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<v Speaker 1>We're struggling, we're beset by the passions, and in a

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<v Speaker 1>real sense, we're not in our right minds because of

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<v Speaker 1>our separation from God. But when we encounter Christ, that

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<v Speaker 1>is when we enter into this church, we begin a

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<v Speaker 1>process of not just putting aside our past sins, but

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<v Speaker 1>of being restored to what our human nature was intended

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<v Speaker 1>to be.

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<v Speaker 2>Welcome to Hill Country Homilies Weekly homilies from Holy Denunciation

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<v Speaker 2>Orthodox Church in Liberty Hill, Texas. Holy Annunciation is an

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<v Speaker 2>old calendar Orthodox church sharing the faith of the Apostles

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<v Speaker 2>and the love of Christ with all who seek His truth. Now,

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<v Speaker 2>let's listen to this week's homily, iamb of.

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<v Speaker 1>The Father and the Son of the Holy Spirit. Gorge

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<v Speaker 1>in Jesus Christ. Please have a seat if you wish

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<v Speaker 1>beloved in Christ. This This week's gospel is Saint Luke's

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<v Speaker 1>account of the Gathering Demoniac. Now, this is a very

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<v Speaker 1>well known gospel account. It appears in all three of

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<v Speaker 1>the Synoptic gospels, Matthew, Mark, and Luke, and it appears

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<v Speaker 1>in basically the same form in each of the gospels,

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<v Speaker 1>although there are small differences in detail, which one would

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<v Speaker 1>expect from different authors. Recounting the same event. Today's gospel reading, though,

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<v Speaker 1>presents us with one of the most dramatic encounters of

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<v Speaker 1>Christ's earthly ministry, as our Lord meets a demon possessed

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<v Speaker 1>man in the region of the gatherings. Now, this unfortunate

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<v Speaker 1>soul has been tormented by a multitude of demons who

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<v Speaker 1>call themselves a legion. He lived naked and violently among

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<v Speaker 1>the tombs outside the city, which represented his complete desolation,

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<v Speaker 1>brings that evil brings to human life. He terrorizes the

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<v Speaker 1>town people with his demonically perverted behaviors. Yet in this

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<v Speaker 1>passage we witness the supreme authority of Christ over all

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<v Speaker 1>forces of darkness, as he commands the demons to depart,

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<v Speaker 1>permitting them to enter into a hurt of swine that

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<v Speaker 1>subsequently perishes in the lake. But the townspeople, especially those

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<v Speaker 1>who have made their living tending the swine, ask Jesus

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<v Speaker 1>to leave the region. While the healed man, now restored

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<v Speaker 1>to his right mind, begs to follow Christ, but Christ

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<v Speaker 1>denies this, and instead he commissions him to return home

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<v Speaker 1>and to proclaim God's mighty works. What does this gospel

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<v Speaker 1>tell us about the transformative power of Christ and our

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<v Speaker 1>own weakness before his glory. Let's start by understanding the

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<v Speaker 1>person of the demoniac. We know from the account that

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<v Speaker 1>the demon possessed man is in a very depraved and

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<v Speaker 1>frightening condition. We're told that he is naked, that he

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<v Speaker 1>lives out among the tombs in the graveyard, and that

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<v Speaker 1>he is separated from his community on the account of

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<v Speaker 1>his condition. And according to Blessed Theophilac, these are not

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<v Speaker 1>just descriptors of his physical condition, they also are indicators

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<v Speaker 1>of his spiritual state. He's naked because he stripped himself

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<v Speaker 1>of his baptismal robe. He's living not in his house

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<v Speaker 1>but among the tombs because he dwells outside the church,

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<v Speaker 1>having been separated by the demons. And the tombs represent

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<v Speaker 1>the dens of iniquity into which this man has fallen.

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<v Speaker 1>But despite his pitiable condition, after the man and his

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<v Speaker 1>demons encounter Christ, his corrupted human nature is restored. His

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<v Speaker 1>mind is returned to such sanity that he now not

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<v Speaker 1>only recognizes Christ, but he asks him to permit him

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<v Speaker 1>to follow him and to be with him now. In

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<v Speaker 1>a very real sense, this gospel account is a brief

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<v Speaker 1>and immediate encapsulation of what we would call the process

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<v Speaker 1>of theosis which each of us are seeking. We're struggling,

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<v Speaker 1>we're beset by the passions, and in a real sense,

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<v Speaker 1>we're not in our right minds because of our separation

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<v Speaker 1>from God. But when we encounter Christ, that is when

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<v Speaker 1>we enter into his church, we begin a process of

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<v Speaker 1>not just putting aside our past sense, but of being

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<v Speaker 1>restored to what our human nature was intended to be

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<v Speaker 1>face to face with Christ as the demoniac was, and

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<v Speaker 1>seeking to be with him at all times as this

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<v Speaker 1>man once he was healed and sought for us. This

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<v Speaker 1>process is a lifetime for this demoniac. The transformation was immediate,

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<v Speaker 1>but the power by which Christ healed this demoniac was

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<v Speaker 1>not just a display of Christ's healing power over men.

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<v Speaker 1>As with the man born blind or the leopards, the

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<v Speaker 1>healings that he offers are always spiritual as well as physical.

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<v Speaker 1>It's one thing to contend against illness or disability. Doctors

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<v Speaker 1>do that. In this account, however, Christ not only is

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<v Speaker 1>restoring the fallen man, he first must deal with the

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<v Speaker 1>demonic forces that have seized a hold of him. This

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<v Speaker 1>legion of demons had rule over the man, and when

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<v Speaker 1>they encounter Christ, they encounter him with with both impudence

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<v Speaker 1>and with fear. They're impudent, impedent, even dismissive as they shout,

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<v Speaker 1>what have I to do with thee? But they're also

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<v Speaker 1>afraid because they know who this THEE is? What have

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<v Speaker 1>I to do with THEE? Jesus, son of the Most

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<v Speaker 1>High God? They say, I beg you do not torment me.

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<v Speaker 1>And we hear that they begged him that he would

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<v Speaker 1>not command them to go out into the abyss, that is,

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<v Speaker 1>back into the pit of the hebrew one from whence

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<v Speaker 1>they came. And in this fear and impudence and pleading

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<v Speaker 1>a negotiation, or don't send us into the pit, let

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<v Speaker 1>us go into this swine. They are begging and pleading

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<v Speaker 1>because they know that Christ has complete power over them.

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<v Speaker 1>Christ is not in a battle with the demons. He's

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<v Speaker 1>won that battle. The demons are subject to him and

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<v Speaker 1>they know it. As the scripture says. The demons also

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<v Speaker 1>believe and tremble. Why does Christ permit them to remain

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<v Speaker 1>on the earth in the swine? What's not because he

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<v Speaker 1>offers them any mercy? Rather, the fathers tell us two things. First,

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<v Speaker 1>this is obvious the command of Christ for the demons

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<v Speaker 1>to depart, and is permitting them to enter the swine

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<v Speaker 1>is an affirmation of the power that he has. It's

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<v Speaker 1>an affirmation of the power that he has, so it

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<v Speaker 1>becomes a living depiction of that power. But also by

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<v Speaker 1>permitting them to remain, Christ provides for men, those of

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<v Speaker 1>us still on this earth, a means of struggle in contest,

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<v Speaker 1>which leads to what the scripture calls the crowns of victory.

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<v Speaker 1>When the scriptures speak of those who endure to the

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<v Speaker 1>end being saved or working out your salvation with fear

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<v Speaker 1>and trembling, that endurance that working out It's going to

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<v Speaker 1>look different for different people, but for each of us

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<v Speaker 1>it will involve transformation, it will involve overcoming, and it

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<v Speaker 1>will involve spiritual challenges. We must recognize that we struggle

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<v Speaker 1>against spiritual forces and trust in Christ's protection through prayer,

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<v Speaker 1>through fasting, through the mysteries which has provided for us.

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<v Speaker 1>But we must trust also in Christ's power, the power

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<v Speaker 1>revealed in today's Gospel. When facing spiritual warfare, we have

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<v Speaker 1>to invoke the name of Christ with confidence, knowing that

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<v Speaker 1>the demons are powerless compared to Christ. We don't have

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<v Speaker 1>any needing to fear them, which brings me to the

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<v Speaker 1>final point that I want to mention about today's reading,

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<v Speaker 1>because if there's one thing that ought to stand out

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<v Speaker 1>in today's reading, it's not so much Christ's vanquishing of

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<v Speaker 1>the demons. We know this, He's God. Rather, if there's

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<v Speaker 1>something that should shock our conscience, if there's one thing

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<v Speaker 1>that should call us to self examination, it's not so

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<v Speaker 1>much the encounter with a demoniac or his healing. Instead,

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<v Speaker 1>it is the incredible reaction of the townspeople. A man,

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<v Speaker 1>a brother, who is deemed lost, who terrorized them for ages,

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<v Speaker 1>has been healed and set before them in his right mind.

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<v Speaker 1>This should be a day of celebration, a day of thanksgiving.

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<v Speaker 1>It should have been a day where the man tells

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<v Speaker 1>of all the great things that God has done for him,

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<v Speaker 1>as Christ commanded him. But instead we read that when

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<v Speaker 1>the people come, and when they learn how the demons

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<v Speaker 1>were sent into the swine, who thundered themselves into the

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<v Speaker 1>lake and drown themselves, they react out of base fear

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<v Speaker 1>of Christ, and they beg him to depart. They didn't

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<v Speaker 1>fear the demons. They feared the man who conquered the demons.

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<v Speaker 1>They didn't make their request out of humility, thinking themselves

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<v Speaker 1>not worthy of his presence. They made it out of

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<v Speaker 1>distrust and out of fear. They feared that his continuing

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<v Speaker 1>presence would cause him further loss. They asked him to depart,

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<v Speaker 1>for they were seized with great fear, preferring their economic

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<v Speaker 1>security and the swine over the presence of the Savior.

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<v Speaker 1>People fear truth and honesty. They preferred darkness to light

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<v Speaker 1>many times, and this was the gatherings on this day.

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<v Speaker 1>They feared that Christ might inflict further punishment upon them,

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<v Speaker 1>and he begged. They begged him to leave them, and

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<v Speaker 1>Christ departs precisely as they wish. Saint Ambrose of Malan

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<v Speaker 1>says his fear of the townspeople may ultimately prove to

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<v Speaker 1>be their demise. Christ takes away the sins of the

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<v Speaker 1>people when the people desire to be healed, not when

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<v Speaker 1>they refuse to submit to the healing. He doesn't want

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<v Speaker 1>to cure the unwilling, and so he departs from these

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<v Speaker 1>people for whom it seems that his presence was a burden. So,

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<v Speaker 1>brothers and sisters, let us also examine our hearts and

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<v Speaker 1>be certain that we are neither fearing Christ nor seeing

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<v Speaker 1>his presence as a burden. To be sure, Following Christ

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<v Speaker 1>in this world can be hard. We are asked to

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<v Speaker 1>be transformed from the things of this world into the

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<v Speaker 1>things of Christ. Some people have even suffered economic consequences

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<v Speaker 1>for it, far worse than the gatherings and their whole

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<v Speaker 1>as swine. So let us take this timely moment to

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<v Speaker 1>examine our own hearts for similar tendencies to prioritize material

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<v Speaker 1>concerns or burdens on our time over our own spiritual growth.

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<v Speaker 1>Because when God's grace challenges comfortable patterns of life, our

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<v Speaker 1>first instinct may be like the Gatherings, to recoil from it.

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<v Speaker 1>But believers must embrace this burden, if you will. Rather

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<v Speaker 1>than asking Christ to depart, let us recognize that perfect

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<v Speaker 1>love will cast out that fear. And let us, at

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<v Speaker 1>all times, brothers and sisters, let us remember that in

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<v Speaker 1>this world we've been promised tribulation. Our promise from Christ

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<v Speaker 1>is for the next world, and it is for that

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<v Speaker 1>next world that we can test for these crowns of

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<v Speaker 1>victory that await us so beloved in Christ. As we

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<v Speaker 1>depart today, let us give thanks to God, who has

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<v Speaker 1>power over all things material and spiritual, and who desires

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<v Speaker 1>that we come before him face to face, and who

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<v Speaker 1>is preparing us for that great and dread day of judgment.

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<v Speaker 1>Let us beg to be in His presence always, that

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<v Speaker 1>we may at all times be partakers of this divine nature,

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<v Speaker 1>always now and ever for the ages of ages. Home in.

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<v Speaker 2>Thanks for listening to Hillcountry homilies. For more information, visit

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<v Speaker 2>Holy Annunciation Orthodox Church at www dot Denunciation, tx dot com,

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<v Speaker 2>and please join us again next week