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Do You Love Me? - The Gospels · Bible in a Year with Jack Graham

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  Speaker 1: Let us pray. So when they had dined, Jesus saith
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  Speaker 1: to Simon Peter, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me
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  Speaker 1: more than these? He said unto him, Yea, Lord, thou
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  Speaker 1: knowest that I love thee. He saith unto him, Feed
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  Speaker 1: my lambs. John 21.15 Thank you, Jesus, that you use
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  Speaker 1: broken people to do mighty things. As I look at
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  Speaker 1: the life of Thomas, he represents the areas in my
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  Speaker 1: life where I have doubt and fear. He represents the
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  Speaker 1: areas in my life where I begin to question whether
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  Speaker 1: or not the promises will come to pass in my life. However,
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  Speaker 1: through Thomas I also see the goodness of the Lord
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  Speaker 1: and that you are not taken back or angered by
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  Speaker 1: my moments of doubt, but instead you feel compassion, and
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  Speaker 1: provide ways for me to lay hold of and to
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  Speaker 1: put my hands on the truth of your word. Through Peter,
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  Speaker 1: I see that you give me many chances to regain
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  Speaker 1: my position and my honor within your kingdom. And like Peter,
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  Speaker 1: I will not miss my opportunity to proclaim your goodness
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  Speaker 1: and your love to the entire world. With each opportunity
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  Speaker 1: of open doors that you bring me, I realize it
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  Speaker 1: is you asking if I love you enough to walk
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  Speaker 1: through them and give you glory in all that I do.
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  Speaker 1: And to that, I say yes. I say that I
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  Speaker 1: am ready to represent you, Jesus, with all of my heart.
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  Speaker 1: I realize that my time has come. I realize that
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  Speaker 1: the days of being afraid are gone. And I realize,
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  Speaker 1: and I realize, I'm ready for what's next. In Jesus' name, amen.
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  Speaker 1: Thank you for making prayer a priority in your day.
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  Speaker 1: To learn more about the Bible, stay tuned for today's story.
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  Speaker 1: Brought to you by BibleInAYear.com.
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  Speaker 2: Do you love me? In our last story, Jesus revealed
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  Speaker 2: himself on the road to Emmaus. He spoke of the
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  Speaker 2: entire word of God and how every story and prophecy
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  Speaker 2: pointed forward to his death, burial, and resurrection. Now Jesus
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  Speaker 2: restores the faith of Thomas and the failures of Peter.
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  Speaker 2: As these two men come in contact with the risen Lord,
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  Speaker 2: their lives are renewed and filled with purpose, inspired by
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  Speaker 2: the Gospels.
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  Speaker 3: Welcome to another episode of the Bible in a Year podcast.
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  Speaker 3: I'm Jack Graham. In yesterday's episode, we heard how Jesus
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  Speaker 3: appeared to two disciples on the road to Emmaus. While
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  Speaker 3: the men did not initially recognize Him, Jesus explained how
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  Speaker 3: God's Word pointed to the coming of the Savior, Jesus Himself,
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  Speaker 3: and even spoke of His death and resurrection. Jesus showed
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  Speaker 3: them in all the scriptures the things concerning Himself. Finally,
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  Speaker 3: These two men's eyes were opened to see Jesus as
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  Speaker 3: their Savior, and they quickly ran to tell others the
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  Speaker 3: good news that Christ is alive. Today we'll hear how
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  Speaker 3: Jesus restores a disciple who's holding on to the guilt
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  Speaker 3: and weight of failure, and another who is filled with doubt.
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  Speaker 3: So let's listen with joy to the stories of the
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  Speaker 3: resurrection in God's Word.
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  Speaker 2: We have seen him, Andrew yelled. We saw him with
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  Speaker 2: our own eyes. Thomas shook his head, unable to believe
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  Speaker 2: that Jesus had risen from the dead. Since he and
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  Speaker 2: Peter were away when Jesus revealed himself in the home
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  Speaker 2: of the disciples, he was skeptical and unable to accept
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  Speaker 2: the truth. Unless I see him with my own eyes,
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  Speaker 2: I refuse to believe you. Thomas's doubt revealed a deep
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  Speaker 2: hurt within him. He had ran when Jesus was taken
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  Speaker 2: by the temple guards. He was ashamed and broken. Unless
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  Speaker 2: I put my fingers through the holes in his wounded hands,
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  Speaker 2: I cannot accept that it is Jesus. Eight days had passed,
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  Speaker 2: and Jesus was about his own business revealing himself to
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  Speaker 2: people all over the land. Thomas remained unwavering in his skepticism.
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  Speaker 2: That was until the disciples were back in their homes
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  Speaker 2: with the doors locked. Peace be with you, Jesus said.
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  Speaker 2: As he had before, Jesus entered the room without a door.
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  Speaker 2: He sat in the corner of the room, smiling at
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  Speaker 2: his friends. The disciples erupted in cheers, surrounding Jesus.
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  Speaker 1: To hug him.
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  Speaker 2: Thomas was frozen in his seat. He looked at Jesus
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  Speaker 2: with tears rolling down his eyes. Hello, Thomas, Jesus said
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  Speaker 2: with a grin. The Lord stood up and walked over
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  Speaker 2: to him. Go ahead, he said. Feel my hands. See
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  Speaker 2: how they were pierced. Thomas ran his fingers across the
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  Speaker 2: Lord's scarred hands. His lower lip quivered, and more tears
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  Speaker 2: streamed down his cheek. Thomas looked up into Jesus' eyes.
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  Speaker 2: My Lord, he wept. My God, he cried. Thomas embraced
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  Speaker 2: Jesus like a wounded child into his father's arms. Jesus
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  Speaker 2: held him, allowing his comfort to wash over him. Blessed
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  Speaker 2: are you, Thomas, for you have seen and believed, Jesus said.
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  Speaker 2: But even more blessed are those who have not seen
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  Speaker 2: yet still believe. After this, Jesus vanished again. Thomas wiped
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  Speaker 2: his eyes and was renewed with purpose and vision once again.
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  Speaker 2: Peter sat by the shore by the seas of Tiberias.
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  Speaker 2: He still had yet to see the Lord. The others
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  Speaker 2: had told him, but he had yet to look him
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  Speaker 2: in the eye. Is he ashamed of me? Peter thought
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  Speaker 2: to himself, Is it because I denied him? Peter looked
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  Speaker 2: over at the other disciples who were lingering near the docks.
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  Speaker 2: Peter stood to his feet and said, I'm going fishing.
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  Speaker 2: Some of the others decided to join him. Thomas, Nathaniel, James,
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  Speaker 2: and John boarded the boat with him. Night had fallen
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  Speaker 2: over the sea as Peter and the disciples lay in
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  Speaker 2: the boat with their nets cast out. Peter felt the
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  Speaker 2: ocean breeze caress his face. Usually the sea brought him peace,
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  Speaker 2: but nothing could quiet his guilty soul. He was filled
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  Speaker 2: with regret and could not forgive himself for abandoning Jesus
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  Speaker 2: in his final hours. All night they waited for a catch,
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  Speaker 2: but the nets remained loose, as did Peter's wandering mind.
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  Speaker 2: The dawn broke and the sun bounced off the calm
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  Speaker 2: waters a couple hundred yards offshore. Peter awoke to see
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  Speaker 2: the sun rising in the east. An entire night with
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  Speaker 2: no fish. It vexed Peter to catch nothing. To him
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  Speaker 2: it was just another failure to add to the list.
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  Speaker 2: As Peter and the others began to bring in the nets,
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  Speaker 2: a voice cried out from shore,' Cast your nets on
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  Speaker 2: the right side of the boat!' the voice suggested. So
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  Speaker 2: they cast it, and immediately the net was filled to
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  Speaker 2: the brim with fish. The disciples laughed, and John looked
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  Speaker 2: onto shore. It's him, he shouted. It is the Lord.
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  Speaker 2: Peter rushed to the front of the boat to see
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  Speaker 2: Jesus walking on the shore beside him. He wasted no
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  Speaker 2: time and threw off his outer clothes and jumped into
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  Speaker 2: the water. Peter swam as fast as he could to
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  Speaker 2: see Jesus. He ripped at the water until his feet
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  Speaker 2: finally hit the sand. Dripping wet, Peter saw Jesus tending
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  Speaker 2: to a charcoal fire, cooking some fish. Shivering, Peter warmed
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  Speaker 2: himself by the fire, looking at Jesus. The coals were
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  Speaker 2: the same as when Peter denied Jesus by the fire
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  Speaker 2: in Jerusalem. The smell of the burning charcoal brought back
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  Speaker 2: memories of his failure. Simon, son of John, do you
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  Speaker 2: love me? Jesus asked. Peter rose his head and looked
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  Speaker 2: deeply into Jesus' eyes. Yes, Lord, you know that I
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  Speaker 2: love you. Peter answered. Then feed my lambs. Jesus asked
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  Speaker 2: a second time, Simon, son of John, do you love me?
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  Speaker 2: This time Peter paused and considered the question, yet his
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  Speaker 2: answer was the same. Yes, you know that I love you.
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  Speaker 2: Then tend to my sheep, Jesus said. The fire cracked
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  Speaker 2: and the coals burned brightly. Jesus asked the same question, saying, Simon,
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  Speaker 2: do you love me? Peter's heart broke as Jesus asked
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  Speaker 2: a third time, Memories of denying Jesus three times flooded
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  Speaker 2: his mind. Peter, a tough man forged by the sea,
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  Speaker 2: wept before Jesus. His eyes screamed with tears, and he
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  Speaker 2: covered his face with his hands. Yes, Lord, you know
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  Speaker 2: all things. You know that I love you, Peter answered.
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  Speaker 2: Jesus stood up from across the fire and sat next
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  Speaker 2: to Peter. He put his arm around him and said,
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  Speaker 2: Then feed my sheep. When we were young, you did
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  Speaker 2: as you pleased. But now that you have matured, your
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  Speaker 2: actions are no longer your own. You will be taken
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  Speaker 2: places you do not wish to go. This is your calling.
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  Speaker 2: Peter was restored by Jesus that morning by the fire.
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  Speaker 2: All his past burdens were wiped away by the forgiveness
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  Speaker 2: of Jesus. All that remained was the future ahead. Peter
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  Speaker 2: would soon rise up to lead thousands to the feet
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  Speaker 2: of Jesus. The same voice that denied Jesus three times
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  Speaker 2: would declare his truths for all to hear. This was
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  Speaker 2: the will of God, to use broken people to achieve
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  Speaker 2: mighty things.
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  Speaker 3: We open today's scripture with news spreading of the resurrection
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  Speaker 3: of Jesus. The disciples and others who followed Christ are
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  Speaker 3: filled with a new sense of hope and joy. But
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  Speaker 3: some were not so quick to believe. Thomas, one of
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  Speaker 3: the twelve disciples, remained skeptical, doubtful. He had seen Jesus beaten, mocked, whipped,
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  Speaker 3: and raised up on a cross. He knew that the
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  Speaker 3: Roman soldier had pierced his side and there was blood
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  Speaker 3: and water pouring out, proving that he was indeed dead.
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  Speaker 3: How could it be that Jesus was back? He wasn't
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  Speaker 3: there when Jesus appeared to the others on the day
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  Speaker 3: of his resurrection. You might say he missed that first Sunday.
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  Speaker 3: He missed church and he missed the resurrection. He simply
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  Speaker 3: would not believe, not unless he saw Jesus with his
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  Speaker 3: own eyes and touched the the nail prints in his
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  Speaker 3: hands and feet, and the scar in his side. Then
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  Speaker 3: one day, eight days after he had appeared to the others,
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  Speaker 3: Jesus was right there with them again. And there was Thomas.
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  Speaker 3: And rather than shame Thomas and turn him away because
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  Speaker 3: of his doubt, Jesus called him over, allowing him to
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  Speaker 3: touch the scars and feel his body. You see, God
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  Speaker 3: is not afraid of or offended by our doubts. We
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  Speaker 3: can still have faith and yet wrestle with doubt and
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  Speaker 3: fears and questions. What matters is are we sincere doubters
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  Speaker 3: or are we dishonest doubters? Do we really want to
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  Speaker 3: know the truth? Do we trust our doubts to God
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  Speaker 3: and let him speak to us and show us what
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  Speaker 3: we need to know? Or do we run away and
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  Speaker 3: reject him and go our own way simply because we
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  Speaker 3: have questions? Thomas doubted and yet he showed up. And
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  Speaker 3: Jesus met his need and restored his faith. And he
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  Speaker 3: will do the same for you when you come to
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  Speaker 3: him in humility and faith. There was another who needed restoration.
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  Speaker 3: Simon Peter, who had pledged undying fidelity to Jesus, but
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  Speaker 3: had denied him three times when Jesus was on trial.
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  Speaker 3: Peter was a coward, and therefore he was surely plagued
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  Speaker 3: with feelings of failure and doubt. Could Jesus ever use him?
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  Speaker 3: Even though Christ was alive, would it ever be the same?
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  Speaker 3: After all that he had done in denying the Lord,
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  Speaker 3: could Peter recover? Because he thought that Jesus would never
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  Speaker 3: forgive him, he went back to his old boat and
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  Speaker 3: old nets and his old life. But as we hear
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  Speaker 3: in this reading, that's not where Jesus wanted him. Peter
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  Speaker 3: still had a place in God's plan. Jesus had prayed
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  Speaker 3: for him that his faith would not fail, but his
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  Speaker 3: faith needed to be restored. He needed to be restored.
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  Speaker 3: Peter and his companions, other disciples as well, had been
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  Speaker 3: fishing all night with nothing to show for it, much
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  Speaker 3: like they had done years before. After hours of frustration,
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  Speaker 3: they hear a voice calling them, telling them to cast
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  Speaker 3: their nets on the other side of the boat. When
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  Speaker 3: they did, they pulled up a bounty of fish, just
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  Speaker 3: as it had happened before when Jesus first called them
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  Speaker 3: to be disciples. John immediately knew who the voice was.
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  Speaker 3: It was Jesus. Peter rushed out of the boat, swam
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  Speaker 3: to the shore to see his master. Jesus then asked
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  Speaker 3: Peter if he loved him. And Peter said, of course,
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  Speaker 3: you know I do. Jesus answered, then feed my sheep.
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  Speaker 3: He then asked him a second time, do you love me?
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  Speaker 3: And Peter responded, yes, Lord, I love you. And Jesus
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  Speaker 3: once again said, then feed my sheep. Then in John 21,
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  Speaker 3: verse 17, we read this. He said to him the
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  Speaker 3: third time, Simon, son of John, do you love me?
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  Speaker 3: Peter was grieved because he said to him the third time,
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  Speaker 3: Do you love me? And he said to him, Lord,
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  Speaker 3: you know everything. You know that I love you. Jesus
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  Speaker 3: said to him, Feed my sheep. Three times Peter in
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  Speaker 3: cowardice had denied Jesus. But now Jesus was restoring his man,
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  Speaker 3: his disciples, and gave him three opportunities to confess his
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  Speaker 3: love and devotion to the Savior. Jesus then told Peter
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  Speaker 3: that he would soon go to places he did not
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  Speaker 3: choose to go. It was a prediction of the trials
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  Speaker 3: that Peter would soon face because of his calling and
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  Speaker 3: the purpose for which God would use him, a purpose
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  Speaker 3: that would ultimately bring glory to God and draw countless
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  Speaker 3: others to confess their faith in Jesus. Finally, Jesus simply said,
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  Speaker 3: follow me. It was an invitation to walk away from
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  Speaker 3: the past and the failures and the denials and and
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  Speaker 3: begin a brand new relationship with the Lord. It's never
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  Speaker 3: too late for a new beginning in Christ. Peter had
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  Speaker 3: felt his sin and his shame, but now he finds
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  Speaker 3: forgiveness with the Lord. And he begins again to walk
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  Speaker 3: with Jesus and became the great apostle filled with the
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  Speaker 3: Spirit who preached the gospel to the whole world. It
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  Speaker 3: was an extraordinary calling to an ordinary man who followed
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  Speaker 3: a supernatural Savior, the risen Christ. It's a powerful word
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  Speaker 3: that we can either let our failures define us and
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  Speaker 3: destroy us, or we can allow Jesus our Savior to redeem,
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  Speaker 3: restore us, and refresh us. Jesus stands willing to forgive
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  Speaker 3: you that you can find his love and experience his
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  Speaker 3: grace in your life. Dear God, how we thank you
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  Speaker 3: for today's reading and the example of Peter's life. And
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  Speaker 3: though we fail you time and time again, even to
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  Speaker 3: the point of denying you, that we can experience renewal
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  Speaker 3: and faith in ways that we could not ever have imagined.
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  Speaker 3: Thank you for your grace. Thank you for your mercy,
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  Speaker 3: for your healing and your hope, and that when we
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  Speaker 3: fail and fall, you lift us up and give us
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  Speaker 3: the strength to begin again. In Jesus' name, amen. Thank
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  Speaker 3: you for listening to today's Bible in a Year. I'm
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  Speaker 3: Pastor Jack Graham from Dallas, Texas. You can download the
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  Speaker 3: Pray.com app and make Bible study and prayer available the
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  Speaker 3: priority of your life. And if you appreciate this podcast,
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  Speaker 3: please share it with someone else. I also want to
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  Speaker 3: encourage you to go to jackgraham.org. That's jackgraham.org, for we
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  Speaker 3: have resources that are free and available for you so
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  Speaker 3: that you may know Christ and grow in Him. God
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  Speaker 3: bless you.