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At the beach today will be in Philippians chapter 2 verses 12 through 18.

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Let's begin in verse 12. It says, my beloved ones, just like you've always

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listened to everything I've taught you in the past, I'm asking you now to keep

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following my instructions as though I were right there with you. So it's really

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important in life that we seek advice because it shows humility, but also we

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need wisdom with our humility so that we can know who we're supposed to get

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advice from. So this is like Paul's reminder, hey listen, I know you have a lot

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going on, but the words that I left with you, the life that I lived in front of

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you, emulate that. Take my words seriously. Put them into practice just

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like it was right there beside you as your encourager, as the person trying to

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empower you and trying to lift you up. You see, not everyone in life has your

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best intentions in mind. Some people are trying to use you for what they want and

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you want to seek out people that have your best interest in mind and that it

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doesn't have anything to do with them. The Bible refers to this role as

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the role of a shepherd. A shepherd takes care of sheep not for the shepherd, but

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for the interests of the sheep, for doing what is in their best interest. So this

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is the godly relationship that a sheep has with the shepherd and that a

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shepherd has the sheep is the relationship that Paul had with the

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church that he helped to start in Philippi. So he says, now you must

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continue to make this new life fully manifested as you live in the holy awe

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of God which brings you trembling into his presence. So God has, he gives us

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glimpses of what he wants to do in our life in us and through us on a daily

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basis. These moments of where we get that glimpse they can come in worship, they

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can come in prayer, they can come in a conversation with someone else, but God

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will always give you like a glimpse into what he wants to do in you and through

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you and that glimpse provides energy and encouragement and enthusiasm so that

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God's full will can be manifested in your life, not just a little bit of it.

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And every time you get one of these glimpses you'll always be left kind of

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trembling in God's presence a little bit. You'll be sort of in awe of how God is

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working in you and through you. Now Paul says in verse 13 God will continually

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revitalize you. Boy is this true. God renews this day by day. The Bible says

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that his mercies are new every single morning. So God renews this every

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morning and every day. He revitalizes us on a continuous basis when we walk and

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step with the Spirit, implanting within you the passion to do what pleases him.

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So as you take each step with God he gives you more and more desire to take

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another step, more and more energy to keep moving forward, more and more life

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flowing out of your life to keep you moving on the straight and narrow path

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that is God's will. Now he says in verse 14 live a cheerful life without

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complaining or division amongst yourselves. So the key to living a

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cheerful life is not to be divisive and disunified. Most of this is kept by

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simply being quiet. So funny. We live in a day and age when people have never

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talked more than they do right now. They've never expressed more than they

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do right now and yet the world's never been crazier than it is right now. It's

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because the wise person doesn't always speak. The wise person most often listens.

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That's why God gave us two ears and one mouth so that we would listen twice as

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much as we speak. If you listen twice as much as you speak you'll live a

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cheerful life. If you talk twice as much as you listen you'll live in disunity

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and displeasure. So my general advice to anyone watching this would be listen

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twice as much as you speak. Don't say everything that you say. Don't say

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everything that you think and you'll live a quiet joyful peaceful life. Verse 15

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says for then you'll be seen as innocent. You'll be seen as innocent because you

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won't say as many silly things that you'll have to go back and apologize for.

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Faultless and pure children of God. Now who makes us faultless? Well just Jesus.

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It's not us. We have to ask Jesus to forgive us. Ask Jesus to walk in his

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grace. Ask Jesus for his compassion in our life every single day and that renews

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us in our attitude of how we interact with other people. He says even though you

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live in the midst of a brutal and perverse culture. So that's the reality

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of the world that we live in. Not everyone is kind and compassionate and

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loving and uplifting. We live in a brutal perverse culture and we are to shine

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like stars in the midst of that most often by living a quiet joyful life

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where we pray and try to bless others. He says for you will appear among them as

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shining lights in the universe holding out the words of eternal life. You see

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when you live a cheerful life, a prayerful life, a quiet life, that's what

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makes you stand out. Not all this other stuff. A prayerful, quiet, cheerful life

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is what it means to shine like a star. Paul says I haven't labored among you for

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nothing for our lives are the fruit for your lives are the fruit of my ministry

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and will be and will be my glorious boast at the unveiling of Christ. All

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the effort that you put into making disciples, all the effort that you put

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into impacting people's lives, they are the reward of the life that we live here

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on earth. All of the different people that choose to love and follow Jesus

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every single day. Look at verse 17 he says but I will rejoice even if my life

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is poured out like a liquid offering to God for your sacrificial and surrendered

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lives of faith. Now remember Paul's writing this from a prison cell. He says

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I rejoice that my life is poured out before you trying to do God's will, God's

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way and lastly in verse 18 and he says and so no matter what happens to me you

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should rejoice in ecstatic celebration with me. You see the wise mature believer

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trusts that all things work for the good to those who love God and have been

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called according to his purpose in Jesus name. Thanks so much for watching today

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till next time a Bible at the beach have a beautiful day.