In this episode of Bible Bytes, host Randy Black delves into the complex and often contentious topic of Pride Month from a Biblical perspective. As June unfolds, Randy reflects on the influx of Pride Month celebrations and the cultural affirmations of identity and freedom. Through prayer and meditation, he seeks to understand what God’s Word says about pride and human sexuality. The episode explores the Biblical stance on pride, emphasizing that it is seen as self-exaltation and rebellion against God. Randy discusses scriptures from both the Old and New Testaments, highlighting God’s design for human relationships and the consistent Biblical view on homosexuality.
Randy encourages listeners to approach Pride Month with truth, love, and hope, urging believers to speak boldly yet compassionately about the dangers of celebrating sin. He emphasizes the transformative power of Christ, who offers forgiveness and a new identity to all sinners. The episode concludes with a call to repentance and a reminder of the unchanging truth of God’s Word, encouraging believers to stand firm in their faith and share the message of salvation through Jesus Christ. Randy invites listeners to continue exploring Biblical truths in future episodes, returning to the series on women of the Bible.
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Speaker 1: We gather here today with open hearts and mind to grow in faith and truth.
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Speaker 1: In every word we find the pages of the word alive and full of grace, inspiring faith with him as we seek his face by
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Speaker 1: Bible bites, Bible bites, in starting fake one bite at a time with every verse we
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Speaker 1: Find our way to liberalize in his life and shine.
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Speaker 2: Welcome to Bible Bites, the podcast where we work to inspire faith one bite at a time.
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Speaker 2: I’m your host.
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Speaker 2: Randy Black.
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Speaker 2: Today’s episode tackles a subject that’s front and center in our culture every June, Pride Month.
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Speaker 2: I’ve wrestled with this idea for several days as we’ve started the month of June, and the immediate influx of Pride Month items began to flood my social media and my email inbox
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Speaker 2: Many hours of prayer and of meditation have led me to this episode today.
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Speaker 2: While many celebrate it as a time to affirm identity and freedom,
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Speaker 2: As believers, we’re called to ask, what does God’s word say about pride and human sexuality?
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Speaker 2: We will explore these ideas today on the podcast.
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Speaker 2: Before we begin, let’s go to the Lord in prayer.
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Speaker 2: Heavenly Father, we come before you today with reverence.
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Speaker 2: and with humility, seeking to understand your truth in a world filled with confusion.
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Speaker 2: Lord, we ask for clarity as we open up your word
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Speaker 2: Help us to see not through the lens of culture, comfort, but through the lens of scripture
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Speaker 2: As we discuss matters of pride, identity, and sexuality, let your Holy Spirit guide every word spoken and every thought received
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Speaker 2: May we speak truth boldly, but always in love, and may your design for creation and your standard for holiness be honored
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Speaker 2: Give us courage to stand firm, grace to speak gently, and wisdom to discern rightly
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Speaker 2: Prepare our hearts, Lord, to receive what you have said, not what the world says, but what you say.
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Speaker 2: In the name of your Son Jesus Christ, we pray.
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Speaker 2: Amen.
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Speaker 2: Let’s begin with with the root of the issue.
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Speaker 2: Pride itself.
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Speaker 2: The Bible isn’t vague about pride.
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Speaker 2: God hates it
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Speaker 2: Not just in the context of sexuality, but in every form, because pride is about self-exaltation.
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Speaker 2: It’s about putting me above God.
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Speaker 2: Proverbs 16, verse 5 says, Everyone who is proud in heart is an abomination to the Lord.
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Speaker 2: Be assured, he will not go unpunished.
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Speaker 2: Pride is not just a flaw.
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Speaker 2: It’s rebellion.
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Speaker 2: It puts self on the throne instead of God.
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Speaker 2: Proverbs 8.
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Speaker 2: 13 tells us, the fear of the Lord is to hate evil, pride, arrogance, the evil way, and the perverted mouth I hate.
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Speaker 2: To revere God means we must reject what he rejects, including the elevation of self through pride
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Speaker 2: And in one of my favorite books of the Bible, James chapter 4, verse 6, we see that God is opposed to the proud, but gives grace to the humble.
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Speaker 2: The more pride rules us, the less grace can reach us.
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Speaker 2: God’s blessings flow through humility
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Speaker 2: So before we even talk about sexuality, we need to recognize this.
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Speaker 2: A month devoted to the celebration of pride already flies in the face of the scripture.
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Speaker 2: Pride leads people to justify sin instead of repent from it.
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Speaker 2: And that is an extremely dangerous place to be.
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Speaker 2: From the beginning, God gave us a beautiful blueprint for human relationships between one man and one woman in the covenant of marriage.
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Speaker 2: In Genesis chapter 1, verses 27 and 28, we see God created man in his own image.
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Speaker 2: Male and female, he created them.
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Speaker 2: God blessed them, and God said to them, Be fruitful and multiply.
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Speaker 2: God’s blessing came with purpose.
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Speaker 2: Marriage and procreation are not human inventions.
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Speaker 2: They are divine gifts from the Lord.
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Speaker 2: In Genesis chapter 2, verse 24, we read, For this reason a man shall leave his father and his mother, and be joined to his wife, and they shall become one flesh.
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Speaker 2: This unity reflects God’s design, a biological, emotional, and spiritual covenant
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Speaker 2: We go to the New Testament, and in Matthew chapter nineteen, verses four through five, Jesus said, Have you not read that he who created them from the beginning made them male and female, and the two shall become one flesh?
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Speaker 2: Jesus here reaffirms God’s design, not redefines it.
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Speaker 2: His words echo what we see in Genesis
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Speaker 2: showing that we have consistency through the scriptures, from the Old Testament to the New Testament.
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Speaker 2: God’s design is extremely clear.
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Speaker 2: Anything outside of that, from adultery to pornography to same-sex relationships, misses the mark of his original intent
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Speaker 2: The Bible is unambiguous about homosexuality, not just in the Old Testament, but in the New Testament as well
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Speaker 2: Let’s look at Leviticus 18, verse 22.
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Speaker 2: You shall not sleep with a male as one sleeps with a female.
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Speaker 2: It is an abomination.
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Speaker 2: God calls this very behavior detestable, not to shame people, but to call them back to his original design.
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Speaker 2: In the same book of Leviticus, chapter 20, verse 13, we read, If there is a man who sleeps with a male as those who sleep with a woman,
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Speaker 2: Both of them have committed a detestable act.
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Speaker 2: God’s consistency in both Testaments shows the seriousness of this sin, not as worse than others, but as one that distorts his design.
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Speaker 2: In Romans chapter 1, verses 26 and 27, Paul writes this: God gave them up to degrading passions.
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Speaker 2: The men too abandoned natural relations with women and burned in their desire toward one another, males with males committing shameful acts
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Speaker 2: Paul describes a descent into sin as people reject God.
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Speaker 2: Homosexual behavior is listed as part of that rebellion.
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Speaker 2: We also see in 1 Corinthians 6 verses 9 and 10, Do not be deceived, neither their sexually immoral nor homosexuals will inherit the kingdom of God.
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Speaker 2: The deception is real, and Paul warns the church with love.
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Speaker 2: These sins break fellowship with God, but they can be forgiven.
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Speaker 2: This isn’t about singling out one sin.
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Speaker 2: It’s about recognizing all sin that separates us from a holy God.
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Speaker 2: Pride Month isn’t just about committing sin.
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Speaker 2: It’s about publicly celebrating sin.
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Speaker 2: Let’s look at Isaiah 5, verse 20.
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Speaker 2: Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who substitute darkness for light and light for darkness
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Speaker 2: When wrong is labeled right, society enters dangerous territory.
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Speaker 2: God’s truth is reversed in the name of tolerance
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Speaker 2: In Romans 1, verse 32, we see this.
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Speaker 2: Although they know the ordinance of God, they not only do them, but also approve of those who practice them.
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Speaker 2: This is a chilling verse.
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Speaker 2: Applauding sin is itself sinful.
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Speaker 2: Pride Month is not just about identity.
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Speaker 2: It’s about endorsement.
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Speaker 2: And then in Philippians chapter three, verse nineteen, the Bible says this, Whose glory is in their shame?
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Speaker 2: Who set their minds on earthly things?
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Speaker 2: When shame becomes a badge of honor, we reveal where our hearts truly lie.
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Speaker 2: In the world, not in God
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Speaker 2: This is where the spiritual danger grows.
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Speaker 2: Open rebellion, wrapped in celebration, leads hearts further away from repentance, and ultimately further.
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Speaker 2: From salvation.
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Speaker 2: Here’s the good news.
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Speaker 2: Jesus came to save sinners
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Speaker 2: All sinners, including the proud, the immoral, and the broken.
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Speaker 2: Let’s look at 1 Corinthians 6, verse 11.
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Speaker 2: Such were some of you, but you were washed, you were sanctified, and you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ
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Speaker 2: The church is full of former sinners.
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Speaker 2: It’s full of current sinners.
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Speaker 2: The power of Christ is not just to forgive, but it is to transform.
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Speaker 2: 2 Corinthians 5, verse 17 says, Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, this person is a new creation.
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Speaker 2: The old things passed away.
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Speaker 2: Behold, new things have come.
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Speaker 2: Our old labels, whether prideful
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Speaker 2: Broken or rebellious can be replaced with a new identity in Christ
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Speaker 2: When Jesus encountered the woman caught in adultery in John chapter 8, he didn’t condemn her, but he also didn’t affirm her sin.
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Speaker 2: John chapter 8, verse 11 says, I do not condemn you either.
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Speaker 2: Go from now on.
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Speaker 2: Do not sin any longer.
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Speaker 2: He didn’t excuse the sin.
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Speaker 2: He forgave and he called the sinner to a new way of living.
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Speaker 2: That’s our message
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Speaker 2: Not condemnation, but salvation through repentance, through faith, and through Jesus Christ
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Speaker 2: So, how should we as believers respond to Pride Month
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Speaker 2: First, we should speak the truth without compromise.
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Speaker 2: Second, we love people enough to warn them about the dangers of this.
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Speaker 2: And third
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Speaker 2: We always point to the hope that is only found in Christ.
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Speaker 2: Matthew 4 17 says, Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.
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Speaker 2: Repentance is the beginning of healing.
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Speaker 2: Jesus’ first sermon is still his invitation to us today.
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Speaker 2: This is not hate.
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Speaker 2: This is hope.
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Speaker 2: This is love.
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Speaker 2: And it’s found in the unchanging truth of God’s word.
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Speaker 2: True freedom is not found in doing what we want, but in becoming who God created us to be.
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Speaker 2: Let’s close out with a word of prayer.
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Speaker 2: Lord God, thank you for the truth of your word and the conviction of your spirit
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Speaker 2: Today we’ve heard hard truths, truths that challenge the world’s message, but lead us to life in you.
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Speaker 2: Help us, Father, not to shrink back from righteousness.
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Speaker 2: Let us love people enough to speak clearly and compassionately
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Speaker 2: Forgive us for the times we’ve compromised or we’ve stayed silent.
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Speaker 2: Remind us that your grace is sufficient for all who turn to you, that no sin is too great.
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Speaker 2: and no heart too far gone for your redeeming love.
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Speaker 2: Seal these truths in our hearts and help us to walk with conviction, courage, and compassion in the days ahead.
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Speaker 2: In the name of your son Jesus, we pray.
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Speaker 2: Amen.
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Speaker 2: Thank you for joining me on this special episode of Bible Bites.
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Speaker 2: If today’s message brought clarity or conviction, I encourage you to share it with somebody else.
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Speaker 2: Let’s keep anchoring our lives in the Word of God and standing firm in the truth.
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Speaker 2: We’ll be back to our series on women of the Bible with our next episode, which will be our third about Hagar here on Bible Bites.
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Speaker 2: The podcast where we work to inspire faith.
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Speaker 2: One bite at a time.
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Speaker 1: Bible bites.
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Speaker 1: Bible bites.
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Speaker 1: Inspiring fake one bite at a time.
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Speaker 1: With every verse we find our way To live our lives in his life and shine
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Speaker 3: Bubble bites, bubble bites, inspiring faith one bite at a time.