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Join us in this enlightening episode as we explore the profound words of Jesus that promise freedom through truth….
Is there an ongoing competition between good and evil? Is God in a power struggle with the Devil? Find out in today’s episode.
Visit our website at DiscoveringTheJewishJesus.com
Nothing can happen unless God allows it.
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Sometimes God will allow Satan to do something, because God
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has a higher purpose in mind.
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today, modern-day
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Christians, that don’t have
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a grounding in the theology
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of the Old Testament, think
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that everything that’s bad
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that happens happens from
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Satan and God has nothing to
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do with that.
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And everything that good
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that happens happens from God.
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And they’re in no way able
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to understand oftentimes
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that some of the bad things that
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happen that they think are bad
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are actually part of God’s plan.
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And that even though they
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seem bad in the temporal,
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ultimately, there’s an
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eternal purpose of God
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that’s going on in which God
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is using the bad things, the
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things that we perceive as
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bad for something good. And we
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could not enter into the higher
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good without the temporal,
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bad things that happen,
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so that even what we perceive
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to be bad is oftentimes,
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beloved ones, a blessing.
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So I laid a huge theological
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foundation for that last week.
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And in conjunction with
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that, I talked about the
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fact that we need to
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understand as Christians
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that God’s judgment is
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oftentimes a gift.
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Because for example, if
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someone has a child that’s
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rebellious, it is oftentimes
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because the child has never
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been disciplined or judged
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for bad behavior.
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So sometimes God, because
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He’s a moral God, will bring
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a judgment into the lives of
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His godly ones in order
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to correct them.
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So God’s judgments are
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necessary and needed.
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And not only that.
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If God was not to bring His
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judgment upon sin like we
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see so many times
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illustrated in the Hebrew
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Bible, then God would not be
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a moral God.
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Because in order for God to
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be the God who He is, a
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holy, moral God, sin has
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to be punished. And
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that’s why God poured forth His
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judgment upon His Son, Yeshua
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the Messiah, for our sins.
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I talked about all those
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things last week, because
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Hannah understood both of
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these dimensions of God.
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She understood that when
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seemingly good things
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happened to her, it was a
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blessing from the Lord.
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But she also submitted when
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things were hard as part of
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God’s sovereign purposes for
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her life. So, once again,
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before we move on today, 1
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Samuel opens up in chapter 1,
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verse 6 with the writer of
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Scripture saying that it was the
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Lord that closed Chana’s womb.
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They were willing to say,
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“You know what?
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God is involved in this.
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It’s hard that Hannah’s
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womb is closed.
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She’s suffering a lot of
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pain.” In fact, the book of
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1 Samuel opens up with
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Hannah in the temple weeping
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in her heart, talking to
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God, praying to God, begging
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God, asking God for a child,
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committing that you would
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dedicate the child to the
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Lord if He would open her womb.
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But she once again
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attributed everything that
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was going on in her life as
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part of God’s sovereign
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reign over the host of
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heaven and the inhabitants
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of the earth.
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The scripture continues that
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the Lord heard her prayer.
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And it wasn’t long after
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that until she did conceive
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and she bought forth Samuel
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and dedicated him to the Lord.
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And he became one of the
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mightiest prophets that
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Israel ever saw.
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But the time that Hannah’s
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wound was closed, although
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it was painful, it was a
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time of preparation.
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Because Hannah was brought
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to a place in her life that
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she said, “Lord, if you give
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me a child, I’m going to
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totally dedicate him to
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you.” So let’s not separate
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our conception of life in
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the sense that all the bad
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things that happen are from
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the devil, and God has
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nothing to do with them.
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But let’s when bad things
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happen, say to the Lord, “Lord,
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how am I to interpret this?
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What does this mean?
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How does this seemingly bad
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situation that I’m in right
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now or that I’m
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experiencing, how does this
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filter into your purposes
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for my life?” Isaiah 45,
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verse 5 and 7 says this.
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“I am the Lord, and there is
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no other; besides me there
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is no God…
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The One forming light and
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creating darkness, causing
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well-being and creating
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calamity…” The King
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James says evil.
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“I am the LORD who does all
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these things.” You see,
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beloved ones, His ways are above
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our ways, even as the heavens
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are higher than the earth.
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He has an eternal perspective.
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We can only see in the here
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and the now.
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The writers of scripture
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understood that all of life
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had a purpose.
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For example, when the
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Israelites lost a battle, it
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wasn’t just because the
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enemy overpowered them.
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There was something wrong.
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There was a lesson they
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needed to learn.
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Oftentimes, it was because
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they had made allegiances
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with foreign nations.
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Depending on the might of
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the flesh to win the battle
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rather than them on just
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depending on the arm
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of the Lord.
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And so I’m just trying to bring
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you back to Hebraic mindset.
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God is sovereign.
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He is God and there is no other.
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No matter what we’re walking
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through in life, like
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Hannah, let’s look to the
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Lord and get His mindset on it.
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Let’s not just blame it
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on the devil.
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But let’s recognize that
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even beyond that, even if
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the devil is involved, he
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can only be involved if
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God allows him.
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Just like Jesus said to
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Pilate, when Jesus said to
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Pilate, “You would have no
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power over me unless it were
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given to you from above.” So
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in our life, nothing can
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happen unless God allows it.
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The scripture says, “Not a
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sparrow falls to the ground
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apart from the Father.” So
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we always need to be looking
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to God alone rather than
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having this dualistic
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mindset about the devil
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being over here, God being over
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here. The two processes of what
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the actions are never can meet.
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Sometimes God will allow
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Satan to do something
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because God has a higher
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purpose in mind, just like
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in the life of the Apostle
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Paul, where Paul said there
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was a messenger of Satan,
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Paul said, “that was given
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to him, that was given to
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Paul to torment him in his
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flesh, in his body.
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And Paul prayed to the Lord,
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“Lord, take it away.
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Take it away.
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Lord, take away this pain,
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this torment, this messenger
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of Satan, this thorn in the
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flesh from the enemy.” And
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Paul said that it was
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revealed to him that God was
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the one that sent this thorn
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in the flesh, this messenger
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of Satan, to keep Paul from
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exalting himself because of
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the abundance of the revelation
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that Paul had received.
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You see, the natural
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tendency of the flesh is
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that when we receive such
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revelation, our natural
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disposition is to get puffed up.
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But to keep Paul from
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getting puffed up, to
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protect him, God sent this
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messenger of Satan.
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Notice how the two are working.
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God is sovereign but God is
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using Satan for His own purpose.
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Satan just is taking
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glee in the
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fact that he’s causing
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torment to Paul, but God’s
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got a higher purpose in it,
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and God’s purpose is for good.
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So this messenger of Satan
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comes to keep Paul
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from exalting himself.
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Paul show praise to the Lord.
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“Lord, take this away.”
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Finally, God says, “No,
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Paul, My power will be
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perfected in your weakness
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and My strength will be
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sufficient for you.” Then
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Paul goes on.
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He says, “Therefore, I’d
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rather boast in my weakness
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because in my weakness His
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strength is being
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perfected.” So do you see,
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beloved one, what I’m
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wanting to impart to your
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soul right now?
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Don’t have this dualistic
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mindset of the devil did this.
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No. Let’s whatever happens
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to us in life…
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I’m not saying the devil
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never does anything.
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But whatever happens, let’s
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say, “Lord, what are you
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saying in this?
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What’s your mind in all this?
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Because I know that You
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cause all things to work
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together for good.”
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RABBI SCHNEIDER>> Back to our
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text. The song of Chana or the
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song of Hannah, we started
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out in chapter 1, verse 6.
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That her womb was closed.
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And the author of the text
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says that the Lord had
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closed her womb.
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And then after going to the
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temple and praying and
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saying, “Lord, if you open
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my womb,” Chana said to the
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Lord, “I’ll dedicate my
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child to you.” And sure enough,
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the Lord opens her womb, she
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conceives the Prophet Samuel.
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After she had weaned him,
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she brought him to the temple.
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And that’s where we pick up
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now in chapter 2, which is
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the point of our sermon
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series here, the Song of
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Chana or Hannah.
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Last week I looked at verse 1.
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“Then Hannah prayed and
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said, ‘My heart exults in
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the LORD; my horn is exalted
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in YHWH the LORD…
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My mouth speaks boldly
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against my enemies, because
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I rejoice in Your
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salvation.” You see, what
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the devil meant for evil,
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God used for good.
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In other words, the devil might
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have an assignment against us.
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She said, “Because I rejoice
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now against my enemy…” She
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might have understood that
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it was the enemy at work
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that was keeping her womb close.
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But now she understood that
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what he meant for evil, God
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meant for good.
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He was ultimately involved
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in all of it.
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And now she had victory
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over her enemy.
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So she said, “My mouth
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speaks boldly against my
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enemies, because I rejoice
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in Your salvation.” Did you
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know, beloved one, that
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Yeshua promised you that as
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you continue to cling to
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Him, as you continue to make
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Him your God and Savior, He
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is going to bring you to a
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place where you will exalt
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over your enemies, over all
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those that accused you, over
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every spirit that’s
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condemned you, over
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everybody that’s laughed at you.
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You will have the last laugh
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in Messiah Yeshua.
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Notice what Hannah says.
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“My mouth speaks boldly
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against my enemies…” Jesus
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said, “I will cause those
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that accused you to bow down
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and to know that I have loved
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you,” in the book of Revelation.
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So I want you to know you’re
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going to do what Chana did.
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As you continue to put
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Yeshua first in your life,
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you’re going to come to a
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place in your life where
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every accusing voice that
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has been brought against you,
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you will condemn. This is the
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Word of the Lord and His story
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written over your life. You
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will have the ultimate victory.
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You will have the last laugh.
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Hold on, be strong because
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God is going to bring you to
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a victorious conclusion
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in your life.
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You may lose some battles,
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beloved child of God, but
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you will win the war.
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It looked like Jesus had
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lost when He was on the
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cross and they were laughing
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at Him and mocking Him and
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spitting on Him, when they
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thrust the spear on His
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side, when they thrust the
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thorn of crowns on His head.
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It might have looked like
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they had the last laugh.
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But Yeshua rose from the dead.
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And now He sits at the right
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hand of God.
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Every knee will bow, every
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tongue confess that Yeshua
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HaMashiach is Lord, to the
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glory of God the Father.
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And beloved, the same thing
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is going to happen in your life.
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Every mouth that has accused
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you in judgment, you will
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condemn and you continue to live
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for Jesus unto the very end.
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Baruch Hashem. Blessed
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be the name of the Lord.
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Victory is over your life.
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Chana continues in verse 2.
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“There is no one holy like YHWH.
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There is no one holy like
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LORD…” Once again, YHWH is
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God’s holy, personal
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covenant name used 7,000
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times in the Hebrew Bible.
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“There is no one holy like
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YHWH, indeed,” she
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continues, “there is no one
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besides You, nor is there
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any rock like our God.”
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Notice, again, her filter.
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“There is no one besides
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you,” She said.
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This is what I’ve been
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trying to hammer last week
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and this week.
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Please, again, listen to
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last week’s message.
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We have to interpret life
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only through the
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filter of the fact that
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there is one sovereign God.
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And even when bad things happen,
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we have to ask God, “What
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are you saying to me in this?
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What can I learn from this?
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How can I respond to this?
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How can I put my foot
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down over this?
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How can I handle this so
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that it will be used for
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good in my life?”
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Because at the end of the
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day, there’s only one God.
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Every knee will bow and
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every tongue confess that
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Yeshua HaMashiach is Lord.
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So Hannah interpreted both
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the hard times in her life
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and the good times in her
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life through the fact that
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there was only one sovereign.
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“…there is no one like
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you, there’s no one besides
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you, nor is there any rock
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like our God.” Let’s
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continue in verse 3.
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“Boast no more so very
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proudly, do not let
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arrogance come out of your
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mouth; for the LORD is
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God…” Yahweh is God.
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He is Elohim.
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“…the LORD is a God of
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knowledge, and with Him actions
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are weighed.” Notice the first
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point she’s making here. Boast
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no more so very proudly… for
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the Lord Yahweh alone is God.
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You know, today, when I look
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at secular television, and I
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see all the moves that people
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are making, you know, like
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this all about me. Everything
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is me, me, me, me. me.
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“Look at me.
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Look at me.
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Look at this.
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Look at this.
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Look at this cute, little
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gesture. Look at this dance
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move. Look at this style.”
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Notice it’s all focused on the
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exultation and the pushing
14:44
forth of me.
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But Chana had a revelation
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of the Holy One.
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And her response in this
14:52
revelation was “there is no
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one holy like the LORD,
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indeed, there’s no one beside
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You… Boast no more so very
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proudly.” I wonder how many,
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when the whole world is
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standing before Yahweh naked
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and transparent in His
15:14
power, in the revelation of
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His glory, I wonder how many
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will be acting before Him
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like they do now.
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I wonder how many will have
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the same personality that
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they have right now.
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No, it’ll be completely,
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absolutely radically change.
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Because you know what the
15:36
best response is to have before
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God, first of all? Silence.
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Just to be silent before Him.
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That’s what Job did.
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When God finally brought Job
15:50
into the fullness of
15:51
revelation, Job was trying
15:52
to interpret what had
15:53
happened in his life.
15:55
The bad things that had
15:56
happened, he started
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speaking about this and that
15:58
and accusing God, and all
16:00
the counselors of his started
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giving him advice.
16:04
Finally, when God showed up, you
16:05
know what their response was?
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They put their hand over
16:08
their mouth. Silence.
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So I want you to ask yourself
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for a second, is the way that
16:18
you act, is your personality,
16:20
is it exalting self?
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Is it proud?
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Is it like, “Look at me,
16:28
look at me, look at me”?
16:30
You know, with the cutesy
16:33
moves that everybody has
16:34
today, and the fancy
16:35
gestures and the eye
16:36
movements and the face
16:37
movements, the expressions.
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How are you going to feel
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when you stand before the Lord?
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Will that type of
16:49
personification, of your
16:50
essence, of who you are, be
16:52
holy and acceptable and
16:54
clear and cleansed?
16:56
I mean, is what you’re doing
16:57
now, is it going to be able
16:59
to stand before the Lord in
17:02
the fullness of His
17:03
glory and power?
17:05
And if the way that you
17:06
behave now, or if that what
17:08
you’re receiving into your
17:10
life, the shows that you’re
17:11
watching on television, the
17:13
types of personalities and
17:15
the types of energy that
17:16
you’re receiving, which is
17:18
centered in the me, in the
17:20
individual sense of exalting
17:23
self and in pride, if what
17:25
you’re doing now and what
17:28
you’re receiving now will
17:30
not be able to hold up when
17:31
you stand before God in the
17:33
day of His power, what that
17:35
says is we have to change
17:37
what we’re doing now, so
17:39
that what we’re doing now
17:41
will stand in His power as if
17:43
it was the day of God’s power.
17:44
In an essence, what I’m
17:46
saying to you, beloved, is
17:47
we need to repent.
17:48
Hannah realized that all
17:52
proudness needs to be
17:54
abyssed, because there’s
17:57
only one that’s holy.
17:58
He’s God in heaven above and
18:01
the earth beneath.
18:02
Whether her womb was opened
18:03
or closed, she had to give
18:04
honor to the Lord and filter
18:06
all her life through Him and
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walk before Him with a sense
18:11
of His Holiness, a sense of
18:13
His beauty, and a sense
18:14
of His glory.
18:15
So I want to challenge you
18:16
and I today, beloved one,
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let’s lead a life that
18:20
reflects something similar
18:23
to the Spirit and
18:24
disposition of Hannah.
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God is holy, and he’s
18:28
calling you and I to be holy.
18:30
Now is the day of salvation.
18:32
If today you’re hearing His
18:34
voice, repent and
18:35
change your life.
18:37
RABBI SCHNEIDER>> God’s love
18:38
demands a response.
18:40
In other words, the love of
18:42
God is calling us to respond.
18:45
This is why Jesus said, “If
18:48
you love me,” He said,
18:49
“you’ll keep My
18:50
commandments.” So as I think
18:53
about this in my own life, I
18:54
think of three areas in my
18:56
life that the love of God is
18:58
demanding a response from:
18:59
what I do with my time, what
19:01
I do with my talent, and
19:04
what I do with my treasure.
19:05
And I’m always trying to
19:06
examine myself as to whether
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I’m giving myself
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fully to the Lord.
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As we come to the end of the
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broadcast today, I would
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simply ask you, if the Holy
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Spirit is feeding you through
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this ministry, and you feel
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him leading, you urging you
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to sow your financial gifts
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unto the Lord through
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Discovering the Jewish Jesus
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today, just be obedient.
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Because when we’re obedient,
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a channel is opened up in
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our heart for the Spirit of the
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Lord to take possession of us.
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And beloved, not only that.
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By sowing to the Lord
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through this ministry,
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you’ll be a channel that
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will be used to the Lord
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to bless others.