Sermon: The False Doctrine of the Trinity

[Music] there are a number of things that we take for granted in life in the past year and a half or so most of us probably don't take for granted any longer internet access that became quite the necessity when things were shut down for covid we take it take for granted a number of other things though things like the food and the variety that we have in this country it's always amazing to me we can walk into a grocery store and you can pretty much get anything you want to eat any time of the year whether it's in season here or not we take for granted our standard of living that we have in this country the access we have to consumer items in a less tangible way we probably don't pay much attention to the things being the way they are simply why they are we're so comfortable with computer technology but most don't consider that 20 years or so ago that was still in its infancy and very much not driven or driving rather everything that we have in business and so forth but even how the world functions we take for granted the use of oil that we have and the plastics and so many other things that come from that but even various aspects of our culture and why things simply are the way they are we can spiritually take things for granted as well in the 2020 u.s census one of the things that really stood out to me when that was released is that we are truly what's now called a post-christian nation many of us that are old enough remember not only what this country was founded on but the fact that we were a christian nation in name at least for almost all of our history but what the 2020 census showed is that more people than not now claim no religious status or affiliation at all they consider themselves either agnostic or independent of those things the curious thing though is that christmas and eastern halloween are still huge events in this country [Music] and i think a big part of that is recognizing the fact that these holidays have become part of the culture more than the religion of the people keeping them there's also a huge economic impact from those days that most are a part of even those of us in god's church can take things for granted we can become so immersed in god's way of life that we can forget that most of christianity would not accept the core doctrines that we keep from scripture we can easily think or believe that what god reveals in his word is so logical and straightforward that everyone should have no problem knowing how god would have us worship and practice his teachings and then we're surprised when we're up against something that is contrary to that let me give you an example back in 2011 i became camp director for winter camp we had lost the use of the previous camp the year before that was in montello and after a comprehensive search we finally found something down in south central wisconsin down the east troy area this camp was owned by a mainstream christian church group a local group and initially there was a fair amount of hesitation renting to us because they went to the ucg.org website and they looked through our fundamental belief teachings and the two that stood out to them were the seventh-day sabbath and the fact that we didn't teach the trinity they decided to give us an opportunity at least to see how it might work based on a couple of options one is that we were booking a week when they had virtually no business that helped we were bringing in a large enough group that they could keep a number of employees employed during that time that normally wouldn't be employed and then also one of the big things is that we were providing our own schedule and almost all of our own staff so we weren't that much of an impact in that way on them we eventually lost the use of that camp because of our teaching on the trinity but not from that group the camp was purchased by a national christian organization and their leadership once they saw that we didn't teach the trinity decided that they could not rent to us the local staff though had grown to see that if even if we didn't teach some of the doctrines that they did they appreciated the fact that we lived what we taught that we were a disciplined group that we took care of their facility and that were very much a pleasure to work with but the parent organization couldn't support a christian group that didn't believe in or teach the trinity doctrine in fact most christian denominations teach that if a group does not teach the trinity they are a cult the belief in the trinity is so strongly held that many churches teach that to deny that doctrine means that you're not a christian but do we understand what the bible actually says about this teaching that's what we're going to cover today we're going to look at six aspects of scripture and logic that refute this false doctrine of the trinity so if you'll turn to hebrews 11 we'll be there in just a moment but we can take for granted that the trinity doctrine is simply a mainstream christian teaching without really at times examining the claim that is made that god is a trinity at the core of mainstream christian orthodoxy is this teaching of trinitarianism and this is simply a belief that god exists in his eternal state as father son and holy spirit but the first problem out of the gate is simply that that is not found in scripture that teaching of the father and son being eternally won but it's classical trinitarianism and the problem as well with that is that it obscures the purpose god created mankind and that is that human beings can be born into become part of his kingdom so hebrews 11 let's look at verse six we find here what's called the first article of faith but without faith it is impossible to please him for he who be who comes to god must believe that he is and that he is a rewarder of those who diligently seek him in other words a person must believe that god exists and as i said in the most recent u.s census increasingly that's not accepted in the world around us god is a myth god is a crutch for those who can't handle life in other ways or things along this line but the other part of that belief that we read there in verse 6 is that he is a rewarder of those who seek him what that means is that he always has our best interests at heart now the world of course is full of skeptics as i said who don't believe in the existence of god but a good percentage of people still in the western nations would profess some kind of belief in the god of the christian bible let's go next to john 4. what we find in scripture is that god is shown to be uncreated eternal and invisible meaning because he's spirit we don't see him in the same way we see other things in the world around us john 4 and verse 24 christ here says god is spirit and those who worship him must worship him in spirit and truth now this verse speaks to god's existence in general but that the crutch crutch of the crux of the matter of what we're speaking about today is what about the origin of jesus christ this becomes important when we understand how trinitarianism is taught classical trinitarian holds or teaches that god the father eternally generates the son that is that christ exists through the father and that the father and the son together then eternally generate the holy spirit that it does not exist outside of them theologians refer to this closed system as the triune god triune means consisting of three and one they further assert that all three the father the son the holy spirit must mutually participate in the actions of the others now this will become important as we go through this because according to this teaching the triune god is a closed system not an open system and what that means is no one else can enter into that what's called eternal model no one else can become part of the godhead now this is part of the logic that we get into if the godhead is closed if it's a closed system how can human beings become children of god and members of his family let's look at second corinthians 6 next this is what scripture teaches scripture teaches that we human beings can become part of the god family which means what we teach from scripture is seen in most christian circles is heresy because we're teaching we can become god we'll come back to that as we progress as well but second corinthians 6 and verse 18 paul here is quoting he says i will be a father to you and you shall be my sons and daughters says the lord almighty is god a liar or is he true this verse says you shall be my sons and daughters this is god speaking here what about the incarnation of the word the son of god jesus christ being born in the flesh some will say this is part of what's being talked about here but remember classical trinitarianism teaches that the father is eternally generating the son in the heaven and that leads to our first point then point number one the incarnation and resurrection of jesus christ shatters the trinitarian paradigm the incarnation and resurrection of jesus christ shatters the trinitarian paradigm can you see the dilemma already with classical trinitarian how can there be a son in heaven and one on the earth if the father is continually generating the sun in heaven then who was on earth how is the essential nature of god as the father the son and the holy spirit preserved when the one who is the word became flesh it's very complicated if you follow that model because if any one of the triune godhead is taken out of the model then the whole paradigm falls apart doesn't it and yet trinitarians contend that the father continued to generate the son in heaven while he was begotten in mary's womb during the time he lived on earth and flesh and this is why certain gnostic teachings crept in they said that christ was a phantom that he didn't really exist as a man well that's a problem isn't it the problem is then what sacrifice do we have for our sins if it was just spirit and a mirage sort of thing there's also the other problem that was taught in gnosticism and that is that jesus and christ were two different beings christ was in heaven jesus is on earth it gets very complicated and outside of scripture doesn't it because according to the trinitarian model the son on earth is a fourth being but how can that be if it's a triune god and it's a closed system you have three in heaven and one on earth so you get into these problems even of logic but theologians will try to reason around many of those quandaries by emphasizing distinctions in the godhead but they further become entangled one of these problems is a theological term called patri patripassianism just out of curiosity how many people know what that is i had to look it up when i came across it actually because what it teaches patrick passionism means the father's suffering that is that god the father suffered and died with jesus the son for the sins of the world because remember if the father is eternally generating the son then he had to be with the son when he was on the crucifix this teaching is first recorded by justin martyr around 153 a.d in his work called first apology justin martyr was not part of the church of god he was what's called they call him a church father but what they're talking about is a catholic church so he's already teaching things that are not in scripture justin martyr's teaching was made popular in a novel in a movie some of you might remember i don't know how well received it was it was kind of marginal called the shack back in 1994 but that was the premise of that novel and movie what's interesting is that this teaching that justin martyr talks about this patri patri passionism was taught by or excuse me condemned by early church catholic fathers like to truly and origin and others and even to this day it's condemned by the catholic church and yet the curious thing is that they still hold that jesus was both divine in heaven and human on earth so even though they condem it they still teach it explanations of explaining a way rather ways of being god or emphasizing distinctions in the godhead cannot negate the fact that according to scripture according to this model if one dies they all die if they're all generating each other sadly this doctrine then reduces jesus christ to mere human flesh but what's the problem with that we have another problem in scripture back in ezekiel 14 verses 4 and 20 it's recorded there that there were three righteous men daniel job and noah but christ even quotes this later that says even those men could only save themselves in their righteousness because they were men moreover proponents of this doctrine this trinity doctrine are in essence saying that god gave part of himself to himself to be a mere mortal since the eternally generated sun is safe and continues to be generated in heaven again it gets very convoluted doesn't it and yet we have very clear words from jesus christ in luke 23 46 at the end of his life as he was dying on the cross where he says father into your hands i commend my spirit why would the flesh need to go back to heaven if the son was already there point number two then how does jesus's resurrection fit the trinitarian view of god how does jesus's resurrection fit the trinitarian view of god let's go a few pages back to first corinthians 15. this trinitarian paradigm is further shattered by the resurrection of jesus christ from the dead again if he's mere flesh why does he need to be resurrected if the son is already in heaven trinitarians insist on a body only resurrection in an attempt to preserve the trinitarian model of the father eternally generating the sun but it doesn't stand up even to logic their insistence on a bodily resurrection only denies christ's resurrection as a life-giving spirit that is he changed in essence first corinthians 15 and in verse 45 we have this recorded for us by paul and so it is written the first man adam became a living being and back in genesis that hebrew word is nephesh it literally means air-breathing creature we are alive only as long as we breathe he says the last adam became a life-giving spirit it's a different plane of existence however the spiritual is not first but the natural and afterward the spiritual that is that god is developing even us to become spirit because scripture clearly reveals that the resurrection in the resurrection story the resurrected christ is a separate and distinct entity he now sits at the right hand of god let's look at this back in excuse me acts chapter 2. acts chapter 2 is of course the sermon of peter that he's giving on the day of pentecost after the crucifixion and resurrection of jesus christ 50 days prior and so acts 2 verse 29 peter here says men and brethren let me speak freely to you regarding the patriarch david that he is both dead and buried and in his tomb with us to this day this even is an argument if you will against the immortal soul david was still in his sepulchre they all knew that verse 30 therefore being a prophet that is that david was a prophet and knowing that god had sworn an oath to him that the fruit of the fruit of his body according to the flesh he would raise up the christ to sit on his throne that was a promise given to david that through his lineage the messiah would come so verse 31 he foreseen this spoke concerning the resurrection of the messiah the christ that his soul was not left in the grave nor did his flesh see corruption this jesus god has raised up of which we are all witnesses why again if the son was already generated in the heaven then why would he need jesus his body resurrected therefore verse 33 being exalted to the right hand of god and having received from the father the promise of the holy spirit he poured out this which you now see and hear for david did not ascend into heaven but he says the lord said to my lord sit at my right hand till i make your enemies your footstool trinitarians realize that the resurrection of christ as a life-giving spirit introduces a fourth person into the godhead so they insist he received only a bodily resurrection from the dead that he is not part of the triune godhead implying only the body of jesus died since the father eternally generates the son but as i mentioned earlier this strays into these various gnostic teachings that christ could not come in human form because human form is corrupt and so if he was the son of god he couldn't because it would become corrupt further that teaching denies jesus's death on the cross and implies that he resurrected himself if he's part of the godhead if he's eternally generated by the father then he resurrected himself as well the more one dives into the particulars of the trinity doctrine the more one can readily see the inherent problems with it it's not consistent and it's not logical from scripture so i asked the question earlier about how the sun fits into all this and this is the third point the origin of the word word being capitalized origin of the word what does scripture say about the origin of jesus the one we know is jesus christ well let's go to john chapter 1. if the son is not a created being then how and when did he come into existence remember the traditional classical view of trinitarianism is that the father generates the son john 1 verse 1 in the beginning was the word and the word was with god and the word was god he was in the beginning with god the word beginning tr trips up a lot of people because we're thinking in chronological physical material ways the beginning of something what this is referring to is the beginning of creation because as spirit god has no beginning verse 3 continuing this word through this word rather all things were made through him and without him nothing was made that was made everything that exists outside of the godhead the universe the angels this planet us everything in him was life this is what we read back earlier in john that he's a life-giving spirit now in him was life and the life was the light of men we have in john 1 1 3 simple clauses that serve to illustrate the eternal existence of the logos that's what the word is spokesman logos is the same thing in the greek but the first clause there in the first verse is in the beginning was the word the word translated was in the english there the greek is the word e in in and it simply means to be or to exist so in the beginning existed the word we find that same statement back in genesis 1 1. god said let us make man in our image in the second clause here in john 1 1 we have the word was with god the verb was there is used to describe a relationship that is that the logos was in god's presence but distinct from god at the same time he had fellowship with god he was with him the third clause then is that the word was god the verb was here helps to define the character or the essence of the logos the logos was god the word was theos in the greek you can find this in various sources one such is the dictionary of jesus in the gospels written by joel greene scott mcknight and howard marshall john here clearly identifies two distinct entities in the godhead the logos and theos additionally john asserts that the logos had a personal relationship with god and so the chronology is emphasized here in verses one and two that the word who was in the beginning was also with god and then it's repeated again that there was no beginning for them they were there at the beginning of everything else so if no other scriptures were available the simplicity of what john states here in the impact behind it make it very clear that the word is uncreated and co-eternal with god not generated by the father let's look at verse 10 here john 1 verse 10 he was in the world this is the word back up in verse 1 and so forth he was in the world and the world was made through him now this goes back to the problem with classic trinitarianism if he was in the world then who was in heaven it begins to break down doesn't it we have problems we can't answer here we also know that this is the one that we now know as the sun because it says he created everything and yet the world didn't know him the world was made through him john here is repeating the logos's role in creation when the word it says made everything everything was made through him the word made there in the greek is the word geonomic and it's a verb simply that means to become to come into existence thayer's greek dictionary and others can point this out but the most dramatic proof of the pre-existence of the logos is found in verse 14. john 1 verse 14 the word became flesh didn't say a part of him that he was created separately the word became flesh and dwelt among us and we beheld his glory the glory as the only begotten son of the father full of grace and truth if the logos had no pre-existence then god the father simply made up a being to become the only begotten son but as noted in john 1 1 the word coexisted eternally with the father point number four then the logos identified excuse me the logos is identified in the book of revelation the logos is identified lest there's confusion here in john let's go to revelation chapter 1. the book of revelation records the revelation actually that the father gave to jesus christ who gave it to an angel who gave it to john often times we'll say it's the revelation of jesus christ many bibles will even have that at the top at the beginning of the book of the book but let's notice revelation 1 verse 1 the revelation of jesus christ which god gave to him to show to his servants things which must shortly take place he sent and signified by his angel to his servant john the book of revelation then goes on to record the very revelation of god the father what's going to happen in the end time john's salutation here is actually from the father who was and is and is to come notice verse 4 revelation 1 verse 4. john then says in writing to the seven churches which is our which are in asia we we would say asia minor grace you and peace from him who is and was and is to come from the seven spirits who are before his throne and from jesus christ the faithful witness the firstborn from the dead the ruler over the kings of the earth to him who loved and washed us from the sins in his own blood john here is given the vision of the son of man walking among these seven candlesticks this is the one declared as the alpha and the omega notice verse 10. yes revelation 1 verse 10 but these speaking evil of what they don't know whatever they know naturally like bruce brood beasts and those things which corrupt themselves woe to them for they have gone the way of king sorry i'm off the wrong page verse 10 i was in the spirit of the lord's day and i heard behind me a loud voice as of a trumpet saying i am the alpha and the omega the first and last and what you are to write in a book and send to the seven churches which are in asia to ephesus and then he names these churches these locations verse 14 his head and hair were as white wool as white as snow in his eyes like a flame of fire his feet were like fine brass as if refined in a furnace his voice as the sound of many waters he had in his right hand seven stars and out of his mouth when a sharp two-edged sword and his countenance was like the sun shining at full strength verse 17 and when i saw him i fell at his feet as dead but he laid his right hand on me saying do not be afraid i am the first and the last what we find in this section is that christ is equating his eternity with that of the father it's no different the passages clearly parallel chapter 8 of john where christ three times in that chapter calls himself the i am the first two times the pharisees didn't hear what he was saying the third time they did and they wanted to stone him because they understood the implications he was calling himself god but jesus was unapologetic in this claim it was not something he was claiming that was not his let's go to chapter 19 of revelation next john is given a vision actually of christ coming in glory as the king of kings john excuse me revelation 19 verse 11 john now records he says i saw heaven open and behold a white horse he who sat on him was called faithful and true and in righteousness he judges and makes war his eyes were like a flame of fire on his head were many crowns symbolic of many governments he had a name written that no one knew except himself he was clothed with a robe dipped in blood whose blood his he's the savior his name was called notice the word of god here the father reveals because remember it's the father passing this down through the son through the angel to john to record the father reveals to all that jesus christ is the word of god the same being we read of in john 1 the same being who was with the father in eternity the same being who emptied himself of his glory and took on the form of flesh as immanuel john 17 christ has this very heartfelt prayer the night before of his death and one of the things he asked the father was to restore the glory he had if he was only flesh created for the purpose of being the messiah he never had the glory right this is the logic that we're talking about and then we tie it with scripture as well we show that it just doesn't line up the incarnate word capital w the incarnate word who died for the sins of the world is now alive forevermore point number five then the logos emptied himself of glory let's go back revelation 13. it seems and it's hard for us to put this together in our minds that the father and the logos or the word had this agreement predating everything that was created that the word would give up his glory so that mankind in their sins could be reconciled with god the father to eventually become children of god there has to be a way doesn't isn't doesn't there there has to be a way to reconcile that sin to pay for it otherwise we have no opportunity so in revelation 13 and verse 8 we read this very important part in talking about the trinity all who dwell on earth will worship him whose names have not been written in the book of life notice of the lamb slain from the foundation of the world the garden of eden and adam and eve's rebellion and mankind ever since then did not make god go to plan b plan a is still in effect there was always the desire to reconcile mankind to the father so they could be in his family that was determined before anything else was created revelation 13 8 tells us that which creates a problem for a son eternally generated by the father and jesus as a man created to die for mankind's sins we keep coming back to this irreconcilable aspects of how it's taught family relationship we further find can only be developed through a birth process which begs an interesting question it's not a trick question was the son always the son he was not the son until he was begotten by the father it changed the relationship didn't it it added an element to it that was not there before the trinity doctrine doesn't understand that although the father-son relationship is mentioned in the old testament it didn't exist at that time because it had not come to fruition it had not happened let's go to second timothy chapter 1. this plan though existed before mankind was created second timothy chapter 1 verse 9. ii timothy 1 verse 9. speaking here of jesus christ breaking into the thought who has saved us and called us with a holy calling not according to our works but according to his own purpose and the grace which was given to us in christ jesus notice before time began which connects it back to revelation 13 8. it was always the desire for god to expand his family but the word first had to empty himself of his glory and take on flesh die for us in our place as creator his life was infinitely more valuable than everything he created we have that upside down in the western world especially we value things over relationships and people that's not the way god views it let's go next to hebrews 2. not far from where we are here hebrews 2 and in verse 9. but we see jesus who was made a little lower than the angels we see these relationships the father and the son then the angelic realm and then mankind for now when jesus became man he was a little lower than the angels in existence if you will for the suffering of death he was crowned with glory and honor that by that he by the grace of god might taste death for everyone for it was fitting for him jesus christ for whom are all things and by whom are all things and bringing many sons to glory whose glory the fathers to make the captain of their salvations perfect through sufferings in doing so the word the logos jesus christ became the firstborn from the dead we've read some of those scriptures already paul makes it very clear even in the gospel accounts it's very clear the logos gave up his glory and took on the form of a servant so he could become our savior let's notice philippians 2 next this goes back to the existence of the son whether he was generated by the father and how that plays into jesus christ as a man philippians 2 and verse 6 speaking of jesus christ he says who being in the form of god the same existence not just in appearance who being in the form of god did not consider it robbery to be equal with god he's not generated by the father he is of the same existence verse 7 but made himself of no reputation he was no longer god as jesus christ he had divine nature through god in him but he was man he died he was of no reputation taking the form of a bond sermon and coming in the likeness of men verse 8 and being found in the appearance as a man he humbled himself became obedient to the point of death even to the death of the cross it was through the logos then being willing to give up his glory that he could take on the form of a man god could not take that from him he had to agree to it which they did in revelation 13 8. think of the trust that was there there was no doubt on either side but the skeptics might ask do the above verses what we've just gone through prove the logos existed with the father well here in philippians 6 i'm sorry 2 verse 6 it says being in the form of god did not consider it robbery to be equal with god the word being there who being in the form of god in the greek is hubarco it means to begin or to come forth to be ready or at hand according to thayers and so we see that the word already existed he already existed as god and came forth to take on the form of a man which begs a question how could the word exist in the form of god and not be god it's another logical question if one accepts paul's assertion that he took on the form of a man which we just read here we must also accept that he existed in the form of god he took on the form of man which is the question what was he before he was in the form of god which we read so it says he didn't consider it robbery the greek word there means something seized taken he didn't consider it something he had to seize he did not seize equality with god it already existed so giving up his glory was the greatest act of servant leadership that the world has ever seen and to give up that glory his willingness to do so that he shared with god the father is one of the principal reasons why the father has exalted him let's go back a little bit in ephesians to ephesians chapter 1. ephesians 1 verse 20 speaking of god here he said which he worked in christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places far above all principality and power and might and dominion and every name that is named there is no one above christ except the father notice verse 22 and he god the father put all things under his the word christ's feet gave him to be head over all things to the church the last point then number six christ's testimony of the glory he shared with the father undoes the doctrine christ's testimony of glory he shares with the father undoes the trinity doctrine let's go back to john 17 i alluded to earlier john 17 and verse 5. this again is christ's prayer the night before he was crucified what is on his mind john 17 verse 5 this is just one part he says and now oh father glorify me together with yourself why is that necessary if the son's already eternally generated in heaven he's asking to be restored to what he already had previously we've covered that glorify me together with yourself with the glory which i had with you before the world was we've covered those verses as well restore me there's great force of meaning in the greek here before the world that word in the english in the greek is cosmos very similar to the word we have that means the universe christ shared his glory with the father before the universe was created not the physical earth that we're familiar with all of it any attempt to dismiss this as prophetic is not keeping in line with the other scriptures we've read why would christ ask the father to restore something he had with the father before the word was if he never experienced it in the first place if he had never experienced it it would seem that he would be asking the father to give it to him so he could have it but clearly the pre-existence of christ is affirmed in this verse and others that we've read that christ came to the earth and gave up that glory he had with the father that jesus who died for the sins of the world now has been raised from the dead glorified again sits at the right hand of the father restored to his former glory so the fact that christ was glorified the resurrection in no way proves that the word did not exist in a glorified state before he came to the earth it actually creates the problems we've already stated as paul explained the word emptied itself of the glory and took on the form of a man in the flesh he was divine in the sense that he was the only born son of god the greek word there is monogenes john 1 14 and 18 other places in john that's used which means he was filled with the holy spirit again he took on the form of a man so he could die for mankind's sins let's go to romans 8 as we begin to wrap this up we see through god's love and his grace and mercy that the trinitarian model of a closed system is not what is taught in scripture in fact what scripture shows is god's great purpose in creating humankind why were we created why does man exist what's the purpose of life these questions that many can ask in various forms and ways but why do we exist we exist to become god romans 8 and verse 17 actually let's begin in verse 16. it says the spirit itself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of god not will be not can be not might be if we have god's spirit we are already his children we're like that feed us in the womb we're in the process and if nothing prevents it we will become full born verse 17 and if we are children if we're children of god then we're heirs of god and joint heirs with christ what does an error mean we inherit what they have part of the family we inherit what god has we inherit what christ had has if indeed we suffer with him that we may notice also be glorified together the same thing that christ was asking for in john 17 to have that glory since the word trinity appears nowhere in bible where did that teaching originate that answers beyond the scope of this sermon simply put it came out of paganism not out of scripture history is clear with the answer it's not clouded or unknown but if you want to read up more on that to refresh your memory or to learn it if you haven't already i would encourage you to go back to the booklet and go through is god a trinity that booklet goes into much more detail in that regard suffice it to say it's important to understand the truth though concerning this doctrine of the trinity it's important because if we make the godhead to be something it is not then we've created an idol before the one true god let's not add to god's word as christ said let's be sure that we're worshiping god in spirit and in truth

Channel: UCG Milwaukee

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Keywords: UCG, UCG Milwaukee, United Church of God, United Church of God Milwaukee, UCG Sermon, trinity, father, spirit, christ, oneness, unity, immortal, beings

Id: T4glk3WgFkg

Length: 47min 21sec (2841 seconds)

Published: Fri Jul 23 2021