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Apart from a pure gospel message, friends, I

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don't know of a more important message than

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I can preach other than this one.

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I've agonized over it and prayed over it

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with the hopes of it being real to

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someone who hears it.

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I know at one time I myself needed

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to hear it and have it applied to

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my life.

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If you go to the doctor and he

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tells you we have a cancerous tumor and

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we refuse to submit to the surgery to

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remove it and instead we just go apply

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some topical ointments with the hope it will

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go away, the tumor will only grow more

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deadly.

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About a year ago I was lying in

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the ICU having been brought there in an

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ambulance.

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All four of my main arteries were 90

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% blocked and I was on the very

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verge of eternity for me to have a

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hope to live.

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I had to agree to undergo open heart

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surgery where they removed my heart from my

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body and cleaned out the veils like an

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automobile carburetor.

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You have to first remove the carburetor to

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clean the parts.

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I know that's a simplification of open heart

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surgery but it gives you an idea of

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what I'm talking about.

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I had to agree to the surgery and

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sign my name on a doctor's release form.

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God gives us opportunities to be worked on

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by him.

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He is the divine surgeon of our hearts.

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If we recognize the need but refuse to

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undergo the process we can end up in

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a very dangerous place.

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I have a very important message for you

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today friends, for some of you.

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It may be one of the most important

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messages you'll ever hear in your life so

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please pay attention and lend me your ears.

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I have a three-part sermon today.

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The first part is a story I want

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to share with you.

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Then I want to read an important passage

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of scripture to you.

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Then I want to exhort you to follow

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God as I finish my message.

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Remember friends that Jesus had a few important

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truths.

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He needed to teach his disciples but he

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had to keep telling those same truths to

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them over and over again until they finally

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sunk into their thick skulls.

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Well the first part of my message is

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a story and it's an interesting one about

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Sam Jones the evangelist who was so mightily

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used to God in revival in the late

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19th century.

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Why in 1885 God used Sam Jones to

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literally shake the whole city of Nashville in

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revival.

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Well let me tell you this story about

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Sam Jones now friends.

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Sam Jones was at home in Cornersville Georgia

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when he received a telegram from Texas inviting

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him to go preach to the cowboys of

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southwest Texas.

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Well he prayed about it and he got

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on a train and went to Texas and

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for two weeks he preached the gospel of

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Jesus Christ to the cowboys of Texas.

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When it was over as they came to

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the end of the campaign the cowboys wanted

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to give Sam Jones a love offering.

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They felt the laborer was worthy of his

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hire and they had received wonderful blessings from

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his time among them but there was a

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problem.

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They had no money not a single dollar

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in any of their pockets and they didn't

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know what to do and they allowed Sam

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Jones to go back home to Cornersville Georgia

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with no compensation or love offering of any

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kind whatever.

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Well Sam Jones went back home and a

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number of weeks passed by then suddenly one

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day he received a telegram.

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It was from the cowboys of Texas.

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It read like this.

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We are sending you a love offering and

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we are shipping you a carload of broncos

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and Sam Jones scratched his head as he

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looked in amazement at that telegram.

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Well what am I going to do he

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said with a carload of wild horses in

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the small town of Cornersville.

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Well his friend was standing beside him and

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he said why it's very easy.

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Hold an auction sale sell the broncos and

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you'll get your money.

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You can get your love offering then and

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put it in your pocket.

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Well Sam Jones thought it was a good

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suggestion so he held a auction sale.

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He sold the broncos all except one.

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He kept the finest looking bronco for his

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son.

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He wanted to give the bronco to his

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son.

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He wanted to give that bronco to his

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son as a gift and that's what he

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did.

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But the son had never in his life

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been on the back of a unbroken bronco

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and Sam Jones wondered what he could do.

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He called the cowboy to him who had

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brought the carload of broncos to Cornersville.

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He said will you take this bronco?

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Will you break them so that my son

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can ride them?

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Yes sir said the cowboy.

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I'd be glad to.

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How much will you charge?

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Fifteen dollars said the cowboy.

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All right said Sam.

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Take him away.

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The cowboy disappeared with the bronco.

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Two weeks later he came back.

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Is he broken said Sam.

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Yes sir he's broken.

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Can my son ride him in perfect safety?

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Yes sir your son can ride him in

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perfect safety.

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All right here's your fifteen dollars.

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The father thought that before allowing his son

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to ride the bronco he better mount himself

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and make sure that the cowboy had broken

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the bronco.

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He started toward the bronco.

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The cowboy came up waving his hands in

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alarm.

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Why said Sam.

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What's the matter?

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What's gone wrong?

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Oh said the cowboy.

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He's only broken on one side and you're

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mounting from the wrong side.

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Oh said Sam.

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That will never do.

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My son might make a mistake and he

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might mount from the wrong side.

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How much will you charge to break him

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on the other side?

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Fifteen dollars said the cowboy.

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All right said Sam.

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Take him away and break him on the

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other side.

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Well another two weeks passed by and again

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the cowboy came back leading the bronco.

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Is he broken said Sam.

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Yes sir he's broken.

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Both sides?

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Yes sir both sides.

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Your son can mount him with perfect safety

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from either side.

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All right here's your fifteen dollars.

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Well I like that story friend because it's

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so true.

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You know the average Christian is only broken

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on one side.

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He'll do this but he won't do that.

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He'll go here but he won't go there.

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He'll give God just so much of himself

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but still hold something back.

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He's like the bronco.

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He's only broken on one side and then

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he wonders why God doesn't use him more.

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Why the years have passed by and he's

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not used of God.

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He may have been highly educated.

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Perhaps he's been well trained.

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He may have even gone to seminary and

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he sees God using other men who've got

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very little education, very little training, who've never

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been to seminary and they're being used to

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God but he can't understand why God doesn't

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use him more.

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He doesn't realize he's only been broken on

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one side that God can't trust him.

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He'll do this but he won't do that.

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He'll go there but he won't go here.

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He's only broken on one side and God

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cannot rely upon him.

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God cannot trust him.

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The man God uses is the man who's

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been broken on both sides.

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The man who's been totally surrendered and totally

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yielded to the Lord Jesus Christ.

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But some broncos don't break so easily.

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They're more stubborn, more hard-headed, more self

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-willed.

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People are like that too.

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A lot of our stubborn will is rooted

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in either pride or self-preservation.

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But to recognize a need and fight against

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it is a very dangerous place to be,

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friend.

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God hardened Pharaoh's heart within him and instead

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of submission to God he strove against him

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to his ultimate ruin.

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I've known individuals in church meetings where I've

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physically seen God deal with them by his

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spirit.

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I sat near a woman in church who

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God was dealing with and her broken hearted

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sobs of anguish wracked her entire body and

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disturbed all those seated near her.

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I saw her respond to the evangelist's appeal

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for commitment by going into a room for

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prayer.

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She emerged not broken but more hardened than

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ever.

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I saw a deacon in a Baptist church

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harden himself against God because of his pride.

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God was obviously dealing with him during revival

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meetings but he refused to respond to the

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evangelist's appeals to come rededicate one's life to

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God at his altar.

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He just sat there while others received a

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blessing and he hardened himself from being moved

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next time.

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His pride was the obstacle that stood between

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him and God.

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He didn't want others to see his weakness.

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I've seen it in myself when I've been

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wrought upon by God's spirit and conviction where

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I saw clearly my need to be broken

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on both sides and I waffled.

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I gave up this sin but I held

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on to that one.

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I budged a little here but refused to

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budge there.

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I was willing to give God almost all

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but not entirely all and for years I

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stood on the sidelines for God as I

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struggled in a battle with my will against

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God's will and God didn't use me.

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I did a lot in the flesh.

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There was flesh but God wasn't working through

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me.

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There's a difference friends.

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Oh I made my excuses here and there.

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I saw God finally pulling away from me

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to leave me to my own devices.

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I could almost hear him say Ephraim is

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joined to his idols.

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Let him alone.

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Finally a day came where I surrendered to

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his claims on my life and I said

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Lord I can no longer resist you.

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Surrender all I am and all I have

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to you.

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Give you undisputed reign and rule in my

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life from this point on.

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Then God started using me and he's still

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using me.

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If God's been dealing with you friend it

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is presumptuous on your part to assume he

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will continue to strive with you.

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It's a perilous place to be for God

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has declared in his word that he is

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no respecter of persons and he says my

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spirit will not always strive with man.

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Now we come to the second part of

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my message today friends and that is our

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Bible passage.

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You can turn in your Bibles to the

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book of Isaiah.

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We will be in chapter 5.

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This striking passage of scripture in Isaiah chapter

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5 is where we find the parable of

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the vineyard where God declares now will I

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sing to my well beloved a song of

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my beloved touching his vineyard my well beloved

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hath a vineyard in a very fruitful hill

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and he fenced it and gathered out the

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stones thereof and planted it with the choicest

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vine and built a tower in the midst

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of it and also made a wine press

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therein and he looked that it should bring

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forth grapes and it brought forth wild grapes.

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Here God exercises great care over his people.

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He has great expectations for them but they

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turn out being a great disappointment to him

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and in their obstinate rebellion end up under

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a great judgment from him.

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He looked for grapes but all he found

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was wild grapes.

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God the Father has carefully cultivated you digging

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here and watering there picking you up here

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when you fell and strengthening you so not

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to sin against him willfully again.

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He has carefully cultivated you by his grace

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and by his spirit in the hopes of

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your entire submission to him so that you

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can be broken on both sides and be

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useful to him and he laments over you

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what could I have been done more to

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my vineyard that I have not done.

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God only uses those who are broken on

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both sides.

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All else is what we drum up and

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manufacture in the name of God and religion

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by self-effort but Cain's offering was no

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good.

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It had no blood in it.

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Our self-preservation will only harden our hearts

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more and more like an adamant stone until

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one day we turn so far away from

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God and rebellion to him that the devil

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will be there waiting in the shadows.

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This is what happened to prideful King Saul.

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He ended up going to the devil.

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I've seen this happen to church people I've

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personally known.

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God deals with them.

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God extends his grace to them.

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God strives with them by his spirit but

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it was all for naught.

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All that was left was wild grapes.

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Grapes have to be stepped on and pressed

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on and crushed on to be made into

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fine wine.

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Now we come to the last part of

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my message today friends.

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If God has been dealing with you through

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the sermon friend it may very well be

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your last call for response and obedience to

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him.

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If a father warned his child time and

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time again about the danger of playing with

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knives and if the child was old enough

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to obey and refused to obey then that

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knife could cut them all to pieces.

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God loves you like a father and as

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a father he desires entire submission to him

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for your own good.

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He wants to keep you from the things

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that can harm you.

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You will either surrender your stubborn will to

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him and be broken on both sides or

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you won't.

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But if you'll do you'll be crossing over

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your own Rubicon and there's no turning back.

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But remember this it was the loaves that

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were broken in the master's hands that fed

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the five thousand.

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It was the broken vase that released the

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sweet smelling fragrance to anoint Jesus.

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Being yielded to God friend simply means getting

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low.

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It's getting low enough to give it all

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to him.

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Let me give you an example of this

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in the life of Adrian Rogers.

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Adrian Rogers was a man broken on both

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sides and that's why God used him so.

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As a young man Adrian Rogers was crossing

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a field one day when he felt a

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sudden urge to pray and give himself entirely

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to God.

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He got down on his knees and said

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Lord Lord Jesus I want to go low

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enough for you to use me.

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But he realized just kneeling wasn't low enough

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so he lay on the ground on his

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stomach in the grass of that field and

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he prayed again that God would let him

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get low enough so he could be used.

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But he realized that wasn't getting the job

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done either.

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So Adrian Rogers took his index finger and

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dug a hole in the dirt big enough

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for his nose and in complete humility and

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00:19:42,850 --> 00:19:46,110
utter surrender he laid back down again and

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stuck his nose in the dirt the earth

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filling his nostrils and he prayed once more

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Lord Jesus this is as low as I

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can go.

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And God honored that and began to use

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Adrian Rogers to where he eventually his name

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was known all over the world as a

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preacher of the gospel.

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God may be speaking to you friend right

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now by showing you you are not low

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00:20:17,050 --> 00:20:17,610
enough.

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00:20:17,610 --> 00:20:20,030
You're still holding something back.

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00:20:20,130 --> 00:20:24,030
He's gently telling you it's time for the

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00:20:24,030 --> 00:20:27,490
wild grapes to go that old stubborn will

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00:20:27,490 --> 00:20:29,630
must be yielded to him.

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For a long time I couldn't grasp the

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significance of John chapter 15 where Jesus tells

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his disciples I am the vine ye are

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00:20:42,430 --> 00:20:43,210
the branches.

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00:20:44,190 --> 00:20:47,710
He that abideth in me and I in

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him the same bringeth forth much fruit for

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without me ye can do nothing.

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For years I applied that truth only to

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the daily devotional time where we are abiding

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00:21:02,810 --> 00:21:05,530
in Christ when we are praying to him.

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00:21:05,930 --> 00:21:09,030
I miss the central thought which is this

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a branch has no source of life on

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its own.

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It must be yielded to the vine to

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participate in fruit production.

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When I try to go my own stubborn

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way I'm in a place of self-rule

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and I have no power from above and

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I can do nothing for God from his

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perspective that is impacting and lasting for eternity.

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I must be broken on both sides.

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00:21:39,950 --> 00:21:43,610
I must be yielded continually to the vine

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if I ever can do anything worthwhile for

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00:21:47,090 --> 00:21:47,690
God.

430
00:21:48,190 --> 00:21:51,290
Obedience is yieldedness and the only way to

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00:21:51,290 --> 00:21:53,790
get there is by brokenness.

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Obey God and yield it all to him

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00:21:58,510 --> 00:21:58,990
friend.

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00:21:59,450 --> 00:22:02,330
Get low enough in your heart friend and

435
00:22:02,330 --> 00:22:06,030
ask him to take complete control and give

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00:22:06,030 --> 00:22:09,190
him his rightful place to let the Lord

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00:22:09,190 --> 00:22:12,930
Jesus have undisputed reign and rule in your

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00:22:12,930 --> 00:22:13,570
life.

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00:22:14,010 --> 00:22:15,250
Give it all to him friend.

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00:22:15,910 --> 00:22:19,570
He's not a cruel taskmaster but a loving

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00:22:19,570 --> 00:22:23,390
father who has your best interests at heart.

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00:22:23,910 --> 00:22:24,990
Come to him now.

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00:22:25,350 --> 00:22:28,050
Get low before him and get your nose

444
00:22:28,050 --> 00:22:30,490
in the dirt so to speak and come

445
00:22:30,490 --> 00:22:32,030
lay it all on Jesus.

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00:22:32,570 --> 00:22:35,230
I have a promise from the word of

447
00:22:35,230 --> 00:22:37,510
God to you friend that if you get

448
00:22:37,510 --> 00:22:41,090
serious with God he will get serious with

449
00:22:41,090 --> 00:22:41,550
you.

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00:22:42,050 --> 00:22:45,670
He promises to meet you where the desire

451
00:22:45,670 --> 00:22:46,750
of your heart is.

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00:22:47,150 --> 00:22:51,630
Psalm 18 says so with the merciful thou

453
00:22:51,630 --> 00:22:54,270
wilt show thyself merciful.

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00:22:54,810 --> 00:22:59,050
With an upright man thou wilt show thyself

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00:22:59,050 --> 00:22:59,830
upright.

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00:23:00,510 --> 00:23:04,810
With the pure thou wilt show thyself pure.

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And with the froward thou wilt show thyself

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00:23:09,390 --> 00:23:10,610
froward.

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00:23:11,330 --> 00:23:14,530
Ask God to meet you now friend and

460
00:23:14,530 --> 00:23:18,670
ask God to break you on both sides.

461
00:23:19,090 --> 00:23:22,330
He can make your life a sweet fragrance

462
00:23:22,330 --> 00:23:26,050
that reminds this perishing world of this Jesus

463
00:23:26,050 --> 00:23:29,710
who gave his all at Calvary where he

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00:23:29,710 --> 00:23:33,550
willingly submitted to the father on that bloody

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00:23:33,550 --> 00:23:36,450
cross and held nothing back.

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00:23:36,990 --> 00:23:40,090
Let us take this time now to get

467
00:23:40,090 --> 00:23:42,930
along with God and yield it all to

468
00:23:42,930 --> 00:23:43,490
him.

469
00:23:44,050 --> 00:23:46,450
You may wish to slip out of your

470
00:23:46,450 --> 00:23:50,090
chair and get quiet with God where you

471
00:23:50,090 --> 00:23:50,670
are.

472
00:23:50,870 --> 00:23:52,650
Let us pray.

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00:23:53,310 --> 00:23:58,950
Oh great God let someone here today say

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00:23:58,950 --> 00:24:04,550
bend me, break me, change me, use me.

475
00:24:04,990 --> 00:24:10,550
Heavenly Father bless someone here with the riches

476
00:24:10,550 --> 00:24:13,990
of your pungent presence and grace.

477
00:24:14,670 --> 00:24:18,930
Pour out your spirit's blessings upon them as

478
00:24:18,930 --> 00:24:20,410
they turn to you now.

479
00:24:20,970 --> 00:24:25,030
Bring change to this person here Lord and

480
00:24:25,030 --> 00:24:29,370
bring change to that person there Lord and

481
00:24:29,370 --> 00:24:34,070
make them the individuals you want them to

482
00:24:34,070 --> 00:24:35,990
be for your glory.

483
00:24:36,570 --> 00:24:40,070
I pray these things in the strong name

484
00:24:40,070 --> 00:24:40,930
of Jesus.

485
00:24:41,710 --> 00:24:42,410
Amen.