THE LIVING WORD TRANSCRIPT<br> <br>

PROGRAM AIR DATE: 8-20-17<br> <br>



LESSON TITLE: “CALLED TO SUFFER”<br> <br>



WELCOME<br> <br>

      TODAY WE ARE BLESSED WITH A WONDERFUL GIFT FROM GOD, THE BIBLE. THIS BOOK IS GOD'S LIVING WORD. IN ITS PAGES, WE ARE TOLD “FOR THE WORD OF GOD IS LIVING AND POWERFUL AND SHARPER THAN ANY TWO-EDGED SWORD.” IT IS IN THIS BOOK OF BOOKS THAT WE FIND THE ANSWERS TO ALL OF MAN'S QUESTIONS AND NEEDS. THIS MORNING YOUR AREA CHURCHES OF CHRIST WELCOME YOU TO A PROGRAM COMMITTED TO THAT PERFECT LAW OF LIBERTY AS WE PRESENT THE LIVING WORD. NOW HERE IS YOUR HOST RAY SULLINS.<br> <br>

      GOOD MORNING AND WELCOME TO OUR PROGRAM! IT’S GREAT TO HAVE YOU WITH US TODAY AS WE GIVE THIS TIME TO OUR GOD. THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR JOINING US THIS LORD’S DAY, AS WE GIVE PRAISE AND HONOR TO OUR CREATOR. IT IS ALWAYS A PRIVILEGE TO HAVE YOU WITH US. <br> <br> 

      THIS MORNING WE WILL AGAIN HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO STUDY GOD’S PRECIOUS WORD AND TO SING PRAISES TO HIS GLORIOUS NAME. PLEASE DO YOUR PART IN MAKING THIS OFFERING ACCEPTABLE IN HIS SIGHT. NOW, WILL YOU BOW WITH ME IN PRAYER.  <br> <br>

      PRAYER: OUR WONDROUS GOD AND FATHER IN HEAVEN, WE THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THIS DAY AND EVERY DAY OF LIFE, THE GREAT BLESSINGS THAT WE HAVE. FATHER, WE KNOW EVERYTHING THAT WE HAVE PHYSICALLY, WE KNOW EVERYTHING THAT WE HAVE SPIRITUALLY IS ONLY FROM YOU. AND FATHER, WE ASK THAT THIS DAY AND EVERY DAY THAT WE MIGHT GIVE YOU OUR VERY BEST BUT ESPECIALLY TODAY ON THE LORD'S DAY THAT WE MIGHT DO ALL IN SPIRIT AND TRUTH AS WE WORSHIP YOU ACCORDING TO YOUR PERFECT WILL THAT WE MIGHT BE FOUND PLEASING IN YOUR SIGHT. AND HELP US FATHER TO BE LIGHTS IN THIS WORLD THAT OTHERS MIGHT KNOW YOU AND THAT THEY MIGHT DESIRE TO FOLLOW AND OBEY YOUR PERFECT TRUTH KNOWING THAT THE FAITHFUL RECEIVE GREAT BLESSINGS IN THIS LIFE AS WELL AS THE GREAT REWARD AND PROMISE FOUND IN THE LIFE TO COME. FATHER, WE THANK YOU FOR JESUS BECAUSE WE KNOW IT IS ONLY THROUGH HIM THAT WE ARE HERE THIS DAY. AND IN JESUS NAME WE PRAY, AMEN. 

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      IT SEEMS LIKE THERE IS ALWAYS A LOT OF DIFFICULTY AND TRAGEDY AROUND THE WORLD. IF YOU WATCH THE NEWS VERY OFTEN IT DOESN’T TAKE LONG TO GET A LITTLE DISCOURAGED. HOWEVER, AS CHRISTIANS WE HAVE THE ABILITY TO FIND JOY IN LIFE NO MATTER WHAT IS GOING ON OR WHAT IS HAPPENING AROUND US. OUR FIRST SONG THIS MORNING DEALS WITH THIS VERY IDEA. WON’T YOU JOIN IN WITH THE CONGREGATION AT THIS TIME AS WE SING THE HYMN, “SUNSHINE IN MY SOUL.”  

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DEVOTIONAL THOUGHTS<br> <br>

      LIVING THE CHRISTIAN LIFE IS NOT ALWAYS EASY. LIFE IS PRETTY MUCH A DAILY STRUGGLE TO BE THE TYPE OF PEOPLE WHICH GOD WANTS US TO BE.   IT IS NOT ALWAYS EASY TO DO AND SAY THE RIGHT THINGS, BUT THE TRUTH IS THAT’S WHAT GOD EXPECTS.  <br> <br>

      CHRISTIAN LIVING IS ESPECIALLY HARD WHEN WE LOOK AROUND US AND SEE SO MANY OF THIS WORLD ENJOYING THE EVILS OF IT. WE SHOULD NEVER KID OURSELVES INTO THINKING THE SIN DOES NOT EXIST OR THAT WE WILL NOT GIVE INTO SIN. THAT FACT IS, WE ARE HUMAN AND SINFUL THINGS APPEAL TO OUR FLESH. IT IS ONLY NATURAL THAT WE ARE EASILY ENTICED AND THAT WE OFTEN DO THAT WHICH IS WRONG BECAUSE WE ARE RESPONDING TO OUR PHYSICAL DESIRES WHICH WE HAVE BEEN CREATED WITH.  <br> <br>

      JAMES PUT IT LIKE THIS, “BUT EACH ONE IS TEMPTED WHEN HE IS DRAWN AWAY BY HIS OWN DESIRES AND ENTICED. THEN, WHEN DESIRE HAS CONCEIVED, IT GIVES BIRTH TO SIN; AND SIN, WHEN IT IS FULL-GROWN, BRINGS FORTH DEATH,” JAMES 1:14-15! SO WHEN WE ALLOW OUR OWN DESIRE TO CONCEIVE, WE SIN. AND AS WE ALL KNOW SIN LEADS TO DEATH.  <br> <br>

      NOW BACK TO WHAT GOD TRULY WANTS OF US AS HIS CHILDREN.  IN THE SAME OPENING OF JAMES 1, DOWN IN VERSE 27, WE READ THAT, “PURE AND UNDEFILED RELIGION BEFORE GOD AND THE FATHER IS THIS:…TO KEEP ONESELF UNSPOTTED FROM THE WORLD.”  SO BEING GODLY IS THE OPPOSITE OF BEING WORLDLY. PETER UNDERSTOOD THIS SAME IDEA WHEN HE SAID, “THEREFORE, BELOVED, LOOKING FORWARD TO THESE THINGS, BE DILIGENT TO BE FOUND BY HIM IN PEACE, WITHOUT SPOT AND BLAMELESS,” 2 PETER 3:14.  HERE THIS INSPIRED WRITER SAYS THAT IT MUST BE OUR GOAL AS CHRISTIANS TO BE WITHOUT SPOT AND BLAMELESS. YOU SEE, RIGHTEOUS LIVING IS NOT ONLY A SUGGESTION IN THE BIBLE, IT IS A COMMAND IF WE ARE TO BE PLEASING TO GOD. SO, IT MUST BE OUR GOAL AS FOLLOWERS OF GOD TO BE FOUND WITHOUT SPOT AND BLAMELESS BEFORE THE LORD, BECAUSE ONLY THE PURE HEART WILL SEE GOD, MATTHEW 5:8.  	<br> <br>

      NOW IF YOU THINK ABOUT IT, ALL OF THIS MAKES PERFECT SENSE, WHY?  BECAUSE WE ARE TO BE LIKE CHRIST! ISN’T THAT THE REASON WE ARE CALLED CHRISTIANS. IN EPHESIANS 5:1, WE READ, “THEREFORE BE IMITATORS OF GOD AS DEAR CHILDREN.” OUR ACTIONS MUST SHOW FORTH OUR LORD AND SAVIOR JESUS CHRIST.  <br> <br>

      SO WHAT MANNER OF PERSON ARE YOU BEFORE THIS WORLD? WHAT DO OTHERS SEE WHEN THEY LOOK YOUR WAY OR HEAR YOUR VOICE? DO THEY SEE ONE WHO IS WITHOUT SPOT AND BLAMELESS JUST AS CHRIST WAS? WHY NOT START ACTING MORE LIKE CHRIST TODAY, SO THAT OTHERS WILL BE ENCOURAGED BY OUR EXAMPLE AND SO THAT CHRIST MAY TRULY BE GLORIFIED. <br> <br>   

      TODAY, WE WILL CONTINUE OUR STUDY ENTITLED, “HIS OWN SPECIAL PEOPLE.” OUR DISCUSSION THIS MORNING WILL DEAL WITH THE FACT THAT WE HAVE BEEN “CALLED TO SUFFER.” SO, PLEASE CONTINUE WITH US THIS MORNING, AND AFTER OUR NEXT SONG TOGETHER I WILL RETURN WITH OUR STUDY FROM GOD’S WORD. THE NAME OF THE NEXT SELECTION IS, “STAND UP FOR JESUS.”<br> <br>



LESSON<br> <br>

RAY SULLINS<br> <br>

      WE THANK YOU SO MUCH AS YOU NOW CONTINUE WITH US THIS DAY AS WE GO TO GOD'S WORD. AND WE'RE CONTINUING OUR SERIES IN RELATIONSHIP TO BEING THOSE CHOSEN OF GOD, THE ELECT OF GOD, THOSE WHO HAVE ACTUALLY BEEN CALLED BY OUR GOD TO BE HIS SPECIAL AND UNIQUE PEOPLE. AND YOU KNOW, AS THE PEOPLE OF GOD, CERTAINLY WE KNOW THAT THERE ARE THINGS THAT WE MUST FACE AND THINGS THAT WE EVEN AT TIMES MUST ENDURE. BUT PERHAPS ONE OF THE MOST DIFFICULT TIMES, SOMETIMES FOR INDIVIDUALS TO REALLY FULLY COMPREHEND UNDERSTAND AS TO WHY CERTAIN THINGS HAPPEN, PERTAINS TO SUFFERING. AND SOMEONE MIGHT HAVE THE IDEA, ‘WELL YOU KNOW, BECAUSE WE ARE THE CHILDREN OF GOD AND WE'RE THE SPECIAL UNIQUE NATION OF GOD, WHY THEN DO WE SUFFER? WHY WOULD GOD ALLOW IT SINCE HE HAS ALL POWER, SINCE HE HAS THE ABILITY TO DO ANYTHING THAT HE CHOOSES? WHY WOULD HE ALLOW US TO SUFFER?’ WELL, TO ME, THAT WOULD BE THE SAME AS SAYING, ‘WELL, WHY DOES A FATHER ALLOW HIS CHILD, WHY DOES A FATHER ALLOW HIS CHILD TO GET HURT WHEN HE FALLS OFF THE PLAYGROUND EQUIPMENT?’ WELL YOU MIGHT SAY, ‘WELL, THE FATHER HAS NO POWER OVER THAT.’ THE FATHER COULD SAY, ‘HEY, YOU CAN'T PLAY ANYMORE BECAUSE IF YOU PLAY YOU MIGHT GET HURT.’ WELL, YOU SEE GOD CERTAINLY HAS ALL POWER BUT AT THE SAME TIME THE REALITY OF LIFE IS THAT SOMETIMES THINGS HAPPEN. SOMETIMES WE DO GET HURT, SOMETIMES WE DO SUFFER, BUT THE BIBLE TEACHES US THAT WE SUFFER AT TIMES BECAUSE WE NEED TO BE CHALLENGED TO REMEMBER WHO GOD IS. WE NEED TO BE TESTED TO MAKE SURE THAT OUR FAITH IS INTACT AND STRONG. AND WE EVEN, AT TIMES BECAUSE GOD ALLOWS SATAN, NEED TO BE TEMPTED SO THAT WE MIGHT AGAIN TURN TO GOD AND FIND THE ABILITY TO SERVE HIM AND HIM ALONE REALIZING THAT WE HAVE A CHOICE. OH MY! IF THINGS WERE ALWAYS PERFECT. LIKE SATAN ACTUALLY SAID TO GOD ONCE ABOUT JOB IF GOD JUST PUT US IN OUR HOUSE AND EVERYTHING WAS PERFECT AND WE COULD NEVER GET SICK AND WE COULD NEVER GET HURT AND WE HAD ALL THE MONEY WE COULD DESIRE, WE HAD ALL THE POSSESSIONS, AND EVERYTHING WAS ALWAYS PERFECT. WE NEVER ARGUED, WE NEVER FOUGHT WITH ANYBODY, EVERYTHING WAS JUST PERFECT. WHY WOULD WE SERVE GOD? WHY WOULD WE NEED GOD? WHY WOULD WE BE ANYTHING TO GOD OTHER THAN ROBOTS? BUT BECAUSE GOD HAS GIVEN US CHOICE AND BECAUSE GOD HAS ALLOWED SATAN AND ALLOW THIS WORLD TO CONTINUE ON AND THE REALITY IS SOMETIMES WE DO SUFFER IN THIS WORLD, NOT ONLY BECAUSE OF OUR FAITH, BUT BECAUSE OF THE REALITY OF THE ELEMENTS AND THE THINGS THAT GOD HAS SET IN ORDER. <br> <br>

      THEREFORE, WE HAVE TO ASK THE QUESTION: DO WE UNDERSTAND, BRETHREN, THAT WE HAVE BEEN CALLED TO SUFFER? WHEN WE READ ABOUT SUFFERING IN THE BIBLE, AND BY THE WAY WE CAN GO ALL THE WAY BACK TO THE BEGINNING EVEN THE PEOPLE THERE IN EGYPT, THINK ABOUT ISRAEL AND HOW THEY SUFFERED. WE CAN SEE THAT GOD'S PEOPLE HAVE SUFFERED OFF AND ON MANY, MANY TIMES THROUGHOUT MANY, MANY PERIODS. OFTEN, IT WAS BECAUSE OF THEIR OWN SIN. AND IF YOU THINK ABOUT, SOMETIMES OUR SUFFERINGS ARE BROUGHT ABOUT BY OURSELVES. AND THE CONSEQUENCES TO SIN ARE SOMETIMES WHAT CAUSES OUR SUFFERINGS. SOMETIMES IT'S OUR OWN FAULT THAT WE SUFFER BUT SOMETIMES THAT SUFFERING IS REALLY OUTSIDE REALLY OF THE REALM OF OUR CONTROL. PERHAPS BAD WEATHER OR A TORNADO COMES THROUGH AND IT'S UNFORTUNATE THAT SOMEONE MIGHT LOSE THEIR LIFE IN SUCH OF A THING. <br> <br>

      WHY DO PEOPLE SUFFER? WELL, AGAIN AS THE BIBLE SPEAKS ABOUT SUFFERING IT DOESN'T REALLY TALK ABOUT SUFFERING OR IN THE CONCEPT OF THAT IF IT HAPPENS ONLY, IT REALLY TALKS ABOUT SUFFERING AND THE REALITY OF THE CONCEPT OF WHEN IT HAPPENS. LET ME SHOW YOU THAT BECAUSE THERE IN THE BOOK OF FIRST PETER CHAPTER 4 PETER ADDRESSES THIS VERY CONCEPT. IN FACT, VERSE 12 SAYS, “BELOVED,” (HE'S TALKING TO THOSE WHO ARE DEAR TO HIM CHRISTIANS THAT HE KNOWS), “BELOVED, DO NOT THINK IT STRANGE CONCERNING THE FIERY TRIAL WHICH IS TO TRY YOU.” AND THEN HE SAYS, “AS IF SOME STRANGE THING HAPPENS.” YOU KNOW THERE ARE TRIALS IN LIFE. YOU KNOW THAT PEOPLE WILL DIE AND THAT YOUR FAMILY MEMBERS WILL DIE. YOU KNOW THAT YOUR GRANDPARENTS OR SOMEONE OLDER THAN YOU MIGHT DIE SOMEDAY. YOU MIGHT KNOW THAT EVEN CHILDREN OR THAT ADULTS SOMETIMES IN THE PRIME OF THEIR LIFE DIE FOR DIFFERENT REASONS. THERE ARE ALL SORTS OF FIERY TRIALS AND PROBLEMS THAT COME OUR WAY. SOME ARE WITHIN OUR CONTROL, SOME OUT OF OUR CONTROL. BUT DOES THAT REALLY SAY THAT THERE IS NO GOD OR THAT GOD DOESN'T CARE? CERTAINLY NOT, BECAUSE WHAT HE GOES ON TO INDICATE HERE IS THAT EVEN CHRIST SUFFERED. EVEN JESUS SUFFERED. DID JESUS SUFFER BECAUSE GOD DIDN'T CARE? CERTAINLY NOT! HE WAS GOD. BUT BECAUSE THE FATHER ALLOWED HIM TO SUFFER AND TO GO THROUGH THE WILL OF GOD AS A WHOLE DID GOD NOT CARE? WHY DID JESUS RECEIVE THE LASHINGS AND THE BEATINGS? WHY DID THEY SPIT ON HIM? WHY DID THEY CURSE AT HIM? WHY DID HE HANG ON THE CROSS? OH MY! IF WE COULD ONLY REMEMBER THAT IF JESUS SUFFERED WHAT'S SO STRANGE ABOUT US SUFFERING? WHAT'S SO STRANGE ABOUT US UNDERSTANDING THAT THESE FIERY TRIALS WILL COME AGAINST US AND CERTAINLY JESUS SUFFERED FOR HIS SPIRITUAL STANCE, HIS BELIEF. IN FACT WE READ THERE IN VERSE 13, “BUT REJOICE TO THE EXTENT THAT YOU ARE PARTAKERS OF THE SUFFERINGS OF CHRIST, THAT WHEN HIS GLORY MIGHT BE REVEALED, YOU MIGHT BE GLAD WITH EXCEEDING JOY.” WHEN THE LORD COMES AGAIN YOU'RE GOING TO BE REWARDED! WHY? BECAUSE AS HE ENDURED THE SUFFERING OF THE CROSS AND IS AT THE RIGHT HAND OF THE FATHER HAVING OBEYED THE WILL OF GOD AND FULFILLED THAT WILL, YOU WILL BE BLESSED WHEN YOU HAVE BEEN STEADFAST TO THE END AS WELL. WHEN YOU ARE VICTORIOUS, HAVING OVERCOME THOSE SUFFERINGS, HAVING BEEN STRENGTHENED BY THOSE SUFFERINGS, HAVING TURNED TO MORE TO GOD IN THOSE SUFFERINGS, HAVING TO SHORE UP YOUR FAITH THROUGH THOSE SUFFERINGS. SO MANY BENEFITS THAT WE LEARN. SO MANY BENEFITS THAT WE READ ABOUT WHEN WE CONSIDER THE CONCEPT OF SUFFERING. <br> <br>

      LET'S ALSO THEN TURN OVER TO CHAPTER 5 IN FIRST PETER AND YOU'LL NOTE THAT THERE REALLY IS A LOT DEALT WITHIN THIS BOOK CONCERNING WITH SUFFERINGS AND THOSE WHO SUFFER, SOMETIMES AT THE HAND OF FALSE TEACHERS. AND IN FACT, WHEN YOU GO ONTO SECOND PETER, THERE'S A LOT OF DISCUSSION ABOUT THE SUFFERINGS THAT COME BECAUSE OF THOSE WHO TEACH FALSELY OR THOSE WHO ARE AGAINST US IN A SPIRITUAL SENSE. BUT NOT ONLY THOSE TYPES OF SUFFERINGS, BUT ALL SORTS OF SUFFERINGS. BUT HERE IN FIRST PETER, AGAIN CHAPTER 5, LET'S READ VERSE 10. IT SAYS, “BUT MAY THE GOD OF ALL GRACE, WHO CALLED US IN HIS ETERNAL GLORY BY CHRIST JESUS, AFTER YOU HAVE SUFFERED A WHILE, PERFECT, ESTABLISH, STRENGTHEN, AND SETTLE YOU.” WHAT? AFTER YOU HAVE SETTLED MAY GOD REWARD YOU! MAY GOD BLESS YOU! AND MAY GOD GIVE YOU THE INCREASE! MAY GOD PROVIDE FOR YOU! MAY GOD CARE FOR YOU! MAY GOD GIVE YOU THE WAY OF ESCAPE! MAY GOD GIVE YOU THE ETERNAL REWARD WHEN WHAT? WHEN YOU HAVE SUFFERED AWHILE. BECAUSE LIFE, MAN'S LIFE, BORN OF WOMAN IS OFTEN FEW DAYS AND AS THE WISE MAN SAID, FULL OF TROUBLES, FULL OF ISSUES, FULL OF CONFLICT, FULL OF ARGUMENTS, FULL OF PAIN, FULL OF SUFFERING. I KNOW THAT AS I GET OLDER IN LIFE, I OFTEN NOTICE NEW ACHES AND PAINS ALL THE TIME. YOU SUFFER PHYSICALLY JUST BECAUSE THE BODY DECAYS. BUT COULD GOD HAD MADE THE BODY WHERE IT NEVER DECAYED? CERTAINLY! COULD GOD, IF MAN HAD NEVER SINNED, ALLOWED MAN TO LIVE FOREVER? IT SEEMS LIKE THAT WHEN THEY WERE TAKEN AWAY FROM THE GARDEN THEY NO LONGER HAD ACCESS TO THAT TREE OF WHAT? THE TREE OF LIFE SO THERE ARE THINGS THAT COULD HAVE BEEN BUT THE REALITY IS, BECAUSE OF THE SIN OF MAN. AND AGAIN YOU'LL NOTICE THE SUFFERINGS COME ABOUT OFTEN AND USUALLY BECAUSE OF OUR OWN ACTIONS OR THE ACTIONS OF OTHERS, WE SEE THAT SIN CAME INTO THE WORLD AND SIN WAS PREVALENT IN THE WORLD, AND THEREFORE, SUFFERINGS BEGAN. SUFFERINGS, AS WE READ HERE, THAT WILL LAST FOR A WHILE. AND THE ONLY THING THAT IS GOING TO STOP SUFFERINGS IS WHEN WE ARE ABLE TO OVERCOME, ULTIMATELY, THIS LIFE BY BEING BLESSED WITH THE REWARD OF HEAVEN. AND SO THAT'S WHAT WE LOOK FOR, THAT'S WHAT WE'RE HOPING FOR. EACH AND EVERY ONE OF US PROBABLY HAVE HAD OLDER FAMILY MEMBERS WHO HAVE GOTTEN SICK AND MAYBE PASSED FROM THIS LIFE. AND A LOT OF TIMES WHAT'S IN OUR MIND IS HOW THEY SUFFERED AT THE END. WHY? WELL, DID GOD NOT CARE? CERTAINLY HE CARES. BUT AGAIN, BECAUSE OF THE DECAY, THE DETERIORATION OF THE BODY. BECAUSE OF HEALTH ISSUES, SICKNESSES, BECAUSE OF DISEASE, BECAUSE OF ALL OF THESE THINGS. BUT YOU KNOW WHAT'S OFTEN INTERESTING ABOUT THAT? WHEN PEOPLE LOVE THEIR GOD, WHEN THEY HAVE SERVED GOD AND HAVE BEEN OBEDIENT, WHEN THEY ARE THE FAITHFUL, WHAT ARE THEY READY FOR? THEY'RE READY TO BE WITH THEIR GOD. THEY'RE READY AFTER HAVING SUFFERED FOR A WHILE TO WHAT? TO BE WITH GOD. IT AMAZES ME HOW MANY PEOPLE SAY I'M READY TO MEET JESUS. I'M READY TO LEAVE THIS LIFE. I'VE LIVED A GOOD LIFE AND I'M TIRED OF THIS LIFE AND THE SUFFERINGS OF THIS LIFE. YOU SEE THERE IS A BETTER LIFE. THERE IS A BETTER PLACE, A PLACE WHERE THERE ARE NO TEARS, WHERE THERE IS NO SUFFERING, NO PAIN. THAT IS HEAVEN AND THAT'S WHERE GOD IS AND THAT'S WHERE WE WILL BE ETERNALLY. BUT IN THIS LIFE WE HAVE NEVER BEEN PROMISED THAT WE WILL NOT SUFFER. THAT WE'LL HAVE NO PAIN, THAT WE'LL FACE NO TRIALS. YOU SEE, THE REALITY IS OUR GOD DOES CARE. OUR GOD IS THE COMFORTER. <br> <br>

      I'D LIKE TO LOOK OVER TO A FEW THINGS THAT PAUL SAID IN THE BOOK OF CORINTHIANS, IN SECOND CORINTHIANS CHAPTER 1. AND HERE, HE CHALLENGES THEM TO UNDERSTAND THAT GOD HAS NOT AND GOD DOES NOT FORGET THE FAITHFUL. BUT GOD IS THE GREAT COMFORTER. AND CERTAINLY, IS THAT NOT THE CASE? BECAUSE EVEN WHEN WE THOUGHT FOR A MOMENT ABOUT THAT LOVED ONE THAT PASSES AWAY OFTEN WHAT DO YOU DO? WELL, I KNOW THAT I TURN TO GOD. I TURN TO GOD IN PRAYER, I TURN TO GOD AND THE SCRIPTURES, AND THE COMFORT OF KNOWING THAT THEY HAVE GONE TO BE WITH GOD IN HEAVEN. AND GUESS WHERE I FIND THAT COMFORT? FROM THE VERY GOD WHO YOU WOULD SAY ALLOWED THESE THINGS TO HAPPEN. BUT WHO I WOULD SAY REALLY HAS SET THINGS IN MOTION SO THAT WE DO SUFFER BUT THAT HE DOES STILL CARE. THAT HE DOES LOVE US. THAT HE CAN HELP US AS WE PRAY AND MAKE THOSE REQUESTS. BUT THAT CERTAINLY THE REALITY IS, THAT AS THE ORDER OF THE WORLD HAS BEEN SET IN PLACE THAT CERTAIN THINGS HAPPEN AND CERTAIN SUFFERINGS DO COME. BUT READ THOSE VERSES WITH ME THERE IN SECOND CORINTHIANS CHAPTER 1, VERSE THREE BEGINNING, “BLESSED BE THE GOD AND FATHER OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST, THE FATHER OF MERCIES, THE GOD OF ALL COMFORT.” NOT SOME COMFORT BUT ALL COMFORT! WHAT DOES HE DO? “HE COMFORTS US,” (VERSE FOUR), “IN ALL TRIBULATIONS.” WE COULD THINK FOR A MINUTE ABOUT FIRST CORINTHIANS CHAPTER 1. WE COULD THINK ABOUT VERSE 10. WE COULD THINK ABOUT HOW THAT WE HAVE SOMETIMES PROBLEMS OR CONFLICT. BUT THEN WE COULD THINK ABOUT FIRST CORINTHIANS 10:13, HOW THAT GOD ALWAYS DOES WHAT? GIVES A WAY OF ESCAPE. HOW GOD CARES, DOES JESUS CARE? OH, YES HE CARES, AS THE SONG SAYS. BECAUSE HE IS WHAT? THE ONE WHO IS THE GREAT COMFORTER WHO OFFERS ALL COMFORT EVEN IN ALL TRIBULATION. THOSE TRIALS, HE IS THERE. HE HEARS US, HE HEARS OUR CRIES, HE GIVES US THAT PEACE, HE HELPS US THROUGH HIS WORD AND OTHER WAYS TO HAVE THAT COMFORT THROUGH THE LOVE OF OTHERS. SO MANY BLESSINGS FROM GOD, THE ONE WHO IS ABLE TO COMFORT US IN ALL OF OUR TRIBULATION. AND THEN HE SAYS, “THAT WE MAY BE ABLE TO COMFORT THOSE WHO ARE IN ANY TROUBLE.” WOW, YOU SEE ONE OF THE WAYS GOD COMFORTS US IS NOT ONLY THROUGH HIS WORD, AND NOT ONLY THROUGH THE KNOWLEDGE OF HIS PROMISES AND HIS BLESSINGS, BUT THROUGH OUR BRETHREN. THROUGH THOSE WHO ARE AROUND US. HOW MANY TIMES HAVE YOU TURNED TO YOUR BRETHREN TO FIND THAT COMFORT? OR THOSE FRIENDS, THOSE DEAR FRIENDS THAT YOU TRUST IN? IN MY LIFE, MANY TIMES I HAVE TURNED TO THOSE WHO LOVE THE LORD LIKE I LOVE THE LORD,WHO SHARE IN THAT COMMON FAITH AS I SHARE WITH THEM IN THAT COMMON FAITH. AND THEN HE ENDS BY SAYING, “WITH THE COMFORT WITH WHICH WE OURSELVES ARE COMFORTED BY GOD.” AND THEN HE CONTINUES BY SAYING THE SUFFERINGS OF CHRIST. YOU SEE, GOD IS THAT GREAT COMFORTER. HE IS THE ONE WHO WILL COMFORT US. <br> <br>

      NOW, THERE'S A CAUTION THAT I NEED TO GIVE US ALL. BECAUSE AS WE KNOW THESE TRIALS AND THESE SUFFERINGS THEY COME AND EVEN THESE TESTS MIGHT COME, WE AT TIMES MIGHT WANT TO BLAME GOD AND THAT'S SOMETIMES WHAT THE WORLD DOES. BECAUSE ONE REASON, BECAUSE GOD HAS THE POWER TO STOP ALL OF THESE THINGS OR TO KEEP IT FROM HAPPENING THEN THEY SAY, ‘WELL, WHY DOES HE ALLOW IT TO HAPPEN.’ I WANT YOU TO BE CAUTIOUS OF, NOT ONLY THAT ATTITUDE AND SPIRIT, BUT BE CAUTIOUS OF SATAN. SATAN, WHO PUTS SUCH THINGS IN YOUR MIND TO TURN YOU AWAY FROM GOD WHO HAS SET A CERTAIN ORDER TO ALL THINGS. GOD WHO DOES GIVE THE WAY OF THE ESCAPE ALTHOUGH WE SUFFER. GOD WHO CAN HEAL AND DOES HEAL WHEN HE CHOOSES ACCORDING TO HIS WILL WHEN WE PRAY. THAT SAME LOVING GOD, THAT SAME CARING GOD. BUT NOTICE WHAT WE READ THERE IN ROMANS CHAPTER 8 SPECIFICALLY VERSE 35. IT SAYS THERE, “WHO SHALL SEPARATE US FROM THE LOVE OF CHRIST? SHALL TRIBULATION, OR DISTRESS, OR PERSECUTION, OR FAMINE, OR NAKEDNESS, OR PERISH BY THE SWORD?” CERTAINLY NOTHING SHOULD. VERSE 37 SAYS, “YET IN ALL THESE THINGS WE ARE MORE THAN CONQUERORS THROUGH HIM WHO LOVED US.” YOU SEE AGAIN, WHAT DID HE DO? HE ALLOWED JESUS TO SUFFER AND GIVE HIS LIFE THAT WE MIGHT HAVE FORGIVENESS OF SINS AND LIVE FOREVER WITH HIM IN HEAVEN. BUT WHO SHALL SEPARATE US? LET ME WARN YOU! THE ONLY PERSON THAT CAN SEPARATE YOU FROM CHRIST IS YOU. THE ONLY PERSON THAT CAN SEPARATE YOU FROM THE LOVE OF CHRIST IS YOU. BECAUSE WHEN AS HE SAID THE TRIBULATIONS OR THE DISTRESS OR THE PERSECUTION OR EVEN FAMINE OR NAKEDNESS OR PERILOUSNESS, WHEN THOSE THINGS COME, THE ONLY ONE WHO CAN ALLOW SATAN TO DIVIDE YOU FROM GOD OR SIN TO KEEP YOU OR SEPARATED FROM GOD IS YOURSELF!<br> <br> 

      SO DON'T ALLOW THAT TO HAPPEN. KNOW THAT GOD LOVES YOU, KNOW BY THE PROOF OF HIS WORD AND HIS ACTIONS THAT HE LOVES YOU AND THAT HE DOES CARE AND THAT HE IS ALWAYS WITH YOU EVEN TO THE END OF THE AGE. AND REALIZE THAT JUST BECAUSE WE SUFFER BECAUSE OF THIS WORLD AND THE SINS OF THIS WORLD AND SIN AND SO MANY OTHER THINGS DOESN'T MEAN THAT GOD DOESN'T CARE. GOD LOVES US SO MUCH AND CARES SO MUCH. NOT ONLY THAT HE GAVE HIS SON BUT HE PREPARED A MANSION FOR YOU, A MANSION FOR ME IN HEAVEN WHEN WE ARE FOUND FAITHFUL IN THE END. WHEN WE HAVE SUFFERED, WHILE WE HAVE SUFFERED, AND AS WE HAVE OVERCOME THAT SUFFERING HE WILL NOT ONLY ESTABLISH US BUT MAKE US VICTORIOUS! ARE YOU LIVING TODAY SO THAT YOU'LL RECEIVE THAT REWARD? WHY NOT MAKE SURE YOU'RE RIGHT WITH GOD SO THAT YOU LIVE ETERNALLY WITH HIM ON HIGH IN HEAVEN. <br> <br>



CLOSING COMMENTS<br> <br>

      AGAIN, LET ME THANK YOU FOR CHOOSING TO BE WITH US THIS MORNING. I HOPE WE ALL HAVE BEEN ENCOURAGED THROUGH OUR TIME SPENT TOGETHER. PLEASE REMEMBER, YOU ARE INVITED TO JOIN US EVERY SUNDAY MORNING AT 7:30, AS WE COMMIT OURSELVES TO THIS SERVICE OF GOD.<br> <br>

      NOW LET ME ASK IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS ABOUT TODAY’S LESSON? MAYBE, YOU WOULD LIKE A FREE TRANSCRIPT OR A FREE CASSETTE TAPE OF THIS PROGRAM? POSSIBLY, WE COULD ASSIST YOU WITH FREE BIBLE MATERIALS OR FREE BIBLE CORRESPONDENCE COURSES? NO MATTER WHAT YOUR NEED IS, PLEASE CONTACT US AT THE FOLLOWING ADDRESS:  <br> <br>



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      MAY WE ALL LEARN THAT SUFFERING IS A PART OF THE LIFE OF THE ALL MANKIND, INCLUDING THE RIGHTEOUS.  IN FACT, WHEN WE SUFFER WE ARE REMINDED OF OUR TRUE NEED AND RELIANCE ON GOD. THE QUESTION IS, HOW DO WE DEAL WITH SUFFERING? HAVE YOU TURN TO GOD THAT YOU MIGHT BE VICTORIOUS IN YOUR DAILY LIFE?  <br> <br>