Latest / INSIGHT FOR LIVING: Biblical Wisdom For Everyday Living / Saying Yes! to Christ’s Call, Part 2

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Saying Yes! to Christ’s Call, Part 2 · INSIGHT FOR LIVING: Biblical Wisdom For Everyday Living

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  Speaker 1: Today, from Bible teacher Chuck Swindoll.
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  Speaker 2: He who has the Son has the life. He who
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  Speaker 2: does not have the Son of God does not have
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  Speaker 2: the life. That's his message. Don't try to make a
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  Speaker 2: gift cost anything. It's free. It's free.
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  Speaker 1: Today on Insight for Living, Chuck Swindoll continues his study
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  Speaker 1: in the book of Mark. We're just getting started in
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  Speaker 1: this beautiful glimpse of Jesus. And as we look at
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  Speaker 1: the first chapter, Chuck draws three searching questions out of
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  Speaker 1: this passage. These aren't questions about the house we live
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  Speaker 1: in or the job we hold. They reach deeper than that. First,
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  Speaker 1: where does the Lord find you today? Second, what is
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  Speaker 1: his calling in your life? And third, how long will
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  Speaker 1: it take you to say yes? Chuck begins with prayer.
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  Speaker 2: We have already come to you, our Father, in silence,
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  Speaker 2: and now we continue our worship with these simple words.
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  Speaker 2: Be to us what we can never be for ourselves,
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  Speaker 2: our Father. Be our peace. In a world that's chaotic,
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  Speaker 2: disturbing and often disillusioning.
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  Speaker 1: Be our peace.
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  Speaker 2: Be our hope. So much around us is empty. All
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  Speaker 2: of it is temporary, temporal, it's passing. And as time passes,
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  Speaker 2: many things deteriorate.
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  Speaker 1: So be our hope.
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  Speaker 2: As well as our peace. Be our grace, Lord, in
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  Speaker 2: a world of demands and deadlines and unforgiving spirits and
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  Speaker 2: revengeful people. Be our grace, our hope, our peace, and
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  Speaker 2: be our vision. So easy for us to be short-sighted,
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  Speaker 2: preoccupied with now or even yesterday. Be our peace and
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  Speaker 2: our hope, our grace, our vision. Everyone said, Amen.
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  Speaker 1: You're listening to Insight for Living. To dig deeper into
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  Speaker 1: the gospel according to Mark, be sure to purchase a
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  Speaker 1: copy of our Searching the Scriptures Bible Study Workbooks. by
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  Speaker 1: going to insight.org slash offer. Chuck titled today's message, Saying
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  Speaker 1: Yes to Christ's Call.
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  Speaker 2: There once lived a man who preached his first sermon
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  Speaker 2: when he was about 30 years of age, and he
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  Speaker 2: not only knew his audience, he knew them better than
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  Speaker 2: he knew himself. And when he preached that sermon, everyone listened.
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  Speaker 2: In fact, they gathered and they sat down on this
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  Speaker 2: slope near a body of water and he preached what
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  Speaker 2: came to be known as the Sermon on the Mount.
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  Speaker 2: Matthew covers the story or the sermon in chapters 5, 6,
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  Speaker 2: and 7, which we'll not turn to, but this was
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  Speaker 2: the first sermon he delivered and what a masterpiece it was.
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  Speaker 2: It was the beginning of a lifetime of masterpieces, though
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  Speaker 2: his lifetime would last only three and a half years
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  Speaker 2: on this earth. But for now, Our attention turns immediately,
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  Speaker 2: to use Mark's word, immediately we go to verse 14
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  Speaker 2: of chapter 1. Just before we hear the words of
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  Speaker 2: the master, we observe two things in this 14th verse. First,
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  Speaker 2: that John has been arrested and incarcerated. That's John the baptizer.
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  Speaker 2: Last time we saw John, he was baptizing and preaching
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  Speaker 2: in the wilderness, and now we find John pushed away
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  Speaker 2: from the crowd and, in fact, taken and left in prison.
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  Speaker 2: John is arrested and incarcerated, but Jesus, we read in
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  Speaker 2: verse 14, begins his ministry in Galilee. You see the verse?
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  Speaker 2: After John had been taken into custody, Jesus came into
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  Speaker 2: Galilee preaching the gospel of God. Why would he minister
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  Speaker 2: early in the area of Galilee? Because it was less
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  Speaker 2: priest-ridden and certainly less Pharisee-dominated. More of the legalism rested
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  Speaker 2: in the south, in the region of Judea. Jesus was
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  Speaker 2: there and had been there, but his main ministry, at least,
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  Speaker 2: as it's kick-started, if you will, takes place in Galilee.
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  Speaker 2: Here he is freer, much more able to minister, not
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  Speaker 2: so many obstacles, not so much of a hostile opposition,
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  Speaker 2: except from his own hometown. We'll get to that later also. Notice,
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  Speaker 2: if you will, in verse 14, he calms His method
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  Speaker 2: is preaching the gospel of God. See the word preaching?
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  Speaker 2: It's the same Greek term as in 2 Timothy 4,
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  Speaker 2: verse 2, where Paul exhorts younger Timothy to preach the word.
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  Speaker 2: The preaching of the word is to include the declaration
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  Speaker 2: of the gospel as well as the communication of information
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  Speaker 2: regarding the Christian life. In this case, Jesus isn't at
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  Speaker 2: a church. He is along the shore of the Sea
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  Speaker 2: of Galilee, but he is making an authoritative proclamation regarding what?
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  Speaker 2: What is his message? Look, he is preaching the gospel
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  Speaker 2: of God. It is a good news of peace as
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  Speaker 2: opposed to that which is chaotic and filled with unrest.
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  Speaker 2: It is a good news of hope. In the midst
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  Speaker 2: of hopelessness and emptiness, it is good news of immortality.
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  Speaker 2: The life after this one in a world that's given
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  Speaker 2: to temporal happiness and momentary release. Jesus' word regarding the
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  Speaker 2: gospel of God is a bold declaration, making people aware
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  Speaker 2: of their need for the living God. Now he gets
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  Speaker 2: even more specific. Mark adds with the word saying, verse 15, see,
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  Speaker 2: Jesus came into Galilee preaching the gospel of God and saying,
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  Speaker 2: and if you carry a Bible with red letters, that
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  Speaker 2: is those words spoken by Jesus, you immediately notice your text,
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  Speaker 2: the font has turned red because these are the first
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  Speaker 2: recorded words of Jesus in Mark's gospel. Notice that his
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  Speaker 2: message says, has three characteristics. One, it is urgent and relevant. Two,
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  Speaker 2: it is transforming and personal. Three, it is free based
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  Speaker 2: on grace. Let's go over all three of them. First,
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  Speaker 2: it is relevant. We read here, the time is fulfilled
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  Speaker 2: and the kingdom of God is at hand. There's urgency.
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  Speaker 2: The kingdom is at hand. You have been waiting for Messiah.
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  Speaker 2: I am he, says Jesus. And he's able to stand
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  Speaker 2: before them personifying the message of Messiah. You've been looking
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  Speaker 2: for the coming of Messiah. You are looking at the
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  Speaker 2: one who qualifies the fulfillment of God's promises. The kingdom
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  Speaker 2: has come and is at hand. Second, you will notice
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  Speaker 2: his message is transforming and personal. Repent. Repent. What does
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  Speaker 2: that word mean? Listen carefully. It means to change the mind.
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  Speaker 2: What does that mean? A person without Christ lives in sin.
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  Speaker 2: Jesus is declaring you need to repent. In other words,
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  Speaker 2: change your mind regarding a lifestyle and a mentality of
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  Speaker 2: sinfulness and turn toward repentance. The gospel, the good news
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  Speaker 2: of Christ, and how do I do that? I believe.
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  Speaker 2: Think of them as going together. Don't separate them. You
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  Speaker 2: haven't really believed in the Lord Jesus until you have
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  Speaker 2: turned from a mentality toward trusting in sinfulness and turning
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  Speaker 2: toward the one who can forgive you of your sin.
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  Speaker 2: You have not really repented, that is in full sense,
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  Speaker 2: you've not really turned until you've believed in the Lord Jesus.
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  Speaker 2: He who has the Son has the life. He who
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  Speaker 2: does not have the Son of God does not have
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  Speaker 2: the life. That's his message. Don't try to make a
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  Speaker 2: gift cost anything. It's free. It's free. So we've got
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  Speaker 2: that settled. That's his message. And now we turn to
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  Speaker 2: his call in the life of these men who are
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  Speaker 2: here fishing along the Sea of Galilee. Just for clarification,
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  Speaker 2: let's understand that this is not the first time these
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  Speaker 2: men have seen Jesus. Let's just clarify that. Hold your
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  Speaker 2: place here. I mentioned earlier we'd look at it. Look
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  Speaker 2: at John chapter 1. Turn there from Mark 1. Skip Luke.
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  Speaker 2: Go to John. And you will find Jesus is preaching.
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  Speaker 2: John is declaring, verse 36, behold the Lamb of God.
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  Speaker 2: Two disciples heard him speak. They followed Jesus. Verse 40,
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  Speaker 2: one of the two who heard John speak and followed
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  Speaker 2: him was Andrew, Simon Peter's brother. He found first his
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  Speaker 2: own brother Simon and said to him, we have found
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  Speaker 2: the Messiah. Translated means Christ. He brought him to Jesus.
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  Speaker 2: Jesus looked at him and said, you are Simon, the
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  Speaker 2: son of John. You shall be called Cephas, which is
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  Speaker 2: translated Peter. The next day he purposed to go into
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  Speaker 2: Galilee and he found Philip. And Jesus said to him,
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  Speaker 2: follow me. So understand this in Mark 1 is not
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  Speaker 2: the first time these men have laid eyes on Jesus.
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  Speaker 2: They've heard him in and around the Galilean area, back
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  Speaker 2: to Mark 1. There's a reason I mention that, and
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  Speaker 2: we will get to it right away from what Mark writes. Now,
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  Speaker 2: look at verse 16 of Mark 1. As he was
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  Speaker 2: going along by the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon
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  Speaker 2: and Andrew, the brother of Simon, casting a net in
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  Speaker 2: the sea, for they were fishermen. Now, where were they?
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  Speaker 2: They were on the Sea of Galilee, up in that,
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  Speaker 2: most likely in that northwest corner area we just looked
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  Speaker 2: at on our maps. And they are casting a net
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  Speaker 2: into the water. Now, when you and I think of fishing,
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  Speaker 2: we think of a casting rod or a fly rod.
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  Speaker 2: But when you're a commercial fisherman, you fish with nets.
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  Speaker 2: In those days, there weren't powered boats. only sailing vessels.
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  Speaker 2: And so a little boat would go in the water
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  Speaker 2: and the fishermen would carry a large net, circular in shape,
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  Speaker 2: with weights on the edges and would cast the net
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  Speaker 2: into the water. It would fall like a parachute down
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  Speaker 2: to the bottom. And most often, one of the fishermen
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  Speaker 2: would dive in and gather the weights together at the
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  Speaker 2: bottom and hold this net and the other would pull
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  Speaker 2: it up and they would dump their fish in the boat.
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  Speaker 2: or a boat alongside to carry the fish. It was
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  Speaker 2: a full-on business. These men are casting their nets. They
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  Speaker 2: are professional fishermen. We read that here at the end
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  Speaker 2: of verse 16. You may not know it, but fishing
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  Speaker 2: was big business back then and remained so for years
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  Speaker 2: in Galilee. One man helps us with the story. In
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  Speaker 2: the first century, fishing was a thriving industry on the
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  Speaker 2: Sea of Galilee. which counted no fewer than 16 bustling
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  Speaker 2: ports on the lake and several towns on the northwest shore.
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  Speaker 2: So numerous were fishing boats that Josephus, who was a
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  Speaker 2: Jewish historian who wrote later, Josephus was able to commandeer
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  Speaker 2: 230 of those boats during the war in Galilee in
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  Speaker 2: AD 68. nor was the catch consumed by local markets alone.
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  Speaker 2: It should be remembered that fish, not red meat, was
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  Speaker 2: the staple food of the Greco-Roman world. Fish from the
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  Speaker 2: Sea of Galilee were exported and prized in distant Alexandria
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  Speaker 2: in Egypt and Antioch in Syria. This is big business.
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  Speaker 2: These men knew the world of fishing. Now notice when
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  Speaker 2: Jesus sees them doing what they did for a living,
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  Speaker 2: he spoke to them. Again, if you carry a red
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  Speaker 2: letter edition of the Bible, you'll see red words here.
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  Speaker 2: Jesus said to them, follow me, follow me, and I
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  Speaker 2: will make you become fishers of men. Let the passage
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  Speaker 2: say what it says. Don't put words in Jesus' mouth.
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  Speaker 2: He simply says, follow me. Understand, he's not starting a
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  Speaker 2: school to train preachers. He is not announcing the beginning
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  Speaker 2: of a seminary. He's not opening a rabbinical course of instruction.
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  Speaker 2: If he were, the emphasis would be on the Torah,
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  Speaker 2: where they, to this day, study the Old Testament scriptures
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  Speaker 2: in the Holy Land. That he's not opening a school.
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  Speaker 2: They are not given an entrance exam. They are not
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  Speaker 2: tested for their personality traits or types. They aren't asked
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  Speaker 2: questions about the Old Testament. They aren't encouraged to talk
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  Speaker 2: to their wives and family, though I have the feeling
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  Speaker 2: that they did. All he says is, follow me. This
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  Speaker 2: was an enormous risk. Because in order to follow him,
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  Speaker 2: they would need to leave Israel. what was familiar, their
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  Speaker 2: source of income, the way they supported their family. He
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  Speaker 2: only made one promise after the command. Do you see it?
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  Speaker 2: I will make you become fishers of men. It would
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  Speaker 2: be a process which is seen in the word become.
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  Speaker 2: They didn't, 10 minutes after starting to follow, qualify as
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  Speaker 2: fishers of men. That took time. They needed to be
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  Speaker 2: trained in that. They would become that over a process.
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  Speaker 2: And they would need to leave the familiar places of
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  Speaker 2: their life and go to what was unfamiliar. Ultimately, they
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  Speaker 2: would stop catching fish and they would start catching people.
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  Speaker 2: I think Jesus was saying this. If I can trust
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  Speaker 2: you to follow me, you can trust me to train you.
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  Speaker 2: His call always has that implication. If I can trust
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  Speaker 2: you to follow me, then you can trust me to
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  Speaker 2: train you, to take care of you, to guide you,
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  Speaker 2: to lead you. Now, I observe how they responded. And
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  Speaker 2: here is a remarkable thing. Immediately, they left their nets
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  Speaker 2: and they followed him. The most amazing thing is the
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  Speaker 2: first word, immediately. You talk about trusting someone else. They
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  Speaker 2: knew when they left, they weren't going to be fishing anymore.
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  Speaker 2: He would talk to them about fishing for people. So
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  Speaker 2: they're leaving the familiar, but there's got to be something
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  Speaker 2: similar to what they were doing because he calls it
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  Speaker 2: fishing for men. They have been fishing for fish. I'll
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  Speaker 2: come back to that thought in a moment. Go on
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  Speaker 2: to the next. Look at this next couple of men.
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  Speaker 2: Going on a little farther, he saw James, the son
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  Speaker 2: of Zebedee, and John, his brother. Now, where were they? Well,
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  Speaker 2: they are in the boat. In their case, they're mending nets.
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  Speaker 2: The others were casting. These men are sitting in their boats,
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  Speaker 2: and they're mending their nets. What do we read? Immediately,
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  Speaker 2: he called them. What was their response? They left their
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  Speaker 2: father Zebedee in the boat with the hired servants and
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  Speaker 2: they went away to follow him. No reluctance. If there
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  Speaker 2: were questions, we don't read of them. If there was hesitation,
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  Speaker 2: Mark doesn't tell us about it. They simply followed him.
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  Speaker 2: Now let me pause and interject a couple of thoughts
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  Speaker 2: that I think might be helpful before I apply all
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  Speaker 2: of this, because this is not a history lesson or
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  Speaker 2: a geography lesson. This is a spiritual direction for all
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  Speaker 2: of us. This is a message for every one of us.
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  Speaker 2: But let me mention a couple of things. First, Jesus
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  Speaker 2: knew much more than he promised. He told them they
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  Speaker 2: would become fishers of men and he left it at that.
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  Speaker 2: But there was so much more he knew. He knew
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  Speaker 2: what that would include, the training process of those next
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  Speaker 2: three and a half years. There would be privation. There
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  Speaker 2: would be pain. There would be exhaustion. There would be
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  Speaker 2: times of exhilaration and celebration. There would be occasions when
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  Speaker 2: the scene would be so dark they wouldn't know what
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  Speaker 2: to do. Being unable to cast out demons. They've never
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  Speaker 2: been around the demonic realm. They'll be in the midst
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  Speaker 2: of that. There will be times of confusion. There'll be
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  Speaker 2: times when they're under attack, misunderstood and misrepresented. And in fact,
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  Speaker 2: they'll be killed for their walk with Christ. They don't
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  Speaker 2: know any of that. Most of them became martyrs. He
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  Speaker 2: doesn't tell them that. All he says, remember this, you
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  Speaker 2: will become fishers of men. When your direction in life
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  Speaker 2: is turned from the mundane nets and boats and water
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  Speaker 2: of your life and it's turned toward people and God
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  Speaker 2: is calling you in that direction, you are in for
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  Speaker 2: one surprise after another. And all the things I mentioned
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  Speaker 2: multiplied by 10. Your world will be turned upside down
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  Speaker 2: as you become fishers of peoples. Now, the second thing
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  Speaker 2: I want to mention is that Jesus saw in them
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  Speaker 2: much more than he revealed. Jesus saw in them much
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  Speaker 2: more than he revealed. Let's take Simon Peter. Peter saw
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  Speaker 2: himself as just a fisherman. Jesus saw other things deep
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  Speaker 2: within him. Peter was by nature, well, let me let
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  Speaker 2: John Phillips describe it for us. He saw Simon. Everyone
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  Speaker 2: saw Simon Peter, or at least heard him. Simon was
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  Speaker 2: always the center of a crowd. He was always where
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  Speaker 2: the action was. At sports, Simon had to bat first.
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  Speaker 2: At play, Simon had to be the groom if they
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  Speaker 2: were playing weddings, and the rabbi if they were playing funerals,
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  Speaker 2: or better still, the corpse if there were going to
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  Speaker 2: be a resurrection. He saw Simon, but he saw more
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  Speaker 2: than that. He saw Peter as Michelangelo saw David in
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  Speaker 2: a block of marble. So Jesus saw an apostle in
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  Speaker 2: a rugged fisherman. He saw Simon casting his net, but
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  Speaker 2: at the same time, he saw 3,000 souls being saved
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  Speaker 2: by a single sermon that Peter would deliver years ahead.
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  Speaker 2: He saw Peter and he saw Gentiles being added to
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  Speaker 2: the church and He saw Peter and he saw a
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  Speaker 2: man carrying a cross to execution hill, faithful unto death,
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  Speaker 2: even the death of the cross. He saw Peter and
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  Speaker 2: he saw a name being written down in glory, engraved
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  Speaker 2: with an iron pen. Never doubt it. When he calls you,
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  Speaker 2: he sees you not as what you are, but as
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  Speaker 2: what you are to become. Trust me on this. When
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  Speaker 2: God first calls us into his calling and work, The
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  Speaker 2: people who see us today would never have believed it
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  Speaker 2: back then because of the work the Lord is doing
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  Speaker 2: as he teaches us to become fishers of men and women.
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  Speaker 2: Now the invitation of Jesus today. I have three searching
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  Speaker 2: questions that I want to linger on with you for
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  Speaker 2: the next few minutes because this is, as I say,
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  Speaker 2: this is all about a spiritual lesson today as much
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  Speaker 2: as it is about the teaching of the passage of scripture.
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  Speaker 2: Three searching questions. And I've put on your outline a
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  Speaker 2: place at the bottom for you to write your questions.
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  Speaker 2: If you don't mind doing that, this would be a
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  Speaker 2: good time to take out your pen and to write
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  Speaker 2: the questions in because I want them to haunt you.
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  Speaker 2: I want them to follow you after this sermon is
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  Speaker 2: over and you've long since forgotten what the date is.
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  Speaker 2: I want you to think about these three questions. The
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  Speaker 2: first one is this, based on what we have just
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  Speaker 2: read about Peter and Andrew and James and John. Where
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  Speaker 2: does the Lord find you today? Where does the Lord
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  Speaker 2: find you today? I know where I find you. I
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  Speaker 2: can name the place. I can name the address. I
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  Speaker 2: can name the time and the date. But I don't
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  Speaker 2: see you like the Lord sees you. And I don't
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  Speaker 2: find you the way he finds you. He sees you
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  Speaker 2: inside and out. He knows your past as well as
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  Speaker 2: your future. He knows your potential, though you are probably
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  Speaker 2: blind to most of it. Where does the Lord find
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  Speaker 2: you today? Let's go to your home. Let's go to
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  Speaker 2: your family. Where does he find you in the environs
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  Speaker 2: of your home? Are things harmonious and satisfying? And are
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  Speaker 2: things in good shape? Or does he find that there
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  Speaker 2: are some things that have been dislodged, missing? perhaps corrupted
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  Speaker 2: through acts of omission on your part or perhaps even
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  Speaker 2: deliberate acts of sinfulness? Where does he find you in
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  Speaker 2: your home? How about at your work? Are you truly
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  Speaker 2: fulfilled in the what you do for a living? Where
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  Speaker 2: does he find you in your work? How about in
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  Speaker 2: this stage of your life? Many of you are in
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  Speaker 2: your 30s, in your 40s. Some of you are in
• 24:23
  Speaker 2: your 50s and 60s. Others of you younger, others older
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  Speaker 2: than that. Where does he find you in this stage
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  Speaker 2: of your life? Are you changing or are you stuck?
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  Speaker 2: Are you open or are you closed? Jesus started where
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  Speaker 2: these men were. He saw them just where they were
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  Speaker 2: and he took them to where he had in mind
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  Speaker 2: for them.
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  Speaker 1: Where does the Lord find you today? Wherever you might be,
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  Speaker 1: at home, at work, in this season of life, Jesus
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  Speaker 1: meets you right where you are. But he never leaves
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  Speaker 1: us there. He knows where he's taking us, and he
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  Speaker 1: calls us to follow. So don't be afraid to say yes.
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  Speaker 1: You're listening to Insight for Living. Chuck Swindoll titled today's message,
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  Speaker 1: Saying Yes to Christ's Call. Just one week ago today,
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  Speaker 1: we started a brand new study through the gospel according
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  Speaker 1: to Mark. It's a series that's never been shared on
• 25:26
  Speaker 1: Insight for Living until now. As you know, we make
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  Speaker 1: it our mission to create Bible study resources that allow
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  Speaker 1: you to search the scriptures, just as Chuck did to
• 25:35
  Speaker 1: prepare this sermon series on Mark. This study is no exception.
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  Speaker 1: And in fact, because of the scope of Mark's gospel,
• 25:42
  Speaker 1: Chuck has divided this study into three volumes. His Searching
• 25:46
  Speaker 1: the Scriptures Bible Study Workbooks for Mark come in three
• 25:49
  Speaker 1: spiral-bound workbooks, and they're published and ready today. To purchase
• 25:53
  Speaker 1: these volumes, either for personal or group study, call us
• 25:57
  Speaker 1: at 800-772-8888. Here's some exciting news. Chuck has completed his
• 26:04
  Speaker 1: personal memoir. It's rolling off the printing presses this week,
• 26:08
  Speaker 1: and you can be among the first to own a copy.
• 26:10
  Speaker 1: Chuck titled his memoir, Awakened by Grace. You can purchase
• 26:14
  Speaker 1: your copy right now by going to insight.org slash memoir.
• 26:20
  Speaker 1: It shouldn't surprise you that Chuck's memoir is filled with
• 26:23
  Speaker 1: fascinating stories, told as only Chuck can tell them. He
• 26:27
  Speaker 1: describes how a stuttering young boy spent his childhood in
• 26:30
  Speaker 1: the shadow of World War II. More importantly, Chuck shares
• 26:33
  Speaker 1: how God was working out his purposes, preparing Chuck for
• 26:37
  Speaker 1: a lifetime of public ministry. To purchase Chuck's personal memoir,
• 26:41
  Speaker 1: Awakened by Grace, call 800-772-8888. or go to insight.org slash memoir.
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  Speaker 1: I'm Bill Meyer. Join us when Chuck Swindoll's study in
• 27:00
  Speaker 1: The Gospel According to Mark continues Thursday on Insight for Living.
• 27:07
  Speaker 1: The preceding message, Saying Yes to Christ's Call, was copyrighted
• 27:11
  Speaker 1: in 2010 and 2026, and the sound recording was copyrighted
• 27:15
  Speaker 1: in 2026, by Charles R. Swindoll, Incorporated. All rights are
• 27:20
  Speaker 1: reserved worldwide. Duplication of copyrighted material for commercial use is
• 27:25
  Speaker 1: strictly prohibited.