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The Necessity of Washing · Stornoway Free Church of Scotland - Sermons

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I turn with me now to the New Testament and to the Gospel of John chapter 13.
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!
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Now before the feast of the Passover, when Jesus knew that his hour had come to depart
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out of this world to the Father, having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them
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to the end.
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During supper, when the devil had already put it into the heart of Judas Iscariot, Simon's
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son, to betray him, Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into his hands
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and that he had come from God and was going back to God, rose from supper.
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He laid aside his outer garments and, taking a towel, tied it round his waist.
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Then he poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples' feet and to wipe them
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with the towel that was wrapped round him.
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He came to Simon Peter, who said to him, Lord, do you wash my feet?
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Jesus answered him, what I am doing you do not understand now, but afterwards you will
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understand.
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And Peter said to him, you shall never wash my feet.
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Jesus answered him, if I do not wash you, you have no share with me.
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Simon Peter said to him, Lord, not my feet only, but also my hands and my head.
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Jesus said to him, the one who has bathed does not need to wash except for his feet, but is
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completely clean.
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And you are clean, but not every one of you, for he knew who was to betray him.
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That was why he said, not all of you are clean.
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When he had washed their feet and put on his outer garments and resumed his place, he said
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to them, do you understand what I have done to you?
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You call me teacher and Lord, and you are right, for so I am.
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If I then, your Lord and teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another's
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feet.
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For I have given you an example, that you also should do just as I have done to you.
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Truly, truly, I say to you, a servant is not greater than his master, nor is a messenger
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greater than the one who sent him.
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If you know these things, blessed are you if you do them.
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I am not speaking of all of you.
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I know whom I have chosen, but the scripture will be fulfilled.
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He who ate my bread has lifted his heel against me.
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I am telling you this now before it takes place, that when it does take place, you may believe
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that I am he.
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Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever receives the one I send receives me, and whoever receives
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me receives the one who sent me.
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And we can pick up a reading again at verse 31.
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That section from 31 to 30 just describes Judas Iscariot just leaving the upper room and going
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out to betray Jesus.
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So when he had gone out, that's Judas Iscariot.
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When Judas Iscariot had gone out, Jesus said,
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Now is the Son of Man glorified, and God is glorified in him.
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If God is glorified in him, God will also glorify him in himself, and glorify him at once.
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Little children, yet a little while I am with you.
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You will seek me, and just as I said to the Jews, so now I also say to you, where I am going,
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you cannot come.
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A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another.
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Just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another.
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By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.
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Amen.
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May God bless you as that reading of his word.
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And to his name be the praise.
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We sing again, this time in Sing Psalms again, in Psalm 119, 119 at verse 9.
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You'll find that on page 157 of the Blue Psalm books.
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Page 157.
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We sing verses 9 to 16, the whole of this section.
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How can the young keep their life pure?
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By doing what your word demands, I seek you with my heart and soul.
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Let me not stray from your commands.
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Verses 9 to 16, to God's praise.
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Amen.
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O God, the young keep their life pure,
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By doing what your word demands, I seek you with my heart and soul.
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Let me not stray from your commands.
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Pure word I've made and in my heart,
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To keep me from offending you.
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Praise be to you, O Lord my God,
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Teach me your status, firm and true.
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It love proceeding from your mind.
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I'm glad you with my lips have told.
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I love to follow you, O Lord my God,
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As others love to count their goal.
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I meditated upon your face,
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And all your precepts I regret.
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I did delight in your decease.
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Your word I never will delay.
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Turn back with me then please to the passage read,
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John chapter 13.
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And I'd just like to read from verse 5 down to verse 10.
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John 13, John 13, verse 5.
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Then he poured water into a basin,
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And began to wash the disciples' feet,
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And to wipe them with the towel that was wrapped round him.
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He came to Simon Peter, who said to him,
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Lord, do you wash my feet?
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Jesus answered him,
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What I am doing you do not understand now,
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But afterwards you will understand.
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Peter said to him,
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You shall never wash my feet.
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Jesus answered him,
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If I do not wash you,
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You have no share with me.
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I will leave it at that.
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I'd like to focus on these words particularly.
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If I do not wash you,
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You have no share with me.
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This is a very solemn section of the history of Jesus.
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And the events that we're looking at here,
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They take place on the final part of his journey on this earth.
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Scripture tells us that his hour has now come.
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His time to die on the cross for the sins of his people is now at hand.
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And up until this point,
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Jesus has been primarily concerned with outsiders, if you like.
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Others who have come to him for healing, for teaching, for salvation.
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But now, as he nears his time to go towards the cross,
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Jesus turns his attention wholly to his disciples and shows them the extent of his love and compassion as he assembles all of them around him for the last time.
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This last night then was an eventful night.
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This period just before Jesus went forward to the cross, to his interrogation.
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He prayed his great high priestly prayer.
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He taught his disciples many valuable truths.
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He observed the Passover meal with his disciples.
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That was him instituting the Lord's Supper, as we know it.
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And he was betrayed into the hands of his enemies by one of his disciples, Judas Iscariot.
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And the other three Gospels, Matthew, Mark and Luke, they carry a more detailed account of the feast itself that was happening in the upper room.
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But John omits that detail and instead, John gives us insight into the dialogue and remarkable occurrences that are now beginning to happen around the table.
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At that time, and in that culture, food washing someone else's feet was regarded as one of the most humble and demeaning tasks anyone could perform.
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It was reserved for household slaves.
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So what I'd like to look at this evening is to look at this act of washing and what happened in the upper room.
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And particularly, secondly, the significance of the washing.
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So as the meal gets underway here in the upper room,
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this overpowering and astonishing scene starts to unfold before us.
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And it was something that the disciples had not experienced before.
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And it's something that the disciples would not have expected to happen.
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The son of God, perfect and sinless, who has all power and authority,
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he gets up from the table, he takes off his overgarments,
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he wraps a towel around his waist, he pours a basin of water,
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he goes down on his knees and starts washing his disciples' feet.
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And as you begin to realize what's happening here,
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you almost want to cry out,
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stop!
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Because this isn't the work of the Lord of glory.
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Surely it isn't.
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This is what we should be doing for you.
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And this is very similar to what John the Baptist said to Jesus as Jesus came to be baptized by him.
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And we're told in Matthew chapter 3,
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then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to John to be baptized.
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John would have prevented him saying,
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I need to be baptized by you.
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And do you come to me?
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So it's kind of very similar what we have here,
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and particularly the way it works out with Peter, the disciple.
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Yet, how wrong we would be in saying or even thinking that.
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Because Jesus in his word is continually teaching us and showing us by example,
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what we have to do, what is necessary.
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As Jesus starts to wash their feet,
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we can ask the question,
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well, how did the disciples feel at this point?
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And scripture really tells a reaction.
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They never said a word.
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Not a word is recorded for us.
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They never said a word.
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They're most likely sitting there in silent astonishment
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at Jesus doing this for them.
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Not a word was said until, of course, as we read,
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Jesus came to Peter.
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And here, as we might expect,
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Peter, Peter's character comes to the fore again.
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And in one respect, he speaks for all of us.
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Can we not visualize him sitting there at the table,
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and as Jesus comes right in front of him,
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can we not visualize him quickly just pulling his feet away
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and drawing them back as quickly as possible
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and protesting,
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are you going to wash my feet?
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Even though Peter didn't have a full understanding
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of the work of Jesus, he knew one thing.
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This was the Christ.
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Peter knew that.
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It was crystal clear in his mind.
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He had testified to that previously
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when Jesus asked him,
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Jesus asked the disciples,
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who do you say that I am?
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And it was Peter who spoke up and said,
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you are the Christ, the Son of the living God.
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So Peter knew that this was a Christ.
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Peter knew he was holy.
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And Peter knew that he himself was full of sin.
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And he concluded this shouldn't be happening.
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And Jesus explained to Peter
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that he didn't realize the spiritual significance
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and the full extent of what he was actually doing
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for them right there.
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And we will consider this very shortly.
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We might have thought
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that this in itself would have been enough for Peter,
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for Jesus to speak that word, but no.
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And I suppose we shouldn't be surprised,
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Peter being Peter,
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for what we're told about him in the Gospels.
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Peter replied even more strongly,
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you're not doing that to me.
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I can't allow this to happen.
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You'll never wash my feet.
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And it's always as if Peter is taking charge
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or wants to take charge
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of this whole situation
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that has unfolded before him.
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And however commendable Peter's reaction was,
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it was wrong.
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And Peter appears to have forgotten Jesus' words
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and teaching.
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And we have in Mark chapter 10 and verse 45,
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where Jesus spoke in front of the disciples,
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I didn't come to be ministered to,
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but to serve.
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So now we have Jesus' reply to Peter.
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And it's a text we're going to focus on this evening.
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If I don't wash you,
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then you have no share with me.
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Or, as an older version puts it,
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or you have no part of me.
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It means the same thing.
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So clearly,
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when Jesus spoke that to Peter,
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this had a direct influence on Peter's thinking
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and understanding.
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And Peter's responded once again,
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well, Lord, not my feet only,
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but my hands and my head as well.
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Just wash all of me.
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And we might think,
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well, what an excellent answer that was.
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But again,
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it wasn't correct.
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And we're told then in verse 13
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that Jesus then sat down
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and he begins to explain what he has done.
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You call me teacher and Lord.
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You're right.
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For so I am.
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And here then is where we also begin to understand
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the mystery of what's behind this washing.
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With the benefit of hindsight of the cross,
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and especially our understanding from the word as we have it,
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we can now appreciate what Jesus was doing.
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And this was symbolic of his sacrifice at Calvary.
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I'm going to quote here,
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some of which is partly from Alistair Begg.
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And of course, as follows,
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the glory that God has given to Jesus
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is a glory that is seen supremely
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in the path of obedience.
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It is seen supremely in the expression of lowly service.
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It is seen in a savior who washes his disciples' feet.
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It is seen in a king who comes riding on a donkey.
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It is seen in the arrival of divinity
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in such an expression of apparent poverty,
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simplicity and helplessness.
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And the father is glorified in a love that culminates in the cross.
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That kind of summarizes everything
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to do with this passage that we have here.
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So just as Jesus laid aside his garments
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and assumed the role of house servant to wash his disciples' feet.
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So he also served humanity
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and particularly all of his own beloved children
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whom he loves all the way to dine on the cross for them.
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And this is the love he speaks about in verse one.
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Before the feast of the Passover when Jesus knew that his hour had come
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to depart out of this world to the Father,
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having loved his own who were in the world,
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he loved them to the end.
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So what we understand from this passage,
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looking at verse 10, there's a bathing
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and there's a bathing and there's a food washing mentioned.
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And the bathing represents salvation
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and the food washing represents restoration.
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Jesus told Peter that he had already washed,
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receiving the bathing of salvation.
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He was clean.
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And other than Judas Iscariot,
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so were the rest of the disciples.
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The bathing of salvation
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isn't something a believer
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undertakes every day at all.
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It's done once.
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And that's when Jesus becomes your personal savior.
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So what does this mean
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in your personal experience?
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Well, first of all,
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it is exactly that.
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It is personal.
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It is personal between you and Jesus.
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The Bible tells us that we need to believe.
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And yes, we do.
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But it's not a casual believing.
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It's not a casual believing in God's word.
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It's not an acknowledgement
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or just an acknowledgement
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that you believe the Bible is true.
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It is much more than that.
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It's about coming to that place
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where you genuinely acknowledge your need of Jesus.
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It's about finally admitting
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that you cannot make yourself better before God.
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It's about finally acknowledging
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that you cannot work or earn your way into God's favor
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in any way.
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And it's about reaching that place
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where you realize that you are truly a sinner
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and you desperately need God's forgiveness.
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And it's about falling on your knees
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in true humility
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and pleading with God to take hold of your life.
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Because if he doesn't,
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then you know that you will be going to hell.
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You will be going to hell.
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It's about truly acknowledging
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that Jesus is your only real hope.
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And that you believe
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Jesus' sacrifice on the cross
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is all that you have left to hold on to.
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As it is in the words of the hymn writer,
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Nothing in my hands I bring,
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simply to your cross I cling.
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And that is the pleading
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that you need to have genuinely before the Lord.
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That's what's required.
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And if you genuinely do that
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and do it sincerely,
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then God's word is crystal clear.
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He will come into your life
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and he will save you.
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And then from that time onwards,
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you are clean.
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You are pure in Christ.
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Your sins are eternally forgiven
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because you are now identified with Christ.
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And in Christ,
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cleansed in the blood of the Lamb.
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And as we're told in Romans chapter 8,
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there is now therefore no condemnation
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for those who are in Christ Jesus.
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This is a washing of regeneration.
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This is what's referred to as being born again.
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This bathing refers to a spiritual cleansing
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and a spiritual renewing.
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And perhaps it's summarized best
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in 2 Corinthians chapter 5.
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This bathing is for union with Christ and in Christ.
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And what we're told there in 2 Corinthians 5, 17,
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therefore,
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if anyone is in Christ,
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he is a new creation.
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That's what happens.
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Being born again,
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he is a new creation.
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The old things have passed away
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and behold,
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all things have become new
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in that person's life,
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in that person's experience.
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And this union,
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this bond is so strong
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that nothing can ever break it.
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Nothing can ever break it.
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Nothing can ever break it.
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The Christian's permanent relationship with Christ
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then is pictured in the bathing
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of which he speaks about here.
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So then the question is,
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well,
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what's pictured in the food washing
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that Jesus carried out with his disciples?
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Well,
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it is that
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believers still need to be delivered
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from the ongoing power of sin in their lives.
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Let me try to explain.
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When we take the bathing as an example,
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if we take a bath at our home
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or if we take a shower,
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then we are washing ourselves,
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albeit externally and physically,
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and we are clean, basically from head to toe,
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when we are finished washing.
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But the moment we step out of that bath,
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or the moment we step out of that shower,
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and we put our feet on the ground,
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they become soiled.
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so our feet are no longer clean.
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And this is the illustration of the picture
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that has been given to us here.
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And just because Christians are forgiven for their sins
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doesn't mean that they've stopped sinning
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or that they become immune to sin.
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Every single day,
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we are acutely aware that we have to go to the Lord for forgiveness
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for this food washing,
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because our feet become immediately soiled,
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then they need to be washed,
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continually made clean.
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Because we are surrounded by sin in this world.
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And it comes out through our thoughts,
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through our words,
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through our deeds.
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Sin is continually around us.
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So we might ask the question then,
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how does Jesus wash the believers' feet?
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How do we experience that as Christians?
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How do the Lord's people experience that in their lives?
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Well, they go to His word,
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first and foremost.
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They go to His word.
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They love out His word.
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They pray for His word to be applied to them
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in their daily lives.
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They pray and they ask daily for forgiveness
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for their sins.
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And they listen out for God talking to them as well.
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It's a two-way process.
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But it's a process particularly
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of seeking forgiveness,
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going to God for forgiveness for our sins daily
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or umpteen times daily
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confessing our sins
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and seeking that forgiveness from the Lord.
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And in doing so,
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we seek to let Him direct our path daily
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and keep us in close fellowship with Him.
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And just as
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as mentioned towards the end of
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our reading in John 13,
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John in his first epistle
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takes up this again.
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But he says in 1 John 1,
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verse 7,
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But if we walk in the light,
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as He is in the light,
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we have fellowship with one another.
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And the blood of Jesus Christ, His Son,
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cleanses us from all sin.
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Through the word is the way in which we get the bathing.
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And it is also through the word that we get the food washing.
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The psalmist said, just as we sang there in Psalm 119,
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how can, how can a young man purify his way?
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And it's by living according to your word.
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Jesus said,
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Jesus said,
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those who believed in Him,
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they would be sanctified by God's word.
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Our bathing and our food washing
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are both accomplished through the word of God.
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Jesus didn't look on His disciples as merely men of flesh.
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He looked on them as He does with all of His people,
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as those whom the Father has given Him.
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A great part of the joy that was set before Him,
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they are those who believe,
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who truly believe in Him
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and have a saving relationship with Him.
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So it leads us to conclude then that
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if you're here tonight
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and you're not allowing Jesus into your life,
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and you're not experiencing this bathing
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or this food washing,
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then you're saying to Him
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that you can handle your own life yourself
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and you don't need Him to look after you each day.
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You may not think that,
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but you have a barrier up
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if you're not willing to search after Jesus
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and to accept Him into your life.
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Jesus had one primary purpose
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when He came to this world
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and that was to die for sinners.
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He accomplished this purpose
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on behalf of every person,
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everyone who would believe in Him.
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He did this on the cross
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because of His great love
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for each and every one of His children.
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He did this on the cross
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but He also walked on this earth for 33 years
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and He ministered for three of these years.
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And that ministry was perfect.
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It was perfect in His obedience,
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it was perfect in His ministry and healings,
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and it was perfect in His humility.
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We're not being instructed
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to go outside of here
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and to literally start washing each other's feet.
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But what we are being asked to do
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is to look out for one another
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through this love of God,
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this bond that there is
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through all of God's people.
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we've been instructed to
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to look out for each other
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and to watch out for each other
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and to serve one another,
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to pray for each other
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and to primarily
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have a love for one another in Christ.
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Just as we have it in verse 34 here
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and Jesus gives the disciples and us
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this new commandment,
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a new commandment I give to you,
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that you love one another
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that you love one another
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just as I have loved you.
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You also are to love one another
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and by this all people will know
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that you are my disciples
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if you have love one for another.
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God's children are justified
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and adopted into his family by the bathing
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before the ongoing work of food washing
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can begin in them.
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and that involves
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daily confession
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and forgiveness.
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If there is anyone here tonight
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who is not in Christ
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then I plead with you to go to him
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and to do as we have gone through here
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to go to him
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and to realise
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that there is nothing else in your life
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that is so important
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as to have Jesus.
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I pray that
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that you will be given to see
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that you can do no more for yourself
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and that every single thing
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depends on Jesus
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Because we have a warning here
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a warning from Jesus
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that is given in love.
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Jesus says as it is with our text
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If I don't wash you
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then you have no part with me.
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Father we just thank you for
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the way of salvation
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that you have opened up for
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sinners such as we are.
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We thank you Father
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that for each one of your people
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then you have lifted them
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out of that mighty clay
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and that you have placed them
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and their foundation
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in life now is Jesus
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for he is the living word
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we just bless you and thank you
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for your mercy
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and for your love
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and for this great offer
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and may it be Lord
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that if there are any here this evening
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that they would go to you
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and that they would plead for this bathing
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in sincerity
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that they might receive it
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Amen.
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Well let's close our service now
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and we can sing in
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Psalm 119
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the section 105
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down to 112
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page 163
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it's in sing psalms
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I beg your pardon
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page 163
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in the blue psalm books
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Psalm 119
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at verse 105
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page 163
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your words
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your words a lamp that shines before my feet
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it is a light that guides me on my way
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the oath that I have taken I have confirmed
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that all your righteous laws I will obey
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we'll sing these verses 105 to 112
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to God's praise
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your words a lamp that shines before my feet
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it is a light that guides me on my way
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the oath that I have taken my way
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The oath that I have taken I conferred, that all your righteous laws I will obey.
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O Lord, you know that I have suffered much, please serve my life according to your word.
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I'll send the living praises of my heart, instruct me in your righteous laws, O Lord.
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I will not dismay, I do holy law, though constantly my life is in my hands.
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Although the wicked set us here for me, I am the mother of all your own hands.
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Your statutes are my heritage always, and every day they make my heart rejoice.
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My heart is set on keeping your decrees, and to the very end they are my choice.
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After the benediction, I'll go to the door to my right here.
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Now may the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God the Father, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit,
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rest upon and abide with each one of you, now and always. Amen.
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Amen.