Matthew chapter three. We have here in our text tonight, a fun part of the story. You might wonder why I have a

picture of the Tollaton River behind my artwork. Does anybody know why?

Exactly, it's not the Tollitan.

It's the Jordan River.

That there is the mighty Jordan River.

You thought it was a Tollitan, didn't you?

My kids, when they were little, they said, Daddy, the Toilitan River.

I'm like, pretty much.

Well, you'll see why we have that as one of our marks of our study here.

Some of these pictures on this Matthew graphic is going to be representation of where we're at in the study of the gospel.

So kind of fun.

There was a candidate for church membership who went into the board,

and they were going to interview him to see if he was a viable member for the church.

And they asked, what part of the Bible do you like the best?

And he said, I like the New Testament. Oh, the New Testament. Then what book of the New Testament is your favorite? And a little beat of sweat started coming down his brow and he said, I like the book

of parables. Oh, what parables do you like? What's your favorite parable? And man, by this time he was just kind of shaking, you know, nervous and he said, well, my favorite

parable, once upon a time, there was a man who went down from Jerusalem into Jericho and

fell among thieves.

And the thorns grew up and choked the man.

And he went on and met the queen of Sheba and she gave the man, sir, a thousand talents of silver

and a hundred changes of raiment

and he got in his chariot and drove furiously

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