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[ Silence ] [MUSIC] No man can a-hinder me, my Lord King Jesus, my Lord King Jesus. No man can a-hinder me, no man can a-hinder me, my Lord King Jesus.

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No man can anger me, right on King Jesus, right on. No man can I anger me, no man can I anger me. In the break in the morning, very well, very well. In the break in the morning, very well, very well.

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In the break in the morning, very well, very well. ♪ And did not pray in the morning ♪ ♪ Very well, very well ♪ ♪ I'm gonna tell you 'bout the coming of the judgment ♪

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♪ Very well, very well ♪ ♪ I'm gonna tell you 'bout the coming of the judgment ♪ ♪ Very well, very well ♪ ♪ Oh, Gabriel blew that trumpet ♪

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♪ Bloody well, bloody well ♪ ♪ Oh, Gabriel blew that trumpet ♪ ♪ Bloody well, bloody well ♪ ♪ Lord, how loud shall I blow it ♪

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♪ Bloody well, bloody well ♪ ♪ Lord, how loud shall I blow it ♪ ♪ Bloody well, bloody well ♪ Blow it nice, calm and easy.

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Very well, very well. Blow it nice, calm and easy. Very well, very well. With that pretty end of morning.

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Very well, very well. Oh, isn't that great? In the morning, very well, very well. Oh, isn't that great?

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In the morning, very well, very well. Isn't that great? In the morning, very well, very well. ♪ No man, no man ♪

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♪ Cannot hinder me ♪ ♪ No man, cannot hinder me ♪ ♪ No man, cannot hinder me ♪ - Hear this word.

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found in the book of the prophets Jeremiah, 32nd chapter, 6th through the 12th verses. Jeremiah, the 32nd chapter, the 6th through the 12th verses, is the focal passage of scripture around which the message is woven. Jeremiah said, "The word of the Lord came to me, and Samuel, the son of Sholom, is going to come to you and say, "Buy my field at Anathoth,

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as nearest relative, it is your right and duty to buy it. Then, just as the Lord had said, my cousin Anamio came to me in the courtyard of the guard and said, "Buy my field in Anathoth in the territory of Benjamin, the son of Anathoth." Benjamin, since it is your right to redeem it and possess it by it for

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yourself." I knew this was the Word of the Lord, so I bought the field at Anathoth from my cousin, Hanamel, and weighed out for him 17 shekels of silver. I signed and sealed the deed, had it witnessed, and weighed out on the silver on the scales. I took the deed of purchase, the sealed copy containing the terms and

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conditions as well as the unsealed copy. I gave the deed to Baruch, son of Neriah, in in the presence of my cousin, Anamil, and the deed was signed in the presence of all of the Jews sitting in the courtyard of the guard.

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The subject of the message is a good deal. A good deal. Some time ago, Yasser Arafat, leader of the Palestinian Liberation Organization, announced the establishment of a new Palestinian state

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encompassing land which was presently occupied by the state of Israel, the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. The capital of the new state at that time was to be Jerusalem, which is also occupied by Israel and considered Jewish territory.

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Arafat's announcement was mainly a political declaration of intent, rather than having any practical meaning. It is symbolic action which received headlines in the news at the time all over the world. The new state includes land which is not yet possessed.

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Arafat's announcement is the proclamation of a new age which is yet to come. It's not likely that foreign industry and investment capital will rush to this territory Because at this time, they're not sure that it is going to be their land. When we plan to make purchases, we're prone to shop around in search of a good deal.

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With painstaking efforts, we want to see that every "I" is dotted and every "T" is crossed, so that we get what we bargained for. we want to make sure that the deal is properly sealed and delivered. The Lord speaks to Jeremiah in the tenth year of the reign of King Zedekiah and tells him

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his cousin, Hamamel, will come to him with a business deal, he will ask him to purchase a piece of family property. He will ask him to exercise his right of redemption. The right of redemption was codified in law in the Levitical code, whenever a relative was in economic straits and about to lose his property to creditors, the next of kin was to step in

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and save it. It happened as God said it would. The cousin came and urged Jeremiah to buy his lot in Anathoth. He said to Jeremiah, "It is your right and your duty to buy this property. This is a good real estate deal for you. Relatives say a good deal is to buy land in a good location, buy low and sell high.

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A seller's market is when people are anxious to sell their property to a buyer's market. That's when there are so many who wish to purchase property. So this is a situation where the seller is anxious.

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Not only does Jeremiah have a legal right, but he has a moral and spiritual obligation to help his cousin, Hanamel. It may be a good deal for Hanamel

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to sell the property to Jeremiah, but it's also a good deal for Jeremiah to buy the property. But what about the location? What about the neighborhood? The property is in Anathoth, Jeremiah's hometown. Jeremiah has experienced some difficulty with the people of Anathoth.

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In fact, they conspired against him and contrived a plot to take his life. Maybe they did not like the unfavorable publicity that Anathos was receiving because of Jeremiah, who was considered a traitor by his words and actions. It's not usually considered a good deal to buy property in an unfriendly neighborhood

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where one's life is under constant scrutiny and in constant jeopardy. Another matter to be considered is the atmosphere. The climatic conditions surrounding the land are unfavorable. Jerusalem is under siege by Nebuchadnezzar's army from Babylon.

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At any moment the city may fall and the nation will be under Babylon's rule. It does not appear to be the prudent thing to do, to buy land that may soon be controlled by Babylon. Another matter that may be considered is that Jeremiah is in jail. He is the king's prisoner. He is considered dangerous, a collaborator with the enemy, a traitor to his country. He is imprisoned in the royal court and an amulet comes to him at that time.

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Does it make sense for a man in jail during a time when the nation confronts an invasion by a powerful enemy to buy a lot in his hometown? And besides this, Jeremiah is not married. He's childless. Why should he become involved in a real estate transaction

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with so many negative considerations? With all of these unfavorable circumstances surrounding the deal, God tells Jeremiah to purchase the property.

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Jeremiah agrees, he obeys the word of the Lord and the deal is executed. The purchase of the property is an act of faith. During my childhood, my family expressed the desire to own their own home. We were renting and we were constantly moving from place to place.

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In the face of adverse circumstances, no substantial income, no job security, no credit with the bank. With all of these contrary winds beating against them, they made a down payment on our home and eventually paid for it. It was an act of faith and they considered it a good deal The United States auto market was invaded some years ago by foreign competition

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Chrysler Motors went under and was bailed out by the US government The a coca came to the helm of the company The company retooled, improved technology and workmanship was instituted. Coker distinguished himself with his forthright promotion of his product.

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He said, "If you can find a better car, buy it." The company came back and succeeded. It was an act of faith. When Hannibal's army was camped outside Rome, preparing to attack the city, the ground on which they were camped was sold to the Roman Senate.

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This was an act of faith. Permanent and meaningful investments are made under the most adverse conditions as an act of faith. Jeremiah, why are you buying your cousin's lot?

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You've prophesied the death of the nation. You've said the people will be placed under the yoke of Babylon. You've said that Judah would be crushed

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like a broken bottle. Jeremiah answers, it may not look like it, but it's a good deal. Jeremiah buys it.

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He pays a fair market price, no discount rate, seven shickles. He signs the deeds, gives the papers to his secretary to place in his deposit safe.

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A jar in which it is placed is buried. The prophet consummates the transaction in the presence of many witnesses while he's in jail. I am sure the witnesses wondered

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why the prophet made the purchase. No doubt some said Jeremiah expects to make a tremendous profit. When Jeremiah buys the property

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and Babylon occupies the land, he will sell it. will cash in on Judah's downfall but they were wrong the field is bought as a symbolic act announcing to the nation that the Lord says houses and fields will again be bought in this land the nation will be destroyed Babylon will

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triumph over Judah. The nation's hope is not in Babylon however. The nation's hope is in the future. This is a confused time in history. Judah will be destroyed but there is a future. There is life beyond the tragic consequences of the present. Truth forever on the scaffold, wrong forever on the throne. forever on the throne, but that scaffold sways the future, and behind the dim unknown standeth God within the shadows, keeping watch above his own. The nation will be destroyed, but a new age is coming.

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Jeremiah is the first to own property in the new age. He stakes a claim on the future. In the land where his people will soon be enslaved, he stakes a claim.

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Things may look bad now, but buying land indicates permanence. It indicates the faith to make a permanent investment during inflationary times.

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It's good business. it's a good deal. The promised land was the sign of the old covenant. This new purchase is the sign of the new covenant. Things look dark now, but there is a bright future ahead. Life goes on. Once more, houses will be occupied, fields will be bought, and crops will be harvested

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in this land. This is God's action. Our future is not in Babylon. No matter how strong and victorious Babylon's armies may be, our future is not in Babylon. No matter how prosperous may be her economy. Our future is not in Babylon.

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Our future is in God. God who is always there. God, God who is the father of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. The God who made the covenant with our fathers.

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God who has designated us as his people. Our future is with God who delivers us. God who delivers his people out of Egypt. God who is with us in our wilderness sojourn.

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Our future is with God. So it's a good deal to invest in the future when you are completely convinced that that future is with God.

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So it's a good deal. It's alright to buy land under cloudy circumstances when you stake your claim on God, because nothing, nothing in this world

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is too hard for God. The new covenant is signed, is sealed and delivered through Jesus Christ. Our future is in God.

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Charles A. Tenley sang about staking a claim in the future and surrounded by adverse circumstances. He sang, beams of heaven as I go through this wilderness below,

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guide my feet in peaceful ways, turn my midnights into days. When in the darkness I would grope, faith always sees a star of hope.

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And soon from all life's griefs and dangers, I shall get home someday. I do not know how long 'twill be, or what the future holds for me,

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But this I know, if Jesus leads me, I shall get home someday. So Jerusalem is under siege, but God is on the throne. God's good word for this dark hour, for any dark hour that we may encounter in our lives,

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God's good word is to build on him. Let him be the foundation, let him be the ceiling toward which you strive, let him be the hope on which your life is anchored.

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Trust in God, fields and vineyards will again be bought in the land, so trust in God. God loves you, God loves all of the creatures that he has created.

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You can bow with that. I'll bow that, somebody would say. Whatever God attaches himself to, whatever God outlines for us to do,

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is good for us. And our future is in God. So it's a good deal. Somewhere along the way,

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you encountered God, and you made an agreement, you promised to serve him. As the song says, "To serve him until you die."

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That's a good deal. Because no matter what happens, God will be with us. it's a good deal. Jacob met God during the crisis of his life and in the encounter he made an agreement with God and he left feeling that he had made a good deal. So whenever it was or whatever may occur down the way you can look to God because he'll be faithful. You don't have to worry about the fired print in the contract. Just put your hand in the hand of God and that's enough.

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That's enough to lead you over the steep hills of disappointment. That's enough to guide through the dark valleys. That's enough, I tell you, when you put your trust in God. Put your trust in Him, because He'll always be there.

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Jeremiah went through the darkness of that crisis because he had put his trust in God. So it pays. It pays. It pays to serve Jesus. Oh, it may sometimes be dark and sometimes dreary,

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and the burden may sometimes be heavy, but it pays. It pays to trust in Jesus, to trust Him every moment of your life, to go with you through all of the strife.

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It pays to serve Jesus. So as we open the door, we point to that open door, there may be someone here who has not made this good deal with God,

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or maybe you've made it and you've drifted away. We invite you now to come back, to trust God, to let him be your guide, to let him be your guard,

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to be your stay. As we say, it pays to serve Jesus, it pays every day, it pays every step of the way, we extend to you the open invitation

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to come to God through Jesus Christ, by letter, by Christian experience, or on profession of faith. [MUSIC]

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[ Silence ]