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Once upon a time, in a land far, far away, so began many fables and fairy tales as they

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captured the imagination of children and the affection of parents.

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But the story of Jesus Christ is not a story that begins that way, once upon a time, in

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a land far, far away.

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The Gospel is not a cleverly devised tale produced by the Gospel writers, but it is

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rather an historical record of one who actually lived, walked, talked, ate, slept, laughed,

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cried, died, and rose again, all in the framework of a real place and a certain historical period.

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That is how Luke begins the third chapter of his Gospel as we divide the book.

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He says, Now in the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, when Pontius Pilate

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was governor of Judea, and Herod was teachrarch of Galilee, and his brother Philip was teachrarch

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of the region of Itria and Trachonitis, and Licinius was teachrarch of Abilene, in the

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high priesthood of Annas and Caiaphas, the word of God came to John.

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That is Luke's way of dating and recording when this took place.

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Now we would say it 28 or 29 AD, but of course they did not number the years that way in

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those days.

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And so Luke plugs us into the historical period when this literally took place.

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Furthermore, in this third chapter he gives to us genealogy, tracing the humanity of Jesus

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Christ all the way back to Adam, the Son of God.

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And so he identifies for us the fact that this one of whom he writes was real.

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He was a human being who lived, who died, and who rose again.

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We are dealing with a true story as we talk about the life of Jesus Christ during the

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first half of this year.

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It is a real story about a real person.

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These are not myths or legends that were concocted by the writers of the gospels.

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Jesus Christ is different than the founder of other man-made religions.

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The Bible contains some of the best history from the ancient time that exists in the world

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today.

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It is trustworthy.

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Now between chapters 2 and 3, some 18 years pass.

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These are years of quiet solitude for our Lord, ordinary living in the city of Nazareth.

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It was a time of proving and preparing him for his public work to come.

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Like a rosebud, when it firms and then swells and finally bursts into beautiful bloom.

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So now as we come to the third chapter, that bloom of the life of Jesus Christ bursts forth.

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Christ's ministry begins with three historical events that set the stage for what is about

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to happen.

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It is those three events that I would like for us to focus on this morning.

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The first event is the proclamation by John preparing his way.

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We see this in the first half of chapter 3.

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Notice the authority of John, first of all.

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It says that the word of God came to John, the son of Zacharias, in the wilderness.

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John was a man who was called by God, indeed who was set apart by God for his special ministry

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while he was yet within the womb of his mother.

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The apostle John, who wrote the gospel bearing his name, says regarding this John, there

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was a man sent from God whose name was John.

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That was the authority of John the Baptist.

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He was not a self-created preacher.

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He was not one who called himself to do what he did, but he was called of God.

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By the way, so had everyone who was in the ministry.

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Then we notice regarding him his significance in verses 4 through 6.

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As it is written in the book of the words of Isaiah the prophet, the voice of one crying

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in the wilderness, make ready the way of the Lord.

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The significance of John is that he fulfilled Old Testament prophecy.

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Words that were spoken hundreds of years before he was born to Zacharias and Elizabeth came

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to be fulfilled in his life.

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He had to come according to the word of God before the Messiah would come for his ministry.

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He was the one who would go out and make the way ready for the coming of the Lord.

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Thus his significance in human history.

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Regarding him, Jesus said there has never been a greater one in all of the history of

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the world than John the Baptist.

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Now if we back up to verse 3, we notice what his message was.

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He came into all the district around the Jordan preaching a baptism of repentance for the

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forgiveness of sins.

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A very simple, straightforward message from this prophet of God.

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It was a message to be baptized.

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Baptism would represent repentance and would result in the forgiveness of sins.

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Now we know that baptism itself does never wash away sins.

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What does?

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It is the heart attitude.

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God is calling the people of his generation to change their hearts in their attitudes.

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In doing so they would be prepared for the coming of the Messiah who would be preaching

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to them the kingdom of God.

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But they had to be stirred up out of their lethargy and their sinfulness.

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So he came preaching repentance.

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Repentance is the other side of faith.

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Repentance is not something in addition to faith, but it's the other side of faith.

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The word literally means a change of mind, but it embraces more than just a mental act.

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It involves also a willingness to change the life.

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It is a turning from sin to desire righteousness.

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That is why the message that John preached was applied as it was in verses 7 through

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14.

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He calls them to bring forth works in keeping with repentance.

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Fruit, he says, in keeping with repentance.

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And he explains to the multitudes in verses 7 through 11 what that would mean to them.

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In verses 12 and 13 he spoke specifically to the tax gatherers.

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And he said, if you are repenting of your sin, here's the result that will be seen

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in your life.

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Then in verse 14 he speaks to the soldiers.

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And he says, if you wish to repent of your sin and change your mind about it, here's

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the proof that you're genuine.

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So there were very specific applications to the message of repentance for the forgiveness

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of sins.

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Notice that Luke calls this the gospel in verse 18.

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So with many other exhortations also he preached the gospel to the people.

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Now the gospel that you and I preach today is a gospel that's more fully developed

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because Jesus Christ has died, has been buried, and has been raised again for the forgiveness

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of sins.

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John didn't have that information yet.

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But nonetheless he preached that the Lord was coming.

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Prepare the way of the Lord.

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Repent of your sins, he says, and bring forth fruits in keeping with repentance.

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And the result, well, it was what you might expect.

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There was a general state of expectation among the people in verse 15.

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There was anticipation.

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As they heard John's message there was this building sense that something was about to

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happen.

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And they looked forward to that.

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Something was going to happen soon.

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But then there was the inevitable question.

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People were wondering in their hearts about John as to whether he might be the Christ.

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And John answered and said to them all, as for me I baptize you with water.

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But one is coming who is mightier than I, and I am not fit to untie the thong of his

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sandals.

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He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.

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And his winnowing fork is in his hand to thoroughly clear his threshing floor and to gather the

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wheat into his barn, but he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.

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So John denies that he is the Christ, but he points to one who is coming greater than

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he.

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And this one would come to save and to judge.

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He would come to bring the Holy Spirit, but also the fire of condemnation.

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He is the one who would clear the floor, keeping the wheat, burning the chaff.

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John says I am not the Christ, but he is coming.

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One of those who heard John preach was Herod, the Tetrarch mentioned earlier in the chapter.

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On occasion John confronted him personally regarding the sin of his life, including the

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taking of his brother's wife, her name was Herodias.

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And that adulterous relationship was a stench in the nostrils of God.

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And Herod did not appreciate that.

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He did not like to be reproved of John the Baptist.

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Therefore he persecuted him and locked John up in prison.

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So those were the results of John's ministry.

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There was a general building of anticipation.

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Something was about to happen.

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There were some who wondered is John the Christ?

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He said no, but he is coming.

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Then there were those who were so opposed to his message, like Herod, that they persecuted

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John as they persecuted the prophets before him.

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And so the first historical event preparing the way for what was coming was the proclamation

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of John the Baptist.

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The second work I want you to see is the identification with sinners that we find in chapter 3 beginning

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in verse 21.

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Now it came about when all the people were baptized that Jesus also was baptized.

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And while he was praying, heaven was opened, and the Holy Spirit descended upon him in

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bodily form like a dove.

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And a voice came out of heaven, Thou art my beloved Son, in thee I am well pleased.

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We have here a very significant event.

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It is the baptism of the Lord Jesus Christ.

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In this baptism he identifies with sinners projecting the work that he was going to do

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in the cross some three years later.

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How was Jesus baptized?

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Well the question is not difficult to answer.

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He was immersed in the Jordan River.

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And elsewhere in the gospels we are given the general location where this occurred.

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One was preaching and there were others who were being baptized, and then Jesus came forward

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to be baptized.

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Another gospel writer tells us that John said, No, but I have need to be baptized by you.

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And Jesus' response was, No John, you must baptize me.

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You must baptize me to fulfill all righteousness.

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Now what did Jesus mean by that?

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He certainly had no sin himself of which he needed to repent.

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He did not need to be forgiven because he was perfect.

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He had never sinned.

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Why then did he desire to be baptized by John who was preaching a baptism of repentance?

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It is because he desired to identify with sinners.

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And at the beginning of his ministry, his public ministry, he took this definite step

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of association and identification with those who did need to be forgiven.

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He came that he might fulfill every righteous demand of the Holy God against sinners.

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Therefore he identified with sinners as he began his public ministry.

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By his baptism, can we not also say at least this side of the cross that he was depicting

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what salvation would demand?

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That is, his death, his burial, his resurrection.

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When you and I are obedient to his Lordship and we are baptized, we are testifying of

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his death, burial, and resurrection and our identification with him in that saving work.

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On that side of the cross, three years before when he was baptized, can we not say that

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there was a picture in what he did?

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That he was even then identifying with sinners?

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Being willing, he is saying, by what he was doing to die for them and to be raised from

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the dead?

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And what were the results of Jesus' baptism?

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The language seems to indicate that as he came up out of the water, he came up praying,

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immediately he was talking with God.

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Perhaps that was because he was freshly recognizing by what he had just done symbolically, he

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was recognizing the price that would be demanded of him that he might save sinners in need

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of forgiveness.

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Perhaps he came up likewise worshiping God, but the result of his praying, it says, was

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that heaven was opened.

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Now exactly what that means, we are left to wonder and speculate, but there is some way

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in which God gave a special confirming revelation of his majesty and glory to his son.

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Heaven was opened so that Jesus and John could look into heaven.

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And then it says that the Holy Spirit descended in the form of a dove, a dove the symbol of

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purity and innocence.

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The Holy Spirit came upon Jesus in that form, signifying the worthiness of Christ.

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The Holy Spirit's ministry to him from that day forward would be to equip him with all

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of the gifts necessary that he might publicly present himself as the Messiah.

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He was perfectly filled with the Holy Spirit before this, but in some special sense now

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the Spirit of God equips him and enables him to carry out his ministry as Messiah.

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And then there was a voice, a voice from heaven, the voice of God the Father.

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This is the first of three times when God spoke to his son.

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The second time was at the transfiguration, and the third time shortly before his crucifixion

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is recorded in John chapter 12.

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And the Father says, thou art my beloved son, my son.

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Those are precious words.

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Any parent understands the emotion of those words that say my child, my son, my daughter.

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And here God the Father says my son.

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Now it is not that Jesus at this point became the Son.

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It's not even that at Bethlehem when he was born he became the Son.

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No.

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He was forever the Son of God.

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The eternal sonship of Jesus Christ is here witnessed to by God the Father.

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And all of this, heaven being opened, the Holy Spirit coming, the voice of God the Father,

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all of this served to confirm to John the Baptist that this was indeed the Lamb of God

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who takes away the sin of the world.

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Then there is a third historical event that I point you toward.

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It is in the fourth chapter.

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Actually I just preached to you last Sunday's message.

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Now we start today's message.

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Fear not.

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It says that Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan, his baptism, and

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was led about by the Spirit in the wilderness.

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Mark puts it this way.

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He was impelled.

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He was thrust forth into the wilderness.

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And so we come to this third historical event preparing for his public ministry.

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It is the temptation from Satan proving his worth.

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Please understand that the temptation of our Savior was not to see whether he would sin.

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Indeed he could not sin because he was God come in the flesh.

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Now the devil was deceived.

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He hoped that he might sin, but understand that he could not have sinned.

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And so the temptation wasn't that God wanted to see if his son would sin because he wouldn't

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and he couldn't.

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But the temptation was to prove the righteousness of Christ.

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It was to draw that out so that it might be seen and witnessed.

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It was to publicly expose the worthiness of Jesus Christ.

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Temptation through everything against the Savior.

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Satan used his full powers of persuasion against him.

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And the Savior perfectly stood and did not yield.

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He proved his righteousness.

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He proved and manifested his worth to be the Savior.

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By withstanding the temptation as he did, he showed that he could act as the substitute

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Savior for man who is the sinner and does not stand up to temptation.

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That is the purpose that his worthiness to be the dying Savior might be declared.

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Now we need to talk about the temptations themselves, the nature of them.

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What is the point of each of these?

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What is the issue that is involved?

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I'm going to perhaps oversimplify it this morning for time's sake.

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But notice the first one in verse 3, the devil said to him, if you are the Son of God.

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And the way that that is constructed indicates that he was not trying to get Jesus to doubt

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that.

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Basically, he was saying, since you are the Son of God, tell this stone to become bread.

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That was the temptation.

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And notice that it came at the end of 40 days when Jesus had fasted and he was physically

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hungry.

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And so Satan comes first to tempt him to turn stone into bread that he might satisfy his

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hunger.

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I would suggest to you that the real essence of this temptation was to satisfy himself

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without dependence upon God.

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To satisfy himself without dependence upon God.

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Does that temptation ever come to you?

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Are you ever tempted to run ahead of God and to find your own way of meeting your need

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or your want?

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Rather than waiting upon God's way and God's time?

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That's what this was.

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Jesus responded by quoting from the word of God.

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It is written, he says.

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When you see those three words, what you are really looking at is a devastating weapon.

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A sword that Jesus wields powerfully and thrusts into Satan, wounding him.

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It is written, says Jesus, man shall not live on bread alone.

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And then as Luke recounts it, he leads him up and shows him all the kingdoms of the world

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in a moment of time.

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The devil said to him, I will give you all this domain and its glory for it has been

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handed over to me.

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And I give it to whomever I wish.

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Just time out for a moment.

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Notice that Jesus does not rebuke Satan for saying this.

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Because there is some truth to it.

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He is the God of this age.

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And he is the one who does give glory and to give power to those who are his instruments.

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All within the framework of God's sovereign plan, mind you.

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But nonetheless, this is one of the tools and the trades that Satan makes.

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Fame, power, and glory.

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Death, you worship before me, he says, it shall all be yours.

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Perhaps the point of this temptation is that Jesus knew that one day it would all be his.

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Satan is a usurper.

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God gave to the first Adam back in the garden the right to rule the earth and to subdue

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it.

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But Satan stole that birthright.

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And now may employ it as he suggests that he does.

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But one day the last Adam, Jesus Christ, is going to regain what the first Adam gave up.

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He will take the scroll in his hand, as we see in the book of the Revelation, and will

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begin the work of reclaiming this earth for God.

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And he will eventually rule over it all.

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And all of the kingdoms and all of the glory of the earth will be his.

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That's God's plan.

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But the point here is this.

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Satan was tempting Jesus to achieve that goal in a way other than God's.

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Basically, he is saying, you can avoid all of the suffering that God has planned.

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If you will simply bow down and worship me, I will give it to you right now.

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Such a deal.

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Then you don't have to go through the suffering.

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And Jesus' response to him is absolutely devastating.

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Once more he takes the sword of God's word and plunges it into the devil.

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And he says, you shall worship the Lord your God and serve him only.

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Jesus turned his back on this temptation, willingly taking the suffering, knowing that

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in God's time and God's way the glory would come.

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Do you ever face temptation to short circuit God's plan?

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To avoid the suffering?

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To take the easy way?

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That's what Jesus avoided.

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Then we come to the third temptation.

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He led him to Jerusalem and had him stand on the pinnacle of the temple and said to

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him, if you are the son of God, throw yourself down from here.

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And then the devil gets real spiritual.

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He begins to quote from the Old Testament in Psalm 91.

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Perhaps I should say misquote because as you know he leaves out a significant phrase from

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one of the verses.

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But nonetheless here the issue is that he is challenging, he is tempting Jesus to challenge

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God in a presumptuous manner.

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He says, cast yourself down from here.

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The Jewish rabbis taught the tradition that Messiah would appear on that pinnacle.

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Perhaps that's why Satan took Jesus to that pinnacle.

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And now being on the pinnacle he says, cast yourself down from here.

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In the sight of all of these religious leaders, show yourself that you're the Messiah.

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After all, doesn't God promise to keep you from stumbling and dashing your foot?

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And so he is tempted to challenge his father God by being presumptuous.

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Not an act of faith here that the devil tempts him to, but an act of presumptuanity.

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And Jesus again draws the sword.

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You shall not put the Lord your God to the test.

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The devil was well wounded when he had finished every temptation he departed from him until

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an opportune time.

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Now the Gospel writers makes it clear that the devil had pestered Jesus for all 40 days

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in the wilderness.

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It wasn't that he waited until the end of the 40 days and came with three big ones.

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For the whole 40 day period he was constantly nagging at Jesus.

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Until now he culminates the temptation with these three.

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And having failed, he goes away to wait what is called an opportune time.

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The results of the temptation are these.

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Number one, Satan's most intensive assault could not find a blemish in the holy character

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of Jesus Christ.

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Not a single place could be found in him where evil was.

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There was nothing within Jesus to respond to these solicitations to sin.

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His nature was absolutely unblemished and holy.

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A second result is that Jesus was proven perfect in his obedience as God's son.

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God's son, if you will, in the Old Testament, Israel failed in the test in the wilderness.

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But here we have God's incarnate son in the wilderness who does not fail.

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He is proven perfect in his obedience and is worthy to go on to do his work of redemption.

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Then a very wonderful third result is that now that he has ascended into heaven, our

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Savior can act as a sympathetic high priest because he has been tempted in every way like

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we have been, yet without sin.

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Those verses from Hebrews that we read earlier this morning in the service point to that

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truth.

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Dear friend of mine, today as you sit there and you face temptation as we all do, understand

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that there is one in heaven who understands you and he understands what you're going

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through and he knows the temptations.

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In every point like you, he himself has been tempted but he hasn't given into it.

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Therefore, not only is he sympathetic to you, but he is able to help you and you may find

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in him mercy, that is, forgiveness when you've blown it.

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When you can find grace to help you in the hour of need, he can enable you to overcome

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that temptation, to be the victor over the same devil that he defeated.

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That's my need today.

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Is it yours?

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Is it yours also, the need to find mercy?

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To find forgiveness through the cleansing of his precious blood?

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It is to find the work of God erasing from the record of my life those occasions when

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I have yielded to sin.

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We have a Savior today who is able to do that, to wipe it clean.

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He'll do it for you.

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Are you standing in the midst of a hot battle with the devil?

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Where you are facing a sore trial to walk away from God, to take things into your own

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hands, to do it your way, to be presumptuous.

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There is one who stands in heaven today as a high priest who is able to give you grace,

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favor, that you don't deserve in this time of need in your life.

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What we need to do is to bow the knee to him.

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Like John of old, we Christians have the privilege of being his ambassadors in the world, of

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going before him as it were, and calling people to repentance and faith in the Lord Jesus

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Christ.

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Oh, what a marvelous privilege we have to be today as it were his forerunners, to go

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into that office building, to go into that plant, into that school classroom, to go into

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that neighborhood, and to be the forerunner of the Lord, and to declare the gospel, the

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forgiveness of sins.

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What a privilege is ours.

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Oh, that we might do that this week.

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That men and women might understand that there is a Savior who's come, who understands, who's

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been victorious, who's died and been raised, and who's in heaven today able to save.

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That's the best news in the world, and people need to hear it.

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Let's be faithful.

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Let's be faithful even though it may bring us persecution.

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Let's be faithful to declare that message.

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But I return again to my point, that this one who came and identified with sinners came

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and identified with you.

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And he who won the battle over Satan won it for you.

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Will you today receive what you need from him?

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Let's bow together.

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With our heads bowed, our eyes closed.

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Is there one here today who's never trusted Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord?

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In the guilt of your life, the stain of your sin overwhelms you.

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And you know you stand before a holy God today without a hope in the world except for Jesus.

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He is God's provision for you, my friend.

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However badly you may have blown it, however many pieces your life may be broken into,

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Jesus Christ is your answer.

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If you will bow the knee and receive Him today, repenting, believing, He will save you.

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He will save you now.

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Only trust Him today.

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Is there some child of God who likewise has blown it?

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You know you're saved, but you've yielded to the enemy, and you've walked away from

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the Lord in disobedience.

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And today that long arm of God has reached you and is drawing you back.

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Won't you come?

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Oh Spirit of God, I pray that every one of us today will be able to respond to this message

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as we ought, and some need to come publicly and indicate what their decision is.

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Give them courage and grace to do that, I pray.

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In Jesus' name, amen.