and then you're like, oh, wait a minute. Yeah.

00:36:05.170 --> 00:36:08.030
I got to say I'm sorry right now because this

00:36:08.030 --> 00:36:11.150
is not the character of Christ. This is my old

00:36:11.150 --> 00:36:13.610
man. Right. Right. And so. You know, it's kind

00:36:13.610 --> 00:36:14.989
of funny because when you're talking to somebody,

00:36:15.170 --> 00:36:16.550
you know, you often think as a pastor, like,

00:36:16.550 --> 00:36:20.230
am I talking to the new guy or the old guy? Which

00:36:20.230 --> 00:36:23.590
one am I talking about? And I think there's also

00:36:23.590 --> 00:36:25.230
we need to understand the grace of God in this

00:36:25.230 --> 00:36:28.289
process, right? Because like you said, we don't

00:36:28.289 --> 00:36:31.190
just immediately, you know, step into maturity

00:36:31.190 --> 00:36:35.210
in an instant. And God is patient and God is

00:36:35.210 --> 00:36:37.909
kind and God is good. And so he's he's helping

00:36:37.909 --> 00:36:40.670
us to mature in him as we're maturing and growing

00:36:40.670 --> 00:36:44.510
in Christ. we're seeing that we're behaving less

00:36:44.510 --> 00:36:49.909
and less like we used to. I want to challenge

00:36:49.909 --> 00:36:54.110
everybody who's listening, and my challenge is

00:36:54.110 --> 00:37:00.110
for blessing. Have you really met Jesus? Have

00:37:00.110 --> 00:37:04.050
you really encountered his goodness? Have you

00:37:04.050 --> 00:37:09.690
deeply sought after him to say, Lord, I'm tired

00:37:09.690 --> 00:37:14.280
of man -made religion? I'm tired of even being

00:37:14.280 --> 00:37:18.400
let down by human beings. And yet, Lord, I'm

00:37:18.400 --> 00:37:21.440
tired of being let down by Christians who say

00:37:21.440 --> 00:37:25.940
that they're strong. You see, meeting Jesus Christ

00:37:25.940 --> 00:37:28.780
is to meet the one person who's not a hypocrite.

00:37:29.340 --> 00:37:33.380
You see, he's pure. This is him. Jesus never

00:37:33.380 --> 00:37:36.440
falls into the flesh. Jesus never has a moment

00:37:36.440 --> 00:37:40.579
in which he's sinning. He's without sin. He's

00:37:40.579 --> 00:37:44.320
the securest place of love in all creation and

00:37:44.320 --> 00:37:48.119
he says come to me He says come to me and I will

00:37:48.119 --> 00:37:51.840
give you rest And I I think we we don't even

00:37:51.840 --> 00:37:54.599
just need rest from other people. I think we

00:37:54.599 --> 00:37:57.860
need even rest from ourselves Yeah Because this

00:37:57.860 --> 00:37:59.860
teaching says that God is not just delivering

00:37:59.860 --> 00:38:04.400
us from enemies He's delivering us from ourselves

00:38:04.400 --> 00:38:08.739
He's delivering us from the effects of all the

00:38:08.739 --> 00:38:12.320
abuse that we have He's delivering us from the

00:38:12.320 --> 00:38:15.400
traumas and the hurts and the pains. He's making

00:38:15.400 --> 00:38:18.900
us new. And He does that ultimately by delivering

00:38:18.900 --> 00:38:23.059
us from sin. And that's why the way to receive,

00:38:23.719 --> 00:38:26.659
because you had said that there is a cure. There

00:38:26.659 --> 00:38:31.239
is a cure. And the cure isn't a thing. The cure

00:38:31.239 --> 00:38:36.980
is a someone. And His name is Jesus Christ. And

00:38:36.980 --> 00:38:40.829
He invites you to come to Him. and to place your

00:38:40.829 --> 00:38:44.510
heart's faith in him. You see, Jesus is the son

00:38:44.510 --> 00:38:46.590
of God. He's more than a prophet and a teacher.

00:38:47.329 --> 00:38:51.550
He's the only begotten son of the Father. And

00:38:51.550 --> 00:38:54.050
he actually went to that cross. And when he went

00:38:54.050 --> 00:38:58.789
to the cross, he was destroying the power of

00:38:58.789 --> 00:39:01.929
sin. And the old nature is empowered by sin,

00:39:02.150 --> 00:39:05.809
but Jesus destroyed the power of sin. And he's

00:39:05.809 --> 00:39:09.010
inviting you. to come to the cross and say, Lord,

00:39:09.010 --> 00:39:13.610
I lay down my life. Like Jeff was saying, I surrender

00:39:13.610 --> 00:39:19.070
and I come to you. You could do that right now.

00:39:19.269 --> 00:39:21.570
If you're hard to, tell them that you believe

00:39:21.570 --> 00:39:24.769
who he is. Tell them that you want to turn away

00:39:24.769 --> 00:39:27.650
from sin. You want to turn to him. It's going

00:39:27.650 --> 00:39:30.949
to be the best decision you ever had. And we

00:39:30.949 --> 00:39:33.210
want to hear about it. I would love to hear about

00:39:33.210 --> 00:39:35.920
your decision to receive Jesus Christ. I'd like

00:39:35.920 --> 00:39:39.420
to invite you to email us at contact at gospelmissionnetwork

00:39:39.420 --> 00:39:42.460
.org. And you could also go to our website at

00:39:42.460 --> 00:39:45.400
gospelmissionnetwork .org. You can contact us

00:39:45.400 --> 00:39:47.559
through there. But let us know what you did.

00:39:47.599 --> 00:39:49.639
Let us encourage you. Let us help you get started

00:39:49.639 --> 00:39:52.780
in your faith. We love you. God bless you. This

00:39:52.780 --> 00:39:56.579
has been episode number two of Bible Speak, where

00:39:56.579 --> 00:39:59.360
we allow the scripture to speak for itself. God

00:39:59.360 --> 00:40:02.280
bless you. Thank you for listening to the Faith

00:40:02.280 --> 00:40:04.699
and Mission podcast. If this episode blessed

00:40:04.699 --> 00:40:06.800
you, please like, subscribe, and share it with

00:40:06.800 --> 00:40:09.659
somebody who needs encouragement today. Stay

00:40:09.659 --> 00:40:13.079
connected with me on Facebook at facebook .com

00:40:13.079 --> 00:40:16.099
forward slash Steve Hannett for the latest updates,

00:40:16.539 --> 00:40:18.619
announcements, and ongoing encouragements throughout

00:40:18.619 --> 00:40:21.500
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00:40:21.500 --> 00:40:24.139
to help you fulfill the Great Commission, please

00:40:24.139 --> 00:40:27.639
visit us at gospelmissionnetwork .org where you'll

00:40:27.639 --> 00:40:31.199
also find the Be Healed podcast, our TV program,

00:40:31.280 --> 00:40:33.750
The Miraculous Life, and my most recent books

00:40:33.750 --> 00:40:37.050
including Unleashing Heaven's Breath. Until next

00:40:37.050 --> 00:40:40.429
time, may Jesus Christ lead you, guide you, and

00:40:40.429 --> 00:40:43.630
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00:40:43.630 --> 00:40:48.030
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00:40:48.030 --> 00:40:51.269
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00:40:51.269 --> 00:40:53.969
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00:40:53.969 --> 00:40:57.110
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00:40:57.110 --> 00:41:00.610
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00:41:00.760 --> 00:41:04.420
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