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[MUSIC] [music] Oh, how good [music]

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for men to dwell in unity. Oh, how good and pleasant. For men to dwell in unity, we've got to walk. We've got to talk, sing.

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We've got to pray. Oh, yes, it's wonderful. Oh, yes, it's beautiful. For men to dwell in unity.

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Yes it is. Oh, how good and pleasant. For men to dwell in unity. Oh, how good and pleasant.

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For men to dwell in unity. ♪ We've got to walk ♪ ♪ We've got to talk ♪ ♪ Sing ♪

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♪ We've got to pray ♪ ♪ Oh yes ♪ ♪ It's wonderful ♪ ♪ Oh yes ♪

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♪ It's so beautiful ♪ ♪ For men ♪ ♪ To dwell ♪ ♪ Oh in unity ♪

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♪ Oh, how good it is for men to dwell in unity ♪ ♪ You know it's good to talk to one another ♪ ♪ Spilling the love of God, just you and me ♪ ♪ What a fellowship, what a joy divine ♪

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♪ How sweet to walk in the bright sunshine ♪ ♪ Oh, yes, it's wonderful ♪ Oh, yes, so beautiful for men, for men to dwell in unity. Yes, it is.

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Oh, how good it is. Yes, it is. For men to dwell in unity. You know it's good to talk to one another.

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You can spread the love of God, just you and me. What a fellowship! What a joy divine! How sweet to walk in the bright sunshine.

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Oh yes! It's wonderful! Oh yes! So beautiful!

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For men! For men to dwell in unity! Yes it is! Oh yes it is.

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So, so good. It's wonderful. It's so good. So beautiful.

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It's good to walk. Sometimes we ought to sit down and talk. It's good to pray together. We can stay together.

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Sing together. Walk together. So good. So good.

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♪ So good, so good ♪ ♪ Yes it is, it's so good ♪ ♪ So wonderful, so beautiful ♪ ♪ For men to dwell ♪

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♪ Oh so good, it's beautiful ♪ ♪ For men, for men to dwell ♪ in unity. Let's all say "Amen."

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Amen. A certain man had two sons. We've dealt with the

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youngest son. Today we Consider the elder son under the gerotopic of the parable of two lost sons. The scene opens with the elder brother.

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The younger son has been to a far country and wasted his father's substance with riotous living, but he's come home. The father rejoices in his coming, and there is a banquet. They eat, drink, make merry, and there is music and dancing.

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Then suddenly the camera focuses on this elder son. He's out in the field working, and he's been working out in the field all the years that this younger son has been away. He has been keeping the whole fires burning.

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And as he hears this music, he hears all the joyful noise that's taking place in the house, He draws near to the house and calls one of the servants and asks, "What's happening?" He says, "Oh, your younger brother has come home, and your father is overjoyed with delight. In fact, he has killed the fed and caged and provided a banquet for this, your younger

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brother, because he was once lost, but now he is found. Let me deviate to say that this story Jesus told, we often call it "The Prodigal Son," but I've chosen to call for this series "The Parable of the Two Lost Sons." story was told to an audience where there were Pharisees and Sadducees and to tax collectors

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and also to those who were publicans. All of these were in his audience, who were considered lost people. And Jesus tells this story about lost boys or sons. Helmut Thieleke in his book Waiting Father focuses on the father because the father waited

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all these years for these boys to get themselves together. So, these boys, one is in the house celebrating with the father, and the other is out in the field. And when he receives the word from the servant, the servant tells him, "Come on in and rejoice."

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But he refuses to go in. You can see something of the civil rivalry between these two sons, the younger and the elder. There is considerable tension, and the story unfolds as we listen to the dialogue that

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takes place between the servant who comes out to the field and the elder brother who is there in the field. have a tendency to focus on the younger son and forget about the elder brother who's out in the field. But I have deep sympathy for this elder brother. He kept the home fires

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burning, as I said, while this young son was foolishly wasting his substance in a far country. And so this elder brother is angry. He refuses to attend the homecoming celebration. He's angry. The father sends word for him. The father tells one of the servants to go out and tell my son to come in here and join in this celebration. This is a grand and glorious

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celebration. I want him in on it. Tell him to come in. The servant obeys, but his elder brother is angry and he refuses to come in. He does not accept it. In fact, he declines the invitation. He sends his regrets. He refuses to go in. And so the The father, in his grace, goes out to the field where the elder brother is, and he says

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to him, the father leaves the party and goes out. In other words, he issues or he gives what seems to be an embarrassing thing. He presents it because he has to leave the party to go out and ask his eldest son to come to the party, and he's already sent word before for him to come.

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It's rather embarrassing. It's humiliating. But that's the course. But that's the cross. That's the cross. That's the cross that Jesus bears for us. That's

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the cross we as parents bear for our children. That's the cross! It goes out. And a dialogue takes place out there in the field between the father and this elder son. And this is the father, son, come, come here. Make this a wonderful occasion.

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Let the family celebrate. Come on in. And he says no. He says, "All these years I've been working like a slave out there in the field.

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I never disobeyed any of your commandments. I did everything that you asked me to do. I followed all of your laws. I've been a good boy.

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a boy, I've got no trouble, I've never been arrested for anything, I've been a good boy. But this, this, this other son of yours, listen to it, this son of yours, he has been out there in the world, cavorting and carousing with prostitutes, wasting your substance. And the moment he comes home, you prepare for him the fatted calf. You see, you never

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even gave me a goat. That's very very significant because you see goats were considered cheap. You could have given him a goat even if you didn't give him a fatted calf which was considered very expensive but a goat cheap. Goat need. He did not even give him a goat that I might have a party with my friends but

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this son of yours, in other words he's your son but he's not my brother, the moment he comes along you have a wonderful celebration for him. Well these These two boys never seem to get together. I see the father out there in the field talking to his older son.

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With tears in his eyes, they stream down his cheeks as he says, "Son, come in. Please come in. We all want you to come in. business party can be made more enjoyable if you would just come in.

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But the last I see of him, he's shaking his head saying no to his father. He will not go in. And he stays out there in the field. But there is a word that his father utters that remains with me.

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He says, "You seem to be disturbed about your younger brother, wasting your substance." He said, "Son, all I have is yours." That struck me. Everything is yours. This is what the Father says. Everything is yours.

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You need not get angry, you need not pout because of what your younger brother has done, because everything is yours. And you know, one of the problems in our world is that we get all caught up with our who has what. And the Father says, "Everything, everything I have is yours, everything is yours." That was the church in Corinth.

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They were all confused, they were all in a state of conflict about who was who. Is it Reverend Paul? Is it Reverend Cephas? Is it Reverend Apollos?

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Well, this one says, "Lord, I'm for Apollos." "No, I'm for Paul. I'm for Cephas." And the church was divided like churches are today over who has what power.

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And Paul writes and says to them, "Don't worry about Paul, Apollos, Cephas." He says, "All are yours." All are yours. They are all yours.

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They all belong to the kingdom, and they all are yours. That's wonderful, if we really understand that. Sometimes we miss out on things, the joy of life, because we don't understand that everything is yours.

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The father has promised it. There was a young man who was working in his father's store, and his father had him looking after the cash register. And he began to steal money from the cash register, and his father caught him.

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And his father took him to the cash register and said, "Look, sir, look at it." He said, "This is all yours. You don't have to steal it. It's all yours.

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You're gonna handle this. This is gonna be left to you and everything that I have is yours anyway." He said, "It's all yours."

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And when we look at the family, the family that we have here in our country as we celebrate Black History Month, Why should we have to celebrate Black History Month?

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Well, we can say, "All are yours." This country has been built with Africans and Europeans, and we also have others such as the Asians, those in North America, South America,

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all of those influences have helped to make this country. all have joined in this cultural contribution that we celebrate. But maybe someday we will not have to have a special week, a special month. Carter Woodson started this with just a special week.

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Maybe someday somewhere we will not have to have a special focus on this because people this country will recognize that all, not some, are yours. Some are not second citizens, second class citizens, and others first class citizens. All are citizens. All are yours. And when we look at the catalog of the outstanding personalities that we've produced, there are

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many. Sure, we have George Washington. Sure, we have Patrick Henry. But we also have Frederick Douglass.

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And we have Matt Turner. We have John Brown. And yet we also have Sojourner Truth. We have Harry Emerson Fosdick.

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We have W.E.B. Du Bois and Booker Washington and Oliver Wendell Holmes and John Adams, but all are yours. And the wonderful thing is that this is a cultural melting pot. It takes all of us to make America.

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Like the black and white keys on the piano, it takes both of them to play the Star-Spangled Banner. All are yours. Everything is yours.

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And how wonderful it will be when we realize the dream that we sing about and talk about America when we recognize that all are yours, all are yours, all, all. I've just named a few of the outstanding contributors to our history, but they're too numerous to mention. All are yours. As a little boy, I was in a little town called Fort Gibson, Oklahoma with my grandmother, and I

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remember in those days the front door was open, screen door was unlatched. In fact, when we left we had a skeleton key that may be put somewhere under the roof or something outside, hidden somewhere, but anybody could get in with a skeleton key almost. There was a certain openness and that's what we

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clamor for, that's what we pray for, that's what we walk for. And I can hear my grandmother, someone comes up on the porch, they step up on the porch and and she'd say, "Come on in. Come on in. Sit down. Make yourself at home." That's what we're clamoring for in America.

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To come in, to have an open door, to sit down at the table of brotherhood and fellowship together. That's what this celebration is about. And until every person is free, everybody is free, until every man is free to sit under his own vine and fig tree

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and there is none to make him afraid, there is no terrorism, but everyone can live in peace until that day comes. We still have work to do. So let us labor toward that day and say to all groups,

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come on in, sit down. Let us not be jealous of those who are at the border who want to come over and enjoy the good life that we enjoy. Come on in.

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Sit down at the table of brotherhood and let us celebrate together young and old black and white brown yellow whatever your color may be come let's sit down at the table of brotherhood and let us celebrate that's what God does for us through Jesus Christ he says to

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us come on in come on in come into the kingdom it's an open door I have given my Son to prepare the way, come, come in and enjoy that which has been prepared for you since the foundation of the world." That's grace.

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That's grace. Sometimes we get it mixed up with a lot of theological jargon, but grace is acceptance. acceptance God accepts us and he wants us to accept not only ourselves but he wants us to accept one another and that's grace and oh how wonderful it is

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amazing grace how sweet the sound saved a wretch like me I I once was lost we've all been like that young old boy of the old over in some way this story speaks to every one of us. I once was lost but now am found, was blind but now I see. We extend to you an open door. Come on in. If you're part of the family of God here at

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Ebenezer. You may come by letter, by Christian experience, or on professional faith come on in this is the invitation to Christian discipleship [MUSIC PLAYING] Come.

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Come. [MUSIC - "AMAZING GRACE"] Amazing grace, how sweet the sound. ♪ That saved a wretch like me ♪

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♪ I once was lost ♪ ♪ But now am found ♪ ♪ For life, oh now I see ♪ ♪ What grace and joy ♪

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♪ My heart to thee ♪ ♪ And grace like peace be ♪ ♪ How precious did that grace appear ♪ ♪ Without thy mercy ♪

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♪ To me he laid ♪ ♪ His arms and steps ♪ ♪ I have already gone ♪ ♪ The days have gone ♪

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♪ He stayed as far as I may be ♪ ♪ As far my race will lead me home ♪ ♪ When he is ready in thousands years ♪ ♪ In God's hands ♪

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♪ He holds the key ♪ ♪ I shall be glad ♪ ♪ For I shall be glad ♪ ♪ For I shall be glad ♪

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[music] [ Silence ]