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In the book of Ecclesiastes we read the

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words of the preacher, the son of David,

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king in Jerusalem, vanity of vanities, saith the

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preacher, vanity of vanities, all is vanity.

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King Solomon was the author of the book

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of Ecclesiastes, and he was the richest man

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that ever lived.

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He was so rich he could stick Bill

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Gates and Warren Buffet in his shirt pocket

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like a couple of cigars.

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He was a man who had tasted every

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pleasure in life and pursued every avenue life

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had to offer.

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His kingdom had such world renown that the

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Queen of Sheba had to come see it

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for herself, and when she saw the immense

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wealth of Solomon, she commented to him, I

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believed not the words until I came and

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my eyes had seen it, and behold, the

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half was not told me.

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King Solomon had it all, he had seen

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it all, and he had done it all.

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What he learned was that this world is

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an empty bubble, and if you try to

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find contentment in the things of this world,

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you will be left holding an empty bag.

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He learned that although sin has its pleasure

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for a season, this world does not satisfy

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the deep longings of one's soul.

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That's why so many rich and famous people

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are so empty and so unhappy.

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Solomon found out the hard way that the

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pursuit of the world ends up in vanity.

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His main observation is found in chapter 1

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and verse 4.

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One generation passeth away, and another generation cometh,

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but the earth abideth forever.

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The tale of my message today, friends, is

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Running to the Grave.

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There was a time in my life where

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I wanted as much of the world as

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I could get.

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I had bought into the philosophy that the

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one with the most toys in the end

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wins, so I went out to get as

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many toys as I could.

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I owned several homes.

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I drove only fancy luxury cars.

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When I traveled, I only stayed at the

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best hotels in the world.

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You could find me at Claridge's in London,

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or the Beverly Hills Hotel in LA, or

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at the lodge at Pebble Beach.

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I made a lot of money, and money

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was a means for me to enjoy the

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finer things in life.

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I wore a Rolex on my wrist, Italian

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loafers on my feet, and I wore Armani

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linen that I bought while I was on

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the Via Del Corso in Rome.

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I was always busy, either making money or

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busy spending it.

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I was always running after something new.

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I had to have the newest set of

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golf clubs, the newest car, a newer experience,

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but I was only running to the grave.

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One generation passeth away, and another generation cometh,

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but the earth abideth forever.

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One day, I saw the vanity of my

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own life, that although I owned much material

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goods of the world, my life was empty.

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It was all vanity, just like Solomon said.

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God in his mercy opened my eyes to

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my futile path in life, and by his

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grace, he flipped me upside down to where

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I was now, running to him.

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I think it's sad that so many individuals

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miss out on knowing God and finding God's

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best for them.

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Most people work hard, live hard, and die

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hard.

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They spend their life on the wrong things

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until they fall into the grave.

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Then their soul goes out into eternity, to

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a world they are quite unprepared for.

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Their lusts control them, the devil has them,

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and they die in their sins, then open

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their eyes in a smoking, burning hell.

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Jesus spoke frequently on hell, even though we

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preachers seldom mention it today, Jesus always was

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warning folks about hell.

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He said hell was a place of outer

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darkness, a place where the worm dieth not,

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and shall cast them into a furnace of

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fire.

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There should be wailing and gnashing of teeth.

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Wailing speaks of great grief and loss, and

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gnashing of teeth signifies great anger and regret.

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When my Italian grandfather died, I was eight

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years old, and my mother took me to

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the Italian wake for my grandfather.

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If you've never been to an old-fashioned

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Italian wake, then you don't have a clue

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what I'm talking about.

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All I know is that as my mother

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and I walked down the hallway of that

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funeral home to the room where my grandfather

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was lying in his open casket, all I

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could hear as we approached that room was

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screaming and hollering and loud wailing.

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It sounded like a scene from hell.

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I was terrified by it all, but looking

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back on that experience, I see how horrible

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hell must really be, for it is a

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region of continual wailing and gnashing of teeth

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that is so loud and so disturbing that

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the very volume of the decibels of it

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will drive you insane.

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Everybody dies.

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One generation passeth away, and another generation cometh,

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but the earth abideth forever.

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The sad reality is, friends, that most folks

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go to hell.

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It's been estimated that 85 people a minute

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die apart from Christ and go to hell.

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That's 5,000 people an hour.

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Do the math, and that comes to 120

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,000 every day who die and are cast

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into hell.

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That adds up to over 800,000 a

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week dying and being crammed into that bottomless

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pit of a tormenting hell.

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Every month that adds up to 3 million

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new arrivals populating hell.

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Throughout the course of a year that figure

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grows to 40 million lost tormented souls being

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shut up in the prison of hell.

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Let ten years go by, and that adds

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up to 400 million souls wailing and hollering

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in hell.

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Hell is a very crowded place.

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The shock and terror of it, of waking

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up in hell, is described vividly by the

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prophet Isaiah.

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The sinners in Zion are afraid of fearfulness

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has surprised the hypocrites who among us shall

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dwell with the devouring fire, who among us

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shall dwell with everlasting burnings.

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I was in a hotel in Edinburgh, Scotland,

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and I just stepped into the shower when

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I flipped out on my head.

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The bathroom tub had just been waxed, and

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as soon as I stepped onto it, my

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feet began to slip, and they sped up

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until I was flipped upside down on my

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head.

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I landed on a concrete floor, and I

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broke my wrist.

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It ended my trip early.

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I had to catch a plane back to

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London as soon as I could, and then

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fly back to the States to get my

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wrist looked at.

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I could have easily died in that fall

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by breaking my neck.

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Most men are just a step away from

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hell.

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They walk on slippery ground, and they can

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fall at any moment.

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God's word declares, surely thou didst set them

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in slippery places.

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Thou cast them down into destruction.

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How are they brought into desolation, as in

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a moment they are utterly consumed with terrors?

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Listen to me, friend.

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Hear me now.

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Your only hope is in Jesus Christ.

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You must get your sins washed in his

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blood.

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You must come to him for forgiveness of

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sin.

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If you've not trusted in this blessed Savior,

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receive him now, before it's too late.

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Soon he will come in judgment on this

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world, when his anger shall burn as an

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oven, and then you shall meet him as

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your judge.

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You are quickly running to the grave.

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You're closer than you realize.

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And Jesus said unto them, I am the

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bread of life.

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He that cometh to me shall never hunger,

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and he that believeth on me shall never

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thirst.

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Come to Christ, friend, and surrender to him,

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and believe on him, and own him as

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your Savior and Lord.

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Repent before it's too late.