Early on in serving the Lord by preaching (almost 25 years ago) I wrote full manuscripts and stuck to them rigorously. Then I’ve used various tools, manuscripts, outlines, passage overviews, 4-part-paper-fold, PowerPoint slides, and a few others to support the work of preaching. However, I’ve never found anything to replace or replicate the importance of preaching the sermon first to myself. This oral preparation (accompanied by prayerful humble submission to the Lord, asking that even this preparation would be of kingdom use) has always been of benefit in the refining and delivery of God’s Word to God’s people.

Humble suggestion and example for my brothers in the pulpit – I learned from another Pastor’s dissertation (Rev. Andrew Vandermoss) about oral preparation for preaching. 
Simply put, a sermon is a message spoken and heard rather than a paper that is written and read. As such, the suggestion that has helped me with the “land the plane” situation of “30 more minutes” is to preach my sermon, orally, out loud, sometime before the service in which it will be delivered. This doesn’t mean you can’t use a manuscript, or notes, or outlines, or passage overviews or any of those tools. By orally preparing you have a weight and a sense of the gravity and flow of the sermon as you prayerfully prepare (and orally practicing is a part of sermon prep). 
Much of the time my oral prep is 10-25 minutes longer than my actual preaching time on Sunday.
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The list in Matthew chapter 1 ought to hit us like a 10-ton truck as we read through the names. In comparison to the lists already mentioned, this list is relatively short in length, but big on meaning. Nearly every name has multiple scriptural references if not outright explicit narratives about the names mentioned. The reader of Matthew 1 who has familiarity with the names of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Judah, Rahab, Boaz, Ruth, Jesse, Solomon, Hezekiah, Josiah, and Zerubbabel all ring like a VIP list of persons throughout the OT. These aren’t just mention-able, worthy names with neat little parable-style stories, these are the names of a lineage of Kings with direct connection to the great God who promised himself to Abraham, who rescued Noah, and who made all things good in the beginning.

We recently received a question asking, “What are some reasons for believing in the bible that is ofc, independent from the bible? I’m not asking why Christianity over other religions. I’m interested in why people believe in the bible, to begin with.”
I thought this was an exceptional question, and I found myself giving a strange answer that I wouldn’t have thought possible a few years ago. As a missionary, I was asked to speak at a church while the Pastor was gone on vacation. The pastor was a dear friend of mine, and I was humbled and honored at the opportunity to preach. I asked if there were any series or scriptures that the Pastor would like me to preach on, and it just so happened that the church was going through the book of Genesis and had come to the list of names in Genesis 11. My friend encouraged me that I didn’t have to preach that passage if I didn’t want to, I was more than welcome to pick another passage. Perhaps out of ignorance or some other motivation, I simply accepted the text and began studying the genealogical passage. This set me on a small quest that has over the years developed into a love of the lists of the bible. These lists have been a tremendous help in my faith, even as I have conversed, shared, and preached Christ crucified to many.
Genesis 11
 The genealogies that are given throughout scripture are meticulous regarding the authenticity and historical validity of the text. A few quick examples:
The list in Genesis 11 brings us up from the time of Noah and Babel to the time of Abram. This gives us a significant claim regarding the continuity of the story of creation, rebellion, and scattered humanity. This list of names then gives us a reason for why the story of Genesis shifts from a general story of humanity to a particular story of a given family. The names given in Numbers help to solidify a sense of the people of Israel as they emerged from Egypt and lived in the wilderness. These lists of names are often skipped or glossed over (with some understandable reasons as many of the names are strange to us and have almost zero meaning at first glance). However, these names stand as a timeless recounting of God’s promise to Abraham in Genesis 12 and 17-18 that he would make Abraham into a great people. The lists of places given by allotment to each of the tribes and families of Israel in Joshua are then verified and juxtaposed with the failures of Israel in Judges chapters 1-2. It’s a tremendous case-and-point comparison between the texts.
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The author of the article states ,”Although it makes me uncomfortable, I can’t get away from the nagging feeling that Jesus is appealing to a truth that is higher and deeper and, dare I say, truer, than scripture. My evangelical and inerrantist roots cringe at putting those last three words together: “truer than scripture.” And yet it’s there in black and white that, in service of some deeper truth, Jesus does make a significant change to scripture.” This individual displays gross negligence in hermeneutical awareness. Christ fulfilled the law, he didn’t change it. Quibbling over words says some, essential distinctions say I. The deeper truth is covenantal fulfillment of God’s promise, rather than….something, whatever this gentleman is proposing.

To give a brief overview, the above-mentioned post is speaking about changing the Bible. His premise is that Jesus changed the Bible, therefore there are things that can be truer than scripture. As a Pastor, he is pondering the question of what he would change in the Bible and how would it look if we changed scripture.
There is much to think about and respond to here for those of us who are servants of the Lord in the preaching ministry. The author of the article states

“Although it makes me uncomfortable, I can’t get away from the nagging feeling that Jesus is appealing to a truth that is higher and deeper and, dare I say, truer, than scripture. My evangelical and inerrantist roots cringe at putting those last three words together: “truer than scripture.” And yet it’s there in black and white that, in service of some deeper truth, Jesus does make a significant change to scripture.”

This individual displays gross negligence in hermeneutical awareness. Christ fulfilled the law, he didn’t change it. Quibbling over words says some, essential distinctions say I. The deeper truth is covenantal fulfillment of God’s promise, rather than….something, whatever this gentleman is proposing.

“As a pastor in the 21st century, I find myself asking a critical question about Jesus’s handling of the Shema: Do we get to change scripture like he did?”

Again, I would say Jesus didn’t change scripture. There was nothing wrong with the Shema to demand a shift, rebranding, or distance from the Shema. Jesus here extends and furthers (towards an eschatological goal) the law. He’s preparing and signaling a tie back into Jeremiah 31, connecting how he will fulfill the requirements of the Old Covenant and establish the fuller New Covenant. Does this author think that the same God-man who said Matthew 5:18, meant to “change” the law?
17 “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. 18 For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished. 19 Therefore anyone who sets aside one of the least of these commands and teaches others accordingly will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. (The New International Version (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2011), Mt 5:17–20)
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In this sacrament, we see God’s tremendous grace poured out for sinners regardless of the sinner’s ability to merit or accomplish anything. Whether baptism is received by a child of a Christian household, or by a new professing believer, in all cases when rightly administered, baptism is wholly about the promises of God given by grace and applied through faith in Jesus Christ. 

What are the Two Positions on Baptism?
Prior to being called into ministry I was quite convinced for about a year of the Baptist/Credo only position. Then for the last 16 years, I’ve been steadily growing as one convinced of covenant baptism. I have 4 kids who have all been baptized as soon as they were able. Over the last decade of pastoral and missionary work, I’ve been blessed to work alongside many brothers and sisters of various persuasions on the topic. Baptism is an important topic, but it is one I consider to be a secondary issue. This means that I can worship and attend churches that hold a different view on Baptism than I believe to be True. We as Christians, are called to be United in Christ and Baptism is not an issue to divide.
Covenantal Baptism
Covenantal, Family or Household baptism is the administration of the sacrament of baptism to those who are new believers or are newly born within the household of professing believers. In the Covenantal view, there is a continuation of the covenant promises of God to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob following the Apostle Peter’s words and example in Acts 2. The sacrament of baptism in the Covenantal practice displays God’s tremendous grace poured out on sinners who are without hope apart from God’s regenerating, salvific, personal work in the lives of those baptized.
Believers Baptism
Believer’s baptism is the administration of the sacrament of baptism to those who are newly converted and making a profession of their faith in Christ Jesus. Believer’s baptism is for those who have never before previously received baptism and are confessing their only hope in this life and the next as the grace of God through Jesus Christ.
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Mothers, even in the fallen sinful world we live in, with all the curse and its effects, are a blessing. God continues to bless future generations through their mothers. Mothers provide care and support in a way no one else can. God has designed for mothers to have this uniquely special relationship with their offspring. 

One of the strangest moments summarizing the lost state of unbelievers today occurred during recent US government proceedings. During those meetings, a person of great academic education and career success was asked to define what a woman is. The answer was unhelpful and downright a rejection of objective truth. The present value placed upon ambiguity, fluidity, and ever-shifting definitions is a recipe for disaster for individuals, families, communities, and whole nations. Rejection of truth is now often the barometer for trustworthiness and enlightenment. It is as though to appear to be a person who knows something nowadays, a person must demonstrate all of the intellectual permutations of what that person has gone through, what tribes that person represents, and what assumptions that person wants to avoid by giving anything close to a definitive statement. Decisions and definitions seem to be rooted and guided more by personal experiences and preferences than by any appeal to objectively observable principles.
Mothering Throughout Scripture
I begin this discussion today in this way first to say that I am a man, a married man, who has never been a mother. In my experience personally, I have zero seconds spent existing as a mother. Instead of appealing to experience, I will be appealing to the objectively observable principles we see throughout the Old and New Testament about mothers.
The First Reference to Mother
As with many of the spiritual things, we ought to start our discussion in Genesis. In the first few chapters of Genesis, we have both the first occurrence of the word for mother in Hebrew (2:24) and the first Mother named (3:20).
The first occurrence of the word for mother is in an explanation of marriage based upon the first marriage between Adam and Eve:
Then the LORD God made a woman from the rib he had taken out of the man, and he brought her to the man. 23 The man said, “This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called ‘woman,’ for she was taken out of man.” 24 That is why a man leaves his father and mother and is united to his wife, and they become one flesh.
We can observe a few things about mothers in this brief passage. Mothers for a time, are in a relationship with their children in regular daily living. What exactly that relationship looks like is not detailed here, but there is an assertion that it is normative, expectant, and good, that children are raised with fathers and mothers. We also observe that marriage is the event that changes the relationship between children and their parents. Marriage moves a child from the daily regular provision, protection, care, and support of a father and mother, to their own family unit of husband and wife. In sum, we can say that the first instance of mothers in the scripture assumes a relationship to children. It is not ridiculous to come away from even the most introductory statement of God’s Word with a few foundational principles in mind—to be a mother is to have a specific caring relationship with her offspring.
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God doesn’t need to conform to our feelings, or our biological ability to mutilate our bodies. God has made and declared what is good. It is good for men to be manly, and good for women to be womanly. Each culture WILL look slightly different, but that doesn’t change the created order of God, and sometimes even cultures (like Western hyper-sexuality culture) as a whole can reject these created distinct categories that God has made of male and female.

Social Media Statement
This post is in response to a conversation that was started on social media.
Person #1: “If God made you a male, that’s not a mistake. If God made you a female, that’s not a mistake. Saying any different is insulting a perfect creator. Read your word.”
Person #2: “God made you a brunette, yet you are now a blonde. God gave you bad vision, yet you fixed it with glasses. God gave you crooked teeth, yet you straightened them with braces. Trans people change the outside to match the inside like you do. Sit down. Jesus said to.”
Response
Both of these are appeals to the individual in the present and are divorced from the Biblical arguments for male and female creational order.
Adam and Eve in their created state were individuals, each made with distinct roles, responsibilities, and relational unique attributes. This is all pointed to clearly in Genesis 1-2, and reinforced in the failure of both in their roles, responsibilities, and relationships in Genesis 3.
I’m not a male because of my inside, or my outside in a vacuum of my own understanding or interpretation of my feelings. I’m male for the same reason my wife is female. God has made humanity as male and female. This created order is specific and God-ordained. Boys are boys, and girls are girls. This is not a result of any desire, perspective, or input from humanity. God’s created order is not changed as a result of the fall. Although the fall has greatly impacted all of humanity, the fall has not somehow changed the created order of the universe. The fall has had tragic consequences, but the fall has not reordered or fundamentally changed how God has made and ordered humanity. We, as humans, are male and female in continuing fashion reflecting the created order of God, albeit now with much suffering and strife due to the fall and our sin (both original sin and our personal individual sin).
After the sin of Adam and Eve, boys are still boys, and girls are still girls. We are now fallen image bearers of God and in need of saving from the utter destruction we bring upon ourselves through sin. By God’s grace, sinful boys and girls can be saved to live forever as redeemed boys and girls. It is God who defines what sin is, God who defines what is needed for restoration from sin, and God who defines the created order of humanity: male and female he created them (Genesis 1-2).
The creator defines the usefulness and purpose of a created thing. Nowhere in the scriptures, by explicit statement, referential idea, or extrapolated consequence has God relinquished His position as creator of humanity. A hairdryer doesn’t have the ability, capacity, or right to say it’s a piano, toaster, or space rocket because it feels that way. The hairdryer was made as a hairdryer for the use, purpose, and pleasure of the maker and owner. God is the maker and owner of humanity. God has created humanity male and female and it is categorically beyond humanity’s ability, capacity, or rights to say otherwise.
To disassociate the pattern of who we are from the created order in Genesis 1-2 is a subtle “unhitching” and disbelief in the continuing pattern of God’s creation in the human race. We are made male and female, anything besides this is a result of the fall – note – that includes varying folks who are born with various physical handicaps, disabilities, or malformations.
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The good news of the gospel is that the Lord Jesus was both fully human and fully God. In this way, he was able to fully represent humanity’s interests before God, and perfectly fulfill holy justice before God. In being both fully human and fully divine, the Lord Jesus was the only and perfect mediator to open up the way of peace between God and humanity.  

Easter is around the corner and for many of us, it is a time of the celebration of Christ’s resurrection. This is the time of year that we are reminded of Christ’s humanity, but also his divinity. Jesus Christ is not only a man, but he is also God. We can see proof of Jesus being Man and God throughout scripture. Today we are going to look at Jesus Christ as God, from the writings of Paul the Apostle in Galatians.
Writings of Paul in Galatians
From the writer of Galatian’s understanding (Paul the Apostle) Jesus Christ is not only a man, but is someone and something more than just a man. It doesn’t take long, just a few verses in Galatians to see how Paul understood and believed that Christ Jesus was divinely God.
In Galatians 1:1, at the very beginning of the letter Paul writes “Paul, an apostle—sent not from men nor by a man, but by Jesus Christ and God the Father“.
In this very opening phrase, the church in Galatia was shown who was sending them this letter. This letter was from Paul, but who sent Paul? The authority of the letter was not just the authority of Paul. Paul writes that he has been sent. Who sent him? According to Paul, Jesus Christ, and God the Father. We might mistakenly think this is a division between the man Jesus and the God of Paul. But Paul lumps both Jesus Christ and God the Father together.
Why is This Compelling in Understanding Who Jesus Christ is?
Paul underscores that he has not been sent “from men nor by a man”. If Jesus Christ was only human, then this statement makes no sense and the sentence Paul writes is gravely confusing. But rather than being confusing, this introductory statement is clarifying. Paul leaves ZERO doubt for the Galatians he was writing to. Paul was on an errand of God. Who is that God according to Paul in verse 1? God is the Father and Jesus Christ. Paul has made a claim from the very get-go of the book of Galatians about the divinity of Jesus Christ.
At this point, some might say “Well….that’s just your understanding of one verse Jacob”
Alright, let’s keep reading Galatians past the introductory sentence. Let’s pick up again only a few words after verse 1, in verse 3:
3 Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, 4 who gave himself for our sins to rescue us from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father, 5 to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen. (Galatians 1:3-5)
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The elders mentioned in Acts 11:30 by definition are Christian as the relief sent from Antioch was intended for “brothers and sisters living in Judea” (Acts 11:29). While there weren’t clearly defined distinctions between Jews and Christians by the Roman authorities until the reign of Nero, there was early on, within the first days after Jesus’ resurrection a clear distinction made between the followers of Jesus and the established Jewish religious community.

In Acts 11:29-30 (narrative, descriptive) we’re given the first explicit mention of New Testament Christian elders:
Acts 11:29 The disciples, as each one was able, decided to provide help for the brothers and sisters living in Judea. 30 This they did, sending their gift to the elders by Barnabas and Saul.
Prior to Acts 11:30 the term for elders is used as a reference to Jewish elders, not members of the believing community following in faith the resurrected Jesus (1). The elders mentioned in Acts 11:30 by definition are Christian as the relief sent from Antioch was intended for “brothers and sisters living in Judea” (Acts 11:29). While there weren’t clearly defined distinctions between Jews and Christians by the Roman authorities until the reign of Nero, there was early on, within the first days after Jesus’ resurrection a clear distinction made between the followers of Jesus and the established Jewish religious community.
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We followers of Christ are not exempt from sorrow, grief, sadness, and heaviness. Jesus himself wept. He wept over Jerusalem (Luke 19:41) and wept at the death of his beloved friend Lazarus (John 11:35). He was distraught at the loneliness he would endure on the cross. The thought of the suffering he would bear brought him into such a state of distress that he sweated great drops of blood (Luke 22:44). Our great Savior knows what it means to be lonely. He knows the grief and sorrow we bear. He knows of the rain that never stops. He knows that Christians get depressed too. He knows what it is to be royal and yet suffer. 

When we wake up it is dark. When we come home it is still dark. This time of year can be a season of tremendous sadness. Some sadness emerges due to things like clinical and seasonal depression. Another sadness comes from the circumstances of the season. 

Seemingly every advertisement shows smiling faces, but for some reason, he doesn’t feel like smiling without his wife of 50 years beside him anymore. 
The family came to visit for the holidays just a few days ago, but it might as well be decades by the tears on her face. It was just a few years ago the kids were playing tag in the basement. Now one is a drug addict, and the other committed suicide Christmas Eve two years before. 
She’s thrilled to be in the embrace of her new boyfriend who asked her out over the Christmas break. The old boyfriend struggles to find words or motivation for anything and ends up quitting college after failing 3 out of 4 classes in the spring.  
The alarm clock disturbs a brief moment of restful sleep to remind the parent that all is quiet in the house, their little 5-year-old daughter won’t wake them up in bed anymore because she’s in hospice care with only a few days left to live. 

While many this time of year are in “shop until you drop” mode, some are in “weep until you sleep” mode. Despite all the efforts of commercialism to drive an anxious populace to buy happiness and exchange material gifts, whatever fleeting experience of excitement and enjoyment soon fades. Willy Wonka’s 4th quarter push to stimulate gains can’t compare to the crushing realities, tragedies, and struggles of the broken world we dwell in. The temporary timestamps of worldly pleasures fade away as the grim darkness and coldness of winter come with a truckload of haunting guilt, regretful words, and overwhelming circumstances. 
Why are some sad during this time of year? Because the grass withers and the flowers fall (Isaiah 40:8). Because nothing under the sun can provide lasting satisfaction, everything is wearisome (Ecclesiastes 1:8-11). 
The heaviness of this time of year is a burden for many. The cacophony of voices shouting words like “sale” “special” “discount” and “celebrate” echo as dark empty hallways in the hearts of those grieving, wounded, weak, and weeping. All the memories of loved ones and bygone days seem to pile up and throw themselves across the checkout counter of life during this season. I’ve seen it in the poor, and I’ve seen it in the rich. It’s a look that betrays the inward thoughts. There is nothing in this world that can bring lasting gladness. This world is gray. No, this world is worse than gray. It is overcast with a storm of tears and seemingly no wind to push the storm away from us. All is calm, but all is not bright. 
This time of year awakens in many of us the realities of death. Of relationships gone, of friends and loved ones beyond our present reach. Of opportunities lost, doors closed, and windows locked shut. For many, they wear a smile only because it is a socially agreed-upon thing to do. We smile outwardly because it is expected, while inwardly we rage, we curse, we fear, we long. 
In the long night of winter, we do not feel like merry-making. We sit in proverbial ashes and dust, waiting for the next time of fitful sleep to overwhelm our exhausted hearts. For many this time is the loneliest time of year. This is the time when death most tightly grips us with its ice-cold bruising grip. 
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We as preachers must always remember the aim of our proclamation is nothing short of the redemption of eternal souls (1 Timothy 4:15-16). The judgment that we preach is not a sadistic message of savage brutalism. The judgment that we preach is the righteousness of God, with the hope and aim of demonstrating the grace of God to sinners in Christ Jesus.

Let’s answer that question with a few things today, first, a few passages in scripture, second, with a story, and third, with a few statements for us as listeners of sermons and as preachers of sermons.
First, let’s look at scripture.
What does Scripture say about God Judging?
Hebrews 12:23 shows that God is the judge of all: You have come to God, the Judge of all,
Acts 10:42 shows that the Apostle Peter understood Jesus to be the judge of all, Jesus having been given that role by God: He commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that he is the one whom God appointed as judge of the living and the dead.
2 Timothy 4:8 reveals that as he neared the end of his earthly life the Apostle Paul spoke of the Lord Jesus as judge: Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day—and not only to me but also to all who have longed for his appearing.
Hebrews 9:27 speaks about judgment as coming after death in a final eternal decree regarding the state of individuals: Just as people are destined to die once, and after that to face judgment.
Daniel 7:13-14 prophetically recounts the vision of Daniel regarding the authority of the Christ to come: In my vision at night I looked, and there before me was one like a son of man, coming with the clouds of heaven. He approached the Ancient of Days and was led into his presence. He was given authority, glory and sovereign power; all nations and peoples of every language worshiped him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and his kingdom is one that will never be destroyed.
John 5:26-27 connects the trail of authority prophetically spoken of by Daniel by which Jesus (the Son) has received authority to judge: For as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son also to have life in himself. And he has given him authority to judge because he is the Son of Man.
This is just a brief smattering of passages. There are worthwhile longer studies examining more passages in depth. Even from these few verses, it is very apparent, that the scriptures speak of God as being the ultimate judge, and specifically, Christ Jesus has all authority in heaven and earth (Matthew 28:19-20). Anyone who makes a statement like “God doesn’t judge” is speaking either ignorantly (not knowing the truth of God’s Word), or in blatant rebellion against God’s word.
A Story of a Preacher Speaking about God’s Judgement
It was dark on the cold streets of downtown St. Louis. While the region didn’t often get much snow, there was some accumulation on the sides of the roads. Not the beautiful glistening snow of hallmark movies. It was the dirty, muddy snow covered in the excess filth of a thousand traveling cars. I turned my car from the main street into the driveway and parking lot of a 4 or 5-story brick building. It had a distinctive feature that many in Old North St. Louis knew well, a towering dark chimney stack rising high into the sky. What once was a building filled with the fire and smoke of industry, was now a building filled with men spit up and chewed out by choices, addictions, and hard knocks. The mission shelter had 44 beds available for up to 44 overnight homeless guests.
I walked past the line of men who had gathered near the side entrance of the building. I nodded and said hello to a few of the regulars whom I had gained something of a relationship with. In the summer there wasn’t much of a line, and often we would have “extra” open beds, maybe averaging something between 20-30 men each night at the shelter. In the cold winter though, it was different. It’s much easier to find a place to stay for the night when it’s 80 degrees, than when it’s 30 degrees. When the winter was cold, the line would be long. More than 44 men would line up. Starting with the 45th man there would be hope that someone earlier in the line would lose their place for the night due to poor behavior, intoxication, or some other unknown reason.
My role that night was not to preach, but instead to help cook and serve. There was a meal served, and then a 30-minute chapel service each night at the shelter before the men were marched upstairs to the showers and bunk room. While we had volunteers (individuals and groups) come in and lead chapel, I learned from my time serving (and from the wise words of a faithful man of God, who I will call Randy, who worked at the shelter) to always have a sermon ready. Sometimes volunteers didn’t show up. Randy had always told me “The man of God must be prepared in season and out of season”. If the volunteers didn’t show up, it was my role to lead the chapel that night.
I asked one of the homeless regulars, whom I will call Greg, who had been there every shift I had worked, “Who is coming to lead chapel tonight?”. “12 Shot” Greg answered. I did a double-take. I thought “12 Shot? What is he? Some kind of vigilante preacher loaded with shotguns coming to the hood of St. Louis?”. I followed up with another question “What sort of preacher is he?”. “The best,” he said. I raised my eyebrows. The elaboration from Greg was brief: “He preaches fire and brimstone and grace”.
After dinner was served the volunteer to lead chapel did show up. He visited with a few of the men who clearly recognized him. He shook hands with some and sat down to talk with others. When it came time for chapel I listened and marveled. “12 Shot” told how at one time he was a “scientific drunk”. He had figured out how he would maintain his buzz throughout the day. 12 Shot would use various mouthwashes and sprays he would mask his breath, and he would take 12 shots each day at intervals to never allow himself sobriety. He proclaimed with boldness that he was a man justly deserving of God’s righteous wrath. He shared many of his sins that he engaged in carelessly against God and with full diligence and care to the satiating of his own desires.
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