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‘… Christ says, They haven’t proclaimed the Jubilee once, and you know what?
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They never will.
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But I will do it.
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I have come to proclaim the year of God’s favour, in other words, Jesus is saying I
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have come to do for you what you would never do for each other…’
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Welcome to Open the Bible with Pastor Colin Smith.
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I’m David Pick.
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And Colin, before we get going today I think we need to explain exactly what this Jubilee,
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this year of the Lord’s favour, actually is.
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Oh, a whole set of laws in the Old Testament that were wonderfully compassionate laws of
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God.
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Every seven years all debts to be canceled.
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Wouldn’t that be marvelous?
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Every seven years all slaves to be set free.
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Every fifty years all lost inheritances to be returned to the family of origin.
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Marvelously compassionate laws, but very costly, especially for the powerful and for
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the rich.
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And so they were never enacted, never done once in the entire span of the Old Testament
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until Jesus comes and He says, now I am going to do this, I am going to proclaim the year
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of the Lord’s favour.
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That was what He was referring to.
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I’ll do for you what you would never have done for each other.
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And we see exactly how Jesus did that in today’s message.
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So please join us, if you can, as we continue the message, Restore Hope, here’s Colin.
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Now, God gave these laws to Moses, remember, for his Old Testament people when they were
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in the land of Israel and he’s telling them what they’re to do when they inherit the Promised
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Land coming into Canaan.
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And he says when you come into the Promised Land, here is what you are to do.
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Every 50 years, sound the trumpet and proclaim the year of the Lord’s favour.
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Now, how often do you think this happened?
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Answer?
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Never!
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Nada!
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Not once!
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Not once!
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And so by the time of Isaiah, understand that God’s people had now been in the land 700
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years.
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By the time of Isaiah, there should have been 14 different Jubilees and there hadn’t been
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a single one.
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The trumpet had never sounded, the year of God’s favor was never proclaimed, which is
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why the Old Testament prophets are so scathing on the way in which the rich were oppressing
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the poor.
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They simply systematically ignored the law of God when it was going to be costly to them.
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So now back to Isaiah 61, and as the poor are oppressed and as the insensitivity towards
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their need continues generation after generation, God says someone’s going to come who’s anointed
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to preach good news to the poor.
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In verse 2, this person is going to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.
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He’s going to sound the trumpet.
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He is going to bring in the jubilee that has never once happened in all the history
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of Israel.
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Well, of course that raises the question, who’s he talking about?
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Well, now would you turn forward in your Bible to Luke’s Gospel in chapter 4?
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This will be familiar to many of us I think.
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Luke’s Gospel and chapter 4.
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Because it’s very significant that the Lord Jesus Christ chose these words from Isaiah
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to launch His own public ministry.
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Chapter 4 in verse 17, try and picture the setting, the Lord Jesus Christ is in the synagogue,
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and verse 17 the scroll of the prophet Isaiah is handed to Jesus.
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Unrolling it, He finds, so He chose the reading, He finds the place where it is written the
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spirit of the Lord is upon me because He has anointed me to preach good news to the
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poor and to proclaim, verse 19, the year of God’s favor.
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So Jesus applies this to Himself, the spirit of the Lord is on me, He’s saying, to proclaim
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the year of God’s favor to bring in the Jubilee that has never once been known in all the
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history of God’s people.
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Then follow what it says, Jesus rolled up the scroll and He gave it back to the attendant
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and sat down and the eyes of everyone in the synagogue were fastened on Him and He began,
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first, public utterence of Jesus.
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He began by saying, today this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.
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It’s marvelous.
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Christ says, They haven’t proclaimed the Jubilee once.
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And you know what?
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They never will.
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But I will do it.
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I have come to proclaim the year of God’s favor.
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In other words, Jesus is saying, I have come to do for you what you would never do for
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each other to cancel every debt that you owe to God, to set you free from the slavery that
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you know to the power of sin and Satan, and to give back to you the inheritance that Adam
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lost, that is, the inheritance of joy and life in his presence forever and forever.
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That is the promise of the Gospel.
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It is the most marvelous good news.
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But remember, when you think about the year of God’s favor that is such a blessing to
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us that we celebrate in our worship every week, comes at incredible cost to Him.
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If you write off a debt, you incur a loss in the amount of that debt yourself, and when
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Jesus comes to proclaim the jubilee and to write off all of our debts towards God, it
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means that God is incurring that debt in Himself, and this is why Jesus went to the cross.
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He bore the loss to cancel our debts, to set us free, and to restore our inheritance.
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God cancelling debts, God freeing slaves, God restoring inheritances in Christ.
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That’s the gospel.
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Now I want you to notice, and this is marvelous when you see it, I want you to notice if you
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look between Luke, chapter 4, and back to Isaiah, chapter 61, I want you to notice where
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Jesus stopped in his reading on that Sabbath when he inaugurated his public ministry.
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Let’s look at chapter 61 and verse 2.
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The Anointed One will proclaim the year of the Lord’s favour and the day of vengeance
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of our God.
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Turn over to Luke chapter 4 and you see where Jesus stopped to proclaim verse 19, The year
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of the Lord’s favour, period.
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In other words, when Jesus was reading from the scroll, he stopped mid-sentence.
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He stopped halfway through what Isaiah was saying.
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Why in all the world, when Jesus was choosing the reading, did he stop in the middle of
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a sentence and say, I have come to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favour?
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Why didn’t he finish the sentence?
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Because he went on to say today, this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing, and thank God
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that when Jesus came into the world, born as a baby, through his death and through his
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resurrection, he brought in the year of the Lord’s favour.
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He did not at that time bring in the day of God’s vengeance.
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I say thank God for that because if Jesus had brought in the day of God’s vengeance
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in his first coming into the world, none of us would be here today.
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The world as we know it would have ended 2000 years ago in a blitz of God’s judgment.
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So Jesus stops half-way through what Isaiah says mid-sentence, I’m the compassionate
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saviour that’s coming to bring this freedom from debt and release from slavery to sin
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and to restore inheritance.
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You say, well, what about the day of God’s vengeance?
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Well, Jesus spoke about that too.
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John chapter 5 and verse 28 he said, a time is coming when those who’re in their graves
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will hear the voice of God, and those who’ve done good will rise to live, and those who
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have done evil will rise to be condemned.
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But Jesus said that time is coming.
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It has not come yet.
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So Isaiah sees this coming anointed one, bringing both the year of God’s favor and the day of
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God’s vengeance almost like looking at a mountain, and you think it’s one mountain, actually
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it’s two mountains one behind the other, and we’re living right in between times, in the
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favor not yet having reached the day of God’s vengeance.
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That’s the incredible privilege that is ours as Christian believers.
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In his first coming he brings in the year, notice the emphasis there, the year of God’s
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favor.
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In his second coming he will bring in the day of God’s vengeance.
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Ray Ortlen puts it this way.
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Christ fulfills all the Old Testament prophecies but he doesn’t fulfill them all at the same
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We’ve got to pause briefly there, but we’ll get right back to the message.
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You’re listening to Open the Bible, with Pastor Colin Smith, and the message today
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is called Restore Hope.
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It’s part of a larger series, Restore My Soul, and if you’ve missed any of the series
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you want to go back and listen again, do that by coming online to our website
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openthekbible.org.uk
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or if you’re a podcast listener, then you can find Pastor Colin’s messages
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on your favourite podcast site, simply go there and search for Open The Bible UK
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and subscribe to receive regular podcast updates.
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You’ll also find a link to the Podcasts on our website
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Back to the message now, here’s Colin
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Christ fulfils all the Old Testament prophecies
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but He doesn’t fulfil them all at the same time
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So that’s why I want us to look in this last part today
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at the second vision that is given to Isaiah
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because hope is begun through the coming of the compassionate Saviour into the world
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but our world is very, very far from what God purposes the new heaven and the new earth to be
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therefore we need also chapter 63, that speaks of how our hope will be fulfilled
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in the second coming of our Lord Jesus Christ
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So we’ve looked at hope that comes from a compassionate Saviour
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I want us to see now hope that will be fulfilled in the return of a conquering warrior
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Chapter 63
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Isaiah is seeing another vision now, and he says verse 1, Who is this?
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Who is this coming out of Edom?
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One in all the world is this
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One simple thing to understand and then you will get the picture
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The Edomites were the ancient and constant enemies of the people of God
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They were descended from Esau
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And you may remember that back in the Old Testament in the book of Genesis
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Esau was a godless man
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he is described in that way in the book of Hebrews, in chapter 12 and verse 16
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Edom was descended from Esau who despised his birthright
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despised the things of God
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And so, as you go on in the story of the Bible,
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Edom comes to represent
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antagonism towards God
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Hatred towards God’s people
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All manifestations of evil and mankind in his rebellion against God
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But now Isaiah says, who is this coming from Edom?
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from Bosra
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now, Bosra was the capital of Edom
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with his garments stained crimson
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So, get the picture now
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Isaiah is seeing someone come out of this country of Edom
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He’s coming towards Jerusalem
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And this figure that Isaiah sees, he looks absolutely magnificent
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He is obviously a hero, he is a champion
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He is robed, verse 1, in splendor
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and he is striding forward in the greatness of his strength
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Now as Isaiah look and sees this figure coming towards him out of Edom
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It’s immediately obvious that he has been involved in some dreadful kind of a fight
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That’s obvious because his clothes are spattered in blood
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So Isaiah asks, verse 1, why are your garments red?
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You look like someone who’s been treading a wine press
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You know the red grapes. And someone who was treading a wine press
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Imagine what their clothes would look like if they were treading out grapes
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Isaiah says, this is what he looked like
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His clothes are all spattered red
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Now this warrior who’s coming out of Edom
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What else do we know about him?
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He clearly won the fight that he was in
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Because the blood on his clothes is not his own blood
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It is the blood of his enemies
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Verse 3, I trampled them in my anger and trod them down in my wrath
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Their blood, spattered my garments
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So you see the picture now, that’s emerging
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As he is seeing in this vision.
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A champion, a warrior.
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Who is coming, striding victorious out of Edom
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Having gone in there, the place of the enemies of God
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He’s gone in single handed, he’s on his own
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He’s gone in like a kind of David against Goliath
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And you think that one man however great he is
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Going into all the power of Edom
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All the forces of darkness and evil of this world
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He’s never gonna come out of there alive
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But here he comes
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And Isaiah sees that his clothes are spattered
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Not with his own blood, but with the blood of his enemies
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And Isaiah says as you could imagine
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He says, well who is this?
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Who is this?
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Christians know who this is
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Because John
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The Apostle was given exactly the same vision as Isaiah
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In the book of Revelation
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And if you turn to it with me
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You’ll see that in Revelation and chapter 19
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Revelation and chapter 19
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Nearly at the end of the Bible
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And here’s what John the Apostle sees
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As he is given a glimpse of Jesus Christ coming in glory
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John 19 11
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I saw heaven he says standing open
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And there before me was a white horse whose rider is called Faithful and True
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Verse 13
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The rider of this horse is dressed in a robe dipped in blood
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And his name is the Word of God
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Verse 15
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He treads the winepress of the Fury of the Roth of God Almighty
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And on his robe and on his thigh he has a name written King of Kings and
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Lord of Lords
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Isaiah saw
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John saw
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Jesus Christ
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Isaiah sees him first as the compassionate Saviour
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Canceling debts
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releasing slaves
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restoring lost inheritance. That’s chapter 61 then in chapter 63
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he sees the same Lord Jesus Christ as the conquering warrior as
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the sovereign Lord
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See, he’s not one or the other he’s both and
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That’s where the hope of Christian people is found
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in knowing Jesus Christ your
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Compassionate Savior, who is also your conquering warrior
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Now, why did God give Isaiah this vision? Let’s try and bring it nearer to us now
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well look back to the chapter we just skipped over chapter 62 of Isaiah and
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You’ll see there what’s going on Gods people are discouraged
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They’ve been longing for God’s blessing to come on their nation
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But they’ve been losing hope
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Verse 6 faithful people have been asking for God’s blessing calling on the Lord giving him no rest
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Longing for him to establish Jerusalem and to make her the praise of the earth
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But it hasn’t happened
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the enemies of God’s people who are always
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Supremely confident. Have you noticed that people who do not believe are so confident in their rejection of God and
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The enemies of God’s people are saying in verse 4 well you who believe you’re deserted there’s no future for the church
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You’re desolate. I mean you’re down and out. I mean really the culture is moving away from you. You’ve no chance. You have no future
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Watchmen verse 6 are posted now on the walls of Jerusalem, and they’re looking out
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And their longing and they’re waiting and they’re praying and they’re hoping and they’re asking God to do something to bless their country
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and
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Suddenly someone comes out of Edom
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Someone says who’s this
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Suddenly everyone his hope
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Who is this someone has gone in there
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and
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Dealt with
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The evil
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That plagues our lives and our world
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2000 years after the coming of Jesus
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We’re exactly where the Watchmen were on the walls of Jerusalem
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We have
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Acts of evil and violence and terrorism and war and hatred and crime
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that make us look at our world and say how long O lord and
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How do you keep going as a Christian believer when you’ve been praying
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But honestly you feel discouraged you feel jaded you feel defeated
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You look at the world and just say this is so far from heaven
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It
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See hope comes when we grasp both of Isaiah’s visions
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the writer to the hebrews puts it this way, he says you know when we’re looking at the world this is hebrews chapter 2 in verse 9
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When we’re looking at the world, we do not see everything subject to jesus
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We see the evil the atrocities of this world we do not see everything subject to Jesus
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But what we do see and he’s talking now about Christian believers what we do see is this
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We see jesus crowned with glory and honor
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See that’s what faith sees
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If I see Jesus Crowned in Glory and honor if by Faith I
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Have grasped the vision that this Jesus is not simply the compassionate Savior who came in to
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Release Debts and set slaves free into restore inheritance’s but he is the conquering Lord who not only has hope begun for us
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But one day will bring hope to fulfillment for us when I see that then I am sustained in Faith and in Prayer
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So I want you to get this picture of Christ triumphant in your mind
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Either Christ’s Blood is splattered on you
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Or one day your blood will be splattered on him
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Ultimately
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Every one of us knows Him either as gracious Savior
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or as
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terrible judge
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Christ came to save you from the day of God’s vengeance
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He came to proclaim the year of God’s favor and you’re living in it now
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Stop fighting Him
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Stop living for the things of this world
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Come to him today
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Tell him that you need his grace and his mercy
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Ask him to be your Savior
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And then surrender yourself wholly to him as your sovereign Lord
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and as your King
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Perhaps as you hear that you’d like to take the step of trusting the Lord Jesus Christ
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and asking him to come in to your life as Savior
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Maybe go and talk to a trusted Christian friend or family member or go along to your local Christian fellowship
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and talk to the folk there, talk to the pastor, go and pray with the prayer ministry team
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Today’s message was called Restore Hope and it’s part of our series restore my soul
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Which you can find on our website if you’ve missed any of the series, that’s at openthebible.org.uk
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and you can also find Pastor Colin Smiths messages as podcasts on your favorite podcast site
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Go to your favorite podcast site search for open the Bible UK and subscribe to receive regular updates
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You’ll also find a link to the podcast on our website
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At Open The Bible we welcome contact with our listeners
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If you’ve been blessed by Pastor Colin Smiths teaching and you’d like to reach out to us
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There are several ways you can do that
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You can write to us at Open the Bible. PO Box 1420 Cheltenham, GL 50 9PG
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or you can phone us on 0330 335 8089
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If we’re not available when you call, leave a message for us and we’ll return your call
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All of these contact details are available on our website
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openthebible.org.uk
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Open The Bible is supported by our listeners
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and this month if you’ve been considering setting up a new payment in support of Open The Bible
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we have a great offer for you
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To say thank you we’ll send you a copy of C.H Spurgeon’s book
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Encouragement For The Depressed
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Colin, how will C.H Spurgeon’s book help those who feel discouraged today?
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Well, Spurgeon is really a very tender shepherd
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he was a pastor, and he spoke with great strength
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but also with great gentleness
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that arose really out of his own experience of suffering
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and especially what he sometimes referred to as the black dog
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There was a darkness that sometimes came over him
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and it was a real struggle in his life
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I mean he says, for example,
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The strong are not always vigorous
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The Wise are not always ready
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The Brave are not always courageous
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And the Joyous are not always happy
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So this is a realistic view of the Christian life
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he’s speaking into the realities that we all experience
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and he’s speaking out of his own personal experience
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is a wonderful encouragement to lay our burdens on the Lord
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and to trust His Promises even in the darkest times
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we would love to send you a copy of this Book
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to say thank you for supporting Open the Bible.
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this offer is available all this Month
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if you are able to set up a new donation
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00:24:56,680 –> 00:24:58,680
to the work of open the Bible
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00:24:58,680 –> 00:25:01,959
in the amount of £5 pounds per month or more
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00:25:01,959 –> 00:25:03,959
full details or to give online
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just come to our website
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openthebebel.org.uk
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for open the Bible and pastor Colin Smith
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I’m David Pick
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and I hope you’ll join us again next time
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wherever you are in your Christian journey
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prayer is something that you can learn
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find out how next time on open the Bible