The Fear of God, Part 1

Jeremiah 32:36-41
Broadcast Featured Image

Welcome to Open The Bible with Pastor Colin Smith! Today, we’re diving into an essential and sometimes misunderstood topic: the fear of God. Many think that the God of the Old Testament is to be feared, while the God of the New Testament is to be loved. Pastor Colin challenges this notion by affirming that God is unchanging and that both fear and love are essential aspects of a Christian believer’s relationship with Him.

Pastor Colin explains how our love for God leads us to fear Him, and our fear of God leads us to love Him—these are not divided but held together. Drawing from both Old and New Testament scriptures, including Deuteronomy and the words of Jesus and Peter, he illustrates that God’s nature as loving and to be revered spans the entirety of the Bible.

Throughout the broadcast, we explore the fear of God as a “cord of three strands”: the splendor of God’s glory, the reality of God’s judgment, and the wonder of God’s love. This trifecta helps believers understand the depth and importance of fearing God in a healthy, spiritually enriching way.

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I want to do everything that I can today to dispel the idea, if it may exist in any of

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our minds, to get rid of the idea that there is a God to be feared in the Old Testament

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and that there’s a God to be loved in the New Testament, and therefore, the fear of

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God has nothing to do with a Christian believer.

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Welcome to Open The Bible with Pastor Colin Smith.

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And Colin, I think many people would think that the God of the Old Testament, who was

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to be feared, but it’s the God of the New Testament who is to be loved.

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But it sounds like you’re saying that there is still a God to be feared for the Christian

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believer today.

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Well, the starting point is that God himself never changes.

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He is always to be feared and he is always to be loved.

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And, you know, when I was a student, one of the most memorable experiences for me was

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reading the entire book of Deuteronomy in one sitting and being completely and utterly

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overwhelmed by a sense of the love of God in the Old Testament.

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In fact, Deuteronomy, no less.

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Deuteronomy.

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Yeah, absolutely.

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And then you come to the New Testament and then you find Jesus saying, fear him who is

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able to cast body and soul into hell.

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Destroy them in hell.

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We have the command, fear God is a New Testament command in the first letter of Peter.

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You have Ananias and Sapphira lying to the apostles and to God, and finding themselves

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being struck down dead in the New Testament.

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So, God never changes.

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And our love of him is to lead us to fear him, and our fear of him is to lead us to

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love him.

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And these things are never to be divided.

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We are going to see today how they’re held together.

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Let’s take a look at how they’re held together.

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Join us if you can as we begin our message, The Fear of God.

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Here’s Colin.

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We’re continuing our series on the subject of the soul.

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You have a soul.

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It will last forever.

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Your soul will either be forever saved, or else it will be forever lost, and therefore

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to care for your soul is of supreme importance.

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And we’ve been saying that the God, in his kindness, has given us four friends to help

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you care for your soul.

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And we’ve been thinking about the Son of God, the Word of God, today the fear of God, and

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next week the love of God.

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All of these are spoken of in the Bible as being in the soul, or in the life, of a believer.

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And we began thinking about the Son of God.

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What an amazing gift this is.

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Galatians 2 20.

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I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live but Christ lives in me.

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The Son of God lives in the soul of a Christian believer.

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What kind of gift is that?

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This amazing gift of the Son of God as the first friend of your soul.

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Putting you in a position where you’re able to pursue a new and a different life, because

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new and different desires are arising from the presence of Christ with you and in you.

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Then last week we looked at the word of God, let the word of Christ dwell in you richly.

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The word of God producing good fruit in the life of a believer working from the inside

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out as it takes root within your soul.

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Now today we come to the third friend, the fear of God.

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Now my first task, and I don’t think it’s an easy one today is to make the case that

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the fear of God is actually a friend.

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Some of you may as a first thought be thinking but the fear of God that sounds more like

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an enemy to me than a friend, isn’t that what we’re trying to get away from?

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Isn’t that what we’re trying to get rid of?

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It’s sounds to some people I think more like a dysfunction than a sign of spiritual health

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and yet the Bible as we’re going to see today presents the fear of God as a friend.

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A friend who will do you all kinds of good if this friend is living in your soul and

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so I invite you to open your Bible at Jeremiah in Chapter 32 which was read for us and we

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read these words.

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Jeremiah 32 in verse 39, God says, I will give them one heart and one way that they

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may fear me forever for their own good and for the good of their children after them.

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Now notice what God is saying in this very important verse.

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God’s own people are distinguished by the fact that they are the ones who fear Him.

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And fearing Him is for their good.

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And not only their good, it’s for the good of generations that will follow.

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In other words, if the people of God were to lose the fear of God, there would be trouble

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in the generation that followed.

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That’s what God is clearly saying.

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And this fear of God is not limited to Old Testament times.

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He specifically says it is forever.

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It is forever.

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And so as we are going to see today, there will never be a time on earth or even in heaven

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itself, where the people of God do not fear Him as we love Him and love Him as we fear

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Him.

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I want to do everything that I can today to dispel the idea, if it may exist in any of

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our minds, to get rid of the idea that there is a God to be feared in the Old Testament

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and that there’s a God to be loved in the New Testament and therefore the fear of God

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has nothing to do with a Christian believer.

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If you’ve thought that ever, if you think that now, I want to try and show you from

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the Bible an entirely different revelation with regards to the fear of God.

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By the way, if you were here last week you may just spot the evolutionary view of the

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Bible that we spoke about last week in that thinking.

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The idea is, oh well in ancient primitive times people had these crude ideas about a

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God who was to be feared but now in these much more enlightened times we have more sophisticated

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and better and inclusive ideas about a God who must be love.

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That is entirely the evolutionary view of the Bible, it’s a complete misunderstanding

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of what the Bible is, it’s not the history of human views about God, it is God’s word

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to us and God never changes.

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So the idea that there’s a God to be feared in the Old Testament, a God to be loved in

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the New Testament is a complete misunderstanding of what the Bible is and of what the Bible

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says.

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God never changes, he is the same yesterday, today and forever he is to be feared as he

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is loved, and he is to be loved as he is feared.

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So the Old Testament is full of the love of God.

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Read the book of Deuteronomy and you’ll find the unprovoked love of God that is sourced

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only in himself.

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Read the book of Hosea and you’ll find the intensity of the love of God where it is wounded

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and it’s all played out in this amazing story of Hosea who will not stop loving his wife

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who is so unfaithful and that this is a revelation of the love of God, that’s in the Old Testament.

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And when you come to the New Testament you will find not only the love of God but you

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will also find again and again the fear of God.

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Listen to this from Matthew chapter 10 in verse 28.

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Fear Him who can destroy both body and soul in hell, fear him.

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Who said that?

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Jesus.

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Who did He say it about?

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His Father in heaven.

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Who did He say it to?

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His disciples.

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Peter, James, John.

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Fear Him!

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Who can destroy both body and soul in Hell.

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The command to fear God.

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Fear God is a direct New Testament command.

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1 Peter chapter 2, verse 17.

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It’s right there.

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Fear God.

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It’s a New Testament command.

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The statement it is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.

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Hebrews chapter 10, verse 31 is in the New Testament and in a letter, Hebrews, that it

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addressed to Christian believers.

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Fearing God was the mark of the New Testament church at its best.

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Acts chapter 9, in verse 31.

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The church lived in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit and it multiplied.

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Notice how these two things are put together.

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The fear of the Lord.

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The comfort of the Holy Spirit.

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The one experienced in conjunction with the other and not a bit of tension between them.

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They walked in the fear of the Lord.

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When the church was at its spiritual height and God’s blessing was being poured out in

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remarkable ways this is what it was like among Christian believers.

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The fear of the Lord.

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The comfort of the Holy Spirit.

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So very clearly we need to grasp this fear of the Lord that is spoken about in both testaments

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is commended to us as Christian believers and in the scripture that is before us today

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supremely we are told it is for our good and it will be for the good of our children after us.

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What then is this fear of the Lord?

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I want to suggest to you from the Bible that it is a cord of three strands.

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And the three strands are the splendor of God’s glory, the reality of God’s judgment,

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and the wonder of God’s love.

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You’ve been listening to Open the Bible

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with Passer Collin Smith and we’ll come back to the message shortly.

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The message is called the Fear of God and it’s part of our series Soul Care

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based today on Jeremiah Chapter 32.

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If you tuned in late or if you just simply want to go back and listen again

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you can do that by coming online to our website openthebible.org.uk

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You’ll also find the whole series to date on our website

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and that’s at openthebible.org.uk

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You can also find Passer Collin Smith’s messages as a podcast

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There’s also a link on our website to the podcast

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if that’s a more convenient way for you to keep up with Passer Collin’s teaching.

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There are several ways you can do that

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Back to the message now here’s Colin

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Hope you have the Bible open in front of you

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Let’s begin here that the fear of God

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arises from a knowledge of the splendor of His glory

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Now think about who God is

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A God who just speaks

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And the moon and the stars in the planets come into existence

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And he upholds it all by the Word of His power

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I want you to see, particularly in this chapter

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Some glimpses of the glory of God in Jeremiah and chapter 32

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If you look at the beginning of the chapter

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You’ll see it’s titled, Jeremiah buys a field during the siege

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You read this story, I’ll just give it to you in Outline

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Verse 2 tells us that Jerusalem was under siege

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The Babylonian army was building up piles of earth

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Against the city walls

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Getting ready to walk up over the walls

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Attack the city, destroy it completely

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And to destroy the people

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And what happens to the economy

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Of a country when that country is under siege

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Its capital city is surrounded

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Well, very obviously, the economy goes into meltdown

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Who in the world wants to buy land

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In a place that is about to be taken over

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By hostile and brutal enemies

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What happens in that circumstance

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Is that values collapse

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Trading stops

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Commerce grinds to a complete and utter halt

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The whole thing is gridlocked

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And in that circumstance

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Jeremiah did an extraordinary and a very public thing

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He bought a piece of property

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He’s buying land

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In an economy where no one would see any value at all

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In buying a piece of land

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And hold on to your assets

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That’s the best strategy

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You might be able to find some way of escaping of the Babylonians

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But Jeremiah goes out and says

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No I’m gonna spend money

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I’m going to buy land

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And why would he do such a thing

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Verse 14 and 15

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For thus says the Lord

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Houses, and fields, and vineyards

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Shall again be bought in this land

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Now that of course is exactly what happened

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If you know the Old Testament story

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It’s a matter of history

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That some years after

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The scene in the book of Jeremiah

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That God by his divine power

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caused this world superpower

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this world empire

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this impregnable war machine of Babylon

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to collapse completely and utterly

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That God in his mercy

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caused a pagan king

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by the name of Cyrus the Persian

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to have it in his heart

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even though he did not know or honour God

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to repatriate the people of God

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and to actively support and even sponsor

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their returning back

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to rebuild the City of Jerusalem

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Who could have guessed

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that within a few years

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God would utterly destroy

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and bring down

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the world superpower of the day

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That God would bring back

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his people who had been

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so devastatingly scattered

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And that God would give to them

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in that land

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a thriving economy

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where things had been in melt down

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just a few years before

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Now you see what that is telling us

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That God is sovereign

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even over the economies

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of nations

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That’s why he says in verse 42

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Just as I have brought

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all this disaster upon this people

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I will bring upon them

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all the good that I promised them

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and verse 44

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Fields shall be bought for money

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and deeds shall be signed

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and sealed and witnessed

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I will restore their fortunes

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declares the Lord

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Here is the living God

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and he is sovereign over

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the fate of cities

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and over the rise and the fall of nations

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and he is sovereign over the growth

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and the decline of economies

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and he is sovereign over the growth

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and decline of churches too

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What else could it mean

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when the son of God says

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in Revelation 1

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I will remove the candlestick

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What that means is that the life

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even of the people of God

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even if the Church

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is in the hands of this living

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and of this sovereign, God

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And so it’s not surprising

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that earlier in the book of Jeremiah

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the prophet speaks the word

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that God gives to him

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in chapter 5 and verse 22

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Do you not fear me!

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Says the Lord

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Do you not tremble before me

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People who do not fear the Lord

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Have not seen His Glory

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who not only created the worlds

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not only sustains them by His power

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but controls the course of history

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even the rising and the falling of nations

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working out all things

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including the disasters

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as well as the blessings

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in the accomplishment

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of his own inscrutable

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and marvelous and glorious will

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And when you begin to get a sense

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of God being that great

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and that glorious

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you begin to get first strand of

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what it means to fear Him

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A chord of three strands

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Number one, the splendor of God’s glory

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00:17:42,319 –> 00:17:44,939

ruling over the world and over history

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Number two, the reality of God’s judgment

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Here’s the second strand

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Here I want to draw your attention

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to 2nd Corinthians in chapter 5

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where Paul the Apostle

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gives two statements right joined together

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First he says, we must all stand

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before the judgment seat of Christ

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00:18:11,239 –> 00:18:13,500

He’s writing to Christians

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He says now every one of us

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00:18:16,359 –> 00:18:18,199

everyone of us, we’re all going to

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00:18:18,199 –> 00:18:20,040

stand one day before

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the judgment seat of Christ

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Take that in, and then what

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00:18:25,119 –> 00:18:28,660

he says in the very next verse is this

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therefore knowing the fear of the Lord

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we seek to persuade others

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here we live in a world of people

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who don’t give weight to God

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00:18:39,959 –> 00:18:41,420

are not thinking about his judgment

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00:18:41,420 –> 00:18:44,300

probably don’t believe in it

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00:18:44,300 –> 00:18:46,800

but God’s people

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00:18:46,800 –> 00:18:47,920

who have seen something of the

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00:18:47,920 –> 00:18:49,380

splendor of his glory

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00:18:49,380 –> 00:18:51,660

and have come to know him

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we do think about it

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00:18:53,920 –> 00:18:56,500

and it weighs with us

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00:18:56,500 –> 00:18:58,000

We know that we shall all stand

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00:18:58,079 –> 00:19:00,400

before the judgment seat of Christ

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00:19:00,400 –> 00:19:04,199

and therefore knowing the fear of the Lord

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00:19:04,199 –> 00:19:10,000

we engage in the work of ministry

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00:19:10,000 –> 00:19:11,040

Now I want you to think with me

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for a moment,

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00:19:12,040 –> 00:19:13,420

as again I try to ponder this

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00:19:13,420 –> 00:19:14,880

it’s good for us as Christians

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00:19:14,880 –> 00:19:16,000

to ponder the day when

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00:19:16,000 –> 00:19:19,800

we will stand before the Lord

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00:19:19,800 –> 00:19:20,800

and remember this

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00:19:20,800 –> 00:19:22,540

that he knows everything about you

345

00:19:22,540 –> 00:19:23,540

he knows you better than

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00:19:23,540 –> 00:19:24,520

you know yourself

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00:19:25,119 –> 00:19:28,040

There are many prayers

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00:19:28,040 –> 00:19:30,479

in the Church of England liturgy

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00:19:30,479 –> 00:19:32,819

that I’ve found helpful over the years

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00:19:32,819 –> 00:19:33,920

and one of them is called

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00:19:33,920 –> 00:19:35,560

A Collect for Purity

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00:19:35,560 –> 00:19:36,880

a very strange name

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00:19:36,880 –> 00:19:37,880

it’s a short prayer

354

00:19:37,880 –> 00:19:39,239

and it goes like this

355

00:19:39,239 –> 00:19:43,280

Almighty God,

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00:19:43,280 –> 00:19:46,619

before whom all hearts are open

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00:19:46,619 –> 00:19:49,780

all desires known

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00:19:49,780 –> 00:19:55,099

and from whom no secrets are hid

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00:19:55,099 –> 00:19:57,000

just think about that

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00:19:57,000 –> 00:19:58,000

then the prayer says

361

00:19:58,000 –> 00:19:59,500

Cleanse the thoughts of our hearts

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00:19:59,500 –> 00:20:01,640

by the inspiration of your Holy Spirit

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00:20:01,640 –> 00:20:03,939

that we may perfectly love you

364

00:20:03,939 –> 00:20:06,939

and worthily magnify your Holy Name

365

00:20:06,939 –> 00:20:08,400

through Jesus Christ our Lord

366

00:20:08,400 –> 00:20:10,819

Amen

367

00:20:10,819 –> 00:20:13,540

You think about this

368

00:20:13,540 –> 00:20:14,739

you’re going to stand

369

00:20:14,739 –> 00:20:15,739

I’m going to stand

370

00:20:15,739 –> 00:20:18,939

before the judgment seat of Christ

371

00:20:19,619 –> 00:20:22,420

and your heart is completely open to Him

372

00:20:22,420 –> 00:20:23,739

There is nothing that He doesn’t know

373

00:20:23,739 –> 00:20:27,479

that’s going on in your heart

374

00:20:27,479 –> 00:20:31,619

and your desires are fully known to Him

375

00:20:31,619 –> 00:20:33,099

even the conflicting desires

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00:20:33,099 –> 00:20:35,099

It’s all known to Him

377

00:20:35,099 –> 00:20:40,719

and from Him no secret can be hid

378

00:20:40,719 –> 00:20:43,219

We carry life long secrets

379

00:20:43,219 –> 00:20:44,520

with regards to other people

380

00:20:44,520 –> 00:20:47,500

even people who are close to you

381

00:20:47,500 –> 00:20:52,979

From God no secret can be hid

382

00:20:52,979 –> 00:20:53,979

He knows everything

383

00:20:53,979 –> 00:20:56,160

he’s perfect in his knowledge

384

00:20:56,160 –> 00:20:59,560

and infinite in His power

385

00:20:59,560 –> 00:21:02,640

and we, you and I, we must stand

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00:21:02,640 –> 00:21:08,640

before the judgment seat of Christ

387

00:21:08,640 –> 00:21:11,880

Simply to ponder that and to take it in

388

00:21:11,880 –> 00:21:16,380

is going to produce within your heart

389

00:21:16,540 –> 00:21:18,699

what the Bible describes as

390

00:21:18,699 –> 00:21:19,619

the fear of God

391

00:21:19,619 –> 00:21:21,300

It arises not only from the knowledge

392

00:21:21,300 –> 00:21:24,459

of the splendour of His glory

393

00:21:24,459 –> 00:21:26,900

but through taking in the reality

394

00:21:26,900 –> 00:21:27,619

of His judgment

395

00:21:27,619 –> 00:21:29,319

we must all stand before

396

00:21:29,319 –> 00:21:32,540

the judgment seat of Christ

397

00:21:32,540 –> 00:21:33,920

You’ve been listening to Open The Bible

398

00:21:33,920 –> 00:21:35,260

with Pastor Colin Smith

399

00:21:35,260 –> 00:21:36,880

in our message today

400

00:21:36,880 –> 00:21:37,900

The Fear Of God

401

00:21:37,900 –> 00:21:38,739

and we’ve been hearing

402

00:21:38,739 –> 00:21:39,839

how the fear of God

403

00:21:39,839 –> 00:21:40,819

is actually made up

404

00:21:40,819 –> 00:21:42,380

of three strands

405

00:21:42,380 –> 00:21:44,339

the splendour of God’s glory

406

00:21:44,339 –> 00:21:45,020

the reality

407

00:21:45,020 –> 00:21:46,540

of his judgment

408

00:21:46,540 –> 00:21:48,400

and next time in the broadcast

409

00:21:48,400 –> 00:21:50,180

we’ll look at the wonder of his love

410

00:21:50,180 –> 00:21:52,459

so I hope you’ll join us for that

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00:21:52,459 –> 00:21:53,020

Don’t forget

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00:21:53,020 –> 00:21:54,719

if you ever miss one of the messages

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00:21:54,719 –> 00:21:55,640

or if you want to go back

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00:21:55,640 –> 00:21:56,619

and listen again

415

00:21:56,619 –> 00:21:58,160

you can do that by coming online

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00:21:58,160 –> 00:21:59,260

to our website

417

00:21:59,260 –> 00:22:02,339

Front Page

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00:22:02,339 –> 00:22:03,160

You’ll also find

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00:22:03,160 –> 00:22:04,859

Pastor Colin Smith’s messages

420

00:22:04,859 –> 00:22:05,739

as a podcast

421

00:22:05,739 –> 00:22:06,760

and that may be a better way

422

00:22:06,760 –> 00:22:08,219

for you to keep up

423

00:22:08,219 –> 00:22:09,500

with his teaching

424

00:22:09,500 –> 00:22:10,300

Those are available

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00:22:10,300 –> 00:22:12,099

on all the main podcasting sites

426

00:22:12,099 –> 00:22:13,300

or by following the link

427

00:22:13,300 –> 00:22:14,500

on our website

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00:22:14,500 –> 00:22:15,579

Also on our website

429

00:22:15,579 –> 00:22:17,260

and available as a podcast

430

00:22:17,260 –> 00:22:17,979

you’ll find

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00:22:17,979 –> 00:22:19,859

Open the Bible Daily

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00:22:19,859 –> 00:22:21,459

That’s a series of short

433

00:22:21,459 –> 00:22:22,479

two to three minute

434

00:22:22,479 –> 00:22:23,859

daily reflections

435

00:22:23,859 –> 00:22:25,239

based on Pastor Colin Smith’s

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00:22:25,239 –> 00:22:26,020

teaching

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00:22:26,020 –> 00:22:27,060

and read in the U.K.

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00:22:27,060 –> 00:22:28,739

by Sue McCleich

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00:22:28,739 –> 00:22:29,579

Many people find

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00:22:29,579 –> 00:22:30,380

it’s a brilliant way

441

00:22:30,380 –> 00:22:31,880

to start the day

442

00:22:31,880 –> 00:22:32,979

Also on our website

443

00:22:32,979 –> 00:22:33,619

you can find

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00:22:33,619 –> 00:22:35,859

many of Pastor Colin Smith’s sermons

445

00:22:35,859 –> 00:22:37,900

organised in 4 ways

446

00:22:37,900 –> 00:22:39,140

by series

447

00:22:39,140 –> 00:22:41,079

Colin preaches a whole series

448

00:22:41,079 –> 00:22:42,599

on a particular subject

449

00:22:42,599 –> 00:22:44,040

by topic

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00:22:44,079 –> 00:22:44,880

with reference to

451

00:22:44,880 –> 00:22:46,140

individual scripture

452

00:22:46,140 –> 00:22:47,939

and by date

453

00:22:47,939 –> 00:22:48,819

This means that it’s

454

00:22:48,819 –> 00:22:49,619

really easy

455

00:22:49,619 –> 00:22:50,420

to home in

456

00:22:50,420 –> 00:22:51,699

on any of the subjects

457

00:22:51,699 –> 00:22:52,319

topics

458

00:22:52,319 –> 00:22:53,739

or scriptural references

459

00:22:53,739 –> 00:22:55,280

that you may be looking for

460

00:22:55,280 –> 00:22:55,780

Go to

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00:22:58,020 –> 00:22:59,959

and click on the menu item

462

00:22:59,959 –> 00:23:00,859

sermons

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00:23:01,380 –> 00:23:02,219

You’ll also find

464

00:23:02,219 –> 00:23:03,699

an online Bible study course

465

00:23:03,699 –> 00:23:04,319

entitled

466

00:23:04,319 –> 00:23:05,540

The Drive

467

00:23:05,540 –> 00:23:07,599

This is a 30 session journey

468

00:23:07,599 –> 00:23:09,420

through the entire Bible

469

00:23:09,420 –> 00:23:10,339

And it will take you

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00:23:10,339 –> 00:23:11,380

deep into the valleys

471

00:23:11,380 –> 00:23:12,760

of the Old Testament

472

00:23:12,760 –> 00:23:13,400

The peaks of

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00:23:14,119 –> 00:23:14,599

of Jesus

474

00:23:14,599 –> 00:23:16,140

And the ups and downs

475

00:23:16,140 –> 00:23:17,160

of the Christian life

476

00:23:17,160 –> 00:23:19,260

Again, that’s The Drive

477

00:23:19,260 –> 00:23:20,180

and you can find it

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00:23:20,180 –> 00:23:21,219

under the menu item

479

00:23:21,219 –> 00:23:22,020

Resources

480

00:23:22,020 –> 00:23:23,859

on the Open the Bible website

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00:23:23,859 –> 00:23:24,300

that’s

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00:23:26,520 –> 00:23:27,599

dot, OK

483

00:23:27,599 –> 00:23:28,839

Open the Bible

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00:23:28,839 –> 00:23:29,380

depends

485

00:23:29,380 –> 00:23:30,520

on your generosity

486

00:23:30,520 –> 00:23:31,000

to keep

487

00:23:31,000 –> 00:23:32,199

Pastor Collins teaching

488

00:23:32,199 –> 00:23:33,180

on this station

489

00:23:33,180 –> 00:23:34,239

and online

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00:23:34,239 –> 00:23:35,599

And as you set up

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00:23:35,599 –> 00:23:36,880

a new monthly gift

492

00:23:36,880 –> 00:23:37,459

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00:23:37,459 –> 00:23:37,939

Open

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00:23:37,939 –> 00:23:38,199

the Bible

495

00:23:38,199 –> 00:23:38,780

this month

496

00:23:38,780 –> 00:23:40,239

we want to thank you

497

00:23:40,239 –> 00:23:41,020

by sending you

498

00:23:41,020 –> 00:23:42,079

a free copy

499

00:23:42,079 –> 00:23:43,739

of Chris Lungard’s book

500

00:23:43,739 –> 00:23:45,040

The Enemy Within

501

00:23:45,040 –> 00:23:45,939

straight talk

502

00:23:45,939 –> 00:23:46,800

about the power

503

00:23:46,800 –> 00:23:48,459

and defeat of sin

504

00:23:48,459 –> 00:23:48,939

Collin

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00:23:48,939 –> 00:23:49,739

who would you say

506

00:23:49,739 –> 00:23:51,180

this book is for?

507

00:23:51,180 –> 00:23:52,260

Well, first is for

508

00:23:52,260 –> 00:23:53,780

anyone who is a Christian

509

00:23:53,780 –> 00:23:54,780

By definition

510

00:23:54,780 –> 00:23:55,540

a Christian is

511

00:23:55,540 –> 00:23:56,180

a person

512

00:23:56,180 –> 00:23:56,959

in whom

513

00:23:56,959 –> 00:23:58,040

the Holy Spirit

514

00:23:58,040 –> 00:23:59,180

dwells

515

00:23:59,180 –> 00:24:00,680

and also by definition

516

00:24:00,680 –> 00:24:01,880

a Christian is a person

517

00:24:01,880 –> 00:24:02,719

who is engaged

518

00:24:02,719 –> 00:24:03,660

in a serious

519

00:24:03,660 –> 00:24:05,239

battle against sin

520

00:24:05,239 –> 00:24:06,280

The Apostle Paul says

521

00:24:06,280 –> 00:24:07,660

we’ve got to put to death

522

00:24:07,660 –> 00:24:08,880

the misdeeds of the body

523

00:24:08,880 –> 00:24:09,459

by the power

524

00:24:09,459 –> 00:24:10,239

of the Holy Spirit

525

00:24:10,239 –> 00:24:11,319

who lives within you

526

00:24:11,479 –> 00:24:12,680

and here’s the thing

527

00:24:12,680 –> 00:24:13,380

as you grow

528

00:24:13,380 –> 00:24:14,400

in the Christian life

529

00:24:14,400 –> 00:24:15,199

you actually become

530

00:24:15,199 –> 00:24:16,619

more aware

531

00:24:16,619 –> 00:24:17,479

of the sins

532

00:24:17,479 –> 00:24:18,199

that you need

533

00:24:18,199 –> 00:24:19,140

to fight against

534

00:24:19,140 –> 00:24:19,680

in your life

535

00:24:19,680 –> 00:24:20,979

not less aware

536

00:24:20,979 –> 00:24:21,819

of them

537

00:24:21,819 –> 00:24:23,079

So there’s an increasing

538

00:24:23,079 –> 00:24:24,280

sense of battle

539

00:24:24,280 –> 00:24:26,339

that a Christian experiences

540

00:24:26,339 –> 00:24:27,020

and this book

541

00:24:27,020 –> 00:24:28,060

by Chris Lungard

542

00:24:28,060 –> 00:24:29,339

The Enemy Within

543

00:24:29,339 –> 00:24:29,900

is one of the

544

00:24:29,900 –> 00:24:31,160

most helpful books

545

00:24:31,160 –> 00:24:32,319

I have ever found

546

00:24:32,319 –> 00:24:32,959

on the subject

547

00:24:32,959 –> 00:24:33,640

of the battle

548

00:24:33,640 –> 00:24:34,579

of the Christian life

549

00:24:34,579 –> 00:24:36,619

It is really encouraging

550

00:24:36,619 –> 00:24:37,939

I found it helpful

551

00:24:37,939 –> 00:24:38,579

and I think

552

00:24:38,579 –> 00:24:39,160

that everyone

553

00:24:39,160 –> 00:24:39,680

who leaps it

554

00:24:39,680 –> 00:24:41,199

will find it helpful too

555

00:24:41,319 –> 00:24:42,040

Well we want to

556

00:24:42,040 –> 00:24:42,839

send you a copy

557

00:24:42,839 –> 00:24:43,660

of this book

558

00:24:43,660 –> 00:24:44,439

Chris Lungard

559

00:24:44,439 –> 00:24:45,479

The Enemy Within

560

00:24:45,479 –> 00:24:46,199

Straight Talk

561

00:24:46,199 –> 00:24:46,979

About the Power

562

00:24:46,979 –> 00:24:48,280

and Defeat of Sin

563

00:24:48,280 –> 00:24:48,839

and it’s our

564

00:24:48,839 –> 00:24:49,900

thank you gift to you

565

00:24:49,900 –> 00:24:50,640

if you’re able to

566

00:24:50,640 –> 00:24:52,420

set up a new donation

567

00:24:52,420 –> 00:24:53,119

to the work of

568

00:24:53,119 –> 00:24:53,900

Open the Bible

569

00:24:53,900 –> 00:24:54,760

this month

570

00:24:54,760 –> 00:24:55,459

in the amount of

571

00:24:55,459 –> 00:24:56,939

£5 per month

572

00:24:56,939 –> 00:24:58,160

or more

573

00:24:58,160 –> 00:24:58,680

full details

574

00:24:58,680 –> 00:25:00,060

on the website

575

00:25:00,060 –> 00:25:02,819

openthebible.org.uk

576

00:25:03,839 –> 00:25:04,619

For Open the Bible

577

00:25:04,619 –> 00:25:06,140

and Pastor Colin Smith

578

00:25:06,140 –> 00:25:07,319

I’m David Pick

579

00:25:07,319 –> 00:25:08,040

and I hope you’ll be able

580

00:25:08,040 –> 00:25:08,819

to join us again

581

00:25:08,819 –> 00:25:09,339

next time

582

00:25:09,339 –> 00:25:09,760

on Open the Bible

583

00:25:11,199 –> 00:25:16,859

MUSIC

584

00:25:16,859 –> 00:25:18,000

What actually is

585

00:25:18,000 –> 00:25:19,339

the fear of God?

586

00:25:19,339 –> 00:25:20,280

Find out next time

587

00:25:20,280 –> 00:25:21,920

on Open the Bible

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Colin Smith

Trustee / Founder and Teaching Pastor

Colin Smith is the Senior Pastor of The Orchard Evangelical Free Church in the northwest suburbs of Chicago. He has authored a number of books, including Heaven, How I Got Here and Heaven, So Near – So Far. Colin is the Founder and Teaching Pastor for Open the Bible. Follow him on X formerly Twitter.

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What do you need to know to properly care for your soul? Pastor Colin opens up the Bible’s teaching on what the human soul is, what Jesus says about the value of your soul, how your soul can be saved or lost, and the basics of caring for your soul.

Colin Smith

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