WEBVTT

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I left you in our last heart -to -heart talk

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talking about the second coming of the Lord Jesus

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Christ. And you will remember that I told you

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that there were two stages in this glorious second

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coming. So far as we know, Jesus has never been

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back. to earth in bodily form since he went away.

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But he's coming back. But the first stage of

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his coming, he will not touch the earth with

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his feet. We will meet him in the air. The first

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stage of his return, he comes forth. his saints.

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Seven years later, he comes to earth with his

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saints. And at that time, the last stage of his

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second coming, every eye shall see him. And he'll

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return to the very same spot where he left. Know

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that. That comes from the highest authority in

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heaven and earth. God himself. All right? And

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you'll remember that I left you giving you the

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scripture as recorded in the 11th chapter of

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John when Jesus was talking to Martha just before

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he raised Lazarus from the dead. And this is

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what Jesus said. I am the resurrection and the

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life. He that believeth in me, though he were

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dead, and he's referring to those who died in

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the Lord, and Moses was the type of those who

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had died in the Lord, yet shall he live. That's

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the first resurrection. Then he continues. And

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whosoever liveth is alive when I come back. And

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believeth in me shall never die. And there we

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have Jesus himself talking about the great catching

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up. The saints who are alive for whom there will

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never be a funeral service. And my last words

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when I left you. In our last heart -to -heart

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talk was the fact that there are those living

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this very hour for whom there will never be a

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funeral service. But they will be caught up to

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meet him in the air. And we call it the great

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catching up. The word rapture is not used in

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the Bible. The scriptural term is caught up.

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They shall be caught up. This will not be visible

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to the natural eye. Now, I cannot tell you the

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time of the first stage of the second coming

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of the Lord Jesus Christ. unto God himself. Even

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the very angels, the word of God said, do not

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have this knowledge. Only God has this knowledge.

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Any man, any person who will set a definite date

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and say, there will be the great catching up.

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Such and such a day is ignorant of the word of

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God. For the angels in heaven do not have this

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knowledge. But the times and the seasons we know

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and those who are spiritually minded know that

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we are living now in the time and the seasons

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for this great event. to take place. The time

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when the church will be caught up, when the Holy

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Spirit leaves, when this dispensation comes to

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an end. And this dispensation, the times of the

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Gentiles, is quickly drawing to a close. The

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Holy Spirit is about to leave. That's the reason.

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He is pouring out of himself upon all flesh,

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and the last members of the body of Christ are

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being born into this great body of believers.

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Oh, we're living in times, thrilling times, times

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when prophecy is being fulfilled on every side.

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Give me my choice. I would rather be living today

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than in any generation that I know anything about

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whatsoever. After the great catching up, seven

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years later, and those of you who will be left,

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and you will be left, If you are not ready for

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this great event of the great catching up, if

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you've never been washed in the blood of the

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Lamb, if you've never had that new birth experience,

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if you've never been born into this body of Christ,

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then you are not ready for the great catching

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up and you will be left. You can mark it on your

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calendar. after the church has been caught up.

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And you can know that seven years later, Jesus

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Christ will return in bodily form on the very

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spot where he left. He will come back at the

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close of the great battle of the Armageddon.

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I've taught you over and over that God has a

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purpose in everything that he does. His plans

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are perfect. He never makes a mistake. Why the

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great catching up? Why the first phase of...

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This second coming of the Lord Jesus Christ.

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Do you want to know something? God loves his

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own. I don't think that man has the capacity

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to really understand the depth of the love of

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God. The love of the Heavenly Father. For his

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children. Always when there was a great catastrophe

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upon the earth. Always before God has ever sent

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a judgment to the earth. He's always given a

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warning. And he's always made a way of escape

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for his own. Always. Before the floods came.

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Before judgment came. God made a way of escape

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for Noah and his family. He warned him. He told

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him what to do. And Noah believed him. Even as

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believers, take him at his word today. I believe

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it. I believe everything in the word. Noah believed

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the word. of the Lord. And he made preparation.

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Just this God's precious children are making

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preparation now for the great catching up. And

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the great catching up is a means of escape from

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the suffering that will come upon the earth in

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exactly the same way that the ark was a refuge

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and a means of escape for Noah. and his family.

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Do you really know what the suffering is going

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to be like during those seven years of tribulation?

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There will be pestilence. There will be suffering.

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As man has never known, it will be the very first

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time in the history of mankind that suffering

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would be so intense that even in judgment, in

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wrath, God will continue to show mercy and will

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shorten time just to alleviate the suffering

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of mankind. But of course, man brings this all

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on himself. God will never destroy man. Man will

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destroy himself. Man is bringing on his own destruction,

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his own judgment. Because sin has got to be punished.

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Whether it's in an individual life, whether it's

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in the life of a nation. Sin has got to be punished

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or God wouldn't be a God of justice. And it's

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like that. When we talk about the great catching

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up, when we talk about the rapture, the Word

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of God says that we are to be counted worthy

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to escape all these things that shall come upon

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the earth. If you want to know what the suffering

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will really be like, read Those three chapters

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in the little book of Joel. Sometime I'm going

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to just bring you a series of heart -to -heart

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talks on this little book of Joel. For here in

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Joel, we have the whole picture of the end time

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of this present age, of the times of the Gentiles.

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The suffering, all the suffering. A fired...

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devoureth before them. Behind them a flame burneth.

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The land is as the garden of Eden before them.

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Behind them desolate wilderness. Yea, and nothing

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shall escape them. Mm -hmm. There you have atomic

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warfare. Suffering. Now, mentally. The intelligent

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man knows that civilization can be wiped out,

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destroyed in a matter of hours. And the hour

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is coming literally when one of the world's greatest

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cities will be wiped out within an hour. The

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Bible says so. Now, that's the reason. that God

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has made provision for his own, his children,

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to escape all these things that are about to

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come upon the earth. That's the why of the rapture.

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Read, if you will, please. Oh, maybe you have

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read it, but not permitting the Holy Spirit to

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be your teacher. Read it again in your own Bible,

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the 24th chapter of Matthew. Now learn a parable

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of the fig tree, when his branch is yet tender.

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And of course, I've taught you, and it's an established

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fact by theologians, that the fig tree is a symbol

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of Israel. When his branch is yet tender, And

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I'll tell you, those branches and those leaves

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are getting stronger every day. But for a long

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time, they're not going to be so tender. And

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put forth leaves, ye know that summer is nigh.

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So likewise ye, when ye shall see all these things,

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know that it is near, even at the doors. There

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I say unto you, this generation shall not pass

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till all these things be fulfilled. Then to clinch

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the whole thing, he says, heaven and earth shall

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pass away, but my word shall not pass away. But

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of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not

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the angels of heaven, but my Father only. Continue.

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But as the days of Noah were, so shall also the

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coming of the Son of Man be. For as in the days

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that were before the flood, they were eating

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and drinking and marrying and giving in marriage

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until the day that Noah entered into the ark

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and knew not until the flood came and took them

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all away, so shall also the coming of the Son

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of Man be. Now he's describing the great catching

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up. And this is the event when he comes for his

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saints and the meeting is in the air. Two shall

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be in the field. One shall be taken. The other

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left. Two women shall be grinding at the mill.

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One shall be taken. The other left. Watch! Therefore,

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for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come.

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We are living in that hour now. The times, the

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seasons are upon us. If you are spiritual. If

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you had the slightest spiritual perception, you

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will agree that the times and the seasons are

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upon us. The moment of the great catching up,

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only the father knows. But the great event could

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take... place this day and not violate one word

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of Scripture. And this great event is God's mercy

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for the Church of the Lord Jesus Christ. God

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bless you.