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Jesus cried out in agony.

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My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?

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Then the darkness passed and Jesus cried out.

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The Bible tells us in a loud voice,

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It is finished.

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What was finished.

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Welcome to Open the Bible with Pastor Colin Smith.

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I’m David Pick and Colin, let’s answer that question straightaway.

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What was finished on the cross?

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Well, lots of things, of course.

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But I think most of all, you know, when he was on the cross,

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the wrath of God itself was poured out on him.

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And he suffered in that darkness.

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All the agonies of hell, everything

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that would have come to a sinner was absorbed in him

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with regards to all that he had done.

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What do I understand?

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Fear.

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Fear of God, anger of God.

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Fear of God, fear, fear of God.

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When one of his friends,

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I would say it was Maria Peter,

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had a letter written to him by Crispin Henri purvey,

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maybe Gergely I made a book about him.

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Recently.

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And he read it, it spiritually Theater.

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And it was one of the first books in all eternity that

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literally burned itself

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out as far as you are concerned.

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If you’re in Christ on the cross.

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He dealt with it for you.

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There’s no more anger from God,

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no more wrath from God for

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you if you are in Jesus Christ,

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because it was all dealt with by him.

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There and then and that is why there is

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no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.

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This is a wonderful subject

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that we’re celebrating today as the heart of the gospel.

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We can’t wait to get further into this.

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Join us, if you can,

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in Micah, chapter 7.

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As we continue the message,

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the God who forgives and restores here’s,

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Colin, come with me in your imagination

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to a place called Calvary.

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Where there are three crosses.

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Jesus is nailed to one in the middle

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under on either side there are two criminals.

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Thieves.

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Who are coming to the end of their wasted lives.

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One of them curses and swears to the last.

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Wants nothing to do with God.

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But the other one becomes more subdued

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as eternity comes closer.

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He has heard Jesus say,

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Father, forgive them,

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they do not know what they are doing.

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He is somehow recognized in his own spirit

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some authority within Jesus.

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And he begins to wonder if this man dying next to him

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might indeed be able to help him.

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And so in his own agony he turns somehow to Jesus

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and he says this,

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Jesus, remember me

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when you come into your kingdom.

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Now think about this.

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Jesus said to him, Amen.

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Today you will be with me in paradise.

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Now how could Jesus say that

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to this man?

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Who evidently was not fit for paradise.

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Here’s the answer.

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God’s anger is his holy,

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personal response to evil.

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And when Jesus died on the cross,

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the sins of the world were laid on him.

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God’s anger was poured out on him.

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The bible calls that propitiation.

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He endured hell on the cross.

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When that happened the sun was turned to darkness,

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all hell was let loose,

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and Jesus cried out in agony,

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My God, my God!

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Why have you forsaken me?

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Then the darkness passed and Jesus cried out,

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the bible tells us in a loud voice,

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It is finished!

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What was finished?

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God’s anger.

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His personal, holy response to evil

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was spent on Jesus.

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The verdict passed, the sentence served,

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the anger exhausted,

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and here’s the central mystery of it all,

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as we celebrate at Christmas,

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this Jesus is God, with us.

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God bore the wrath of God.

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His love and his justice meet in Himself.

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That’s why the way is open

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for a dying thief to enter Paradise.

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See what Jesus did?

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Jesus rescued this man

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from the inevitable process

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of cause and effect in the mortal universe, right?

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Jesus rescued this man

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from God’s personal holy response to his thieving

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and all the other sins of his life,

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and he’s able to do the same for you.

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Listen to how John puts it in John 3,

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one of the most famous chapters in the whole Bible,

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where we have John 3, 16.

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Listen to how the chapter ends.

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Whoever believes in the Son, that is in Jesus the Son of God,

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has eternal life,

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but whoever rejects the Son will not see life

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for God’s wrath remains.

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The wrath of God remains on him.

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You see, you come to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ,

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and he takes this wrath away from you.

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You stand at a distance from Jesus Christ,

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and this wrath remains on you.

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That’s what John says, that’s the word,

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the wrath of God remains on him.

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God’s anger as far as your sin is concerned

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is in one of two places.

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It was either spent on Jesus or it remains on you.

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Now, if that’s where you are,

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I’m gonna lead in a prayer in just a few moments’ time

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in which I’m going to invite you to come

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and to ask Jesus to save you

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and to take God’s wrath away from you.

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He died so that that’s possible for you today.

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But just before we get there, I want us to have a grasp

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of what will happen if you do that

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and what happens for everyone

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who has put their trust in Jesus.

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Because Micah makes it clear

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that God’s pardon deals not only

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with this primary issue of his anger,

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but it also deals with your past

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and it deals with your future.

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Let’s look at these more briefly together.

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First your past.

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Notice how he says in verse 19,

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You will hurl all our iniquities

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into the depths of the sea.

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That is a marvelous word, hurl.

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I have been practicing to say that word

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all week, you understand?

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Would you like to join me in saying that word?

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Hurl, try it, try it, give it a try.

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After three, one, two, three, hurl.

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Okay, we’ve got that one now.

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It’s a wonderful word.

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I remember my Scottish pastor

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preaching at great length about this,

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I remember his image.

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God hurls your sins into the depth of the sea

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and then he puts up a big sign

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that says no fishing.

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I like that, I like that.

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When God forgives you he takes your past,

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he takes your guilt and it’s gone.

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The depths of the sea.

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But there’s something more here that came fresh to me

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as I studied it more closely this week.

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I’d never really seen it before.

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But you see this phrase about God hurling something

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into the depths of the sea occurs really only one place

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earlier in the Old Testament and it’s very significant.

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It comes in the story of when God’s people

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came out of Egypt at the time of the Exodus.

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And you’ll see and this is very significant

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if you look at verse 15, that the Holy Spirit

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caused Micah to think about the story of the Exodus

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from Egypt as he was writing these words.

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So we know from verse 15 that the Exodus was in Micah’s mind

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by the inspiration of the Spirit

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as he’s writing these words that we’re reading.

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As in the days when you came out of Egypt,

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I will show them my wonders, verse 15.

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Well, now, let me just briefly remind you

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of the story of the Exodus,

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which most children know very, very well.

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What I’m gonna do is to tell the story

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and then get one part wrong.

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And when I get a part wrong, especially for the kids here,

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but frankly for anyone else, give me some response,

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I mean, raise a hand or shout out or something.

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I want us to identify where we’re getting the story wrong.

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But I’m gonna start out at least

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by getting it right, okay?

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Here’s the story of the Exodus

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that probably all the children know well.

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God’s people were slaves in Egypt.

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They were treated with cruelty

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and they cried out to God for help.

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God sent Moses to tell Pharaoh, let my people go.

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But Pharaoh didn’t want to let the people go

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because he wanted to keep them as slaves.

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So God sent plagues, and eventually

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Pharaoh said that the people could go.

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So Moses led the people out of Egypt

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and they got as far as the Red Sea.

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But then Pharaoh changed his mind

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and he sent his army to chase after the Israelites.

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Well, God did a wonderful miracle

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and he divided the waters of the Red Sea.

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He divided the waters, great walls of water on either side

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and the people began to walk

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across the Red Sea on dry land.

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But when they were halfway across,

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the Egyptians caught up with them,

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put chains on them,

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and took them all the way back to Egypt, right?

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Oh, thank you.

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That’s not the story.

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What is the story?

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The story of the exodus is that God closed the waters

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over the Egyptians

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so that they could not bring God’s people

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back into slavery.

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And when God’s people got to the other side of the Red Sea,

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Moses and the Israelites began to sing,

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and if you want to flick to it very very quickly,

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you’ll see our word,

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because they began to sing a song that God gave them

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in Exodus chapter 15.

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And it’s the one place

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at the beginning of the Old Testament

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where this very unusual word

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that you can say with a Scottish accent actually occurs.

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Exodus 15 at verse one.

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I will sing to the Lord.

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The Israelites began to sing with joy

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for he is highly exalted,

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the horse and its rider he has,

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hurled into the sea.

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That’s verse one.

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And just to get into it in verse four

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they say Pharaoh’s chariots and his armies

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he has hurled into the sea.

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Now, you see, Micah takes up that picture

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and he’s using it as an illustration.

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When God saves you,

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you know what’s going to happen next?

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The very sins from which he has saved you

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will come chasing after you.

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Your past sins leads to present struggles.

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But here’s God’s promise.

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When your past sins start chasing after you

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in order to take you back into slavery again,

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God will be with you

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and he will deliver you from the power of your past sins

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just like he delivered his people

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from the power of the chasing Egyptian army.

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He will hurl them into the depths of the sea.

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That’s what he’ll do with the sins that chase you.

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This is much more than forgiveness.

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This is deliverance.

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Deliverance.

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We sing a hymn often.

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He breaks the power of canceled sin.

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He sets the prisoner free.

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If he just canceled my sin,

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he’d leave me defeated in the same old chains

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and the same old struggles.

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The gospel is more than that.

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He breaks the power of canceled sin.

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He sets the prisoner free.

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He takes the sins that are chasing me,

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that are chasing you,

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and he will huddle them into the depths of the sea.

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Are your past sins chasing you?

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Do you feel they’re catching up with you?

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Do you see pride and laziness and greed and lust

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over your shoulder?

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Do you feel them breathing down your neck?

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Are they coming after you to take you captive again?

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Listen, your savior is able to huddle them

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into the depths of the sea.

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He says, sin shall no longer be your master.

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That’s the gospel.

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Romans 6.14.

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What a place to have to hit the pause button.

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That’s an encouraging message

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from Pastor Colin Smith here today on Open the Bible.

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The message is called, The God Who Forgives and Restores.

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And it’s part of our series,

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Close Encounters with the Living God.

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And if you’ve missed any of the series to date

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you can easily catch up or go back and listen again online

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at our website, openthebible.org.uk

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or on your favorite podcast site

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by searching open the Bible, UK

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and subscribe to receive regular updates.

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Back to the message now,

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we’re in Micah and chapter seven.

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Here’s Colin.

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God’s anger, your past,

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and lastly and very briefly your future.

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Notice what he says in verse 19,

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you will tread our sins under foot.

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What a marvelous statement.

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Oh God, he says, who’s a god like you?

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You will tread our sins under foot.

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Now, if hurling the iniquities into the depth of the sea

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refers to God’s deliverance from your past sins

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when they come chasing after you,

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then surely treading your sins underfoot

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must refer to overcoming temptations

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that still lie ahead of you.

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As you’re moving forward on this journey,

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God says he will trend your sins under foot.

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Here you are going into another week

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and Satan has already set snares in your path,

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your future path.

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Every one of us will be tested at some point

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where we are vulnerable this week.

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And here’s the good news, God is walking with you.

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And as you encounter the snares

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that have been laid by the enemy,

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the traps on your pathway,

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the temptations that even now you cannot predict,

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but they will surely come.

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Here’s his promise, he will tread your sins underfoot.

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This is the gospel.

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Your past sins will not master you

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and your future temptations will not overwhelm you.

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God will walk with you, he will deal with both.

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He will be true to Jacob, he will show mercy to Abraham

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as he pledged an oath to our fathers in days long ago.

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If I think back to different reasons that I’ve heard

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why people hesitate to make a real life commitment

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to Jesus Christ, one of the most frequent is this,

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I don’t think I could keep it up.

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I’ve heard dozens of people say that over the years.

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If I was really to become a Christian,

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it would mean such change in my life,

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I honestly don’t think I could keep it up.

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My past sins, in other words you’re saying,

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would catch up with me.

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My future temptations you’re saying would overwhelm me.

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Now listen, God has already thought about that.

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And he’s provided for you in Christ.

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The Gospel is not just I’ll forgive you,

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now you try harder and do better.

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It is that God’s anger has ended,

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your past is dealt with,

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and your future is secure.

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That’s what Jesus Christ has accomplished on the cross.

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No wonder Mike is saying,

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who’s a god like you?

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It’s the very last thing,

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notice who God does this for.

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It’s very important not to miss this.

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Notice verse 18,

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God pardons sin and forgives the transgression of who?

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Of the remnant.

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Oh, there’s another R word,

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I hadn’t noticed that.

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Of the remnant of his inheritance.

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The remnant.

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Now that’s very significant.

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You see, Micah preached his message,

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the whole book,

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to the entire population of Israel,

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to the whole nation.

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The sad fact is,

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that for the vast majority of people,

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Micah’s message didn’t make a scrap of difference.

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Life went on exactly the same.

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They heard the message,

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that it was another day,

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another dollar,

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or another shekel,

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or whatever it was.

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The vast majority of people in Micah’s day,

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after they heard his message,

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were still caught up in their own old sins.

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Had no defense against future temptations,

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and God’s wrath remained on them.

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But there were a few.

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A few.

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A few.

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A few in the crowd.

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Who realized that God was really speaking to them.

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And they sat up and they said,

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God is speaking to me,

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and I’ve got to do something about it.

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And they turned to God in repentance,

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because they believed what Micah said.

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They asked for God’s pardon,

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and they prayed for God’s help,

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and for his deliverance to begin

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living different kind of lives.

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These people, they were called the Remnant,

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that is the group who remain.

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And Micah says, God pardons the Remnant.

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He did not stay angry with them,

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but he delighted to show them mercy.

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He had compassion on them, these folks.

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He treads their sins under foot,

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and he hurls their sins into the depths of the ocean.

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He fulfils his promise to Abraham in them,

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and he walks with these folks

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in every circumstance of their lives.

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Not everybody, just the Remnant.

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So the obvious question then is,

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are you part of the Remnant,

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or are you part of the crowd?

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Joining the Remnant means standing apart from the crowd.

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It always does.

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00:19:44,119 –> 00:19:46,339

In Micah’s day for the thief on the cross,

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for you and your world, me and mine today.

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The crowd at school, the crowd at business,

418

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the crowd in the mall,

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00:20:00,000 –> 00:20:02,160

but you can join the Remnant today.

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00:20:02,160 –> 00:20:03,939

That’s exactly what God wants for you.

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Nothing would bring him more delight.

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00:20:07,579 –> 00:20:10,520

You can come to the risen Lord Jesus Christ today,

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and you can say to him something like this.

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Oh, do what you do for me.

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Remove the condemnation of God’s wrath from my life.

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Huddle my past sins into the depth of the sea

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so they’ll not catch me again.

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Walk with me, teach me, lead me into a new life

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00:20:30,900 –> 00:20:33,619

that pleases you, crush my future temptations

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00:20:33,619 –> 00:20:36,000

under your feet, because I can’t crush them

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00:20:36,000 –> 00:20:36,839

under my own.

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You know that’s what he wants to do for you.

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In fact he delights to do it.

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And when that reality becomes your experience,

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you will be taking your stand with Micah

436

00:20:52,439 –> 00:20:56,479

and you’ll be saying to God, who is a God like you

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who pardons sin,

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forgives transgression,

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00:21:05,719 –> 00:21:07,479

who delights to show mercy,

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00:21:07,479 –> 00:21:11,500

who treads our sins underfoot,

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00:21:13,380 –> 00:21:16,140

who hurls their iniquities into the depths of the sea,

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00:21:17,640 –> 00:21:20,180

and walks faithfully keeping his covenant

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with the remnant of his people.

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Maybe as you’ve been listening to today’s broadcast,

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you realize you’re not part of that remnant

446

00:21:30,319 –> 00:21:33,900

that you’ve not come to Christ and asked for his forgiveness

447

00:21:33,900 –> 00:21:38,099

and been in that restored, right relationship with him.

448

00:21:38,099 –> 00:21:42,180

But you’d like to, or at least you’d like to know more.

449

00:21:42,180 –> 00:21:43,900

If so, I hope you’ll take time

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to speak to a trusted Christian friend or family member.

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00:21:47,619 –> 00:21:50,359

Or maybe go along to a local Christian fellowship.

452

00:21:50,359 –> 00:21:52,660

Talk to the people there, seek out the pastor,

453

00:21:52,660 –> 00:21:55,780

or go and pray with the prayer ministry team,

454

00:21:55,780 –> 00:21:57,699

or join an Alpha Course.

455

00:21:57,699 –> 00:22:00,420

Many churches run Alpha courses throughout the year.

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00:22:00,420 –> 00:22:02,060

And it’s a brilliant way to find out

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00:22:02,380 –> 00:22:04,339

more about the Christian faith.

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00:22:04,339 –> 00:22:07,219

You’ll also find lots of information on our website.

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00:22:07,219 –> 00:22:08,979

So I hope you’ll take time to visit us

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00:22:08,979 –> 00:22:13,199

at openthebible.org.uk.

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00:22:13,199 –> 00:22:14,199

At Open the Bible,

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00:22:14,199 –> 00:22:16,400

we welcome contact with our listeners.

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00:22:16,400 –> 00:22:19,459

If you’ve been blessed by Pastor Colin Smith’s teaching

464

00:22:19,459 –> 00:22:21,459

and you’d like to reach out to us,

465

00:22:21,459 –> 00:22:23,339

there are several ways you can do that.

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00:22:23,339 –> 00:22:28,339

You can write to us at Open the Bible P.O. Box 1420

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00:22:28,739 –> 00:22:32,479

Cheltenham GL50 9PG.

468

00:22:32,479 –> 00:22:37,439

Or you can phone us on 0330 335 8089.

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00:22:41,060 –> 00:22:42,920

If we’re not available when you call,

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00:22:42,920 –> 00:22:44,359

leave a message for us

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00:22:44,359 –> 00:22:46,060

and we’ll return your call.

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00:22:46,060 –> 00:22:47,739

And you can find all those contact details

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00:22:47,739 –> 00:22:52,300

on our website openthebible.org.uk.

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00:22:53,420 –> 00:22:56,579

Open the Bible is supported entirely by our listeners.

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00:22:56,579 –> 00:22:58,500

That’s people just like you.

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00:22:58,500 –> 00:23:01,060

And if that’s something you’re considering doing,

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00:23:01,060 –> 00:23:03,939

this month we have an offer for you.

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00:23:03,939 –> 00:23:06,219

If you’re able to set up a new donation

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00:23:06,219 –> 00:23:07,699

to the work of Open the Bible

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00:23:07,699 –> 00:23:11,099

in the amount of five pounds per month or more,

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00:23:11,099 –> 00:23:13,339

we’d love to thank you by sending you a copy

482

00:23:13,339 –> 00:23:14,619

of Kevin de Young’s book

483

00:23:14,619 –> 00:23:17,140

Impossible Christianity.

484

00:23:17,140 –> 00:23:18,479

Colm, what would you hope

485

00:23:18,479 –> 00:23:22,099

that someone reading this book will take away from it?

486

00:23:22,099 –> 00:23:25,060

Well, Kevin de Young does a brilliant job

487

00:23:25,099 –> 00:23:27,420

of distinguishing between the life

488

00:23:27,420 –> 00:23:29,420

that God calls us to lead

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00:23:29,420 –> 00:23:32,380

and the sometimes impossible burdens

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00:23:32,380 –> 00:23:34,119

that we place on ourselves.

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00:23:34,119 –> 00:23:35,859

And that’s why it’s such a helpful

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00:23:35,859 –> 00:23:38,060

and such a liberating book.

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00:23:38,060 –> 00:23:40,020

For example, when he talks about prayer,

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00:23:40,020 –> 00:23:42,339

he talks about the importance of prayer.

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00:23:42,339 –> 00:23:45,680

And anyone who really walks with the Lord knows that.

496

00:23:45,680 –> 00:23:47,540

We often feel that we need to pray more.

497

00:23:47,540 –> 00:23:49,500

We can live under a burden of saying,

498

00:23:49,500 –> 00:23:51,339

have I ever prayed enough?

499

00:23:51,459 –> 00:23:53,520

And have I ever prayed as sincerely

500

00:23:53,520 –> 00:23:55,099

and deeply as I ought?

501

00:23:55,099 –> 00:23:58,520

And we end up putting burdens on ourselves

502

00:23:58,520 –> 00:24:00,739

that can easily make following Christ

503

00:24:00,739 –> 00:24:03,319

feel like a joyless experience.

504

00:24:03,319 –> 00:24:06,619

And so I found Impossible Christianity

505

00:24:06,619 –> 00:24:08,339

to be really helpful

506

00:24:08,339 –> 00:24:11,140

in just restoring a sense of perspective,

507

00:24:11,140 –> 00:24:13,239

a sense of peace to the soul,

508

00:24:13,239 –> 00:24:15,260

and it’s right out of the scriptures.

509

00:24:15,260 –> 00:24:17,839

It’s faithful to what God says,

510

00:24:17,839 –> 00:24:21,040

but it brings to us a sense of a life

511

00:24:21,040 –> 00:24:24,040

that is made possible by the grace of God

512

00:24:24,040 –> 00:24:26,619

as we follow hard after the Lord Jesus Christ.

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00:24:26,619 –> 00:24:28,160

Well we’d love to send you a copy

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of Kevin DeYoung’s book

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to say thank you for setting up

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a new donation to the work of Open the Bible

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in the amount of five pounds per month or more.

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Full details of this offer

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are on our website, Openthebible.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 be able to join us again next time.

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All of us have times when we feel our faith is small,

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but no believer needs to be content

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with having little faith.

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Our faith needs to grow.

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Find out why next time on Open the Bible.