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Good morning church. Just to let you know, Andy and I went to see Henny this week and

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when I went to see her last time and talked to her in November, we were planning what

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looked like a funeral. When I went and saw her this week, she had, I think she had the

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news up to 110. She didn't have her hearing aids in, that's for sure. And as we were

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walking down the hallway, we were preparing ourselves to see what would be lying there

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and no lying was happening in that room. She was sitting up, she was in good spirits, she

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had great colour in her face. She laughed at some of my jokes and that's why she might

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not be as well as we thought. But no, just to encourage you, please keep praying for

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Henny. Her faith is strong, she loves the Lord, she has great hope to see him soon but

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her body is doing great and she's not in too much pain and the nurses are very, were very

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encouraging for us. Before we get into our text this morning and finish the series, would

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you please join me in a word of prayer? Father, we thank you so much for the eternal word

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that was settled in heaven and given to your people. We ask this morning by the work of

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your Holy Spirit that you would please hold our Lord and Saviour high in our midst, that

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you would draw us all, every single one of us, no matter where we are in our lives, where

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we are in our walk, that we would all be drawn to you this morning and that we would leave

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this place with our eyes lifted high to the gracious gospel, to our Lord Jesus Christ.

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We ask for this in His name, amen. I don't know if you've ever had the chance to travel

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but as an Australian living in Europe, as soon as you start to speak, you'll usually

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hear the sentence, you're not from around here, are you? As an Aussie abroad it becomes

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immediately apparent that you're a stranger in a strange land. But you know there's a

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sense in which all of us should hear something like that said of us, regardless of our accents

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and nationalities. Because if you're a Christian, you're not from around here. No, you're a

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stranger from a strange land. You bear the marks of citizenship from another country.

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And that's quite simply because our home is really elsewhere. We're citizens of the kingdom

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of heaven and we're just passing through. And I mention this because there's a great

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difference between us and the world. And in our text this morning, our prophet highlights

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four areas in which that great distinction between the church and the world, between

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the believer and unbeliever, ought to be seen and felt by those around us. So all who are

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observing might say, you're not from around here. There's something different about you.

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But first a bit of context. If you've been with us for the past few months, you'll know

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that we're in a part of the Bible where the people of God's nation had started to slip

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and slide back once again into an attitude of apathy. That's been apparent as we've seen

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our prophet Malachi challenge God's people on their utter lack of love for God. And we've

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seen this apathy in a couple of different ways. Namely, in the way that they've been

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acting and also in what they've been saying. You might remember it. The whole book started

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with God telling his people that he loves them and then they replied with, how have

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you loved us? Again, God challenged them that they weren't giving their best and they were

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like, how haven't we been giving our best? Then God challenged the men that they were

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abandoning his daughters, their wives, so as to take ungodly women with their practices

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into church life. And then they complained that God wouldn't bless them. These are just

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some of the grievous actions that we've seen played out in this book. And when God challenged

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his people on these things, we've seen their attitude. They were like, when? How? Whatever.

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But you might remember that it's not just been their actions that have been grievous

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to God, but their very words. Just a few weeks ago, we looked at a part of scripture where

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God challenged them on their conversations that they were having with one another back

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in chapter two. They were saying, all who do evil are good in the eyes of the Lord and

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he's pleased with them. They were even asking, where is the God of justice? Believe it or

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not, they're back at it again. We heard it read for us just before and that's where our

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text starts this morning in verses 13 through to 15. Malachi comes to God's people with

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his word. He says, you spoken arrogantly against me, says the Lord. And you asked, what have

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we said against you? You've said it's futile to serve God. What do we gain by carrying

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out his requirements and going about like mourners before the Lord Almighty? But now

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we call the arrogant blessed. Certainly evil doers prosper and even when they put God to

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the test, they get away with it. So church, I want you to see the first distinction that's

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revealed for us here this morning in our passage. The first distinction between the attitude

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of the ungodly and the attitude of those who belong to the kingdom of heaven. A distinction

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that makes the people of God noticeably different from the world around us so that we might

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be manifestly shown to not be from around here. We see it first with the fellowship

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with one another. We see it first in our fellowship with one another. Read with me the first part

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of verse 16. We read, then those who feared the Lord talked with each other. Now notice

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what our prophet has to say here. There's a distinction between those who have been

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sliding down into moral and spiritual rebellion against God saying that he was pleased with

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evil, that he'd abandoned them and that serving him was utterly useless against those who

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were communing with one another with a totally different rhetoric. And notice who they were.

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Notice what they had in common. Our prophet says here that they feared the Lord. To put

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it simply, they were people that highly esteemed our Lord and loved and cherished him in his

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person, in his glory and in his grace. Malachi is speaking about believers here. And so we

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get to the heart of the matter, don't we? There's two types of people in the nation

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who are being challenged by God through his prophet. One group was responding with how,

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when, whatever. But then there's these others, these others that feared the Lord and they

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got together and they talked with each other. In other words, in light of all that they

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were hearing from God's prophet and their own countrymen, they didn't join in with the

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rebellious talk and chatter, but resorted to spiritual counsel and godly fellowship

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with one another to discuss what they'd been hearing. And this is really interesting. Our

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prophet goes on to say, the Lord listened and he heard. The Lord listened and he heard.

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I don't want to skip over that too quickly because that's important to note. How did

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God respond to his people as they got together and reflected on his word? The things that

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they heard from the prophet Malachi. Well, God not only heard and listened to their conversations,

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but a scroll of remembrance was written in his presence concerning those who feared the

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Lord and honoured his name. That's amazing to think about because what we see here is

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that the Lord pays attention to his people when they're speaking. When we're speaking

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not just to him, and that's incredible to think about it in and of itself, but when

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we speak about him, when we speak to each other about him. That's what's on view here.

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The living God who is high above all else, the King of Kings and seated on his glorious

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throne pays attention when his people get together to encourage each other, to exhort

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one another and to open scripture together and reflect on what he has to say to us. The

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Lord takes note of it. That's why I love one to ones, catch ups, family worship, Bible

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studies, getting together at church and doing connect groups because we're not just getting

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together to speak to one another about general things. It's a time when we purposely set

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time aside during the week to get together to have Christian fellowship, to exhort, challenge

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and build one another up in our most holy faith. I don't know how you go about that

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personally, there's so many different ways to do it. But Christian fellowship is one

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of the great marks that characterise a child of God in distinction from the ungodly. A

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child of God loves to speak about the things of God and we love to be around our brothers

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and sisters in the faith. And so might we all be challenged here this morning. Do you

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love getting around your brothers and sisters in Christ? Do you love speaking with them

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about the things of God? Do you love reflecting on his word as you hear it spoken or preached

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or read? Are we careful with the way in which we speak with one another? Are we mindful

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that we'll give an account of all the things that will come out of our mouth? This is something

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that defines the people of God in this world, a distinction that Malachi sets up for us,

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if you will. It has to do with our fellowship and the quality of our communion with one

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another as we speak the truth in love to each other. So first thing that defines the people

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of God in this world, we love to have fellowship with one another and we love to speak about

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the things of God. Second, we share the same glorious future. I'm going to read for you

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verse 17 of chapter 3 and we're going to go all the way up to chapter 4 verse 3. This

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is the word of God. On the day when I act, says the Lord Almighty, they, they will be

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my treasured possession. I'll spare them just as a father has compassion and spares his

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son who serves him. And you'll again see the distinction between the righteous and the

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wicked, between those who serve God and those who don't. Surely the day is coming, it will

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burn like a furnace. All the arrogant and evildoers will be stubble and the day that

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is coming will set them on fire, says the Lord Almighty. Not a root or branch will be

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left to them, but you who revere my name, the son of righteousness will rise with healing

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in its rays and you'll go out and frolic like well-fed calves and you'll trample on the

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wicked. There'll be ashes under the soles of your feet on the day when I act, says the

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Lord Almighty. Now church, admittedly there is a lot to unpack in just those few verses

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and we're not going to get to it all this morning, but I want you to take note of a

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very specific phrase that Malachi uses there repeatedly and that's the day, the day, the

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day, the day. Now what is Malachi referencing here? To put it simply with the time that

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we have this morning, he's speaking of a future day that will affect every single one of us

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in this room. A future day where God will come to judge all the peoples of the world,

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both the living and the dead. But this is the thing that Malachi reveals to us here.

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That day's coming and God will certainly judge, but that day will also reveal a difference

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between the believers and the unbelievers. It'll be a day where the godly and the ungodly

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will be revealed. That's clearly shown to us in these verses, particularly in verse

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18. We've seen already in this series that the people have been challenged and the people

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have responded to God in such incredibly offensive ways. But in this series, as we've been challenged

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here and now in 21st century Perth, Western Australia, we've hopefully seen where we've

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gone wrong. And unlike the rebellious that we read about in our text, unlike them, hopefully

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we have confessed and repented from our wrong thinking and asked the Holy Spirit of God

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to help us in our obedience. And we do that because God, God has radically changed our

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values and changed us in such a way so that we look at this world, we think about our

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lives totally different to those who have been hardened towards the truth of God's Word.

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I say that another way, when the people of God are challenged by God's Word because of

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the work of the Spirit, we want to follow our master. Because we fear the Lord, we want

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to serve him. Something in us longs to do things God's way, longs to walk on the straight

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and narrow, longs to walk with our Lord and Saviour, no matter the cost to ourselves.

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But might I say this, that hasn't always been the case, right? No, we've all been on the

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other side of the so-called Isle. We've all been defined as the wicked with our fists

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up to heaven, but this is the wonderful truth of our God. The wicked can be transformed

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and made into the righteous. Those who murmur and grumble and curse God can actually become

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his friend. And the wicked, the wicked can be counted as righteous. How's it happen?

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Not by doing any of the things that our prophet has challenged us with through the weeks perfectly.

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The wicked become righteous by one way and that is by faith in Jesus Christ. That is

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the only way that we might pass from death to life, from being the enemy of God to being

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adopted as a precious son or daughter. Malachi makes a distinction here in these verses.

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It's a serious thing to pay attention to. There will come a day and that day will reveal

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the righteous and the wicked and the wicked will indeed perish under the wrath of God.

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The distinction couldn't be any more clearer. There will be those who will be seen as God's

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treasured possession and will be spared by God like any father would his child from devastation

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and there will be those who will be revealed to be arrogant and as evildoers. The wicked

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prepared for fiery judgement. That day is indeed coming. But this is the thing dear

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ones. We can't make ourselves righteous by any intervention of our own. No, the only

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way that we might cross from death to life, from judgement to adoption is by calling upon

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the name of the Lord. And by God's grace alone, he has acted in the Lord Jesus to make that

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transformation for his people possible. The Apostle Paul puts it like this in his second

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letter to the Corinthians. All this is from God. All of this who reconciled us to himself

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through Jesus Christ. Brothers and sisters, it's our God who has made any of this possible

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and by means of Jesus, he clears the guilty. He justifies the sinner like you and me so

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that we might be reconciled to God as we trust in the work of the Lord Jesus Christ. The

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Gospel proclaims that Jesus has done everything that needs to be done to reconcile us and

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to make us righteous so that when that day comes, when the sun of righteousness will

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rise with healing in its rays, when Jesus comes back with a myriad of angels with a

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loud trumpet, when he comes back to earth to judge as the Apostle Paul puts it, we will

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go out and frolic like well-fed calves. Why? Because we will be reckoned righteous because

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of the work of Jesus. Because of the work of Jesus forever reconciled to our heavenly

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Father. If you're here this morning and you have called upon the name of the Lord and

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your faith is in him, then you have passed from death to life. We indeed look forward

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with anticipation to our coming King. But if you're here this morning and you would

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say no, well friend, the Gospel is really being held out to you this morning. You're

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not here by any mistake. It's really being held out so that you too might become a child

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of God, to be adopted into his family. The word of God urges you to repent today while

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it is still called today, to turn and trust in all that Jesus has done and call upon his

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name. But hear this, hear this this morning. It's Jesus who transforms people. We don't

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transform ourselves. He is the one who takes us from being wicked under condemnation, under

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judgment who clothes us in his most holy righteousness so that we might look forward to meeting our

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heavenly Father on that day. There's distinctions that we're hearing here

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this morning, isn't there church? First, the people of God love to fellowship with one

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another because second, we share the same glorious future. A future that has been purchased

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for us by our Lord Jesus Christ. Third, we're defined from the world because of our faithfulness

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to God's word. We read in verse four of chapter four, remember the law of my servant Moses,

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the decrees and laws I gave him a horrib for all Israel. Now, as I said before, we're not

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saved by our own perfect obedience to the word of God. But that's not to say that we

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won't love the word of God and do everything to live by what it says. We have to get that

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order right. We believe and obey not to be saved, but because we're saved, we believe

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and obey. Let me say that again. We believe and obey not to be saved, but because we're

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saved, we believe and obey. And that's one of the great distinctions of the Christian

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in this world. It's not simply that we like to be around other Christians. It's not simply

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that we look forward to a future day of our coming King, but it's that we here and now

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want to know what God has to say so that we might live faithfully to his word by obeying

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his commandments. That's what Malachi holds out for us here. The true children of God

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don't look at the law, look at the word of God and say, that's nice, but that's just

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too hard really to follow. Well, that's nice. I'll just twist it to what my itching ears

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wanted to say. No, we found the yoke of Christ placed on us to be easy and his burden light.

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And so because of the work of the Holy Spirit in us, we seek to know God's word so that

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we might obey it. Because quite simply, we love our Lord's ways. We love his instructions

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because it brings us such deep inner joy. The psalmist says it like this in chapter

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119 of the Psalms, deal bountifully with your servant that I might live and keep your word.

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Open my eyes that I might see marvellous things from your law. I'm a stranger on earth. I'm

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a guide just passing through. Don't hide your commandments from me. My soul breaks with

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longing for your judgment at all times. You rebuke the proud who stray from your commandments.

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Remove from me reproach and contempt for I've kept your testimonies. Rulers sit and speak

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against me but your servant meditates on your statutes. Your testimonies also are my delights.

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They're my counsellors. Church, there is an incredible attack this day and age from without

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and within the church on the word of God. This is actually nothing new but what makes

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the true children of God distinct from those who simply pay lip service is that those who

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love God, we show it by our obedience. Do you claim Jesus as your saviour? It'll be

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manifested in your life by your surrendering of your ways to Jesus as your Lord. It'll

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be evident because you love God's word. Church, all redeemed spirit-filled Christians strive

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to live faithfully to our God's word. And when we make mistakes, when we trip, when

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we sin, not if, when, and we will. Like the psalmist, we can know that for us to live

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in joy once again is to go to our Father in heaven, to confess, to be honest, to ask Him

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for His grace to trust and obey. And our God will never give up on His people as we strive

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on this side of eternity. In fact, if you read back just a little further in Psalm 119,

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the psalmist pleads that he wouldn't utterly be forsaken. And in the Lord Jesus Christ,

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that promise is ours. We will never be utterly forsaken. So first, the people of God love

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to fellowship with one another because second, we share the same saviour and glorious future

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because of our status in Christ. Third, we're defined from the world because of our faithfulness

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to God's word. Fourth and finally, we'll be distinct because of the relationships that

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we have with those around us. Look with me at verses five and six. See, I'll send the

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prophet Elijah to you before that great and dreadful day of the Lord. When it comes, he

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will turn the hearts of the parents to the children and the hearts of the children to

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their parents or else I'll come and strike the land with total destruction. Now notice

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that language again, the day, Malachi talks about this day that's coming. But notice this,

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before that day comes, Elijah, the prophet will come on the scene first. Now to understand

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what Malachi is getting at here, we have to think about these words in light of the New

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Testament. In fact, there was a great theologian of old, Augustine, who once said, in the old

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concealed and in the new revealed. And because the Jews in no way believed in reincarnation,

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it was never expected that Elijah, the great prophet of Ahaz's kingship, would physically

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come back. So what on earth is Malachi speaking about here? In the old concealed, in the new

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revealed. So if we turn to the book of Luke, particularly chapter one, when the angels

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went to the father of John the Baptist, it's there that we see them say to him that John

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would turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God. And he would go before

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the Lord in the spirit and power of Elijah to turn the hearts of the fathers to their

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children. It's there that they're directly drawing on Malachi's prophecy. That's what

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John was born to do. He was born to make ready a people for the Lord. And he would do it

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in a very similar way, in a very similar boldness to how Elijah preached to Israel against all

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the odds. Jesus makes this even more clearer, telling his audience in the 11th chapter of

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Matthew that all the prophets of the law prophesied until John. But if they could accept it, he

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was the Elijah that Malachi spoke of. It's important for us to note, John the Baptist

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came to prepare the way before the Lord Jesus Christ with a powerful preaching ministry.

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And what do we read of his preaching? If we look at the gospel of Matthew, Mark, Luke

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and John, we see that he proclaimed that the lamb of God who takes away the sin of the

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world had come. In other words, he preached that Jesus Christ was the one who would reconcile

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the world to God through faith in him. John's message was Jesus. He preached reconciliation.

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He preached grace. And it's by grace alone that we're reconciled to God. We go from rebels

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to children. Through Jesus, our judgment ends, which ends our alienation with God. But might

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I say it also ends our alienation with one another. The spirit of God that reconciles

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us to God also leads us to heal our relationships with those around us. Church, the gospel,

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it has a permeating effect throughout the whole of the life of the Christian. The reconciliation

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between us and our heavenly father will have its knock on effects. We've been reconciled

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to God, forgiven. And so we learn to forgive. That's the natural or supernatural result

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of being born again. We begin to learn how to love and serve others. We begin to resolve

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and humble ourselves and adopt a stance of obedience as we pursue reconciliation with

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those around us. Paul says in Colossians 3, make allowance for each other's faults. We've

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got faults, right? And forgive anyone who offends you. Remember, remember the gospel.

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The Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others. The truth of the gospel is that Jesus

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Christ has healed the deepest wounds of our soul by his grace. And by that same grace,

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he enables us more and more, it might not be straight away, but over time to desire

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to mend the wounds of broken relationships with others. The apostle Paul, again speaking

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to the church in Romans 12 says, give thought to do what's honourable in the sight of the

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good if possible, so far as it depends on you. Live peaceably with all. Don't be overcome

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with evil, but overcome evil with good. Church, we are a people of grace. We've received grace

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and thus we show grace. We show undeserved favour to all. Would you say that that kind

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of grace characterises relationships with those around you? Would you say that you're

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prepared to show grace to those who have done you wrong? Are you prepared in your pursuit

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of obedience to pursue reconciliation with those who have slandered you, who have hurt

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you, who have let you down, maybe even within your own family? There's of course great wisdom

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and counsel in how these relationships might be mended and how matters might be dealt with

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in a godly way. But one of the great distinctions of a child of God is that we'll never be

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content with leaving schism, loving and harbouring division in our relationships. So as we end

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our time in this passage and in this series as we begin our new series in Galatians next

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week, Malachi leaves us with a beautiful picture of the church for the world to see. Distinctions

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that make us different to those around us so that they might really say you're not from

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around here. There's something different about you. What are these distinctions? Well, we've

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seen them this morning. Those who fear the Lord will speak with one another and encourage

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one another in meaningful and joyful God-centric fellowship because we share a wonderful future

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together by the gracious work of our Saviour and our relationships will be seasoned and

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flavoured with a pursuit of the knowledge of the Word so that we might be faithful to

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the commands of our Lord and our relationships will be gospel-centric. Gospel-centric in

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that we're not harbouring division pursuing schism but pursuing self-sacrificial reconciliation

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in the wisdom of God. Church, our fellowship, our futures, our faithfulness and even our

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relationships is what makes us distinct in this world and it makes us distinct because

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of the grace of God that has infiltrated our lives. We won't always walk in this perfectly

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but let us not lose hope. Let's not get lazy. Let's not get lazy in our pursuit of holiness.

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Let's not neglect meeting with one another and encouraging each other in our most holy

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faith. Let us be a community of people here at Grace Christian Church that love and live

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out the grace of God to one another and the world around us so that they might sit up

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and pay attention and be drawn to the blessed gospel of Jesus Christ that is truly and really

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held out to them as well. And let us pursue these things until the great and glorious

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day when the Son of Righteousness arises with healing in his wings for his people. Would

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you please pray with me? Father we are eternally grateful for the Word.

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We are eternally grateful for the Word that became flesh and came to dwell among us. Father

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we ask that by your Spirit not only would our eyes be drawn to the Lord Jesus this morning

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but that we would have a deep desire to pursue holiness. That we would look at all the things

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that we've heard this morning in our relationships, in our attitudes, in the way that we look

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at your Word, the way that we ponder what you have to say to us even in our conversations,

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in relationships with all those around us and that we would be a people that is ever

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becoming more evident that you are at work among us. Father where we trip, where we fall,

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where we rebel we would ask that we would be quick to repent, quick to look to the cross,

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quick to know that you are the one who is leading and guiding us. And Lord that we would

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be an example to the city of Armidale what the infiltration of the kingdom in this world

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might really look like and that we would see many come through the doors, we would see

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many hear the gospel, we would see many become disciples of you for the glory of your name

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alone. We ask for this in the precious name of Jesus Christ, Amen.