Jeremiah 5
Liars everywhere in Jerusalem verse 1- 2
Run you to and fro through the streets of Jerusalem – and see now – and know
and seek in the broad places thereof – IF you can find a man
IF there be any that executes judgment – that seeks the truth
I will pardon it
And though they say
The LORD lives – surely they swear falsely
Residents refuse to repent verse 3
O LORD are not YOUR eyes upon the truth?
YOU have stricken them – BUT they have not grieved
YOU have consumed them
BUT they have refused to receive correction
they have made their faces harder than a rock
they have refused to RETURN
Leaders are rebellious verse 4- 6
THEREFORE I said – Surely these are poor – they are foolish
for they know not the way of the LORD
nor the judgment of their God
I will get me unto the great men – and will speak unto them
for they have known the way of the LORD
and the judgment of their God
BUT these have altogether broken the yoke
and burst the bonds
WHEREFORE a lion out of the forest shall slay them
and a wolf of the evenings shall spoil them
a leopard shall watch over their cities
every one that goes out thence shall be torn in pieces
BECAUSE their transgressions are many
and their backslidings are increased
Adultery is everywhere both physical and spiritual verse 7- 9
How shall I pardon thee for this? your children have forsaken ME
and sworn by them that are no gods
WHEN I had fed them to the full – they then committed adultery
and assembled themselves by troops in the harlots’ houses
They were as fed horses in the morning
every one neighed after his neighbor’s wife
Shall I not visit for these things? – says the LORD
and shall not MY soul be avenged on such a nation as this?
Unbelief in coming judgment of the LORD verse 10- 13
Go ye up upon her walls – and destroy – BUT make not a FULL END
take away her battlements – for they are not the LORD’S
For the house of Israel and the house of Judah have dealt every treacherously
against ME – says the LORD
They have belied the LORD – and said
It is not HE – neither shall evil come upon us
neither shall we see sword nor famine
and the prophets shall become wind
and the word is not in them
thus shall it be done unto them
LORD uses ancient nation to judge children of Israel verse 14- 17
WHEREFORE thus says the LORD God of hosts – Because you speak this word
BEHOLD – I will make MY words in thy mouth fire
and this people wood – and it shall devour them
Lo – I will bring a nation upon you from far – O house of Israel
says the LORD – it is a mighty nation – it is an ancient nation
a nation whose language thou know not
neither understand what they say
Their quiver is an open sepulcher
they are all mighty men
And they shall eat up your harvest – and your bread
which your sons and your daughters should eat
they shall eat up your flocks and your herds
they shall eat up your vines and your fig trees
they shall impoverish your fenced cities
wherein you TRUST with a sword
LORD will not completely destroy Israel verse 18- 19
NEVERTHELESS in those days – says the LORD
I will not make a FULL END with you
And it shall come to pass – when you shall say
Wherefore does the LORD our God all these things unto us?
Then shall you answer them
Like as you have forsaken ME and served strange gods in your land
SO shall you serve strangers in a land that is not yours
People give the LORD no respect verse 20- 24
DECLARE this in the house of Jacob – and PUBLISH it in Judah – saying
Hear now this – O foolish people – and without understanding
which have eyes – and see not
which have ears – and hear not – fear you not ME?
says the LORD
Will you not tremble at MY presence
which have placed the sand for the bound of the sea by a
perpetual decree that it cannot pass it
and though the waves thereof toss themselves
yet can they not prevail
though they roar
yet can they not pass over it?
BUT this people hath a revolting and rebellious heart
they are revolted and gone
Neither say they in their heart
Let us now fear the LORD our God – that gives rain
both the former and the latter – in his season
HE reserves unto us the appointed weeks of the
Harvest
Wickedness is beyond measure in Israel verse 25- 29
Your iniquities have turned away these things
and your sins have withheld good things from you
FOR among MY people are found wicked men
they lay wait – as he that sets snares
they set a trap – they catch men
as a cage is full of birds
so are their houses full of deceit
THEREFORE they are become great – and waxen rich
they have waxen fat – they shine – yea
they overpass the deeds of the wicked
they judge not the cause – the cause of the fatherless
yet they prosper
and the right of the needy do you not judge
Shall I not visit for these things? says the LORD
shall not MY soul be avenged on such a nation as this?
Wonderful and horrible is happening verse 30- 31
A wonderful and horrible thing is committed in the land
the prophets prophesy falsely – and the priests bear rule by their means
and MY people love to have it so
and what will ye do in the end thereof ?
COMMENTARY:
DAILY SPIRITUAL BREAKFAST: Young Believers
: 1 Run ye to and fro through the streets of Jerusalem, and see now, and know, and seek in the broad places thereof, if ye can find a man, if there be any that executeth judgment, that seeketh the truth; and I will pardon it. (5545 “pardon” [calach] means forgive, release, or spare.
DEVOTION: In the time of Abraham, Abraham asked the LORD, if he found ten people who were righteous to not destroy Sodom and the four other cities of the plain. The LORD agreed. However, there were not even ten men in all of the five cities that were righteous. They were guilty of gross sin. They laughed at Lot when he told them that God was going to judge their cities. Lot’s wife loved Sodom so much that she looked back at the cities as they were burning and turned into a pillar of salt.
Now the LORD was challenging Jeremiah to find just one person who executed righteous judgment and sought after the truth of God and HE would not send the northern army against Jerusalem.
Jeremiah took the challenge. He looked among the poor of the city but didn’t find anyone. He thought maybe he could find someone among the great men of the city. They also were not willing to serve the LORD. Therefore the LORD had to send the army against Jerusalem.
One obedient man could have saved the nation but no one would stand up for the LORD. They all enjoyed the lifestyle of sin that was prevalent in their day. They didn’t want to go against the status quo.
God is not willing that any should perish but HE is not willing to forgive sinners who don’t want to be forgiven. Here we find God ordering the prophet to run through the streets of Jerusalem to see if he could find anyone who was willing to follow the LORD. God was willing to spare the city for that one. Sorry to say there was none. They liked the blessings of the LORD. HE gave them full bellies. HE gave them the former and latter rains. The problem was that when they were full, they went after other gods.
What would happen if the prophet went through the streets of our city, how many would he find? We like the blessings the LORD has given to our nation but when we are full we deny HIM in our schools, government and churches. We were truly blessed of the LORD but HE is sending warning to our nation to repent. Will we listen?
CHALLENGE: We need to stand up against the status quo and cry out for righteous living. This again only comes through prayer and fasting. “If MY people will humble themselves and pray….”
DAILY SPIRITUAL LUNCH: Transitional Believers
: 7 How shall I pardon you for this? Your children have forsaken me, and sworn by them that are no gods: when I have fed them to the full, they then committed adultery, and assembled themselves by troops in the harlots’ houses. (5545 “pardon” [calach] means forgive, spare, to stop blaming or taking an offense into account, be indulgent towards, release, or remove guilt associated with a moral sin or wrongdoing associated with ritual or vows.)
DEVOTION: The children of Israel were always challenging the LORD regarding obedience. They were forsaking the LORD and HIS commands They were guilty of many sins in the eyes of the LORD and didn’t seem to care.
This is happening even today among people who call themselves believers. They are going to church and then going out and doing as they please whether it pleases the LORD or not.
The standards have been lowered by those who are preaching and teaching in many places called “churches” but where the Word of God is not preached or is only used on rare occasions.
Those who call themselves believers are living like those who are not believers and think nothing of it.
God is warning those who claim to be followers that they need to reexamine their lives to see who they are worshiping. We need to be worshiping the LORD in spirit and in truth and that can only happen if there is the preaching of the gospel with conviction and requirements.
CHALLENGE: What is your standard for following the LORD? Is it the Biblical standard or just the standard of those who are not honoring the LORD wholly with their lives.
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: 22 Fear you not me? Says the LORD: will you not tremble at my presence, which have placed the sand for the bound of the sea by a perpetual decree, that it cannot pass it: and though the waves thereof toss themselves, yet can they not prevail; though they roar, yet can they not pass over it? (5769 “perpetual” [‘owlam] means everlasting, old, evermore, ancient, indefinite or unending future, or eternal.)
DEVOTION: God established HIS plan for the world before HE created the world. Everything that was created was under HIS control. Here we find that the LORD established guidelines for the waters of the world. They are never going to work outside HIS guideline without HIS permission. All of creation is under HIS control. The seas of the world listen to HIS standing orders. Once in history we find that HE caused a flood that covered the world.
The flood was sent to judge the world for the sin of those living in the world. Everything and everyone was destroyed except those who were in the ark. God promised to never do that again and gave a sign of HIS commitment to never do it again – the rainbow. We find that people have misused this sign but it is a promise that HE has kept since HE made this promise.
HE established limits for not only nature but all those who HE has created. The waters of the world listen to HIM and obey. The animals of the world listen to HIM and obey. Humans seem to have more freedoms but they are only allowed to work within certain limits and once those limits are broken HE sends judgment.
The children of Israel continually challenges HIS longsuffering attitude toward them. HE had to eventually send judgment because of their disobedience. HE will do the same in our time period. There is a time coming when the LORD is going to just us as a nation for our actions against HIS Word.
The fear of the LORD is not present in our nation and in many other nations of our world. We are just as rebellious as the nation of Israel. Our time of judgment is coming. Are we ready to face the LORD on an individual basis? What is HE going to say to us when we meet HIM face to face? There is only one of two choices according to the Word of God. HE can say “Depart from me! Or Well done, you good and faithful servant! Which is HE going to say to you?
CHALLENGE: Are we listening to the commands of the LORD in our daily life? Are we learning lessons from the past? Are we learning lessons from HIS dealings with the children of Israel? If not, we will face the words “Depart from ME!
DAILY SPIRITUAL SUPPER: Mature Believers
: 31 The prophets prophesy falsely, and the priests bear rule by their means; and my people love to have it so: and what will ye do in the end thereof? (157 “love” [ahab] means desire, breath after, longing, delight, like, affection or strong emotional attachment.)
DEVOTION: Jeremiah was living in a time period when the tribes of Israel were both going away from the LORD. There was not one man in Jerusalem that loved the LORD. The LORD had to send the Babylonian armies against Israel because not one man was found.
There was a reason that there wasn’t one man found that sought the LORD and wanted to live a righteous life. What was the reason? It was that the ones who were to represent the LORD were not teaching the truth. They were only teaching what the people wanted to hear.
The New Testament informs us that the people in Paul’s day were in the same condition. This was only a few years from the time when Christ died on the cross. It was within one generation of the death of Christ. It is easy to fall away from the LORD if those who are leaders are not following the LORD.
Preachers who preached to people who wanted their ears itched. They didn’t want to be challenged to serve the LORD daily. They didn’t want to witness for the LORD. They didn’t want to cause their neighbors any grief by informing them that they might be headed to Hell for eternity.
Their pastors were preaching a health and wealth gospel that states that if they would just give their money to the church the LORD would bless them ten times the amount or more. People liked to hear this. They didn’t want to hear about suffering for Jesus. They just wanted to hear about all the blessings they can receive for very little or no service to HIM but maybe once a week or once a month coming to church and giving a little for the ministry.
Jeremiah was not willing to give this message. Neither should any Bible believing pastor or professor. We have plenty of books and speakers for those with itching ears. We need preachers who will challenge those who are genuine followers of the LORD to faithful service on a regular daily basis to the LORD.
First we have to be willing to hear the hard facts of the Christian life and then live it a consistently as we possibly can and encourage others to do the same. Second, we need to ask the LORD for more wisdom from above, so that we can live even better lives for HIM. Finally, we have to have a thankful heart when we have individuals in leaders challenge us to better service to the LORD.
CHALLENGE: Don’t love itching ears that don’t want to be challenged. Don’t desire the status quo. Don’t compare yourselves with other believers, stand out in the crowd.
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DISCIPLINES OF THE FAITH:
BODY
Chastity (Purity in living)
Fasting (Time alone with LORD without eating or drinking)
Sacrifice (Giving up something we want to serve the LORD)
Submission (Willing to listen to others and LORD)
Solitude (Going to a quiet place without anyone)
SOUL
Fellowship (Gathering together around the Word of God)
Frugality (wise use of resources)
Journalizing (Writing down what you have learned from the LORD)
Study and Meditation (Thinking through your study in the Word)
Secrecy (Doing your good deeds without others knowing but God)
SPIRIT
Celebration (Gathering around a special occasion to worship LORD)
Confession (Tell the LORD we are sorry for our sins on a daily basis)
Prayer (Conversation with God on a personal level)
Silence (Letting the LORD deal with some problems and needs)
Worship (Time to praise the LORD alone or in a group)
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DOCTRINES OF THE FAITH:
Scripture (66 inerrant books of the Bible)
God the Father (First person of the Godhead)
LORD – Jehovah (Covenant keeping, Personal) verse 2- 5, 9- 12, 14, 15, 18, 19, 22, 24, 29
Eyes upon the truth verse 3
Consumed them verse 3
God – Elohim (Creator, Sovereign) verse 4, 5, 14, 19, 24
Way of the LORD verse 4, 5
Control of animals verse 6
Shall not my soul be avenged on such a nation verse 9
LORD God of hosts verse 14
Judgment of God verse 14
LORD our God verse 19, 24
Perpetual decree verse 22
Control of nature verse 24
God the Son (Second person of the Godhead –God/man, Messiah)
God the Holy Spirit (Third person of the Godhead – our comforter)
Trinity (Three persons of the Godhead who are co-equal = ONE God)
Angels (Created before the foundation of the world – Good and Evil)
Man (Created on the sixth twenty-four hour period of creation)
Nation verse 15
Mighty nation verse 15
Ancient nation verse 15
Language not known to Israel verse 15
Mighty men verse 16
Eat up Israel’s harvest and bread verse 17
Nation shall eat up their flocks and herds verse 17
Eat up Israel’s vines and fig trees verse 17
Strangers verse 19
Sin (Missing the mark set by God on man and angels)
Swear falsely verse 2
Not grieved verse 3
Refused to receive correction verse 3
Refused to return verse 3
Made faces harder than rock verse 3
Foolish verse 4, 21
Know not the way of the LORD verse 4
Know not the judgment of God verse 4
Broken yoke of God verse 5
Burst the bonds of God verse 5
Transgressions verse 6
Backslidings verse 6
Forsaken God verse 7, 19
Worship false gods verse 7, 19
Committed adultery verse 7
Harlot’s houses verse 7
Neighed after his neighbor’s wife verse 8
Dealt treacherously verse 11
Belied verse 12
Evil verse 12
Think they will not see famine verse 12
False prophets verse 13, 31
Trust in possessions verse 17
Without understanding verse 21
Without fear of the LORD verse 22
Revolting verse 23
Rebellious heart verse 23
Iniquities verse 25
Sins verse 25
Wicked verse 26, 28
Lay in wait verse 26
Deceit verse 27
Improper judgment verse 28
False prophesy verse 31
Salvation (Provided by Christ’s death on the cross for our sins)
Executes judgment verse 1
Seeks the truth verse 1
Pardon verse 1, 7
Truth verse 3
Correction verse 3
Return verse 3
Way of the LORD verse 4, 5
Know judgment of God verse 4, 5
Fear of the LORD verse 22, 24
Presence of the LORD verse 22
Gives rain verse 24
Israel (Old Testament people of God)
Jerusalem verse 1
Nation verse 9, 29
House of Israel verse 11, 15
House of Judah verse 11, 20
Words in their mouth fire verse 14
Trusted in fenced cities verse 17
Not a full end of Israel verse 18
Forsaken God verse 19
Served false gods verse 19
House of Jacob verse 20
Church (New Testament people of God)
Last Things (Future Events)
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QUOTES regarding passage
20–22. Once more the Ruler of the cosmos addresses the nation, rebuking it for its stupidity and stubbornness. Reflecting Isaiah 6:9 Jeremiah rebukes them for their lack of insight into the metaphysical significance of existence. Christ made precisely the same criticism of his contemporaries (Matt. 13:14f.; John 12:40), as Paul also did (Acts 28:26). There is no necessary correlation between sight and perception, hearing and comprehension. Indeed, the people are shown to be as stupid as the nonentities which they worship (cf. Pss 115:5ff.; 135:15ff.). While God’s world has been fashioned so as to obey his will unswervingly, his covenant people have exploited their liberty brazenly to repudiate his commandments and indulge in all sorts of corruption, overstepping constantly the limits prescribed by the covenant relationship. (Harrison, R. K. (1973). Jeremiah and Lamentations: an introduction and commentary (Vol. 21, p. 81). Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press.)
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Proclamation: they were unconcerned (5:20–31). Jeremiah was a retiring sort of person. Yet God told him to announce and proclaim boldly to the whole house of Jacob just what the people were like. The prophet’s description of the people must have angered them, but it didn’t shake them out of their complacency. Jeremiah told them that they were foolish, senseless, blind, and deaf, and that they had no fear of God. They were stubborn and rebellious, having turned away from serving the Lord. The mighty seas obeyed God’s rule, but His own people rejected Him. God sent the rains and gave the harvests, but His people refused to thank Him.
Instead of encouraging one another to fear God, they exploited one another like hunters snaring birds. Thus the rich grew richer as the poor languished. The courts were corrupt, the prophets were liars, and the priests went right along with them; and the people approved what was done and enjoyed it! “My people love to have it so” (Jer. 5:31). When a nation becomes that corrupt, there is no hope.
The sinners thought they were getting away with their crimes, but God asked them, “What will you do in the end?” (5:31, NIV) “There is a way which seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death” (Prov. 14:12, NKJV). (Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). Be Decisive (p. 36). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books)
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5:22 sand … for the sea. God’s providential acts in the natural world such as 1) creating the seashore to prevent flooding, 2) giving rain at the appropriate times (v. 24), and 3) providing time for harvest (v. 24) are witness enough to the Lord’s reality and grace. As the nation turns away from God, He will take these unappreciated gifts away (v. 25). (MacArthur, J. F., Jr. (2006). The MacArthur study Bible: New American Standard Bible. (Je 5:22). Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Publishers.)
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Ver. 22. Fear ye not me? saith the Lord, &c.] They did not fear the Lord, and this is a reproof to them for the want of it, which is a reproof of their ignorance and folly; for the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, Prov. 9:10 and where that is there is true wisdom; but, where it is not, there is nothing but ignorance and stupidity: will ye not tremble at my presence? or face; his wrath and anger, justly resenting their carriage to him. The Targum is, “from before my Word;” the essential Word, his Son: or, will ye not be in pain? as a woman in travail; as Kimchi observes the word signifies: which have placed the sand for the bound of the sea by a perpetual decree, that it cannot pass it. This is a very wonderful thing in nature, that the earth and sea, being spherical, and making one terraqueous globe, and the waters of the sea being higher than the earth, should be so bounded and restrained, by the power and providence of God, as not to overflow the earth, and that by means of the sand, which is penetrable, flexible, and movable; and yet this is set as a bound, and by the decree of God remains firm and stable, and that for ever, so that the sea cannot bear it down, go through it, or over it: and though the waves thereof toss themselves, yet can they not prevail; though they roar, yet can they not pass over it; even when the sea is the most tumultuous and raging. This is an instance of the mighty power of God, and carries in it an argument and reason why he should be feared; and yet such was the stupidity of this people, that though they saw this with their eyes, the sea and the tossings of it, and the sand set as a bound to it, and an effectual one, and heard the roarings and ragings of the waves of it in vain; yet they feared not the Lord that did all this; and so shewed themselves more stupid and disobedient than the sea and its waves, which obeyed their Maker, though destitute of sense and reason; see Job 26:10 and 38:8–11; Psal. 104:6, 9; Prov. 8:29. (Gill, J. (1810). An Exposition of the Old Testament (Vol. 5, p. 433). London: Mathews and Leigh.)
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FROM MY READING:
(Remember the only author that I totally agree with is the HOLY SPIRIT in the inerrant WORD OF GOD called THE BIBLE! All other I try to gleam what I can to help me grow in the LORD!!)
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OUR LORD’S CARE FOR HIS FOLLOWERS
I have manifested thy name unto the men which thou gavest me out of the world: thine they were, and thou gavest them me; and they have kept thy word. John 17:6
Observe our Lord’s care for His followers. He reminds His Father that He kept them while He was in the world. How easy it is to read the Gospels without seeing that all the while He is watching them and keeping them and shielding them against the enemy. But now He is going out of the world, and in John 17 He is praying to His Father to keep them. He pleads with Him to look after them and commits them to His care. They are His Father’s, but they have been given to Him, and He gives them back: “keep them from the evil” (John 17:15).
If we but realized the concern of our Savior for us as we are tried and tempted and beset by sin and Satan, it would revolutionize our whole attitude toward everything. We should also note His loving attitude toward His followers. Some astounding things are said here. Indeed we would almost be right to query them when we read what He says of these disciples: “I have manifested thy name unto the men which thou gavest me out of the world.” Then notice: “Thine they were, and thou gavest them me; and they have kept thy word” (John 17:6). How can He say that?
As we read the Gospels and look at these disciples, we see them quarreling with one another, we see their jealousy of one another and their desire for preeminence over one another, and finally we read how at the end they all forsook Him and fled. Yet He said about them, “they have kept thy word.” He did not criticize them; He prayed for them. I thank God for this above everything else.
A Thought to Ponder: He did not criticize them; He prayed for them. (From Safe in the World, pp. 18-19, by Dr. Martyn Lloyd Jones)
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Luke 2
Luke gives his account of Jesus’ birth and early life.
INSIGHT
To Jesus, nothing is more important than doing His Father’s will, even at the age of 12. When His parents miss Him on the trip home from the Passover, they return and find Him in the temple. “Did you not know that I had to be about My Father’s business?” He asked. “My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me,” He later said in John 4:34. Absolute single-mindedness!
We are to have the mind in us which was also in Christ Jesus. We are to have absolute single-mindedness about doing the will of the Father. Most of us don’t feel very single-minded. We feel distracted and pulled in the direction of the world, the flesh, and the enticements of the devil.
But the goal remains unchanged: absolute single-mindedness in serving the Father. Make that your purpose and your prayer. (Quiet Walk)
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Messages from the Messiah’s Life: The Ministry of the Forerunner
“The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the LORD, make straight in the desert a highway for our God.” (Isaiah 40:3)
John the Baptist is one of the most unusual men recorded in the Scriptures. He was “filled with the Holy Ghost, even from his mother’s womb” (Luke 1:15). No other person is so honored other than the Lord Jesus Himself. John lived “in the deserts till the day of his shewing unto Israel” (Luke 1:80) and was known for eating “locusts and wild honey” (Mark 1:6).
In spite of his different lifestyle, he was commissioned by God to operate “in the spirit and power of Elias, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just; to make ready a people prepared for the Lord” (Luke 1:17). In fact, Jesus said, “Among them that are born of women there hath not risen a greater than John the Baptist” (Matthew 11:11).
He preached to “all the land of Judaea” (Mark 1:5) that they should bring “fruits meet for repentance” (Matthew 3:8), but his primary mission was to identify the Messiah. At the baptism of Jesus, John boldly confirmed this, announcing: “Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world” (John 1:29).
As John’s intense popularity and notoriety as a prophet began to wane, he knew that “[Jesus] must increase, but I must decrease” (John 3:30). Yet, when he saw his key disciples leave and attach themselves to Jesus, John began to wonder if this carpenter from Nazareth was the one “that should come, or do we look for another?” (Matthew 11:3).
That doubt vanished when he was reminded of the stunning miracles Jesus did. To His growing followers, Jesus said: “This is Elias, which was for to come” (Matthew 11:14). (HMM III, The Institute for Creation Research)
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