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[Silence] The subject of the message, "Purifying Polluted Waters." "Purifying Polluted Waters."

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[Silence] The messages that have been delivered for several weeks prior to this time, We have been considering the prophetic presence. What it means to manifest a prophetic presence.

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To speak for God. To be the mouthpiece of the eternal. be the spokesperson for righteousness, for truth. Elijah lived a praiseworthy life.

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He succeeded by Elisha. And as Elisha takes up the prophet's mantle.

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One of the first things that he does is to use that mantle in dividing the waters of the Jordan.

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And then there is a miracle which is recorded in the account of the life of Elisha which is our concern in the message today. The band of prophets, those who constituted a seminary, theological institution for that day,

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had been sent on a mission to locate a new place that would serve as the headquarters. They return after having surveyed the land and they say to Elasha regarding the city of Jericho that the situation of this city is pleasant, but the water is polluted and the ground is unproductive. It's strategically and beautifully located. It would serve quite well as a very good place for us to have our headquarters.

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As we observe the surrounding scenes, we would think that it is ideally located, but there is a very serious problem. The water is polluted, and no matter how beautiful maybe be the countryside if there is a water problem there is always serious problems, serious danger. It seems to me that this particular passage speaks to us today as we consider our situation

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at this particular point in our history in so many ways, we are beautifully situated, strategically situated. As we look at our state, Texas is a great state. We've long boasted of being the largest state

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until just some time ago when that distinction was taken away by Alaska, but we still boast of the vast resources that we have as a state. And we took a great deal of satisfaction in the fact that large oil deposits were in this state, not because we were better than anybody else, it just so happened that the Lord put

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a great deal of oil in the ground here at this particular spot, Texas. But we have watched radical changes occur in a very short period of time as far as states economy is concerned because of the decline in oil prices. And we face now what many call a a budget crisis. Some three billion dollars is needed in order

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to do the things that we had planned to do during this particular period. And of course three billion dollars is a great deal of money. It's difficult for me to to think in terms of how much money $3 billion really is. But as we look at our situation,

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we really do not face a budget crisis. What we really face is a leadership crisis, crisis in leadership, a moral crisis. There are enough resources in our state to do all of the things that are necessary.

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The resources are available. People have the money. But we lack the courage to do what needs to be done to make the decisions. And so When our legislature has convened the first thing that has been done outstanding thing that has been done has been a

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bill that has been passed that has to do with the banking industry, banking business, interstate

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banking, branch banking. And we have yet to have a decision made dealing with the main problem of providing the funds necessary in order to see that those programs that deal with human services and education and other matters that are so essential to our operation be taken care of.

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The situation is is pleasant as far as the opportunity we have, but the water is polluted. Water is polluted.

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Those who have been elected to give the kind of leadership that would provide for all of the people of the state have somehow hesitated to do that. The situation is pleasant, but the water is polluted.

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Opportunity has been taken to to say that well, maybe we can solve this crisis by having parimutuel betting. and a lottery in Texas. Institute gambling people will pay taxes on that and so those who have been for gambling have used this as an opportunity to get

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this going. This is the way to finance our state. While it is known that this does not provide the necessary resources to care for the needs others have said that yes, let's just cut programs. Let's just keep cutting and cutting and cutting and cutting. And so we are facing a decision of having

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state workers not to receive a raise. We're facing a decision of not dealing with those programs that should be dealt with in order to supply all of the needs of this state.

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The situation is pleasant, but the waters are polluted. That's true of our state. Let's look at Austin. All of us can attest to the fact that we live in a beautiful city. Strategically situated on the banks of the Colorado River. It's beautiful. People all over Texas recognize that Austin is a beautiful

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city and people from other parts of this country have decided to come and live in Austin and we find ourselves increasing in population. Some say almost 2,000 a month. The situation is is pleasant and we are blessed with people who are concerned about preserving the environment. Or you can get a great deal

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of support when you talk about the aquifer and the quality of life and having the environment preserved and that ought to be. But we also have a problem of unemployment where we have a disproportionate share of unemployment among blacks in East Austin. And we also have an an increasing number of people who cannot afford a home.

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And we have people who are far more concerned about parks than they are about people when it comes to providing for them homes in which to live. And so when you talk about the matter of affordable housing,

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there are many people who are concerned about the environment who don't get enthusiastic about affordable housing so that the people who are poor can afford to own a home in their lifetime.

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The situation is pleasant, but the waters are polluted. People aren't really concerned. The waters are polluted with selfishness.

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As long as I get what I need and what I want, I don't care about anybody else. What is anointing? Oh, it seems to me that we might even apply the scripture

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to ourselves here at Ebenezer. Situation is pleasant. We can boast of 111 years of history, glorious years, situated as we are in the very heart of the city.

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Our situation is pleasant. But the waters, the opportunities that we have, with the city growing as it is, too many of us are satisfied with things as they are.

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We look at the empty pews, all of us ought to be concerned about that. Our situation is pleasant, but the waters are polluted. We are too satisfied just to say, "Well, we've got a good program." Some say, "Well, if anybody else wants to come, let them come."

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But I'm not going to be out there knocking on any doors. Our situation is pleasant, But the waters, waters are polluted, polluted with indifference, polluted with lack of concern. Situation is pleasant, but the waters are gnawing. Doesn't matter about how pleasant may be the situation if the water is bad, the ground is not productive.

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Now you can locate here, but it's not a good location. We've looked it over. It's not a good place as long as these waters are not a lasher. But this is the situation, we've surveyed, we've looked it over, we like the way it looks on the outside, but the waters,

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that the stream that runs through the city, we have checked it out, and they're polluted. Polluted. And so often we get caught up with how beautiful

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something looks on the outside. I remember a young man I pastored earlier in my ministry, He was a handsome fellow. Some would call him a handsome dude.

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He was handsome. And the young ladies wanted him to escort them to the prom. Because he looked so good on the outside. But his mind was all messed up.

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And you know, one of the signs of maturity is somehow we make our selection so often on how things look on the outside. And as we grow older, we discover that the most important thing is not so much how people look on the outside, but what they really have on the inside.

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It's a wonderful thing. It's a wonderful thing to be tall and handsome. It's a wonderful thing to have a lovely physical figure, but the most important thing is to have that quality of life, that inner spirit, that inner development that

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somehow enables us to be what we ought to be. That's what really matters. The situation is pleasant, but the waters are naughty. You know what really makes the waters naughty is when we have our thinking polluted with selfishness, hostility, ill will. Doesn't matter how good we look on the outside, if the waters are

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naughty. What is the situation is pleasant, but the waters are naughty. Elijah says to them, "Bring me a new jar and put some salt in it." And they brought him a new jar with salt in it. And Elijah put the salt, he cast it into the spring,

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and the story is that those waters were purified. They were healed. What is the salt that we need? Salt that we need. What is the salt we need to purify the springs of our lives today that would somehow change the course of history as far as Texas as a state is concerned, as far as Austin as a city is concerned, and as far as Ebenezer as a church is concerned? Purify our thoughts. To purify our thoughts so that somehow our minds reach out to others. Purify our thoughts so that we have the will to do. Will not only to think the right things but the will to do the right things.

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The situation is pleasant, but it's only by casting in the salt, the salt of God's grace, the salt that enables us to accept both the lovely and the unlovely. That's the salt of God's grace. God just accepts everybody. He causes the rain to shine up, to fall upon the just and the unjust, and he causes the sun to shine upon us all.

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the salt of God's grace the salt yes the salt of God's love God's love that somehow reaches out to everybody because God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son the salt of his love situation is pleasant but the waters are are polluted. Water is polluted. Water is polluted. The salt of God's purifying power is essential for the change that is necessary in order to heal these waters.

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And that's what is meant by the prophetic presence. Somehow we become purifying agents. And we become the conscience of the community. That we become the headlights rather than the taillights. We somehow reach out, reaching out to change our social order because we have been changed

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ourselves. Oh, how terrible it would be if our heart did not somehow always purify the blood it receives and send it out again fresh all over the body. It's just always doing that, purifying it, sending it out.

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Blood comes up, and as it comes up, the heart says, "Well, you come by here," and the heart somehow purifies it and sends it out again. And that's what's needed in that prophetic presence, that there will be that purifying presence in this community radiating through our lives that will have a change made, a

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difference will occur. That's what happened in the story of the Lasha in Jericho. And when you go to Jericho today, you see a beautiful city. You see a city with palms.

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You see a city with fruit, oranges, and the like, growing. You see what, well, may be called an oasis that's situated on the edge of the desert, not too far from the Dead Sea. But this story still remains with us to somehow let us know that there was a time when when that city had a polluted stream but but God acted and God acted

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through the life of his prophet and as a purifying agent and changed that city and life was made beautiful and no matter what your life may be it can be made beautiful with the salt of God's purifying grace and his love. Situation is pleasant, but the waters are polluted.

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But God has sent his son, Jesus Christ, to purify those waters. There's a story that's told by Peter Marshall of a man who was called the keeper of the springs.

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There was this city with its people, its city council. Life seemed to have gone along rather well. But it all happened because there was a man up there in the hills that was called the Keeper of the Springs.

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He saw to it that the springs were kept pure. He would take out all of the trash. all of the scum, see that the waters were pure. But the city council met,

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and they began to scan the city budget, and they saw in that budget, an item that said, "Keeper of the Springs." And one of them said to another, "What does this fella do?"

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Say, "He's just a romance ranger. We don't need him. We can save by omitting this particular item in the budget. We can save our city quite a bit of money. So it was stricken from the city budget.

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And after a while, the machinery that was there became filled with scum, some green,

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slimy substance, and it failed to function properly. The little children were stricken with disease. Soon an epidemic covered the town. And in the midst of the crisis, the City Council met again, and they put back the item in the budget of the Keeper of the Springs. And once more,

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the keeper of the springs began to make his rounds and he kept the springs pure and the water flowed crystal clear and the children played and the people were healthy because the keeper of the springs was there doing his work and so what we need is the keeper of the springs in our lives. What we need is

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that purifying power that Jesus gives to everyone that somehow enables us to reach out with love when hate is all around. The keeper of the springs keeps us in the way that we should go. As the choir leads us in singing at this time we extend the privilege of the church, the door is open. It's an invitation to Christian

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discipleship. ♪ (dramatic music) [Music] ♪ Carrying your power ♪

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♪ And healing words ♪ ♪ For our trials in anger and fear ♪ ♪ God save the Queen ♪ ♪ We hear her call ♪

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♪ To those on the hill ♪ ♪ We sing ♪ You know that He'll be safe. You know that He'll be safe.

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♪ Come and sing the song ♪ ♪ It is the song ♪ ♪ To those ♪ ♪ That hear it sang ♪

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♪ For God is free ♪ ♪ His laws we'll see ♪ ♪ For our God ♪ ♪ Living in the earth ♪

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♪ I can't get out ♪ ♪ No one can see ♪ ♪ One soul ♪ ♪ My city ♪

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♪ Away ♪ ♪ One soul ♪ ♪ I'll swim away ♪ ♪ For sure ♪

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♪ I'll swim away ♪ ♪ I'll swim away ♪ ♪ Oh, my mercy ♪ ♪ Was all my sin ♪

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♪ Amen ♪ - Let us listen now to the report from our church clerk, Sister Valverde. [ Silence ]