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You are listening to Dr. Derek Stringer on Word Alive produced by Good News Broadcasting. I ‘m ( – )
This current series is called ‘Storm-Proof Lifes ‘ and is based on selected transitions in Luke ‘s Gospel.
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Today ‘s Bible is Luke 7:18 to 35.
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And we are traveling to look at a demoralized prophesier, John the Baptist. Did you know this prophesier came to a topographic point in his religious life where he doubted Jesus was truly the Messiah? They looked at Jesus ‘ ministry and said, “ You do n’t look much like the Messiah I expected. ”
Come on, allow ‘s be honest with each other. Have you of all time doubted like John the Baptist? Have you of all time wondered if we are all keenly purpose on believing and proclaiming some antediluvian myth? Have you of all time thought it possible we are all incorrect? I have. Sometimes ideas of uncertainty will mouse through my head, whispering such inquiries as, “ Is there truly a God? Is the Bible true? Is there truly an hereafter? ”
A wise adult male one time said, “ No individual can be genuinely right unless he has earnestly considered the possibility that he may be incorrect. ”
I believe what the Bible Teachs about God and truth will stand up to any examination and probe. Healthy uncertainties ever lead us to seek truth.
But you may be the sort of individual who says, “ Oh, no! Do n’t even state those words. I ‘m afraid God would n’t wish it if I doubted. ” Do n’t worry, if you have uncertainties, God is n’t traveling to strike you with a lightning bolt.
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Let ‘s see how Jesus reacted to John ‘s uncertainty.
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In this transition we are traveling to
hint four motions:
A inquiry,
An reply,
A compliment, and
An observation.
In Luke 7:18 to 21, Lashkar-e-Taiba ‘s start with The Question: “ Are you truly the 1? ”
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“ John ‘s adherents told him about all these things. Naming two of them, he sent them to the Lord to inquire, “ Are you the one who was to come, or should we anticipate person else? ” When the work forces came to Jesus, they said, “ John the Baptist sent us to you to inquire, ‘are you the one who was to come or should we anticipate person else? ‘ ”
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The last clip we heard from John before this transition was in Luke 3:19 where we read that John rebuked Herod the tetrarch because of Herodias, his brother ‘s married woman.
To all the other evil things he had done, Herod added this to them all: He locked John up in prison. Herod had seduced his sister-in-law, Herodias, and had kicked his married woman and kids out. This was such blazing immorality that John thundered against it. Herod ‘s attitude was, “ my personal morality has nil to make with my ability to regulate, so if you do n’t close up, it ‘s prison for you, preacher! ” John would n’t endorse down, so he is blowing off in Herod ‘s prison. It ‘s during this imprisonment when these uncertainties arise.
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Even the most faithful uncertainty at times.
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Yes, and this is the cogent evidence.
Who is it showing uncertainty? This is the adult male of God who was the precursor of the Messiah. We read about his marvelous birth to aged parents in Luke 1. We are told that he was “ filled with the Holy Spirit from his female parent ‘s uterus. ” John was so certain at one clip that he pointed to Jesus and shouted, “ Look! Here is the Lamb of God who takes off the wickedness of the universe! ” He was the 1 who baptised Jesus and heard a voice from heaven proclaim, “ This is my Son, whom I love, listen to Him! ” Surely this adult male would ne’er doubt? But he is the really 1 who said, “ Are you truly the 1? ”
If you of all time have uncertainties, you are in reasonably good company. Sometimes those closest to Jesus expressed uncertainties.
You can hear the uncertainty in the voice of Martha when Jesus arrives four yearss after Lazarus had died. Martha had sent for Jesus and asked Him to come aid Lazarus yearss earlier. It ‘s as if she is stating, “ Jesus you say that you love us, good, if you had been here my brother would non hold died! ”
The great prophesier, Elijah got so demoralized that he doubted God ‘s program for his life. Elijah sits under a tree and says, “ Lord, I do n’t wish the manner things are go oning to me, merely allow me decease. ”
We have even given the rubric “ doubting ” to one of Jesus ‘ adherents. We call him “ Doubting Thomas ” because he wanted to see some cogent evidence that Jesus was so alive after the crucifixion.
I believe that we have a batch of honest skeptics among us today… some are merely secret skeptics.
It ‘s all right, Jesus can manage your uncertainties.
The following inquiry is: Why do faithful retainers of the Lord sometimes go through periods of uncertainty?
Adversity can advance uncertainty… or it can advance faith-it ‘s our pick. John found it harder to disregard his uncertainties because he was sitting in a prison cell all twenty-four hours. If of all time there was a free spirit who longed to be in the wide-open infinites, it was John the Baptiser. His life had n’t turned out the manner he expected ; He wanted to go the desert and preach, alternatively he was an inmate, blowing away- that ‘s a perfect scenario for uncertainties to originate.
John was a rugged person of the wilderness, whose place and fireplace were the
hillsides and grasses of the Jordan Valley. His fountain was the river and his meat was the animal of the leaf. Suddenly his universe was shrunken to cold, rock walls, all within arm ‘s range ; his lone visible radiation was likely a little window near the ceiling which may hold given merely a glance of a glooming corridor, and non the sunlight at all. His life in its entireness had been spent to fix himself and so fix others for the coming of the long-awaited Messiah, and every bit shortly as the fulfillment came he was dragged off to pass his last yearss in an imposed privacy instead than one of his choosing. Rather than being allowed to bask the fruits of his labors, by watching the advancement of the Redeemer in His ministry, he was apparently cast off like an old garment ; discarded like a pawn who had merely served to do manner for the forward motion of the King and so taken off the board.
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There is a Church leader who will frequently subscribe a missive utilizing the Bible, John 3:30 which are really the words of John the Baptist. In his relationship with Jesus, John said, “ He must increase and I must diminish. ” John said those words with a pure bosom, but when it came to the existent “ diminishing ” of his life and ministry it still hurt.
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It truly did.
Possibly he thought, “ I ne’er suspected I would ‘decrease ‘ this much! ” It ‘s about as if John is stating, “ Come on, Lord, you are supposed to be the powerful Lord of
glorification. If you are, what am I making in this awful topographic point? I ‘ve heard you perform miracles, why do n’t you seek one on acquiring me out of here? If you are the Deliverer, I ‘d sure like some rescue about now! ”
We face the same sorts of hardship when a kid dies, force work stoppages, a mate is easy killed by malignant neoplastic disease or a hubby walks out. Satan begins to whisper prevarications in our ears, “ God does n’t care… He does n’t love you. He would n’t handle His kids this manner. ” Possibly you have come to a topographic point of trouble in your life. It ‘s easy to doubt God and inquire, “ God are you truly there? Do you truly care? Why do n’t you acquire me out of this muss? ” Or we do n’t even pray, we merely think, “ I do n’t believe a God of love would let all this to go on to me. ”
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What do you make when doubts arise?
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Well, do n’t deny them.
Make what John did: He went directly to the beginning. He asked Jesus. He would hold asked Him straight but he was stuck in gaol. Unlike John, we can near Jesus with our uncertainties and inquire Him straight.
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Luke 7:19 to 23 is Christ ‘s reply.
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At that really clip Jesus cured many who had diseases, illnesss and evil liquors, and gave sight to many who were blind. So he replied to the couriers, “ Travel back and study to John what you have seen and heard: The unsighted receive sight, the square walk, those who have leprosy are cured, the deaf hear, the dead raised, and the good intelligence is preached to the hapless. Blessed is the adult male who does non fall off on history of me. ”
I ‘m glad Jesus did n’t knock John for doubting. He could hold said, “ Who does John believe he is, inquiring a lame-brained inquiry like that? Of class, I ‘m the One. Travel back and state him. ”
Alternatively, Jesus honoured John ‘s inquiry with a sincere reply.
Basically, Jesus told the two couriers to travel back and show the grounds they found:
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Bible is being fulfilled!
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Yes. Jesus ‘ statement about the blind visual perception, the square walking, the lazars being cured and prophesying the good intelligence to the hapless was a direct mention to the prognostication about the Messiah found in Isaiah 35 and 61. Jesus was inquiring John to compare what Jesus was making with what the Bibles had predicted.
John was frustrated because the Messiah scenario was n’t playing out the manner he expected. John was a ardent prophesier who preached the fire of God ‘s opinion was traveling to fall on wicked people. He called the Jews a clump of toxicant serpents ( you brood of vipers ) . He said God ‘s axe was already at the root of the trees and every tree non bearing good fruit was traveling to be cut down and thrown into the fire.
John was a bolide. He expected Jesus to be a powerful Messiah who would thunder against wickedness and pronounce God ‘s concluding opinion against evil and wicked people.
John got the message right ; he merely misunderstood the timing. Jesus came as the Lamb of God the first clip. He will return as the Lion of the Tribe of Judah conveying God ‘s concluding opinion against wickedness. But John had heard studies that alternatively of raising a mighty ground forces of righteous warriors to conflict wickedness, Jesus was passing clip with evildoers and was showing grace, clemency, and forgiveness.
He was confused. Jesus gently reminded John to mention back to what the Bibles had to state about the Messiah.
I ‘m non really good with Computers. I give the feeling I know my manner around. I suppose I do. . . merely every bit long as nil goes incorrect and I stay in the circle of making things with which I am familiar.
I remember speaking to one of my girls about some thing I wanted to make on the lap top but I could n’t acquire it done. She said, “ Let ‘s expression at the manual instructions. ” We eventually found the operating instructions stuffed in the box up in the loft of the house. After reading the instructions, we got the equipment working. Possibly I should state, “ She got it working. ”
When life does n’t look to work right, it ‘s a smart thing to read the instructions-the Bible. If you are entertaining honest uncertainties, do n’t merely sit around and brood. Open the Bible and get down analyzing the Bibles. When you are faltering about in a dark fog of uncertainty and confusion, retrieve the words of the psalmist, “ your word is a lamp unto my pess, and a light unto my way. ” Jesus suggested John see the Bibles and that ‘s good advice for us.
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Jesus besides told the adherents of John to describe that people ‘s lives were being transformed.
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Notice the specific illustrations Jesus references: the blind, square, lazars, deaf and even dead people. Peoples with demands were being helped. You truly ca n’t reason with a individual whose life has been changed.
If you are fighting with uncertainties about the Christian life, I want to dispute you to make what Jesus suggested. Take some clip and scrupulously analyze the Bible.
One of my rational heroes is C.S. Lewis. He was one of the universe ‘s foremost intellectuals, a celebrated expert in literature. He was an honest agnostic, and he set out on a diligent survey to find whether or non the Bible and Christianity were existent and reliable. As a consequence of analyzing the Bibles, he became one of the most noteworthy Christians and Christian minds in the twentieth Century. His book Mere Christianity is one of the first Christian books I read. It still ranks as one of best books for skeptics to read.
So see the Bibles, but besides look about and see the 1000s of peoples whose lives have been changed because of Jesus.
Old ages ago, Robert Ingersoll, a celebrated atheist, was rather affluent and used his wealth to go around and publically discredit the Bible and Christianity. Once in London he stood in a big hall before an audience and said, “ There is no God. If there is a God may He strike me dead in the following five proceedingss! ” Then he would take out his pocket ticker and number down the proceedingss. Men sweated and ladies fainted, anticipating a lightning bolt to incinerate this adult male. Nothing would go on, so he would do his talk jeering at the Bible and God. Someone told Church Minister Joseph Parker about Ingersoll ‘s five-minute challenge of God. Parker ‘s response was, “ And so,
the gentleman from America thinks he can wash up God ‘s forbearance in merely five proceedingss? ”
Upon hearing this statement, Ingersoll invited the Pastor Joseph Parker to a public argument about the claims of the Bible and Christianity. Dr. Parker accepted the argument on certain conditions. He told Ingersoll he would convey 10 work forces from his church that had been delivered from alcohol addiction by their religion in Jesus and all Ingersoll had to make was conveying one adult male whose life had been saved from inebriation by godlessness. Dr. Parker offered to convey ten married twosomes whose matrimonies had been saved and renewed by Christ ; all Ingersoll had to make was bring forth one twosome who could state the same about godlessness. Ingersoll declined. Why? You can non rebut a changed life.
Jesus was altering lives 2,000 old ages ago, and He is still altering lives.
If you find yourself doubting like, John, examine the grounds Jesus nowadayss.
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You are listening to Word Alive with Derek Stringer, taking selected transitions from Luke ‘s Gospel. We are seeing how we can ‘Storm-Proof ‘ our lives. . . peculiarly against ‘Doubt ‘ , Derek ‘s subject for today, utilizing the doubting experience.
All this brings us to the Compliment that Jesus pays ‘John the Doubter ‘ .
“ After John ‘s couriers left, Jesus began to talk to the crowd about John: “ What did you travel out into the desert to see? A reed swayed by the air current? If non, what did you travel out to see? A adult male dressed in all right apparels? No, those who wear expensive apparels and indulge in luxuries are in castles. But what did you travel out to see? A prophesier? Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophesier. This is the 1 about whom it is written: ‘I will direct my courier in front of you, who will fix your manner before you. ‘ I tell you, among those Borns of adult females there is no 1 greater than John ; yet the 1 who is least in the Kingdom of God is greater than he. ” ( All the people, even the revenue enhancement aggregators, when they heard Jesus ‘ words, acknowledged that God ‘s manner was right, because they had been baptised by John. But the Pharisees and experts in the jurisprudence rejected God ‘s intent for themselves, because they had non been baptised by John. ) ”
Back to Derek.
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Notice John ‘s inquiries were more than merely an look of personal uncertainty. It really amounted to a public challenge to Jesus ‘ individuality. Notice John supposes to be talking for others when he says, “ Should WE look for another? ” It was an look of uncertainty but it was besides a inquiry that would hold embarrassed lesser work forces.
It would be like person standing up in church stating, “ Derek, are you
truly God ‘s adult male to take Good News Broadcasting? Possibly we should be looking for person else. ” That would be an unsettling statement that would about be considered a menace. The manner Jesus responded reveals a great trade about His loving character.
He foremost asked a twosome of inquiries and so he made two astonishing statements, one about John and one about us.
On the really twenty-four hours John said the worst thing he of all time said about Jesus, Jesus said the finest thing He of all time said about John!
Jesus asked a twosome of inquiries himself. He asked the people why they flocked into the desert to hear John ‘s sermon. John was n’t like a reed shaken by the air current ; that is, he did n’t alter his message harmonizing to the crowd. John was more like an oak tree than a jolted reed. He stood house on the Word of God. Jesus asked if the crowd flocked to John because of his all right clothing-tongue in cheek. We know John ne’er cut his hair and wore leather and camel ‘s hair vesture.
The lone interior decorator label John wore was Camel Klein!
Then Jesus points out John was more than a prophesier. John the Baptist was a transitional character between the Old and New Testaments. He was the last in a long line of great Old Testament prophets. But he was more because he was the “ Elijah ” who was to come before the Messiah. Of all the people of all time born of adult female ( that ‘s most of us ) , John was the greatest. What a compliment! Jesus was stating John was greater than Abraham, Moses, Elijah, King David and all the remainder. In other words, humanly talking, John is the really best world can make.
But is that plenty? No truly.
Jesus said the least in the Kingdom of God was greater than humanity ‘s best. What does He intend? The phrase “ Born of adult female ” is of import. That speaks of our human individuality. We have all been born of a adult female but Jesus told a all right, spiritual adult male there is another birth more of import than being born in the flesh.
Jesus told Nicodemus a individual must be born once more or they will ne’er see or come in the Kingdom of God. When you experience this 2nd birth you become a portion of God ‘s land. All you need to hold a land is a King and Jesus becomes the personal Lord or Ruler of your life. John was the retainer in the land ; we are inheritors of the King! John was the friend of the bridegroom, we are really the bride!
Today, the youngest truster has religious wealths John the Baptist could ne’er conceive of. We have Jesus residing in our Black Marias, we have the Bible depicting the new Covenant, we have the family of other trusters. You can joy today that in the eyes of Jesus, the least in God ‘s land are greater than humanity ‘s best.
And all this leads us to a cardinal Observation.
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Verse 31: “ To what, so, can I compare the people of this coevals? What are they like? They are like kids sitting in the market place and naming out to each other: ‘We played the flute for you and, and you did non dance ; we sang a coronach, and you did non shout. ‘ For John the Baptist came neither eating staff of life, nor imbibing vino, and you say, ‘he has a devil. ‘ The boy of adult male came eating and imbibing, and you say, ‘here is a gourmand and a rummy, a friend of revenue enhancement aggregators and evildoers, ‘ But wisdom is proved right by all her kids. ”
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Jesus makes an sharp observation about the coevals in being when He visited Earth. When I read His words, I believe He could state the same thing about our twenty-first Century coevals.
Like kids: We want God to dance to our music
Ca n’t you merely visualize kids in the market place at Capernaum? They would garner around as a group to play games while their parents shopped. There were frequently be craftsmans and instrumentalists who played in the market places for a few coins people tossed their manner. When the folk singer played a nuptials vocal, the kids danced around gleefully and they called out to the other kids and passerby to fall in them in the dance. When people refused to fall in them, they pouted in cranky silence. Or when they pretended to be a funeral emanation, the instrumentalist would play a coronach, but still people would n’t fall in them. So, as most kids do, they sat down, stuck out their
lips, crossed their weaponries and refused to play because others refused to dance to their music.
Like these kids, we sometimes try to do God tantrum into our box of outlooks. We want Him to react to our melody and when He does n’t we pout.
Listen. Jesus wo n’t suit your spiritual mould-He is a friend of evildoers.
John was a really austere, terrible, severe character. Make you cognize what the spiritual leaders said about him? They said, “ He is demon possessed. ” He wo n’t dance to our music! Then Jesus came along ; He was n’t austere and ascetic. Alternatively, Jesus spent clip with evildoers and loved to eat and imbibe with them and the same people who criticised John criticised Jesus! Like kids, they ca n’t be pleased!
Today, people hold up all sorts of preconceived outlooks about God and how Christians ought to act and when it does n’t suit their sentiment ( dance to their melody ) , they childishly reject it.
As I finish this message, I hope this one idea will drop down profoundly into your psyche. Jesus is a friend of sinners-that ‘s us. Jesus came to demo us what God is like. God is non some hardhearted, unconcerned divinity who observes our lives from a safe distance. God came to populate among us to demo us He loves us. He came to demo us you do n’t hold to roll in the wilderness and eat a diet of locusts and wild honey ; you can bask life! Jesus enjoyed hanging out with people, eating and imbibing and laughing. Some people try to disregard that facet of the life of Jesus, but you ca n’t.
If Jesus visited your Church in the flesh for a Sunday, do you believe He would demo up have oning a three-piece suit and transporting a large Book in His manus? I ca n’t reply that inquiry but I do cognize the people who gave Him the greatest problem were the spiritual people of His twenty-four hours.
We need to be careful we do n’t do the same error. When we try to coerce Jesus into our mold of spiritual reputability, He does n’t suit.
What does it intend for Jesus to be your friend? Sometimes we erroneously think a true friend merely accepts us as we are and ne’er asks us to alter. That ‘s merely half right. A friend accepts as we are, mistakes and all, but a true friend loves us adequate to assist us cover with our mistakes. If you were addicted to cocaine, a true friend would n’t be person who said, “ I know you ‘re a cocaine nut and I ‘m cool with that. If that ‘s your thing, go for it. ” No. A true friend says, “ I know you ‘re addicted to cocaine, and I love you excessively much to allow you destruct your life. ” A true friend ever wants the best for us and is willing to assist us cover with and get the better of our wickednesss and defects.
The nazarene wants to be your best friend. He does accept you merely the manner you are. Jesus ne’er says, “ When you clean up your life, so I ‘ll be your friend. ” He says, “ Accept my friendly relationship. Let me to love you and we can make something about your wickednesss. ” And Jesus has already done everything necessary for your wickednesss to be fixed.
Is Jesus your friend?
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In John 15:13 He said, “ Greater love has no adult male than this that a adult male lay down his life for his friends. ”
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A group of World War II American Prisoners of War who were made to make hard labor in a prison cantonment. Each had a shovel and delve all twenty-four hours, so was made to come in and give an history of his tool in the eventide. One eventide, 20 captives lined up by the guard and the shovels were counted. The guard counted 19 shovels and turned in fury on the 20 captives demanding to cognize which one did non convey his shovel back. No 1 responded. The guard took out his gun and said he would hit five work forces if the guilty captive did non step frontward. After a minute of tense silence, a nineteen-year-old soldier stepped frontward with his caput bowed down. The guard grabbed him, took him to the side and shooting him in the caput and so turned to warn the others they ‘d better be more careful than he was. When he left the work forces counted the shovels and there were 20. The guard had miscounted. And the male child had given his life for his friends.
If you had been one of those captives, what would you believe about that immature adult male as you fondly buried his organic structure?
Here was a immature adult male, full of hope and promise but in that split second, he chose decease so the others could populate.
Would you like to hold a friend like that? You have one. His name is Jesus. It was non some split-second determination. Jesus planned to decease for you from the foundation of the universe. He laid down His life for you.
Sometimes, uncertainties arise. Even the most faithful Christians sometimes doubt, particularly when we are traveling through periods of hardship.
We ‘re non state what happened to John the Baptist when the couriers reported back to him. I suspect a smiling peeked out from his shaggy face fungus. Later, I ‘m certain others reported to him, “ John, Jesus said you are the greatest adult male of all time born of adult female! ”
Mark studies on the dark of Herod ‘s birthday, there was a batch of imbibing and dance. Salome, the girl of his stolen married woman, Herodias, inflamed Herod with her motions. When Herod said, “ Ask for anything, I ‘ll give it to you, up to one half of my land. ” ( He was merely self-praise, because he did n’t even hold a land. He was like a justice over four states. ) After confer withing with her female parent, she asked Herod to give her John ‘s caput on a platter. Herod could n’t interrupt his word so a soldier was dispatched to John ‘s cell.
What do you believe was traveling through John ‘s head at the last? Doubt? I doubt it.
As the blade swished through the air, John ‘s earthly life ended-and so did his imprisonment. He was immediately escorted into the presence of God. Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, and Elijah were already at that place. Jesus said John was greater than all of them!
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I would surmise in heaven John must hold thought, “ Why did I of all time doubt? ”
You see, uncertainty ca n’t maintain you out of Eden ; it merely maintain you from sing the JOY of heaven now!
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Even the most faithful uncertainty at times.
Our uncertainties get louder in the thick of hardship.
What is the reply?
Well, as Dr. Stringer has shown:
See the grounds. . .
Bible is being fulfilled!
Lifes are being changed!
Jesus will be your friend.
Thankss for listening to Word Alive.
This complete series of 16 messages is called ‘Storm Proof Your Lifes ‘ .
You can order all or merely one in the series when you contact us.
