In this episode of the Deeper Dive podcast by the OC Church of Christ, Brian Craig continues the series 'Understanding the Spiritual Realm.' Brian delves into the biblical worldview of the heavens and earth, explores the role of spiritual beings, and shares personal insights from his near-death experience. He reflects on the life and faith of Daniel, discusses the significance of prayer and worship, and emphasizes the cosmic struggle between good and evil. The episode concludes with a song inspired by the teachings.
00:00 Introduction to the Deeper Dive Podcast
00:38 Understanding the Spiritual Realm: Part Two
02:45 Exploring the Book of Daniel
06:20 Daniel's Visions and the Spiritual Realm
11:40 Personal Testimony and Spiritual Insights
17:07 The Cosmic Struggle and Our Role
24:19 Conclusion and Final Thoughts
27:57 Closing Remarks and How to Stay Connected
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Welcome to the Deeper Dive podcast brought to you by the OC Church of Christ.
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The Deeper dive podcast is about going
deeper into God's word, learning new
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insight, and taking a fresh look at
the verses that impact our daily lives.
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Today's episode is the second and final
lesson from our series, "Understanding
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the Spiritual Realm" with Brian Craig.
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Get your scuba gear and let's
dive deep into God's word.
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Here's Brian Craig.
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Brian: Okay, this is part two of class
called Understanding the Spiritual Realm.
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So if you haven't heard that, you might
wanna go back and listen to that first.
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We're just picking up where we left
off and again, we're not not ever going
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to understand the spiritual realm,
but it's just the idea of opening
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our eyes to really it's a biblical
worldview of the heavens and earth.
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cosmology and heavens, the heavens
being populated with spiritual beings
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and which is what we see in scripture.
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Even as I mentioned last time in the
story of the birth narrative, we all
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know the Christmas story where the,
suddenly heaven is opened up and the sky
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is full of all these spiritual beings.
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The host of heaven, it says, which
are we usually gets pictured as
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angels, but strictly speaking, angel,
the word angel is just messenger.
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So an angel is a messenger from.
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God, but what the skies spiritual
beings are or Elohim is any, it's a
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it's like us in a way that these are
created beings that are part of God's
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creation, but they are in the psalm
says, what is man that you're mindful
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of him, you made him a little lower
than the Elohim the ones in the heaven.
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So we have a special.
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Yet you crowned him with glory and honor.
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So we, as human beings, we have
this special role to play that God's
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doing something and the angels are
part of it, or the spiritual beings,
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the Elohim are part of it, and we.
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as humans are part of that.
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And so God himself becoming a
human that's the story of Jesus.
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That's why we worship that he came so low.
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And so God lifted him up.
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But that, that that's big picture
story is what we're talking about
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of something going on in the
heavens above and the earth below.
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And that's from the beginning chapters
of Genesis all the way to Revelation.
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The whole Bible is the story of.
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There being what we do in this
life matters in the heavenly realm.
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And so I want to zoom in on, on
one particular character here.
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We, as I mentioned last time,
we would pick up with that.
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Daniel Daniel chapter four
Daniel is an interesting book.
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There's a scholarly debate
about when it was written.
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I won't get into that, but
he's just, Daniel is a model.
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I think he was a historical person, but
the final touches on the book were, based
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on the language, because it contains
language that's much later language.
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It was a work in progress.
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Maybe I don't know exactly.
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Again, I'm not going to get into the.
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construction of the documentary hypothesis
of, about the book of Daniel, but as
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a character, as a person I believe
a historic figure, but as a person
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Daniel is really the, where we start
to see fully formed understanding, as
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you're going through the Torah, you see
more and more of the heavenly realm.
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And it more and more is revealed.
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And by the time we get to Daniel that
Daniel is the first place we really
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see even resurrection mentioned.
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And the idea of the, it says at the
end that the holy ones will rise and
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even the final judgment and stuff,
all that's in Daniel and Daniel Daniel
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is key to understanding Jesus because
Jesus steps into this image that
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Daniel gives us of the son of man who
is approaches the ancient of days,
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the creator of the universe, this
figure, the son of man is given power.
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And he's he's made the
ruler of all creation.
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And that's, that, that's the text that
makes the, when Jesus mentions that when
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he's on trial, that's what makes the
Sanhedrin so mad, that the people who are.
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are holding in this court that's asking
him to account for what he's doing.
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And when he says, you will see the son
of man coming in the clouds of heaven
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he's talking about Daniel, the book of
Daniel that's a Daniel seven reference.
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Anyway, Daniel is it's
an interesting book.
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It's a it's a love the book of Daniel
because his, he's he You see him faithful
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through incredible times of transition.
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He is there he's one of the, he
and his friends are brought captive
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when Babylon first conquers.
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But then he's there for this whole
regime change as the Medo Persians take
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over this whole other empire, and he
still was, and then he's still in, in
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a position of leadership or a position
of responsibility and so he's a great
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example of how we should be on the job,
of how we should be in our community,
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of how we should be and the way he
takes his, goes to God with these, his
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daily daily devotions and his prayer.
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And anyway, I just love
Daniel as an example.
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There's nothing really negative
about Daniel in the Bible.
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Whereas almost everybody else we all blow
it, but Daniel is just he's a special
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guy and there's stuff that he sees or
writes about that even is, I think finds
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final fulfillment, even in, in, in the
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Greek empire and of the, some of these
things that happen in the, so after
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the, after these different empires,
you see some of these things fulfilled
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even, or even in the Roman empire, I
think you see some of that, Daniel, you
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could read John Oak's book on Daniel
if you want to get more into that.
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But for what we're talking about here
today we're talking about spiritual realm.
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And daniel gives us a little bit of a
window into how does the spiritual realm
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and the, down here, how does up there
and down here work together and Daniel
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4, 7 where the King Nebuchadnezzar is
given some, something happens to him
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that's really dramatic but it says the
sentence is by decree of the watchers
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the decision by the command of the
holy ones in order that the living will
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know that the most high is sovereign
over the kingdom of humankind and
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to whomever he wills and gives it.
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He even sets the humblest of men over it.
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So the holy ones, this is again the
Elohim the host of heaven, there's
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some connection between that and stars.
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The the heavenly host And even the,
this word the Watchers, that, that's
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captured the imagination, especially if.
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Of a lot of the Jewish literature, in
the time in between the testaments.
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There, there's a lot about the watchers
and they got really into angels and
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these heavenly beings and trying to.
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figure it out.
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There's a lot in Jewish literature
that's swirling around by the time
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of Jesus, that Jesus steps into and
gives us an understanding of it.
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But this verse here in Daniel 4,
17, it says that this, these, the
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watchers are involved in this decision.
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It's by command of the Holy One.
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So it's telling us that these spiritual
beings are involved sometimes in what
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happens on earth and God is doing things,
but he involves his divine counsel.
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He divine, he involves these other
beings sometimes in what he's doing.
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And so he, I love what he even
says about, he's sovereign over
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the kingdoms of humankind and
whoever he wills, he gives it.
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He even sets the humblest of men over it.
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That's who God is.
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God is looking for the humble.
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God is looking for those who
tremble at his word, right?
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Act justly, walk humbly, and love justice
do justice, love mercy, and walk humbly.
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That's who God is looking for.
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And Daniel 9 Daniel is talking about
some of the visions that he has these
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heavenly visions where it's an apocalypse.
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Apocalypse means a revealing.
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Apocalypse doesn't mean
the end of the world.
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It means pulling back the
curtain, or it means revealing.
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And so Daniel has these apocalyptic
moments or these dreams where he,
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heaven is open or the curtain is
pulled back, or he's able to understand
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more of what's really going on.
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And that's the idea of apocalyptic
literature or an apocalyptic dream
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or experience is to be, to see.
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reality.
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And so in Daniel 9, he says, while
I was still praying, Daniel 9, 21
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through 23, while I was still praying,
the man Gabriel, he calls him a man,
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interesting, but he's a messenger.
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He's a angel and angels always in the
Bible always just appear as humans,
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maybe glowing humans, but they're
never A cherub or a, like a, like
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we, we have that comes up in the
middle ages, with wings and stuff.
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That's not in the Bible.
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There's never an example of angel with
wings, but anyway, get back on track here.
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The man Gabriel, whom I had seen
before in a dream flew to me in a
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hurry at about the time when the
evening gift is given in worship.
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He talked to me and told me things
saying, Oh Daniel, I have now come
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to give you wisdom and understanding.
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As soon as you began to pray, an
answer was given, which I've come to
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tell you, for you are loved very much.
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So listen to what I say and
understand the special dream.
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This is such a cool story, such an
amazing text, because it tells us that
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God and his heavenly hosts are involved
in what's happening in our lives.
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And even just how our worship
we, obviously we know that,
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that's why we worship.
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That's why we gather on the first
day of the week and break bread
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together and share communion.
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It, it is a at heavenly, these are
heavenly activities the sacraments of
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baptism and communion, and it's not
really a thing in our tradition to use
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that word sacraments, but sacrament
just is something happening in a
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physical that has a spiritual reality.
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We all practice that with baptism.
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We believe that it's not just
removal of dirt from the body.
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It's a pledge of a good
conscience towards God.
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When you are baptized, there's
something spiritual going on.
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There's a spiritual reality.
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And so that's what we're talking
about with sacramentalism.
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That's what we're talking about with
with the heaven and earth thing is that
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there, there are things that happen
on earth that have heavenly realities.
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And So Daniel, as Daniel is praying,
he says, I love that, he says, as
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soon as you begin to pray, an answer
was given, which I have come to tell
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you, for you are loved very much.
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That, this gives us meaning to our
prayer, like our worship, our times
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of silence and solitude and just
being with God and bringing to God our
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petitions, bringing to God our struggles.
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It's Heaven sees and knows and
these, even these other spiritual
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beings are involved in it.
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And this is something I have personal
experience with, and I, it's hard for
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me to put language to it, and I'm not
sure even how much I'm to share, but
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I, you, when I had I at the end of
2022, I fell very ill over the holiday.
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Right at the very end of the year.
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And I was totally incoherent.
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I had to be rushed to the ER.
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ER and it turns out I had a brain
tumor and so I had to be flown back
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from, I was in Colorado on vacation.
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I had to fly back home and have
surgery as quickly as possible.
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I had to go to the, straight to the ER
and have surgery and have this sizable
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tumor removed and and then I've been
on a road to recovery ever since.
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And in that that was a very profound thing
to, to have brain surgery and to also.
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Almost really be, I should have died.
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Like I would have died if it
hadn't been for modern medicine.
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And so I had this experience of
kind of crossing, not crossing over.
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Like I didn't see a light or I wasn't
going through a tunnel or some of these
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near death experiences some people
have, but what I did have was some
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experiences more than one several of.
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of being very aware of
the spiritual realm.
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And I had an incredible peace
like I have never had before or
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never, haven't even had since.
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A profound experience of
God's love, of his, of trust
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in him of everything is okay.
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I I definitely experience Jesus and
that he is Lord, there is nothing, no
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other, nothing on earth that compare
at all to his authority and his power.
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So even the things we are afraid of,
or, these, it's in the gospels where
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anytime Jesus encounters a demon
we're afraid of things like that.
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A demon, or, you think about horror
movies and stuff, but think about
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the demons that Jesus encounters.
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Or people who are possessed.
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The demons are just terrified, right?
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They're just and they're, anyway,
just Jesus is and he's, was hidden
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in a way like he became low.
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He became a, just a a servant.
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He became a humble person.
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He came to earth as, he, he was
like, He's confronting the beast.
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He's confronting the Roman Empire.
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He's confronting the principalities
and the powers, but he's this humble
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teacher from a small hick town, and
anyway, I experienced Not the humble
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Jesus, this is again in my kind of near
death experiences, not the, but not
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the humble Jesus, but the, he's always
humble, but the transcendent, like the
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cosmic Jesus he is the king of kings.
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He is the Lord of lords.
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He is the.
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All the universe will know, right now
you don't see everything subject to him.
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Like it says in Hebrews right now, we
don't see everything subject to him.
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Because we're in this in between
time where the kingdom of God has
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come, but it's, he's not ruling
and reigning over all creation yet.
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So there's still and the last enemy
to fall is death itself, right?
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As we know from the book of Revelation.
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So we're in this waiting period.
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We're in this we're seeing things
play out on a global scale.
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And so this involves politics.
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This involves suffering in the world.
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This involves a lot that's
going on in the world.
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So what's going on in the world, God is
very involved is what I'm trying to say.
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And I don't want to presume to say, and
I think there's a lot of kind of junk
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literature about this, taking revelation
or taking Daniel and trying to, To, to
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do a one for one correspondence to things
that are happening right now in Israel or
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right now in Palestine, or, and I caution
that because It's more of typology.
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It's more of it happens again and again.
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It's a story that happens again and
again of worldly powers versus Jesus
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and his way, the humble like it talks
about in this passage in Daniel four,
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we just read where he sets the humblest
of men, God gives his, God gives
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responsibility to the humblest of men.
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And so that's what I want to be.
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I want to be like Daniel.
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I want to be like these devout people who.
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I just want to be humble and
I just want to trust God.
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I want to trust his plan and I'm just
here to serve, so that's how I'm even
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trying to approach my life right now
with a lot of uncertainty when it
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comes to my having a terminal diagnosis
and not knowing how much time I have.
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And it's just I just want to be humble.
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I just want to.
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be available.
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I just want to I want to be
like Daniel, I love this.
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It makes me emotional.
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Just this, that God, this, what, what is
told to him, soon as you begin to pray
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an answer was given, which I've come to
tell you, for you are loved very much.
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That's all I want to hear from God,
Well done, my good and faithful servant.
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And I feel that from God.
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I feel that from God, and I feel
that from his people and all the
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ways that people are praying for me.
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And and, people tell me they pray
for me every day all the time.
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And I just, whoever you are listening
to this, I want, I want you to
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trust that love and to give up
whatever else is distracting you or
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detracting from that love of God,
because that's what we're here for.
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So the next chapter Daniel 10, I just
this is very similar, but continuing on
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this spiritual realm idea on earth as
it is in heaven, there's this kind of
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parallel thing Daniel 10, he continued.
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Do not be afraid, Daniel.
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Since the first day you set your mind to
gain understanding and to humble yourself
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before your God, your words were hit,
heard, and I've come in response to them.
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So the minute, Daniel was, and
what Daniel was doing, if you don't
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remember is he's humbling himself.
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He's praying, he's confessing
his, he says, I was confessing my
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sins and the sins of my people.
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So he's confessing things that he didn't
even do, but he feels like he's complicit.
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And so this is something I try
to practice, in my own as an
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American, as a part of the ICOC.
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As a white person, as any way that
I can confess sins people look like
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me or people in this organizational
structure I'm a part of in my church
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or people as Americans, just are my,
what my country has done or whatever,
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I'm complicit with all kinds of
stuff that I don't even know of.
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And so I confess those sins to
God saying, God, I want to be
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a part of what you're doing.
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And that's what Daniel was doing.
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He's humbling himself.
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He's he's He's just, he's taking
responsibility even, maybe he didn't
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even deserve to, but it says when
you did that I've come, this angel is
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sent to to respond, this messenger.
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But he says the prince of the
Persian kingdom resisted me 20 times.
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one days.
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Then Michael, one of the chief princes
came to help me because I was detained
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there with the king of Persia.
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00:18:47,788 --> 00:18:50,418
So I've come, now I've come to explain
to you what will happen to your
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people in the future for the version,
vision concerns a time yet to come.
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So what this teaches us is that,
again, heaven is super involved
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in things that are happening here.
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00:19:03,273 --> 00:19:12,653
Me or you as a devout worshiper of Yahweh
as a devout person with our prayers we
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00:19:12,693 --> 00:19:14,903
are engaging in the spiritual battle.
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00:19:14,913 --> 00:19:20,273
We are a part of this cosmic
struggle and it's and it's not over.
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We're in the midst of it.
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We're in the midst of a big spiritual
battle that rages all over the world.
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And and faithful people of God are.
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are involved.
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And these different heavenly beings,
these heavenly messengers in this text
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that they are Michael comes to help.
300
00:19:38,428 --> 00:19:41,048
This is Gabriel who's talking
and Michael comes to help.
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00:19:41,428 --> 00:19:43,718
But the Prince of Persian
kingdom resisted me.
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00:19:43,728 --> 00:19:44,938
So what does that mean?
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And I can't get to it.
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00:19:46,613 --> 00:19:51,503
Two into this, but there are
spiritual beings that represent
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00:19:52,393 --> 00:19:53,643
earthly kingdoms as well.
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00:19:53,653 --> 00:19:58,083
There are, on the other side,
there are are beastly kingdoms.
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Daniel's vision shows him.
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00:20:00,373 --> 00:20:03,908
So there, there are, just as
there are there are heavenly
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Beings that represent God's way.
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There are beastly representatives.
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And so again, the point is we're
part of a big cosmic struggle.
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And this just brings up this idea and
I like how the The song in the Barbie
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movie that came out this last year.
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00:20:21,898 --> 00:20:25,978
What was I made for is the
song what does all this mean?
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Why am I here?
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How do I fit into this?
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What was I made for?
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The Bible is a story that answers
that question that God made
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00:20:34,378 --> 00:20:40,388
us to participate with him in
bringing about the new creation.
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00:20:41,038 --> 00:20:46,258
He made us to co rule creation with him,
even though we lack the wisdom for it.
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00:20:46,318 --> 00:20:49,488
Is working on us and refining
us and making us useful to him
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to bring about his purposes.
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And so that's why we pray, the, I
pray the Lord's prayer every day.
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On earth as it is in heaven, may
your kingdom come, your will be
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00:20:58,388 --> 00:21:00,138
done on earth as it is in heaven.
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00:21:00,588 --> 00:21:06,428
With my health, with my church, with
my country, With all the countries
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of the world I believe that we're
part of something that's bigger that
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00:21:11,348 --> 00:21:14,578
Ephesians 6 is we're not fighting
against flesh and blood enemies.
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but against the rulers and authorities of
the unseen world, against mighty powers
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00:21:19,968 --> 00:21:25,068
in this dark world, against evil spirits
in the heavenly places, Ephesians 6, 12.
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I want you to know that who you are,
that you are meant to CORU you, we
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are in the world, but not of it.
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00:21:35,913 --> 00:21:38,993
But we are we have a plan.
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We're part of a plan that is eternal.
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00:21:42,083 --> 00:21:45,203
Paul told the Roman believers
they're predestined to be
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conformed to the image of his son.
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00:21:47,243 --> 00:21:50,123
So he should be the first
born among many brothers.
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00:21:50,673 --> 00:21:54,633
He told the Corinthian church, we all with
unveiled faces beholding the glory of.
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00:21:54,858 --> 00:21:57,408
The Lord are being transformed
into the same image from one
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00:21:57,408 --> 00:22:00,488
degree to another, that our
humanity would be transformed for.
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This perishable body must
put on the imperishable.
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00:22:03,758 --> 00:22:08,158
This mortal body must put on
immortality one Corinthians five 15.
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So we are.
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We are meant to join in this divine
rule, we are meant to join again, like
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00:22:17,338 --> 00:22:21,418
in Psalm 8, where it's, we're made
a little lower than the humans were
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00:22:21,418 --> 00:22:25,778
made a little lower than the heavenly
beings, but then we're meant to be
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elevated and to co rule creation.
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00:22:28,758 --> 00:22:30,218
I don't even like thinking about that.
349
00:22:30,218 --> 00:22:32,838
I don't want any, I'm not
asking for more responsibility.
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00:22:32,838 --> 00:22:37,098
I don't want to, like Jesus tells
his followers, don't you know
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00:22:37,098 --> 00:22:38,438
you're going to judge the nations?
352
00:22:38,448 --> 00:22:44,928
I don't, I feel so un unqualified to
to join God in ruling his creation.
353
00:22:44,928 --> 00:22:49,258
I just want to make it, I just want
to, but but I'm here, I'm available,
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00:22:49,258 --> 00:22:50,798
God, however you want to use me.
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00:22:50,848 --> 00:22:53,958
That's why I'm here, is
to serve and to worship.
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00:22:54,608 --> 00:22:58,178
But but if you're watching this or
listening to this teaching here.
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I just want you to know
that you belong to God.
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God made you for a purpose.
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00:23:03,288 --> 00:23:06,608
And he wants you to participate
in the divine nature.
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Second Peter 1, 4.
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He wants you to be like him.
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First John 3, 2.
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And secondly, know whose you are.
364
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Know who you are and know whose
you are, that, we belong to God.
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00:23:20,168 --> 00:23:24,198
1 John 3 wants us to see what kind
of love the Father has lavished on
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00:23:24,198 --> 00:23:27,508
us, that we should be called children
of God and this is who we are.
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God has created us for an eternal purpose.
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00:23:32,158 --> 00:23:35,468
And I like how Paul puts
it beautifully in Romans 8.
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00:23:36,133 --> 00:23:40,223
Verse 18 through 23, I consider
the sufferings of this present time
370
00:23:40,223 --> 00:23:44,883
are not worth comparing with the
glory that is to be revealed to us.
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00:23:44,883 --> 00:23:49,813
For the creation waits with eager longing
for the revealing of the sons of God.
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00:23:50,353 --> 00:23:53,643
Not only the creation, but we
ourselves who have the first fruits
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00:23:53,643 --> 00:23:57,033
of the spirit grown inwardly as we
wait eagerly for our adoption as
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00:23:57,033 --> 00:23:59,343
son, the redemption of our bodies.
375
00:23:59,833 --> 00:24:01,113
We belong to God.
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00:24:01,123 --> 00:24:05,553
And so we're part of this future
that he's creating even now with.
377
00:24:05,918 --> 00:24:07,588
His people on this planet.
378
00:24:07,588 --> 00:24:08,858
And that's why we worship.
379
00:24:09,308 --> 00:24:10,628
That's what we long for.
380
00:24:10,678 --> 00:24:12,318
It's what unites us with each other.
381
00:24:12,848 --> 00:24:15,608
And it's what unites us with those
who've gone before us and those
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00:24:15,608 --> 00:24:19,098
who will follow us until we're
all together in future glory.
383
00:24:19,748 --> 00:24:22,238
I want to close with a song
that's inspired by these
384
00:24:22,248 --> 00:24:24,038
thoughts Called this holy battle.
385
00:24:24,068 --> 00:24:28,508
And again, I've shared a lot, but
it just helps me to think about
386
00:24:28,918 --> 00:24:30,638
the struggles I'm facing every day.
387
00:24:30,938 --> 00:24:35,598
That I'm a part of something that's
cosmic and that is worth fighting.
388
00:24:35,698 --> 00:24:36,588
I'll close with this.
389
00:24:52,488 --> 00:25:00,688
He rose from the grave, he gave us
his name, and a great commission.
390
00:25:00,688 --> 00:25:12,218
The battles been won, the chains
are undone, and we have a mission.
391
00:25:12,218 --> 00:25:16,208
He gave your own a son.
392
00:25:16,973 --> 00:25:20,218
To show the depths of your love.
393
00:25:25,573 --> 00:25:31,218
Now we can overcome because
we know what you've done.
394
00:25:33,468 --> 00:25:37,478
This soul battles one, there's
395
00:25:48,278 --> 00:25:49,778
no great fight.
396
00:25:50,758 --> 00:25:55,018
You show us your life in
a world that's divided.
397
00:25:58,853 --> 00:26:05,803
The battle for souls, love
making us whole in Jesus United.
398
00:26:05,803 --> 00:26:14,333
You gave your only son to
show the depths of your love.
399
00:26:19,803 --> 00:26:25,653
Now we can overcome because
we know what you've done.
400
00:26:27,963 --> 00:26:30,028
This soul of battles, one,
401
00:26:42,408 --> 00:26:43,688
I love conquer feet.
402
00:26:44,718 --> 00:26:46,168
Keep drawing a.
403
00:26:47,618 --> 00:26:50,018
So we can be like you.
404
00:26:53,108 --> 00:26:55,148
Your spirit will guide.
405
00:26:55,828 --> 00:26:57,718
Your power ignite.
406
00:26:58,618 --> 00:27:00,778
As we speak your whole truth.
407
00:27:00,778 --> 00:27:05,488
Oh, you gave your own a sign.
408
00:27:05,948 --> 00:27:11,538
To show the depths of your love.
409
00:27:14,218 --> 00:27:16,328
Now we can overcome.
410
00:27:16,638 --> 00:27:19,768
Because we know what you've done.
411
00:27:21,978 --> 00:27:24,338
This solid battle's won.
412
00:27:24,698 --> 00:27:30,258
You gave your only son To
show the depths of your love.
413
00:27:30,258 --> 00:27:31,918
Your love.
414
00:27:31,968 --> 00:27:32,298
Oh.
415
00:27:32,648 --> 00:27:33,778
Now we can overcome.
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00:27:35,408 --> 00:27:38,258
Because we know what you've done.
417
00:27:40,688 --> 00:27:42,828
This holy battle's won.
418
00:27:45,908 --> 00:27:48,118
This holy battle's won.
419
00:27:51,308 --> 00:27:53,298
This holy battle's won.
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00:27:57,141 --> 00:27:59,721
Marcel: Thank you, Brian
for this great series.
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00:27:59,721 --> 00:28:03,741
And thanks for listening to deeper
dive by the OC Church of Christ.
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00:28:03,961 --> 00:28:08,161
If you want to keep up to date with
Brian, you can follow his blog.
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00:28:08,191 --> 00:28:10,321
We have the link in the show notes.
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00:28:10,621 --> 00:28:14,671
If you want to get connected to us
or want to donate to the program, go
425
00:28:14,671 --> 00:28:22,101
to our website OCchurchofchrist.com
or on social media @TheOCchurch.
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00:28:22,321 --> 00:28:25,441
Join us next time for
our next Deeper Dive.