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The big thing that I want you to notice this morning is that these things are all found Monitoroship

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in Christ because the gospel is all about Him. You have Christ, you have everything

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that is in Him, you do not have Christ, you do not have anything else that is found in

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Him.

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Welcome to Open the Bible with Pastor Colin Smith. I’m David Pick, I’m glad you could

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be with us today. Colin, I want to go back to something you said there. The gospel is

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all about Jesus Christ. What do you mean by that?

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Well, let’s look at some alternatives. There are many folks who would go with the idea

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that Christianity is essentially about living a better life or about becoming a spiritual

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person or becoming more disciplined, more effective, and so forth and so on. In other

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it gets reduced to a kind of ethic or a way of life or some kind of experience that may

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be found in one of a number of ways. The New Testament says, absolutely not. The gospel

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of Jesus Christ. We’re in Mark’s gospel. The very opening off it is declaring it’s

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all about Jesus Christ. And knowing his life in you and finding life in him is at the very,

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heart of the New Testament. Now, you know, it’s easy to say, well, yeah, isn’t that stating the

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obvious. I had a sabbatical not so long ago and visited many, many churches. I was struck at how

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many sermons I heard that never once mentioned Jesus Christ. So it’s easy to say, well, it’s

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all about Jesus Christ and then go talk about everything else. But the Bible doesn’t do that.

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It says it’s all about Jesus Christ. And that’s why what we’re going to talk about is all about

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Jesus Christ. So he’s got to be at the centre. Spurgeon used to say to his students, what good

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will your sermon do if Jesus Christ is not in it? How can there be any power? How can there be any

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life? You’re just telling people what to do. Unless you have Christ, in which case, then there

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is something that God holds in his hands, someone that God presents to us his own son and life in

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him. So today we do see that Jesus is the Son of God. So I hope you’ll be able to join us in Mark

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1, the first 13 verses today As we continue the Message, Jesus is the Son of God. Here’s Colin.

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Now it’s Mark’s style that he likes to get straight into the action. No background

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stuff. Introductions he wants to get on with it straight away. And so I’ve reckoned that if Mark

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doesn’t need some long introduction to get started, I shouldn’t need that either, and that we should

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jump in straightaway and do what Mark does and get on with it. Now noticed where he

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begins. He wants us to know the beginning of the Gospel about Jesus Christ, the Son of God.

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Now straightaway in the first sentence, Mark is taking us to two of the most important

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questions a person can ever ask. One is, who is Jesus? And the other, what is the Gospel?

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And, this is what Mark proclaims to us at the very beginning of his Gospel. Who is Jesus?

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Jesus is the Christ. Jesus is the Son of God.

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Now, that’s the first question. Now here’s the second question that Mark gets us into

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sentence, who is Jesus?

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What is the Gospel?

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And look one more time with me please at Chapter 1 and Verse 1.

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You’ll see now, why it’s going to take us 22 weeks to get through Mark’s Gospel

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at the rate that we’re going.

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This stuff is so foundational, it’s good for us to ponder it well together.

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The beginning of the Gospel about Jesus Christ the Son of God.

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Now, what is the Gospel?

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Mark’s orienting us to this right from the very beginning.

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We’re going to see four answers very simply to that question, but in a sense, they really

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boil down to one answer that you find there right in the beginning at Verse 1 itself.

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The beginning of the Gospel . . .

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Now look at what it says there.

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Tell me, what is the Gospel about?

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What does Mark say the Gospel is about?

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The beginning of the Gospel about Jesus Christ, that’s right.

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The very plain statement, we mustn’t miss this.

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It’s so obvious, we easily skip over it.

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But if we skip over it, we miss the very central thing.

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The Gospel is about Jesus Christ.

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That’s what he’s telling us.

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If you know Jesus Christ, you have got the Gospel.

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The Gospel is about Jesus Christ.

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Now, we’re going to see in these next moments, from this passage, that in Christ, we find

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repentance, forgiveness, and the wonderful gift of God’s Holy Spirit.

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But the big thing that I want you to notice this morning is that these things are all

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found in Christ, because the Gospel is all about Him.

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You have Christ, you have everything that is in Him.

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You do not have Christ.

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You do not have anything else that is found in Him.

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Now to help us think about that a little more clearly, I brought along with me today a Russian

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doll.

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I think you’ll see as we just go through these things how this little picture might help

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us to think more clearly about the Gospel, which is about Jesus Christ.

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Let’s start then with verse one.

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The Gospel is about Jesus Christ.

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Jesus announced the good news.

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But He Himself also is the good news.

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He is the teacher that brings the gospel but He is also the gospel that is brought by His

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own teaching.

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It is about Him.

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Now, that is one of the ways in which we know that Jesus is more than a prophet.

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If you’re ever speaking with a Muslim who will acknowledge that Jesus was a prophet,

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you might like to follow this line of conversation.

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You might find it helpful.

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How do you know that Jesus is more than a prophet?

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Simply this.

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A prophet has a message, but he cannot fulfill it.

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He always has to point to someone else or some thing else that will do that.

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But Jesus is more than a prophet because He points to Himself.

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He announces the gospel but He Himself is the gospel that is announced.

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He brings and fulfills everything He speaks.

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It isn’t someone else who does that, He does that.

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The gospel is about Jesus Christ.

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Now, that is very important for us as we set out on this series.

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You see, in this journey through Mark we learn many things

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but what’s most important is that we come to know this Jesus Christ.

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That is why the resurrection is central to all Christian faith.

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You can learn about a figure of history but you cannot know them.

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But if somebody is living you can meet them.

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You can know them.

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You can share a meal with them.

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You can invite them to your home.

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If someone is living you can engage in a direct personal relationship with that person, assuming

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that they are willing to engage in that relationship with you.

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Now, when you read Mark’s Gospel you won’t be saying, well, what a fascinating person

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Jesus was, and I would have liked to have known him.

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You will be recognizing that in Mark’s Gospel you are learning about Jesus Christ, the Son

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of God who right now is at the right hand of the Father.

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And so, whatever you are reading here and learning about Him in Mark’s Gospel you

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are going to be saying, I can come to Him!

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I can come to this Jesus who came into the world for me, died, and rose and ascended

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and now is at the right hand of the Father, the living Son of God, the Lord Jesus Christ.

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I can come to Him!

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I can know Him and all the blessings that are to be found in Him.

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Now, what happens when you come to Jesus Christ as one who believes?

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Well, the answer Mark is making clear to us, and the whole Bible makes clear to us is that

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in Christ, you will find repentance.

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You’ll find it in Christ.

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When you draw near to Jesus Christ, this becomes yours because it is hidden in Him.

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You have Him, you find repentance.

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Now, let’s see this right here in Mark’s gospel.

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Notice after introducing Jesus, Mark says, verse two, prophecy from Isaiah, I will send

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my messenger, God is saying ahead of you to prepare your way.

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A voice of one calling in the desert, prepare the way of the Lord.

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And this then was the message of John the Baptist, the very simple message, prepare

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the way of the Lord.

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In other words, the Lord’s coming.

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Or if I can put it this way, I think this is the burden of John’s message.

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What he was really saying was this, you’re going to meet God.

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God in the flesh is coming, prepare his way.

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You are going to meet God.

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That’s a powerful message.

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you’re listening to open the Bible with Pastor Colin Smith.

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And a message called Jesus is the Son of God.

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It’s part of our series, The Gospel According to Jesus.

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And if you ever miss one of the series, you can always catch up or go back and listen

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again, online at our website, openthebible.org.

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Or you can find us as a podcast.

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Those are available on all the major podcast sites.

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Search for Open The Bible UK and subscribe to receive regular updates.

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Back to the message now, we’re in Mark, and chapter one, here’s Colin

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God in the flesh is coming, prepare his way.

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You are going to meet God.

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That’s a powerful message.

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And it’s true.

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It’s true for every one of us here.

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You are going to meet God.

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You will see him.

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You will stand before him.

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You will give an account of your life to him.

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Now, I wonder how you react to that message.

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How would you have reacted, if you heard it from John?

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How do you react as you hear it today?

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Right?

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There are some people who’d say, I’m going to meet God.

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Good, I’ve got some questions to ask him.

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Right?

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There are other people who would say, I’m going to meet God.

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Good.

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I really could use some help.

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I’ve got a list of things I want him to do for me.

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There might be some other people more passive,

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who sort of yawn and say, who cares?

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What will be, will be.

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I want you to notice that these people who’ve heard John’s message

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didn’t react in any of these ways.

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Notice how they did react.

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155, the whole Judean countryside and the whole community.

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And all the people of Jerusalem, that’s city folks, country

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folks in their droves, went out to him,

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that’s John, confessing their sins.

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They were baptized by him in the Jordan River.

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See, John said you’re going to meet with God,

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and these people responded by confessing their sins.

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Now, why did they do that?

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Well, these folks knew enough about the God of the Bible

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to realize that if the God of the Bible

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were actually to come near to them,

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they had some confessing and some repenting to do.

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And when they heard John’s message

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and they were convinced that it was true,

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the Lord Himself is about to come

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on the scene their immediate response was,

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I got some confessing, I got some repenting to do,

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and I better do it quick.

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And they went out in their droves to respond in this way.

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I had to tell you, I would have been among them.

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Would you?

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If you knew that you were going to stand

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before the eternal God before today is done,

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would you not feel right now that you’ve

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got some confessing to do and some repenting to do

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and you better do it quick?

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Now that is exactly how they responded to John’s message

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and you see, they were discovering this reality

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that when Jesus Christ really comes near to you,

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you find repentance.

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In fact, the first evidence that you are drawing near to Christ

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or that Christ is drawing near to you,

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the first evidence that he’s really working in your life

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will be that you become much more aware

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of your own sinfulness, your own need to confess,

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your own need to repent.

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Because you find it in him, you see.

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Your pride will start to fall away.

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It will start to look very tawdry,

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you’ll begin to say, I feel now that I

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fall much further short than I realized before.

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I see my need to change more deeply

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and further than I used to see it.

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That’s the effect of Christ drawing near.

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It was the effect then, it’s the effect now, it always is.

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Because in Christ is repentance.

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If you’re getting near to him,

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that’s one of the things you’ll discover in him.

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In Christ you find repentance.

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In repentance you find forgiveness.

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It’s a wonderful thing.

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And Mark makes it very clear here

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right at the beginning of his gospel, verse 4.

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John was preaching a baptism of repentance

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for the forgiveness of sins.

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See, when you come near to Jesus Christ,

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he will show you your need

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but he will not leave you in despair.

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He will show you your need so that in him, in him,

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you will find forgiveness,

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which is the very reason that he has come into the world.

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And John was baptizing people.

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Baptism is a wonderful, wonderful picture

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of what happens to you in Jesus Christ.

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You come to Jesus Christ in faith,

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you become aware of your own sinfulness,

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you see that you are a sinner,

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and Jesus Christ washes you.

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The son of God forgives you.

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And if the son of God forgives you,

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who’s going to condemn you?

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You are forgiven, you are washed.

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And baptism, because we find this so hard to take in,

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is a wonderful sealing of this.

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When a person comes to be baptized,

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it is a wonderful way of your saying,

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I am a sinner who needs to be washed.

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I need to be forgiven.

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I see the wrongness of so much that is in my life.

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And in being baptized in the water,

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Jesus Christ is saying to you,

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and I am the savior who forgives you and washes you.

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And you are washed in me.

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And never forget it.

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Because in this way,

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you can move forward into newness of life.

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Now you see, all of this is the gospel in Jesus, you see.

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It’s about Jesus Christ.

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And in Christ you will find repentance

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is the first sign that you’ve come near to him

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or that he’s come near to you.

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And as you find repentance, you will find forgiveness.

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Don’t ever separate these two things.

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They’re both together in Christ.

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Forgiveness isn’t just saying a quick prayer.

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It’s really coming to the conclusion, I have to change.

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I have to let go of that old way.

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And by the strength of Christ,

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begin to move in a new way.

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In Christ repentance, in repentance,

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forgiveness and in forgiveness,

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the gift of the Holy Spirit.

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That’s what John identifies here in his ministry

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recorded by Mark.

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Look at verse eight.

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John’s pointing to Jesus, saying that after me

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will come someone much more powerful than me.

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I baptize you with water,

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but He, Jesus, will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.

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Now here is an amazing promise,

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God’s presence, God’s power,

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God’s spirit will come into your life

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when you are in Jesus Christ.

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And this, too, is an unpacking of the gospel,

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an unfolding of all that is yours in Him.

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And you’re probably thinking how could the Holy Spirit

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of God live in the life of a person like me?

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And the answer is because you’re forgiven,

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because you are in Christ.

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Because you’re in Christ God’s spirit comes

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to live within you.

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See, don’t sell the gospel short

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just at repentance and forgiveness.

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Don’t sell the gospel short.

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A lot of people have the idea that the gospel

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is simply that I say sorry for my sins, and I’m forgiven,

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that’s the extent that they’ve imagined.

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They’ve never understood that in Christ

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the power and presence of the Holy Spirit

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comes to you to make you a new man and a new woman

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and to give you a new birth and to give you

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a new power, a new ability to engage

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in the war on temptation,

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a new kind of a dynamic, a new love,

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a new heart to worship, a new peace,

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a new joy, a new power.

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All this is in Christ.

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And when Christ comes near to you,

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you come near to Christ, however you put that.

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In him you will find repentance.

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That’s the first sign that you’re near to Jesus.

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And coming near to Jesus in repentance,

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you find forgiveness and in this wonderful relationship,

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he imparts his Holy Spirit.

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It’s more than just being baptized and being sorry

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and more even than being forgiven.

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He will baptize you with his Holy Spirit.

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These things found together in Christ.

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And, I think then that we can put together

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in this very last moment,

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the marks of a true Christian and just measure ourselves

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and say, okay, if this is what a real Christian is,

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where does that leave me and how do I bring myself

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before what we’re learning from the Bible today?

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From what we’ve learned

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from the beginning of Mark’s gospel,

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we can surely say this

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that if you are a true Christian,

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then you will be a person who believes

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that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, believe that?

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And if you are a person who holds to that faith,

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you have trusted Jesus as the Christ, the Son of God,

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you will also in Him be a person who knows

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that you are a sinner and repent of your sins.

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Not just once many years ago but you will be aware now

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that your life to this day falls short

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of God’s great calling and that you are seeking

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to bring yourself as best you know

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and with the help of God’s grace and by His Spirit

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more and more interlined with His purpose for you.

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You’re a repenting person if you’re a real Christian.

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You don’t know what that is?

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Don’t confuse yourself by thinking you’re a Christian.

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If you are a real Christian, you will know

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at the same time that you are forgiven.

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It’s not that I’ve lived this marvelous, perfect life

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that I’m gonna present to God.

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My life is short in so many ways,

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but by His grace and through His blood,

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I’m forgiven, I’m washed, and that is how

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I am able to move forward into this coming week.

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And if you are a true Christian,

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you know that the Holy Spirit lives in you.

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All these things are found in Christ.

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If you are in Christ, these things are true of you,

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that’s the gospel.

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And if these things are not true of you,

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you need to come to Jesus Christ

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and believe in Jesus Christ and turn to Jesus Christ

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and you will find these things.

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They will become yours in Him.

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Pastor Colin there restating the gospel offer

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that when you come to Jesus and believe in Him,

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you will find everything in Him.

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You’ve been listening to Open The Bible

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with Pastor Colin Smith

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and a message called Jesus Is the Son of God,

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it’s part of our series The Gospel According to Jesus

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and if you ever miss one of the series,

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you can always catch up or go back and listen again online,

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come to our website, OpenTheBible.org.uk.

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There you’ll find all the messages

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which have already gone out on air.

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You can also find Open The Bible Daily

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which is a series of short

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two to three minute daily reflections

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based on Pastor Colin’s teaching

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and read in the UK by Sue McLeish.

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Open The Bible is supported entirely by our listeners.

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That’s people just like you

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and we’re very grateful for the support you give us.

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If you’re thinking about supporting

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00:23:32,939 –> 00:23:34,939

Open The Bible in this way,

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we have an offer for you this month.

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If you’re able to set up a new direct debit

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00:23:39,579 –> 00:23:42,420

in the amount of £5 per month or more

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00:23:42,420 –> 00:23:45,199

or give a one-off gift of £50 or more,

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00:23:45,199 –> 00:23:46,880

we’d love to say thank you

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00:23:46,880 –> 00:23:50,699

by giving you a copy of Pastor Colin’s new booklet

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What Jesus Says To Skeptics.

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Colin, who is this booklet for?

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Well, people have always had very different reactions to Jesus.

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Some are committed followers,

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others are hardcore opponents.

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But there’ll be many people

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who are listening to the programme today

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who would identify with neither of these things.

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You’re not particularly committed to Jesus,

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you haven’t rejected him either,

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you do have questions.

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And this booklet is for you.

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00:24:16,939 –> 00:24:18,780

And for others listening,

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00:24:18,780 –> 00:24:21,079

there will be a sceptic in your life.

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There’ll be someone you know and love

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who has real questions.

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They’re not yet committed to Jesus,

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00:24:27,500 –> 00:24:30,939

but this booklet really gives an opportunity

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00:24:30,939 –> 00:24:34,459

to listen to what Jesus has to say to sceptics.

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We’d love to send you a copy of this booklet

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00:24:37,140 –> 00:24:38,599

as our way of saying thank you

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00:24:38,599 –> 00:24:41,640

for setting up a new, regular, monthly direct debit

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00:24:41,640 –> 00:24:44,140

of five pounds per month or more,

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00:24:44,140 –> 00:24:48,060

or a one-off gift of 50 pounds or more this month.

407

00:24:48,060 –> 00:24:50,099

If you value Pastor Colin’s teaching

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00:24:50,099 –> 00:24:51,780

on the radio and online,

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00:24:51,780 –> 00:24:53,560

you’ll be helping to keep it here

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00:24:53,560 –> 00:24:56,099

and to support the work of Open the Bible.

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00:24:56,099 –> 00:24:58,540

Full terms and conditions about this offer

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00:24:58,540 –> 00:25:03,099

are on our website, openthebible.org.uk.

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00:25:03,119 –> 00:25:05,520

For Pastor Colin Smith and Open the Bible,

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00:25:05,520 –> 00:25:08,680

I’m David Pick, and I hope you’ll join us again next time.

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When your life is in Jesus, you never stand still.

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00:25:17,959 –> 00:25:20,560

Jesus always wants to be moving on.

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Find out why next time on Open the Bible.