Matt 24:9-13
9 Then they will hand you over to suffer affliction and tribulation and put you to death, and you will be hated by all nations for My name's sake.
10 And then many will be offended and repelled and will begin to distrust and desert [Him Whom they ought to trust and obey] and will stumble and fall away and betray one another and pursue one another with hatred.
11 And many false prophets will rise up and deceive and lead many into error.
12 And the love of the great body of people will grow cold because of the multiplied lawlessness and iniquity,
13 But he who endures to the end will be saved.
AMP
9 Then they will hand you over to suffer affliction and tribulation and put you to death, and you will be hated by all nations for My name's sake.
10 And then many will be offended and repelled and will begin to distrust and desert [Him Whom they ought to trust and obey] and will stumble and fall away and betray one another and pursue one another with hatred.
11 And many false prophets will rise up and deceive and lead many into error.
12 And the love of the great body of people will grow cold because of the multiplied lawlessness and iniquity,
13 But he who endures to the end will be saved.
AMP
Category
🛠️
LifestyleTranscript
00:30The name of our message today is called,
00:33But I Thought I Would Not Suffer When I Became a Christian.
00:38I wonder how many Christian believers thought when they became a believer
00:44that they would not run into unfavorable happenings
00:48and even trials and suffering would not be a part of their new life in Jesus Christ.
00:55There's a true story about a little boy
00:58who one day saw a butterfly struggling to emerge from its cocoon.
01:04It was straining with all of its might to get out of the opening which was too small.
01:10Thinking he was helping the butterfly, the little boy took his knife and slit the cocoon.
01:16But to his dismay, the butterfly emerged with small and shriveled wings
01:22and was unable to fly.
01:25Within a short time, it was dead.
01:28When the boy asked his father about it,
01:31his father explained that the butterfly needed the struggle to get out of the cocoon
01:36for this was the process that developed its wings and made them strong enough for the flight.
01:42In trying to help by relieving the butterfly from its painful struggle,
01:47he had actually deprived it of that which was necessary for its development and its very life.
01:54This is the same principle that carries over into all human life.
01:59The struggles and the trials we face actually serve for the development,
02:05not only that in physical and moral realm,
02:09but also and more so in the spiritual realm.
02:13I don't know about you, dear listener,
02:16but I believe God gives such wonderful analogies
02:20to astound and amaze those who think they are wise
02:24when it comes to a simple yet complex creature such as the butterfly
02:30with its stages of metamorphosis and transformation
02:34of coming into such a beautiful creation
02:37and bringing delight and joy to those who see it in its beauty
02:42and also its usefulness in nature.
02:46You see, this is a wonderful analogy of Christians
02:50who do not last throughout struggles of life that come their way.
02:54They will not survive in the development of their maturity,
02:57which is necessary and essential for eternal life.
03:02You know, if Jesus would have been a people pleaser or an elected official in his day,
03:08he would have used his absolute almighty power
03:12to create favorable circumstances
03:15and promise prosperity and health and zone-free troubles
03:20for all of those who would follow him.
03:23Instead, as he was ready to depart from this earth
03:26by the way of suffering and death,
03:28which were to be followed by his resurrection,
03:31he said to his followers,
03:33in this world you will have tribulation.
03:37In John chapter 16, verse 33,
03:41Jesus spoke this wonderful and encouraging truth
03:45to all who have ears to hear.
03:47He said in verse 33,
03:50I have told you these things so that in me,
03:54did you hear that?
03:55In me, you may have perfect peace and confidence.
03:59In the world, you will have tribulation and trials and distress and frustration,
04:05but be of good cheer.
04:06Take courage and be confident, certain, and undaunted.
04:10For I have overcome the world.
04:13I have deprived it of power to harm you and have conquered it for you.
04:18Ah, when our Lord says,
04:21I have told you these things,
04:24it is speaking about his reason for his departure,
04:28and it was for the purpose that they might experience peace
04:31in the relationship with him.
04:34Now, when Jesus says in me,
04:37this relates back to the vine and the branches intimacy,
04:41which Jesus revealed in John chapter 15,
04:44when he describes a Christian divine union with himself
04:49in this analogy that says he is the vine
04:53and we are the branches united to him in love,
04:57obedience, and faith.
04:59He told of the disciples' relationship with the world,
05:03that it would result in turmoil and tribulation
05:07because of the opposition that would come against them
05:10from unbelievers because of the relationship with him.
05:14Please understand,
05:16the proof that the peace that Jesus would give them
05:20would overcome the turmoil and the trials that the world would create
05:25was Jesus' victory over the fact that he had overcome the world
05:31on the cross through his death.
05:34And Jesus tells us in John chapter 12, verse 31,
05:38now the judgment crisis of this world is coming on
05:43sentences now being passed on this world.
05:46Now the ruler, evil genius, the prince of this world
05:50shall be cast out, shall be expelled.
05:54And Paul gives us encouragement and hope
05:57in 1 Corinthians chapter 15, verse 57, saying,
06:02but thanks to God who gives the victory,
06:06making us conquerors through our Lord Jesus Christ.
06:10Did you hear that?
06:12Through our Lord Jesus Christ.
06:16Beloved John, the apostle in 1 John chapter 4,
06:21verse 4 declares, little children, you are of God.
06:25You belong to him and have already defeated
06:28and overcome them, the agents of the Antichrist,
06:31because he who lives in you is greater,
06:35mightier than he who is in the world.
06:38And 1 John chapter 5, verse 4 and 5 declares,
06:43for whatever is born of God is victorious over the world.
06:49And this is the victory that conquers the world,
06:52that conquers the world, even our faith.
06:55Who is it that is victorious over that conquers the world,
07:00but he who believes that Jesus is the son of God,
07:03who adheres to, trusts in, and relies on that fact.
07:08Wow, what encouragement, what hope, dear listener.
07:13You must know that suffering is inescapable
07:16and unavoidable in the life of a Christian believer
07:19in Jesus Christ.
07:21The suffering is not going to be conditional either.
07:25The Lord did not say, if you do not live totally
07:28in the presence of God or if you disobey
07:32any of God's commandment, you're going to have tribulation.
07:37A Christian will experience tribulation,
07:40just as Jesus told us we would.
07:43But for most of your whole life,
07:46it will probably not be full of tribulation,
07:50but there will be inevitable occasions
07:53of trials and afflictions and trouble.
07:58There was a man who wrote of the value of afflictions,
08:03which were really meant to create genuine faith
08:06in a believer's life.
08:08And he writes, the testing we go through
08:12demonstrates the genuineness of our faith.
08:15In the phrase of testing of your faith,
08:18the word testing is an almost untranslated word.
08:23He explains it as showing what is genuine in your faith.
08:29He describes that the idea refers to iron hair
08:34that has gone through refining fire
08:37and comes out on the other side clean and pure and genuine.
08:41And this is the word Job used when he said,
08:44he has tried me in the fire
08:46and I will come out like gold.
08:49This individual continues saying,
08:51actually, there may be something suspect about a faith
08:55that has never been tested.
08:57An army going through basic training is not ready for battle.
09:01Not until soldiers have faced the battle
09:04and have been under fire,
09:06do they consider themselves proven, hardened, and worthy.
09:10A ship cannot prove that it's been sturdily built
09:14as long as it stays in dry dock.
09:16Its hull must get wet.
09:18It must face a storm to demonstrate genuine seaworthiness.
09:23Now, the same is true of our faith.
09:27When we hold fast to belief in Jesus Christ,
09:31despite storms that come against us and crushing criticisms,
09:37that's when we demonstrate the genuineness of our faith.
09:42And again, this kind of analogy or figurative look
09:47at such wonderful examples in the Bible
09:50refers to in many different ways
09:52and shows us that as true believers in Jesus Christ,
09:57one will not be able to control
09:59all of the circumstances of their life,
10:02even though they may be able to control or manage some.
10:06Now, looking at this in another perspective,
10:09there is tribulation,
10:11which is a direct result of disobedience
10:14of both physical and spiritual laws.
10:17There is a connection between John chapter 16, verse 33,
10:24and John chapter 16, verse 1.
10:28In John 16, 33, Jesus declares,
10:33I have told you these things so that in me,
10:36you may have perfect peace and confidence.
10:39In the world, you will have tribulation,
10:41trials and distress and frustration,
10:44but be of good cheer, take courage,
10:47be confident, certain, undaunted,
10:49for I have overcome the world.
10:52I have deprived it of power to harm you
10:55and have conquered it for you.
10:57And in John chapter 16, verse 1,
11:00Jesus tells us saying,
11:03I have told you these things
11:05so you should not be offended
11:08and taken unawares or falter
11:12or be caused to stumble and fall away.
11:15I told you to keep you from being scandalized and repelled.
11:20Please notice that both of these verses,
11:23Jesus begins with the word,
11:25I have told you these things.
11:29Now, I would like us to go to John chapter 15,
11:33beginning with verse 18,
11:35to see what these two other verses were referring to
11:40in our Christian walk,
11:42which show and prepare the genuine believer
11:45to be on guard over their own soul
11:48and to be aware and use discernment
11:51and discretion in their actions,
11:53their words and their deeds.
11:56John chapter 15, beginning in verse 18,
12:00If the world hates you,
12:02no, it hated me before it hated you.
12:05If you belong to the world,
12:07the world would treat you with affection
12:09and would love you as its own.
12:11But because you're not of the world,
12:13no longer one with it,
12:15but I have chosen, selected you out of the world,
12:18the world hates, detests you.
12:21Remember that I told you
12:23a servant is not greater than his master,
12:26not superior to him.
12:28If they persecuted me,
12:30they will also persecute you.
12:32If they kept my word and obeyed my teachings,
12:36they will also keep and obey yours.
12:39Verse 21,
12:40But they will do all of this to you,
12:43inflict all suffering on you
12:46because of your bearing my name
12:49and on my account,
12:51for they do not know or understand the one who sent me.
12:54If I had not come and spoken to them,
12:57they would not be guilty of sin,
12:59would be blameless.
13:00But now they have no excuse for their sin.
13:03Whoever hates me also hates my father.
13:06If I had not done,
13:08accomplished among them the works
13:10which no one else ever did,
13:13they would not be guilty of sin.
13:15But the fact is now
13:17they have both seen these works
13:19and have hated both me and my father.
13:21But this is so that the word
13:23written in their law might be fulfilled.
13:26They hated me without cause.
13:28Verse 26,
13:30But when the Comforter,
13:32the Counselor, the Helper, Advocate, Intercessor,
13:35Strengthener, Standby comes,
13:37whom I will send to you from the Father,
13:39the Spirit of Truth,
13:41who comes, proceeds from the Father,
13:44he himself will testify regarding me.
13:47But you also will testify and be my witnesses
13:50because you have been with me from the beginning.
13:55So now when we look closely at these verses,
13:59we can see a summary of what our Lord
14:01referred to in these scriptures.
14:04In verse 18, Jesus says,
14:07If the world hates you,
14:10in verse 19, he declares,
14:13the world hates you.
14:16In verse 20, he says,
14:18they will also persecute you.
14:21How many of you know
14:23that to be persecuted, hated,
14:26and character assassinated
14:28is not a pleasant experience?
14:31The only way to have averted these persecutions
14:34would be for Jesus to declare his salvation
14:37upon all people in every land, near and far,
14:40no matter what they choose to do
14:43in the way that they live.
14:45But dear one, that never happened
14:48because salvation is for all the whomsoever's
14:51who believe, and let me add,
14:54this precious salvation is not cheap.
14:58The day will come when the world
15:00will no longer be able to persecute Christians,
15:03when God will impose his kingdom,
15:06as told in 1 Corinthians chapter 15,
15:09in verse 24, which declares,
15:12After that time, the end, the completion,
15:15when he delivers over the kingdom to God the Father,
15:18after rendering inoperative
15:20and abolishing every other rule
15:22and every authority and power.
15:25For Christ must be king and reign
15:27until he has put all of his enemies under his feet,
15:30the last enemy to be subdued and abolished his death.
15:34Verse 27, for he, the Father,
15:37has put all things in subjection
15:40under his Christ's feet.
15:43But when it says all things
15:45are put in subjection under him,
15:47it is evident that he himself
15:49is accepted, who does the subjecting
15:52of all things to him.
15:54Verse 28, however,
15:56when everything is subjected to him,
15:59then the Son himself
16:01will also subject himself to the Father,
16:04who put all things under him
16:06so that God may be all in all,
16:09be everything to everyone,
16:11supreme, the indwelling
16:14and controlling factor of life.
16:17For now, those who choose to refuse
16:20to obey and live this holy way of life
16:23in Jesus Christ
16:26will fight against those
16:28who have elected to believe
16:30in the Lord Jesus Christ, the Savior,
16:32and love him with all of their hearts,
16:35souls, their minds, their whole beings.
16:39While in this body, which is mortal,
16:42there is no escape from death,
16:44and the bodily deterioration
16:46that leads up to it.
16:48I mean, all one has to do
16:51is look in the mirror and see
16:53the visible aging process,
16:55or even before you get out of bed
16:57in the morning,
16:58you already have aching pains
17:00that sometimes let's up
17:02once you get out of the bed
17:04and you start walking around.
17:06Or for some, the deterioration
17:09of health and active lifestyle
17:13is impaired by certain diseases
17:15and sickness and afflictions.
17:17For those who have listened
17:19to our messages on Shining Light
17:21Seven Ministries,
17:22you know that I love to incorporate
17:25testimonies and stories
17:27befitting to our subject.
17:29And I have used this testimony
17:31before in a message
17:33and cannot pass by it
17:35for a reference as a touching
17:37and moving example
17:39of what we are discussing
17:41in this point of our message today.
17:44And the title of this story
17:46is called,
17:47This Thing is for Me.
17:49And it begins by a
17:51heart-rending accident
17:53told about a young girl.
17:55And it begins by saying,
17:57How can a God of love,
18:00who has everything in His control,
18:03let such a thing happen to me?
18:06So asked a young woman
18:08who had received severe injuries
18:10through a fall from a horse.
18:12Crippled for life,
18:14she overheard the doctor say.
18:16The pastor was silent for a moment.
18:19Did you suffer much pain
18:21when they put you in the cast?
18:23The pain was terrible, she replied.
18:26Where was your father then,
18:28the pastor asked.
18:29Well, he stood right by me,
18:31she answered.
18:33Did your father allow the doctor
18:35to hurt you in that way?
18:38Yes, but it was necessary.
18:41Did your father allow the doctor
18:43to hurt you even though he loved you
18:45or because he loved you?
18:48You mean to suggest,
18:50because God loves me,
18:52He also allowed me to be hurt?
18:56The pastor, with a nod, said,
18:59This thing is for me.
19:02Let these five words comfort you,
19:04young lady.
19:06They will furnish a silver lining
19:08to the cloud you face.
19:10Yours is not a case of hard luck.
19:13This trial was planned by God.
19:17You see,
19:19if you are truly His child,
19:21He is preparing you
19:23for better service.
19:25Shakespeare said,
19:27In sickness let me not so much say,
19:29Am I getting better of my pain?
19:32But I say,
19:34I am getting better for it.
19:36And let us not say,
19:38When will I be getting out of this?
19:41But rather,
19:42What will I be getting out of this?
19:45Know that Jesus Christ
19:48will draw you closer to Him
19:50through this trial.
19:53Now I'm sure many of you,
19:55hearing this story or account
19:57of this young girl,
19:58have had your own experiences
20:01and you were surprised
20:03by a sudden onset of illness,
20:06an accident,
20:07or an attack of the enemy,
20:11an incident,
20:12a loss in some way
20:14that seemed to come out of the blue,
20:16as we say.
20:18It was totally unexpected.
20:21I share one of my own accounts,
20:24which takes me back to around 2009
20:28when I was developing a message called
20:30The Subtleties of Self-Deception.
20:33It began early in the morning
20:35when I finished preparing
20:37this particular message
20:39that I was suddenly hit
20:41with an issue of high blood pressure,
20:43diabetes,
20:44and the loss of energy
20:46as I sat at my desk.
20:48It was like the bottom dropped out
20:50of my normally energetic life
20:52and continued for around three years.
20:55Not only this,
20:56my father, whom I love very much,
20:59was going through his last days
21:01by going back and forth to the hospital.
21:04He died in 2010
21:07at the age of 94 years old.
21:10I was unable to attend his funeral
21:13because he lived around 1,200 miles
21:15from me at that time.
21:17Throughout my three-year ordeal,
21:20I sat in a chair downstairs
21:23under a reading lamp
21:24because I wasn't able to walk upstairs
21:26to my office.
21:28Every day I read the Bible
21:30and was sustained by continual
21:32and nonstop study in God's Word
21:35by personal prayer
21:37and the prayers of others
21:38who were praying for me at this time.
21:41It was like the pages of the truth
21:44that I was reading
21:45became alive and living
21:47and understanding.
21:49And this was like food
21:51that nourished life and hope
21:53and eventually healing in my body.
21:56And I must tell you also,
21:58it was a time of much introspection
22:01and self-examination
22:03and deep search within my own soul
22:05as to my own sinful nature
22:07and, yes, even the sins of ignorance
22:10for which I begged God to show me.
22:14When all ended,
22:15I was healed of diabetes
22:17and my energy and my strength
22:19was restored.
22:21Combined with my father's death
22:23and the sudden attack on my health,
22:26it was probably the greatest
22:28and most trying trial
22:30I have ever endured
22:31in my entire life.
22:33God is faithful and loving, dear ones.
22:36I never doubted my merciful Savior
22:39and Lord for a moment.
22:41I knew that He loved me
22:43and would bring me through
22:44as I sought the one
22:45in whom my heart loved.
22:47And I pray for His mercy
22:51and His grace,
22:52and He was faithful.
22:54I continue to thank my Lord and God
22:57for what He did
22:58and what He was doing in my life
23:00with all of the trouble,
23:01the afflictions,
23:02and even with going through
23:04the death of my precious Papa.
23:07My Lord gave me peace.
23:10All of these trials brought me closer
23:13to my eternal, loving Father.
23:15And I always remember
23:17what James chapter 1, verse 2 and 3
23:19tell us to do in times of trial.
23:23He says,
23:24Count it all joy, brethren,
23:26when you meet various trials,
23:29for you know that the testing
23:30of your faith produces steadfastness.
23:34In case one might be inclined
23:37to think that the words of James
23:38are a command of one
23:40who had not really experienced
23:43sorrows and troubles,
23:45let us remember that James
23:47was one of the principal leaders
23:49of the Christians in Jerusalem
23:51who was continually faced
23:53with persecution
23:54from the outside of church,
23:57which resulted in his own martyrdom
23:59when he was in his 60s.
24:01And not only did James suffer greatly
24:04in persecution and torment
24:05from outside the church,
24:07but he suffered as well
24:08from internal conflict
24:10and quarreling with the Judaizers
24:13in the church.
24:15James surely knew
24:17what it meant to meet various trials.
24:21But James had also learned
24:22that difficulties can produce
24:24steadfastness or patience,
24:27and though a natural reaction
24:29to these things
24:30could cause annoyances
24:32and even bitterness.
24:34And this is why he teaches us
24:36on how we must react
24:38and handle these things
24:39which are opposed to the truth.
24:42He never tells us to pretend
24:44that a trial is non-existent.
24:47Instead, he wants us to recognize
24:49and rejoice that a problem
24:51can be an occasion for God
24:53to work in and through us
24:54in a way that he otherwise could not.
24:58Dear listener,
25:00this is indeed a testing of our faith
25:04and calls upon us
25:06to believe in the goodness of God
25:09and to trust and have faith
25:11that he is not only willing,
25:13but that he is more than able
25:15to accomplish his purposes in us
25:18no matter what happens
25:20or falls upon us.
25:22Did you know
25:23that during these times of trouble,
25:26that the Lord is endeavoring
25:27to draw you and me
25:29even closer to himself
25:31so he can show you his love,
25:33that you and I can reciprocate
25:36love back to him?
25:39This is why we were created.
25:41This is the first and greatest commandment
25:44in the Old and the New Testament.
25:47We must pray in these times, dear one,
25:49for God to increase and produce within us
25:53divine love for him,
25:55which comes from the throne room
25:57as a supernatural impartation
25:59of understanding the great price
26:02our Lord Jesus Christ paid on the cross
26:05in order to call us
26:06his very own redeemed child of God.
26:10I am sure most Christians
26:12have heard the gospel hymn,
26:14which was adopted into many
26:18and most hymnals in the church
26:20called Precious Lord, Take My Hand.
26:24There's a true story
26:26about how this hymn came to be written
26:29and it starts out by telling
26:32Thomas Andrew Dorsey
26:35was a black jazz musician from Atlanta.
26:39In the twenties,
26:40he gained a certain amount of notoriety
26:42as a composer of jazz tunes
26:45with suggestive lyrics,
26:47but he gave all that up in 1926
26:50to concentrate exclusively
26:53on spiritual music.
26:55Peace in the Valley
26:57is one of his best known songs,
26:59but there is a story
27:00behind his most famous song
27:03that deserves to be told.
27:06In 1932, the times were hard for Dorsey.
27:11Just trying to survive
27:12the depression years
27:13as a working musician
27:15meant tough sledding.
27:17On top of that,
27:19his music was not accepted
27:21by many people.
27:22Some said that it was too worldly,
27:24the devil's music, they called it.
27:27Many years later,
27:29Dorsey could laugh all about it
27:31and he said,
27:32I got kicked out of some
27:34of the best churches in the land,
27:36but the real kick in the teeth
27:38came one night in St. Louis
27:41when he received a telegram
27:42informing him that his pregnant wife
27:45had suddenly died.
27:47Dorsey was so filled with grief
27:50that his faith was shaken to the roots,
27:53but instead of wallowing in self-pity,
27:56he turned to the discipline
27:57he knew best, music.
28:00In the midst of agony,
28:02he wrote the following lyrics.
28:05Precious Lord, take my hand.
28:09Lead me on, let me stand.
28:13I am tired, I am weak, I am worn.
28:17Through the storm, through the night,
28:20lead me on to the light.
28:22Take my hand, precious Lord,
28:25lead me home.
28:28This true story is saying
28:31if you live long enough,
28:34you will experience heartache,
28:36disappointment, and sheer helplessness.
28:40And the Lord is our most precious resource
28:43in the times of trauma.
28:46The Lord is a refuge for the oppressed,
28:49a stronghold in times of trouble.
28:52From Psalms chapter 9, verse 9.
28:56The Lord is a refuge for the oppressed,
28:59a stronghold in times of trouble.
29:02You see, Tom Dorsey understood that.
29:06His song was originally written
29:08as a way of coping with his personal pain,
29:11and even today, it continues
29:13to bless thousands of others
29:15when they pass through times of hardship.
29:18Dear listener,
29:20we all have a story of some trial
29:23or conflict or affliction
29:25or persecution of one kind or another.
29:28If we have been a believer in the church
29:30for any number of years.
29:32But let us not forget
29:34the importance and responsibility we have
29:37to pray and beseech God to go passionately
29:40to implant within our own hearts and souls
29:43the remembrances and the mysteries
29:46of our dear Savior's humility
29:48and price and cost.
29:50He paid to have each one of us
29:52on the cross.
29:54And furthermore, for this understanding,
29:56to deeply break our hearts
29:59so that we can truly see
30:01and know the depths of our sins
30:03in order that we may truly grow
30:06in a deep and more profound way
30:09of love for our precious Savior,
30:11which goes to the very core of our being
30:14and will remain for all of eternity.
30:17You see, tribulation and physical deterioration
30:21are a part of God's predicted plan
30:24for this age and this time
30:26as it has been from generation to generation.
30:29This should not take you by surprise, dear ones.
30:33It may not make sense to you and me,
30:36but that's part of our almighty God
30:40creator's wisdom and mystery,
30:42which we do not doubt,
30:44but we trust him through it all.
30:46There are certain things in life,
30:49such as suffering, sickness, persecution,
30:52attacks from the enemy, and death,
30:55which we are incapable of understanding.
30:58And because of that,
31:00we learn to walk through these obstacles
31:02by faith and trust
31:04in the one who loves us so much
31:06that he went to the cross
31:08to sacrifice himself on our behalf
31:11to suffer more than any other being.
31:14The easiest thing for people to do
31:17is to be offended when suffering
31:19and blame others.
31:21And they let tribulation and despair
31:24overtake them.
31:25But for those who have ears to hear,
31:28let it be known that Jesus Christ
31:30knows exactly what he's doing.
31:32And he told you and me
31:34what to expect because of trials
31:36and afflictions and persecutions and suffering
31:39is going to be a part of our lives
31:42so that he might refine us like fine gold.
31:45Be prepared.
31:47I say be prepared.
31:49We live in chaotic times
31:51in this year of 2024.
31:54There's much going on all around the world
31:57that demands our attentiveness
31:59to stay alert, self-controlled, and watchful,
32:02not only for our physical well-being,
32:05but more so for our spiritual well-being.
32:08Do not let suffering and discouragement
32:11take you by surprise,
32:13making you to doubt God's kind
32:15and compassionate providence for your life.
32:18Jesus Christ gives inner peace to those
32:22who are attached to him
32:24as the branches attached to the vine.
32:27Jesus gives inner peace,
32:29which no favorable or profitable circumstance
32:33in our life could produce.
32:35With our Lord,
32:37peace within our hearts and souls,
32:40one can face suffering, sickness, death,
32:43or other circumstances
32:45because he has given us his precious Holy Spirit
32:48as our comforter, our guide, and our teacher.
32:52Apostle Paul, in Romans chapter 8,
32:56verses 38 and 39,
32:58encourages and tells us,
33:01For I am persuaded beyond a doubt, am sure,
33:06that neither death, nor life, nor angels,
33:10nor principalities, nor things impending
33:13and threatening, nor things to come,
33:15nor powers, nor height, nor depth,
33:18anything else in all creation
33:21will be able to separate us
33:23from the love of God,
33:25which is in Jesus Christ our Lord.
33:28Finally, let us remember
33:31Thomas Andrew Dorsey's song
33:34that he wrote when he was so filled with grief
33:37and his faith was shaken to a core.
33:40But instead of wallowing in self-pity,
33:42he turned to the Lord in the midst of agony
33:45and he wrote a hymn as I had read part of it before,
33:49but I finish with the whole song.
33:52Precious Lord, take my hand,
33:56lead me on, let me stand.
33:59I am tired, I am weak, I am worn.
34:03Through the storm, through the night,
34:07lead me on to the light.
34:10Take my hand, precious Lord, and lead me on.
34:14When my way grows drearier,
34:17precious Lord, linger near.
34:19When my life is almost gone,
34:22hear my cry, hear my call.
34:25Hold my hand, lest I fall.
34:27Take my hand, precious Lord, lead me home.
34:31When the darkness appears and the night draws near
34:34and the day is past and gone,
34:36at the river I stand, guide my feet,
34:39hold my hand, take my hand, precious Lord,
34:43lead me home.
34:46Let this be our cry, dear ones.
34:49Let it be our cry.
34:52As we wait for the Lord,
34:54through all that comes, comes what may.
34:58Let us hold fast to the one
35:00who made eternal life possible.
35:06Let us hold fast to the one
35:08who made eternal life possible.
35:10Let us hold fast to the one
35:12who made eternal life possible.
35:15Let us hold fast to the one
35:17who made eternal life possible.
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