WEBVTT

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Today, you and I are going to have another one

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of those heart -to -heart talks. Oh, I see you've

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already gotten out your Bible. You're waiting

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for it. Oh, that's wonderful. I appreciate it,

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too. And we're talking about something that is

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vitally important to all of us. And we have been

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studying the... 13th chapter of 1 Corinthians,

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and I hope that before I would have left your

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house today, we will have gotten into that 14th

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chapter of 1 Corinthians, which of course is

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the basic chapter on tongues. But you and I cannot

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fully understand. No person will have a full

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understanding of the 14th chapter of 1 Corinthians

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until after they have received an understanding

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of the 13th chapter. And oh, that 13th chapter

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is so important. It's important because of its

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relation to all of Christ's teaching. If you

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want to know the basis for all of Christ's teaching,

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you'll find it in that 13th chapter. chapter.

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It's thrilling. It's marvelous. It's one of the

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most remarkable chapters in the entire Bible.

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And yesterday, of course, we took that eighth

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verse. Love never faileth. And it never does.

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It cannot fail. But whether there be prophecies,

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they shall fail. Whether there be tongues, they

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shall cease. Whether there be knowledge, it shall

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vanish away. And then I paused yesterday to explain

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to you that there is coming a day when there

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will no longer be the speaking in an unknown

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tongue. There will no longer be those who will

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be filled with the Holy Spirit, but baptized

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with the Spirit, because all of these things

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are made possible to his church, the bride of

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Christ, members of the body of Christ. All of

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these things are for those who are living during

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the day of Pentecost. It's true, there's coming

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a day when tongues will cease, Till that day,

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it is in God's perfect plan for members of His

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church to speak in an unknown tongue. The baptism

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of the Holy Spirit is a gift. The person of the

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Holy Spirit is a gift to His church. And His

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church is still in operation. And the scripture

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clearly teaches, when these things shall cease,

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continue to read the rest of that chapter. For

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now, it says, we know in part. We prophesy in

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part. But there's coming a day when, oh, that

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glorious day, when he shall come. When that which

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is perfect is come, and when the one who is perfect

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is come, not only will prophecy cease, not only

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will tongues cease, but there will no longer

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be the need for faith in my life. For faith will

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have become a reality. Do you realize that? Do

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you fully realize that there's coming a day when

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we'll no longer use that word faith? Oh, it's

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used so much now. It's a vitally important part

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of every Christian's life. This thing of faith.

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Think of the sermons that have been preached

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on faith. Think of the volumes that have been

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written on this thing of faith. That vital thing

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called faith. And yet, there's coming a day when

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I'll not be preaching a sermon on faith. I won't

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even be using the word faith. Because faith will

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have become A reality. That very second that

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the old heart takes its last beat, the very moment

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that we stand in his wonderful presence, there'll

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no longer be the need for faith. Faith will have

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become a reality. There'll no longer be the need

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for hope. Oh, when I think about hope. Hope that

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puts stars in darkened skies, blackened skies.

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Hope that puts doors in blank walls. Windows

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in blank walls. Hope that... brings out the sunshine.

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But it's so dark. It's so black. Hope. There's

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coming a day when we'll no longer need faith.

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We'll no longer need hope. But there's one...

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we're going to take with us. Tongues will have

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ceased. Prophecy will have ceased. We'll no longer

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need the gifts of the Spirit. Think about it.

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Do you know that the day is coming when we'll

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no longer need the gift of wisdom? We'll no longer

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need the gift of knowledge? We'll no longer need...

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The gift of faith or the gifts of healing? Think

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about it. The day is coming when we'll not need

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the gift of healing. Think of it. We'll no longer

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need the working of miracles or the gift of prophecy.

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The gift of tongues or the interpretation of

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tongues. We'll no longer have... need or use

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for the gifts of the Spirit. That's the reason

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that all of these things are for his church today

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during the day of Pentecost. Because the hour

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is coming when the old heart takes its last beat,

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staying in his glorious presence. This which

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is mortal will have put on immortality. There'll

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be no sickness. There'll be no sorrow. There'll

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be no heartbreak. We'll no longer need faith.

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We'll no longer need hope. But there's one thing

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that we will take with us, and that's... the

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reason it's the most important thing in the life

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of every human being. And it's the thing that's

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the basis of all of Christ's teaching. And that

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thing is love. We will have left all of these

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other things here. We will have dropped them.

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Just as one drops a coat or a piece of clothing.

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We drop them. But when we stand in his presence,

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then for the very first time, that love will

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have been perfected. My love for him will have

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been perfected. I'll no longer be seen through

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a glass darkly. But when I come in full view,

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then his love for me will have been made perfect.

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No glass between. No. In that day when I stand

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face to face, Now I know in part, but then shall

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I know even as also I am known. And now, by now,

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this present hour, this present moment, I am

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still in the flesh. I am still in the body. And

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now, abideth faith. Oh, what would we do with

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our faith? And now, this hour, abideth hope.

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What would you do if you didn't have hope? These

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three, all three so vitally important. But the

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greatest of these is hope. Love. Mm -hmm. That's

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the thing that we'll take with us when we go

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home to glory. Continue now. There's a chapter

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marking. There's a 14th chapter. But it would

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be so nice if that chapter marking wasn't there.

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Keep right on going. Follow after love. Just

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stop right there. Sometimes, you know, I'm amazed

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what people seek. I mean that. I'm so amazed.

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Sometimes I think it's because it's the lack

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of teaching. Maybe I have not been as good a

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teacher along this line as I should be. If you

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are a minister listening to me, you too have

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been called to preach the gospel. And as one

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called, our responsibility is very great. It's

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very great to those to whom we are to minister.

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And we need old -fashioned teaching. Talk to

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any Christian, just a very few minutes. and you'll

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know almost immediately what they are seeking.

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I hear a man waiting another man, both the Christians,

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and they'll clasp the hand of the other and say,

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Well, thank God, brother. And I listen, and the

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next remark is, Have you spoken in tongues? I

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know immediately that the thing that is uppermost

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in the mind of the man who has asked the question

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is tongues. It's there. But here in the 14th

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chapter of 1 Corinthians, and this is the basic

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chapter on tongues, before one word is said about

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tongues, The Holy Spirit to the pen of Paul says,

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follow after love. It doesn't say follow after

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tongues. It doesn't say follow after spiritual

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gifts. Follow after love. For me to live is Christ

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and Christ is love. And sometimes I think we

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get our minds on some of these things that...

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Now, I would not minimize tongues for anything

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in the world, but shall I say the lesser important

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things. For instance, sometimes I think... we

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have become so engrossed on the manifestations

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of the Spirit that we have forgotten Jesus entirely.

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Now, you cannot find anywhere in the Word of

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God where it says that the Holy Spirit will magnify

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tongues. You can't find it. I challenge you to

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find it. But we do have the word of Jesus when

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Jesus was talking about the Holy Spirit. And

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when Jesus spoke, remember, that was the highest

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authority in heaven and earth. It makes no difference

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what I might say. If I say one thing and the

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Bible says another, the Bible's right. If what

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you have been taught is contrary to what Jesus

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said, remember, Jesus is right. And in speaking

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of the Holy Spirit, Jesus said, He will glorify

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me. He will magnify me. And the Holy Spirit never

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magnifies or glorifies any manifestation. He

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will always magnify and glorify Jesus. And whenever

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Jesus is glorified, you will always find love.

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For me to live is Christ. God is love. Jesus

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is love. The Holy Spirit is love. and if I am

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a part of his body, and if I am immersed in the

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Holy Spirit, then, beloved, I too will be loved.

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And for me to live is Christ, and Christ is love.

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That's the reason he begins with these words,

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Follow after love. The next thing, desire spiritual

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gifts. Oh, and if you are really a born -again

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Christian, if you are a member of this glorious

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body, if you are counted among the spirituals,

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believe me, automatically there'll be something

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in you that every atom of your being will desire

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spiritual gifts. If there's no desire in your

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heart for spiritual gifts, if there is no desire

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for the spiritual, I don't care what your experiences

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may have been, there is something wrong with

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your spiritual life. If you're going on with

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the Lord, if there is a spiritual growth there,

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there will be a desire in that heart of yours

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for spiritual gifts. Desire spiritual gifts.

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And he continues, but rather that ye may prophesy.

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Therefore, we see that the... Greatest spiritual

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gift is the gift of prophecy. Oh, that one little

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verse is loaded. I don't know why it isn't preached

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on more. I don't know why. Men don't speak of

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it more. It's there. We take something and make

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such a big issue of it when it's such a small

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thing in the sight of God. And yet the vitally

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important things we just sort of push under the

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rug. We kind of sweep under the rug and I don't

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know whether we feel it's too hot to handle or

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maybe there isn't a spiritual understanding.

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I don't know. But this is so clear a child can

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understand. A child can understand when we say,

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follow after love. Desire spiritual gifts, but

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rather that ye may prophesy. Therefore, we see

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here that the gift that is the most important

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of all gifts is the gift of prophecy. Oh, it's

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wonderful to have the gift of wisdom. It's glorious

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to have the gift of knowledge. It's wonderful

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to have the gift of faith, the gift of healing,

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the gift of tongues, the gift, the interpretation

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of tongues. But if you're going to seek a gift,

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if you're going to... covet a gift, if you're

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going to desire a gift. Covet and desire the

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gift of prophecy. But rather that ye may prophesy.

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For he that speaketh in an unknown tongue speaketh

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not unto men, but unto God. For no man understandeth

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him, howbeit in the spirit he speaketh mysteries.

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But he that prophesieth speaketh unto men to

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edification and exhortation and comfort. Where

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did the time go? I shall continue with the fourteenth

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chapter. of First Corinthians at another time.