WEBVTT

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 Thank you, Brian and Angie, and thank you for the beautiful music we've enjoyed all this day.

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 Some churches, you probably are aware, observe the Lord's Supper,

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 and it's just something kind of tacked on at the very end, and I've never liked doing that.

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 I've always thought it's such an important occasion in the life of the church

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 that the entire service should be about the Lord's Supper when we do come to observe it.

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 And so that's what we want to do this day.

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 Our Catholic friends, they believe differently about the Lord's Supper than we do, obviously.

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 They believe it's a sacrament.

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 By that, they believe it has saving significance when you take the elements into your body.

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 In fact, they believe in the idea theologically.

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 It's known as transubstantiation.

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 And by that, I mean they believe when you ingest the cup and you ingest the bread into your body,

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 it becomes literally the body and the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ.

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 And of course, we as Baptists, Evangelical Protestants, we don't believe that to be the case.

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 But sometimes in our effort to combat that idea, to say that we disagree with that and think that's wrong,

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 we overstep.

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 And I've heard a number of Baptists through the years make this statement,

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 no, that's not right.

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 These are just mere symbols.

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 And I want to say to you that I object to the use of that term, that phrase, mere symbol,

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 because while we say that in order to combat the idea that the Catholics tell us about transubstantiation,

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 I think we undermine the significance of this service and the significance of these elements

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 when we refer to them as just mere symbols.

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 Symbols, they are.

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 No question about it.

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 But they're not just mere symbols.

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 They're symbols that Jesus himself chose

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 and that the church has been practicing for 2,000 years and for good reasons.

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 In fact, when we're able,

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 I always liked when I pastored at Brushy Creek and Western Avenue,

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 to have the elements uncovered so you could actually see bread

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 and you could see the cup visible while I preached the message

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 and as we partook of the supper.

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 Because I think these elements themselves give us visible reminders.

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 And we need visible reminders, don't we?

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 That's the way we hang pictures in our home.

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 Because it takes us back when we see that picture

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 to a time that something was meaningful and occurred in our lives

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 and we want to remember that.

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 We need to remember that.

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 And so the cup and the bread,

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 they give us symbols that help us to recall important things to which we hold as believers.

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 I want to mention three of those very, very quickly.

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 First of all, the elements are a physical, visible reminder

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 of the incarnation of our Lord.

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 And I just got to tell you,

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 I think of all the miracles that God has ever performed,

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 that stands at the very top of the list of those things that God has done since creation.

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 In the book of Colossians chapter 1 and verse 15,

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 Paul is telling us about the preeminence of Jesus.

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 And this is what he says.

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 He is the image of the invisible God.

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 Now I want you to just for a moment allow that to sink in.

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 Just consider every one of those words.

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 He is the physical, visible image of the invisible God.

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 What a great description he gives us of who Jesus is.

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 And what that says to us is that God has stepped forth from heaven.

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 Imagine that.

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 Don't just say that quickly and pass on to the next thing.

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 Think about that for a moment.

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 The one who framed the universe,

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 the creator of everything you've ever seen, visible and invisible.

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 He stepped forward from the pages of human history

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 and he stepped down to earth and became a lowly human being

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 just like each of us in this room.

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 John 1 says,

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 In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God.

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 And then John clarifies for us exactly what he means,

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 who this Word is.

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 He says,

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 And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us.

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 And we beheld his glory.

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 And it was like the glory of God the Father.

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 I want to say to you this morning,

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 there was a point in human history

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 where God revealed himself to man in a fashion that

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 he had never revealed himself previously in all of human history.

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 He left the portals of heaven.

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 And he assigned himself the role of being a human being.

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 He was placed in Mary's womb and born,

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 and we'll be celebrating that even beginning next week.

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 He was born a tiny babe just like many of us have held in our arms.

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 He was just as vulnerable as any of our babies were at the time of their birth.

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 He had a real address.

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 Do you understand what I'm saying in that?

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 If they'd had cameras in that day and time,

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 if they'd had video equipment,

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 they could have filmed that,

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 and we could show it on this screen this morning

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 because I want you to know this is not a literary story.

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 This is not a figment of someone's imagination.

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 That baby was really and truly born.

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 Mary took him in her arms and laid him in a manger.

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 She wrapped him in cloth.

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 You could have heard the cries that baby first made.

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 He had a real address when they moved back ultimately to Nazareth.

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 Just like my address is 9 Henson Place in Greer.

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 He had a real address, a way of people identifying and saying,

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 that's where Joseph and Mary and their children and Jesus live.

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 He had friends with names just like all of us in this room.

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 Listen, when he cut himself, he bled real, real blood.

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 When they pricked his skin,

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 it gave him pain just like all of us experience.

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 He knew what emotional pain was like,

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 as all of us do in this room.

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 He knew joy and hope and had dreams,

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 just like every one of us here today.

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 And so in a few moments when you take that bread in your hand,

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 you get ready to receive it.

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 Even now, you might just look at that bread in your hand

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 and be reminded Jesus really came as a flesh and blood human being.

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 Today, we celebrate the incarnation of our Lord.

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 Secondly, these are visible reminders of what Christ did for us at the cross.

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 That's why I love when I'm sitting in an audience and not reading and worship,

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 I love just to look at that bread and think about my Lord

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 because I need to be reminded.

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 You know, the death of Jesus, the crucifixion,

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 is the centerpiece of the entire Christian message, right?

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 In 1 Corinthians chapter 15, Paul says,

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 the death and burial and resurrection of Jesus is of what?

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 It is of first importance.

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 Isn't it amazing, though, how we gather so often here

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 and we get so involved in the institution of the church

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 and the going zone of the church?

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 We just kind of push that to the back burner.

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 It's pretty easy for us and all of our doing and going and talking

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 and the things that we involve ourselves in in church life

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 to forget that what is the centerpiece is the death and burial and resurrection of our Lord.

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 But I want to tell you, I cannot look at the bread

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 and cannot look at the cup and be reminded immediately,

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 this is about Jesus' death on the cross.

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 Paul said this,

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 In other words, this is our opportunity to be a testimony

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 to people who have not yet embraced the gospel

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 that we believe as believers,

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 Jesus really came, lived, and died on the cross for us.

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 In Luke 22, 19, Jesus said,

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 And he took bread, gave thanks, broke it, gave it to them, and said,

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 This is my body which is given for you.

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 And then he took the cup.

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 This cup is the new covenant established by my blood.

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 It is shed for you.

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 But I got to tell you, there are a lot of times that we come together

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 and we're talking about marriage,

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 we're talking about citizenship,

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 we're talking about being dads or mothers or good children,

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 and we forget about the message of the cross.

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 And so today when you look at this cup

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 and you see this piece of bread that we're going to give in just a moment,

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 I hope you will again hear the ringing of the hammer

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 because we forget that, don't we?

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 We forget how that Roman hammer struck those nails

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 and they pierced the skin of our Lord,

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 and he no doubt screamed out.

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 We forget about those nerve endings being set on edge.

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 We forget about the agony that was etched in his face

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 when they took that crown of thorns

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 and they meshed it into his brow

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 and the blood flowed down his face and into his mouth

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 and onto his garments.

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 We forget about that sound of the crack of the whip

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 when they scourged our Lord

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 and they literally flayed his skin from his abdomen and his back.

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 So we need to hear the hammer ring.

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 We need to, again, see that agony that was on his face,

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 the cruelty of the cross that he suffered for our sins.

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 And then finally, the elements are a powerful reminder

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 that my presence at this table,

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 this is one of the things I like the best,

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 is by his grace alone

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 and not by anything I've done to merit my place here

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 at this table.

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 You realize today we're not being fed

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 by the First Baptist Church of Pickens.

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 This is not our meal.

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 This is the Lord's table.

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 This is his meal.

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 You're invited to his house to sit at his table

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 and to eat the provisions he has provided.

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 This coming Thursday, many of us will gather in homes.

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 My family is gathering in my home

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 and already my children and my dad

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 and my sister have asked,

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 what can we bring?

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 That's just a polite thing to say, isn't it?

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 Some of you I talked to.

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 Some of you this morning before the service

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 and you're gathering with your families today

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 or you're gathering with your families in a few days

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 and one is bringing this and one is bringing another.

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 You know why we do that?

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 Because we don't want to feel like a moocher, right?

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 We don't want someone to do everything.

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 Somebody's probably doing the bulk of it,

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 but we want to feel like we contributed something.

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 We brought a dessert.

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 We brought a vegetable.

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 We made the dressing.

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 We did this or we did that

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 so we can eat joyfully at the table

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 because we know, well, I had a hand in that.

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 I want to tell you something.

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 When you come to this table,

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 you come as a beggar.

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 You come as a peasant.

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 You come ill-prepared.

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 You come ill-dressed.

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 When we gather in someone's home,

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 we want to dress appropriately.

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 Sometimes that's informal dress,

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 but sometimes it's formal dress.

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 But we want to be appropriate for the occasion.

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 I want to tell you something.

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 You come with filthy rags this morning.

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 You come like the homeless person on the street.

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 You come as a beggar to the table of our Lord.

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 I want to show you a beautiful passage.

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 In fact, I didn't have them put it on the screen today

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 because I want you to open your Bible

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 and read it with me, if you will.

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 Now, go with me to 2 Kings.

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 I want to show you a story

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 that just illustrates this so beautifully.

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 2 Kings chapter 24.

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 Find that very, very quickly.

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 We're not going to take but just a moment.

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 I just want to read it to you

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 because it'll speak to you just reading this.

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 2 Kings 24 beginning in verse 8.

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 Find that passage.

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 1 Kings 24 in verse 8.

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 Jehoiachin was 18 years old when he became king.

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 He reigned three months in Jerusalem.

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 His mother's name was Nehushta,

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 daughter of Elnathan.

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 She was from Jerusalem.

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 He did what was evil in the Lord's sight

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 as his father had done.

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 Can I just pause and tell you?

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 He had a string of ancestors leading up to this

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 and almost all of them were wicked, wicked, wicked kings.

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 Jesus practiced idolatry and led the people away from God.

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 Look at verse 10.

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 Here's what happened as a result.

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 At that time, the servants of Nebuchadnezzar,

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 king of Babylon, marched up to Jerusalem

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 and the city came under siege.

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 Then king Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon

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 came to the city while his servants were besieging it.

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 Jehoiachin, king of Judah,

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 along with his mother, his servants,

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 his commanders, and his officials,

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 surrendered to the king of Babylon.

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 They marched into the city.

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 They destroyed the walls of the city.

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 They destroyed the temple.

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 They ransacked the temple.

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 They killed thousands of folk.

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 So what does he do?

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 He and all of his leadership team and his family,

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 they surrender in order to spare their lives.

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 Notice what it says.

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 The scripture says next.

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 So the king of Babylon took him captive

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 in the eighth year of his reign.

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 He also carried off from there

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 all the treasures of the Lord's temple

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 and the treasures of the king's palace

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 and they cut into pieces all the gold articles

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 that Solomon, king of Israel,

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 had made for the Lord's sanctuary

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 just as God had predicted.

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 God had been telling them this was going to happen.

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 Then he deported all Jerusalem

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 and all the commanders

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 and all the fighting men,

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 10,000 captives

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 and all the craftsmen

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 and metalsmiths

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 except for the poorest people of the land,

00:14:09.320 --> 00:14:11.900
 nobody remained.

00:14:13.640 --> 00:14:17.240
 Nebuchadnezzar deported Jehoiachin to Babylon.

00:14:18.180 --> 00:14:20.240
 Also he took the king's mother,

00:14:20.379 --> 00:14:21.220
 the king's wives,

00:14:21.680 --> 00:14:22.340
 his officials,

00:14:22.840 --> 00:14:24.379
 and the leading men of the land

00:14:24.379 --> 00:14:27.100
 into exile from Babylon.

00:14:28.140 --> 00:14:29.680
 So what the Bible tells us is

00:14:29.680 --> 00:14:33.780
 this king suddenly loses his kingdom.

00:14:34.520 --> 00:14:36.700
 This is the one who has reigned

00:14:36.700 --> 00:14:38.759
 where Solomon once reigned.

00:14:38.860 --> 00:14:40.420
 It was a great and mighty nation.

00:14:40.780 --> 00:14:41.780
 Now they've fallen

00:14:41.780 --> 00:14:43.640
 and he's taken captive.

00:14:43.780 --> 00:14:45.040
 His family's taken captive.

00:14:45.600 --> 00:14:47.360
 They're stripped of their royal garments.

00:14:47.560 --> 00:14:48.259
 They're marched

00:14:48.259 --> 00:14:50.960
 to the city of Babylon,

00:14:51.360 --> 00:14:52.600
 to the nation of Babylon.

00:14:53.160 --> 00:14:54.740
 Now look at one last thing.

00:14:55.200 --> 00:14:56.820
 Go with me to chapter 25

00:14:56.820 --> 00:14:59.580
 and the closing verses

00:14:59.580 --> 00:15:02.780
 in verse 27 and following.

00:15:02.780 --> 00:15:03.900
 Chapter 25,

00:15:04.160 --> 00:15:05.879
 verse 27 and following.

00:15:06.980 --> 00:15:09.300
 On the 27th day of the 12th month

00:15:09.300 --> 00:15:11.720
 of the 37th year of exile

00:15:11.720 --> 00:15:13.560
 of Judah's king Jehoiachin.

00:15:13.600 --> 00:15:14.420
 Look out for just a minute.

00:15:15.600 --> 00:15:19.560
 He has been in prison 37 years.

00:15:20.400 --> 00:15:22.020
 From what we read in chapter 24

00:15:22.020 --> 00:15:24.180
 to what we read in chapter 25.

00:15:24.560 --> 00:15:26.120
 37 years.

00:15:27.060 --> 00:15:28.179
 Five years ago,

00:15:28.860 --> 00:15:30.080
 I was the pastor

00:15:30.080 --> 00:15:31.519
 of Brushy Creek Baptist Church.

00:15:32.460 --> 00:15:33.460
 Today, can I tell you something?

00:15:33.600 --> 00:15:34.620
 They don't know me from Adam.

00:15:35.419 --> 00:15:35.700
 Right?

00:15:36.840 --> 00:15:37.340
 Imagine

00:15:37.340 --> 00:15:41.120
 you were in prison 37 years.

00:15:42.480 --> 00:15:43.560
 There's nobody who remembers you.

00:15:44.919 --> 00:15:45.820
 Not only that,

00:15:45.899 --> 00:15:46.679
 but you've been stripped

00:15:46.679 --> 00:15:49.560
 of your royal robes.

00:15:50.600 --> 00:15:52.340
 There's no scepter in your hand.

00:15:53.340 --> 00:15:54.379
 You're a broken,

00:15:54.379 --> 00:15:56.000
 old, dying peasant.

00:15:56.120 --> 00:15:57.960
 Who's forgotten

00:15:57.960 --> 00:16:01.139
 in a Babylonian prison cell.

00:16:02.139 --> 00:16:03.639
 And look what we read.

00:16:04.860 --> 00:16:06.100
 Evil Merodot,

00:16:06.279 --> 00:16:07.179
 king of Babylon,

00:16:07.679 --> 00:16:09.139
 in the year he became king,

00:16:10.060 --> 00:16:12.159
 pardoned King Jehoiachin of Judah

00:16:12.159 --> 00:16:14.600
 and released him from prison.

00:16:15.460 --> 00:16:17.279
 He spoke kindly to him

00:16:17.279 --> 00:16:19.939
 and set his throne over the thrones

00:16:19.939 --> 00:16:20.740
 of the kings

00:16:20.740 --> 00:16:23.699
 who were with him in Babylon.

00:16:23.699 --> 00:16:27.299
 So Jehoiachin changed his prison clothes

00:16:27.299 --> 00:16:29.839
 and he dined regularly

00:16:29.839 --> 00:16:33.439
 in the presence of the king of Babylon

00:16:33.439 --> 00:16:37.299
 for the rest of his life.

00:16:37.299 --> 00:16:40.259
 never saw that coming,

00:16:40.259 --> 00:16:40.620
 did you?

00:16:41.579 --> 00:16:43.419
 Unless you'd read that story before.

00:16:43.879 --> 00:16:44.679
 Can I tell you something?

00:16:45.819 --> 00:16:47.579
 Jehoiachin didn't see it coming either.

00:16:47.580 --> 00:16:50.680
 He's a broken old man.

00:16:52.200 --> 00:16:54.379
 He's just in all likelihood

00:16:54.379 --> 00:16:56.440
 at the end of his life.

00:16:57.379 --> 00:16:58.580
 He's ready to die.

00:17:00.180 --> 00:17:02.639
 He's adorned in prison clothing.

00:17:03.399 --> 00:17:05.079
 No one would ever look at him

00:17:05.079 --> 00:17:06.879
 and say that guy's ever been anything,

00:17:07.119 --> 00:17:08.559
 anybody in his life.

00:17:09.859 --> 00:17:10.819
 And evil Merodot,

00:17:10.940 --> 00:17:11.940
 and we're not told why,

00:17:13.059 --> 00:17:14.879
 evil Merodot comes to the throne.

00:17:15.720 --> 00:17:16.779
 He knows the history.

00:17:17.940 --> 00:17:18.279
 He says,

00:17:18.359 --> 00:17:19.660
 I want you to go get Jehoiachin.

00:17:21.319 --> 00:17:23.160
 And I want you to take off

00:17:23.160 --> 00:17:24.200
 those prison clothes

00:17:24.200 --> 00:17:26.319
 and put on clothes

00:17:26.319 --> 00:17:27.619
 that would be appropriate for him

00:17:27.619 --> 00:17:28.720
 to dine with royalty.

00:17:30.519 --> 00:17:32.139
 And he leaves that station

00:17:32.140 --> 00:17:33.780
 and he brings his family.

00:17:34.620 --> 00:17:36.200
 And he comes into the presence

00:17:36.200 --> 00:17:37.820
 of King evil Merodot,

00:17:37.900 --> 00:17:38.900
 the most powerful man

00:17:38.900 --> 00:17:39.740
 on the face of the earth.

00:17:40.700 --> 00:17:42.560
 And he, on a regular basis,

00:17:42.720 --> 00:17:43.500
 dines with him

00:17:43.500 --> 00:17:45.840
 until the day he dies.

00:17:47.280 --> 00:17:48.200
 You know why he's there?

00:17:49.259 --> 00:17:50.420
 Because of the grace

00:17:50.420 --> 00:17:51.259
 and the mercy

00:17:51.259 --> 00:17:55.120
 of King evil Merodot.

00:17:55.380 --> 00:17:56.440
 We don't know why.

00:17:57.800 --> 00:17:59.520
 He just, for whatever reason,

00:17:59.640 --> 00:18:00.900
 shows him grace and mercy.

00:18:00.900 --> 00:18:02.519
 But I want to tell you something.

00:18:03.120 --> 00:18:04.240
 That's exactly why

00:18:04.240 --> 00:18:05.420
 you're able to come

00:18:05.420 --> 00:18:06.280
 and sit here today

00:18:06.280 --> 00:18:07.500
 and partake of these elements.

00:18:08.140 --> 00:18:09.120
 It's not because

00:18:09.120 --> 00:18:10.560
 you attended Sunday school.

00:18:11.200 --> 00:18:12.060
 It's not because

00:18:12.060 --> 00:18:13.220
 you were such a good man

00:18:13.220 --> 00:18:13.880
 or a good woman

00:18:13.880 --> 00:18:14.600
 or a good husband

00:18:14.600 --> 00:18:15.460
 or a good father,

00:18:16.259 --> 00:18:17.259
 a good wife

00:18:17.259 --> 00:18:18.019
 or a good mother.

00:18:18.660 --> 00:18:19.580
 It's not because

00:18:19.580 --> 00:18:20.680
 you've paid your tithes

00:18:20.680 --> 00:18:21.560
 since you became a member

00:18:21.560 --> 00:18:22.620
 of the First Baptist Church

00:18:22.620 --> 00:18:23.200
 of Pickens.

00:18:24.140 --> 00:18:25.200
 It's because God

00:18:25.200 --> 00:18:25.800
 looked at you,

00:18:25.880 --> 00:18:26.280
 a sinner,

00:18:26.420 --> 00:18:27.040
 in your filthy,

00:18:27.240 --> 00:18:28.220
 unrighteous rags.

00:18:28.280 --> 00:18:28.759
 And he said,

00:18:28.759 --> 00:18:29.140
 you know what?

00:18:29.299 --> 00:18:30.259
 I'm going to show him

00:18:30.259 --> 00:18:31.559
 grace and mercy.

00:18:32.180 --> 00:18:33.200
 And he reached down

00:18:33.200 --> 00:18:33.980
 and he saved you.

00:18:34.359 --> 00:18:35.319
 And so know today

00:18:35.319 --> 00:18:35.920
 that you're here

00:18:35.920 --> 00:18:36.599
 as a pauper

00:18:36.599 --> 00:18:37.099
 when you come

00:18:37.099 --> 00:18:37.980
 to take these elements.

00:18:38.519 --> 00:18:39.599
 Just thank God.

00:18:39.680 --> 00:18:40.579
 God, you know what?

00:18:40.859 --> 00:18:41.720
 I'm here today

00:18:41.720 --> 00:18:42.980
 because of your grace

00:18:42.980 --> 00:18:44.720
 and because of your mercy

00:18:44.720 --> 00:18:46.119
 in my life.

00:18:46.220 --> 00:18:46.960
 Let's bow together

00:18:46.960 --> 00:18:47.759
 in the time of prayer.

00:18:49.220 --> 00:18:50.079
 And I'm not going

00:18:50.079 --> 00:18:50.720
 to do the praying.

00:18:50.859 --> 00:18:51.660
 I'm going to ask you

00:18:51.660 --> 00:18:52.339
 to do the praying.

00:18:52.339 --> 00:18:54.299
 Here's what I'd like

00:18:54.299 --> 00:18:55.339
 to ask you to do

00:18:55.339 --> 00:18:56.139
 if you would.

00:18:57.039 --> 00:18:58.039
 With every head bowed

00:18:58.039 --> 00:18:59.059
 and every eye closed.

00:19:00.279 --> 00:19:00.779
 And listen,

00:19:01.720 --> 00:19:02.699
 I know that you're

00:19:02.699 --> 00:19:03.379
 a congregation

00:19:03.379 --> 00:19:05.339
 where a lot of you

00:19:05.339 --> 00:19:06.519
 don't like to pray out loud.

00:19:06.619 --> 00:19:07.439
 But I'm going to ask you

00:19:07.439 --> 00:19:07.959
 to do this.

00:19:08.039 --> 00:19:08.480
 Would you just

00:19:08.480 --> 00:19:09.599
 accommodate me in this?

00:19:10.679 --> 00:19:11.259
 You can use

00:19:11.259 --> 00:19:12.339
 your smallest voice,

00:19:13.259 --> 00:19:14.740
 your slightest whisper.

00:19:15.819 --> 00:19:16.720
 But I'd like you

00:19:16.720 --> 00:19:17.599
 to whisper your prayer

00:19:17.599 --> 00:19:18.879
 out loud to the Lord

00:19:18.879 --> 00:19:19.539
 for just about

00:19:19.539 --> 00:19:20.859
 30 seconds or so.

00:19:20.859 --> 00:19:22.939
 Thank God right now

00:19:22.939 --> 00:19:24.000
 for loving us enough

00:19:24.000 --> 00:19:24.719
 to leave heaven

00:19:24.719 --> 00:19:25.779
 and become a man.

00:19:26.879 --> 00:19:27.559
 Would you do that

00:19:27.559 --> 00:19:28.079
 right now?

00:19:29.079 --> 00:19:29.819
 Just whisper it

00:19:29.819 --> 00:19:30.679
 in your lowest voice.

00:19:30.819 --> 00:19:31.539
 Lord, thank you.

00:19:47.179 --> 00:19:48.079
 Would you right now

00:19:48.079 --> 00:19:48.599
 thank Him

00:19:48.599 --> 00:19:49.279
 for His willingness

00:19:49.279 --> 00:19:50.779
 to suffer in your place

00:19:50.779 --> 00:19:51.700
 and ask forgiveness

00:19:51.700 --> 00:19:52.240
 of the sins

00:19:52.240 --> 00:19:52.759
 you've committed

00:19:52.759 --> 00:19:53.440
 that placed Him

00:19:53.440 --> 00:19:54.039
 on the cross?

00:20:06.539 --> 00:20:07.279
 And finally,

00:20:07.539 --> 00:20:08.180
 would you in your

00:20:08.180 --> 00:20:09.000
 lowest voice

00:20:09.000 --> 00:20:10.099
 just whisper a prayer

00:20:10.099 --> 00:20:11.819
 thanking Him

00:20:11.819 --> 00:20:12.339
 for the grace

00:20:12.339 --> 00:20:13.139
 that He's shown you?

00:20:13.240 --> 00:20:14.160
 Would you confess to Him,

00:20:14.220 --> 00:20:15.079
 Lord, I don't deserve

00:20:15.079 --> 00:20:16.200
 Your mercy and grace.

00:20:16.319 --> 00:20:16.920
 I don't deserve

00:20:16.920 --> 00:20:17.740
 to be Your child,

00:20:17.799 --> 00:20:18.220
 to be a part

00:20:18.220 --> 00:20:18.819
 of Your kingdom.

00:20:18.819 --> 00:20:20.899
 Would you just pray

00:20:20.899 --> 00:20:21.639
 a prayer like that

00:20:21.639 --> 00:20:22.700
 for just a brief moment?

00:20:31.279 --> 00:20:32.019
 Father, I pray

00:20:32.019 --> 00:20:32.939
 You've heard our prayer.

00:20:33.899 --> 00:20:34.859
 We thank You

00:20:34.859 --> 00:20:36.519
 that You left heaven

00:20:36.519 --> 00:20:37.339
 and became a man.

00:20:38.339 --> 00:20:39.279
 We thank You, Lord,

00:20:39.319 --> 00:20:40.000
 that You suffered

00:20:40.000 --> 00:20:42.179
 all the atrocities

00:20:42.179 --> 00:20:43.819
 that came forth

00:20:43.819 --> 00:20:45.019
 as a result of our sin.

00:20:45.019 --> 00:20:47.940
 Lord, we thank You

00:20:47.940 --> 00:20:48.519
 for Your grace

00:20:48.519 --> 00:20:49.000
 and Your mercy.

00:20:49.119 --> 00:20:49.879
 We know we don't

00:20:49.879 --> 00:20:50.639
 deserve it,

00:20:51.379 --> 00:20:52.980
 but we're grateful for it.

00:20:53.900 --> 00:20:55.119
 And I pray out of gratitude

00:20:55.119 --> 00:20:57.400
 we live holy lives

00:20:57.400 --> 00:20:57.879
 for You.

00:20:59.000 --> 00:20:59.720
 It's our prayer

00:20:59.720 --> 00:21:00.639
 in Jesus' name.

00:21:01.639 --> 00:21:01.980
 Amen.