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Christ Who Lives in Me · Stornoway Free Church of Scotland - Sermons

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  We begin our worship this evening by singing to God's praise in Psalm 96a.
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  ! Sing Psalm's version, Psalm 96a, page 126.
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  ! We sing from verse 1 to verse 9 on the tune is Gainsborough.
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  ! Psalm 96a, we sing a new song to the Lord, sing praises to his name and his salvation day by day.
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  Let all the earth proclaim. We'll sing from verse 1 to 9 to God's praise and we stand to sing.
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  Let all the earth proclaim.
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  Let all the earth proclaim.
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  His glory and his mighty deeds to every land declare.
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  Our great and awesome is the Lord, within no gods come fair.
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  For the other gods are wooden stone, the Lord made heaven's might.
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  All power and majesty are his. He dwells in glorious light.
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  All nations to the Lord has cried, the glory that is true.
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  Glory and strength must cry to God and praise his name and you.
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  Worship the Lord, be holy, be holy, be holy.
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  Bear his glory, be holy, be holy, be holy.
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  He's close with joy and grace.
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  He's close with joy and grace.
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  And offering with you.
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  Worship the Lord, be holy, be holy, be holy, be holy.
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  Worship the Lord, be holy, be holy, be holy.
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  Worship the Lord, be holy, be holy, be holy, be holy, be holy, be holy, be holy, be holy, be holy, be holy, be holy, be holy, be holy, be holy, be holy, be holy, be holy, be holy, be holy, be holy, be holy, be holy, be holy, be holy, be holy, be holy, be holy, be holy, be holy, be holy, be holy, be holy, be holy, be holy, be holy, be holy, be holy, be holy, be holy, be holy, be holy, be holy, be holy, be holy, be holy, be holy, be holy, be holy, be holy, be holy, be holy, be holy, be holy, be holy, be holy, be holy, be holy, be holy, be holy, be holy, be holy, be holy, be holy, be holy, be holy, be holy, be holy, be holy, be holy, be holy, be holy, be holy,
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  able to gather in worship. We thank you for our call to worship as we have sung from these words
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  that remind us of the worship and glory that is due unto your name. It reminds us of who you are
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  and that we are to come with that song anew to you for you are the one who gives us the song
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  of salvation. We are to proclaim it day by day and as we are reminded this morning singing together
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  in the words of Psalm 100 we are reminded too this evening that our praise together here is a
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  people not just here but throughout the world that you this day Lord have people calling upon you
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  in praise and worship through to all ends of the earth. For we are reminded Lord that glory
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  belongs to you that you are a great and awesome God that you are the one who has made all things
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  with you no gods compare as we have sung and we thank you for that great reminder that in this
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  world in this life in which we so easily and so often perhaps make idols when there are so many
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  things that take our attention away from you when there are so many things that would come between
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  through worship of you and distract us we thank you Lord that your word is our focus
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  your spirit is our helper and that we come to seek to worship you in spirit and in truth
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  and we know that we cannot do that in and of ourselves for it is only by your grace towards
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  us that you truly enable us to worship and to see you as you are to see you as the one who has all
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  power and majesty and glory and we pray Lord that together this evening we will be helped in that
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  to see you in all in all of these things and to know you and to love you with all our hearts and to serve
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  you with all that we are and so we ask oh Lord that as we come to you this evening as we come to your word
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  that you would open it up to us that you would help us in our understanding of it that you would help us
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  and that you would help us even as we go from here this evening to take these words with us and to live
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  by Christ for we thank you that we have his name to praise and we have the hope of salvation in him
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  the one who came to give his life and who gave it in such a humble way who humbled himself
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  in obedience to death and even death on the cross and as we think of that gruesome suffering that he
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  endured for us as we think of the remembrance of it as we have had it recently with communion season
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  and as we think of this time of year easter time when this gives us that focus of the reason why jesus
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  came that he came not to be served as he could easily have brought upon himself as he would have deserved
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  the service of this world all its kings and queens and all its people and yet he did not come for that
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  but he came to serve and to serve and giving his life as a ransom for many
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  and we thank you that we can look to him in that way and see in his humility and in his sacrifice that
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  there we find a call for ourselves to follow in that way as well to take up our cross daily
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  and follow him to be willing to to let go of the things of this world and be willing to to serve the lord
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  for some of the things of this world and the lord and the lord and the lord and the lord and the lord and
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  living for christ and the many blessings that arose in that but we recognize too that for many
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  it is a call to suffer a call to endure many hardships and trials and pains for some even it is that call to
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  to give life as well as we see so many throughout the world who are persecuted for their faith
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  and we think even of nations this evening who for many christians they live in fear of their very lives
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  and yet they love the lord and they're able to to praise him in that way i love the lord because my voice
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  and prayers he did here i while i live will call on him about to me his ear we thank you that your people
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  have these these words to offer up so that whatever our circumstances whatever our situation we have
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  that love towards you because you first loved us and so we do pray lord for your church we pray that
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  you will build your church up that you would be pleased oh lord to pour out your spirit upon us to
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  revive us to help us to to seek you while you may be found and this word says to call upon you
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  while you are near and we thank you that as we gather in your presence this evening that that is
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  the hope that we have to come and meet with our risen lord to meet with our savior christ jesus
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  and we do pray lord for all who serve you in your church we thank you for not just ministries
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  in congregation but we thank you for all who serve in so many different ways
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  throughout our congregations on our island here and throughout our denomination we thank you for
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  every congregation we have and throughout our nation here lord from the north to the south from the east to
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  the west we thank you that you have your people who are serving you in the cities and the towns and the
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  villages we thank you that you have your praying people those who are so faithful and diligent
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  in prayer and even though maybe not even able to attend the the times of worship still
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  in their homes offering up prayer for your cause and for your kingdom and we do thank you lord that
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  you have a praying people we thank you that you have a serving people those who help in so many
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  different ways the the tasks that are required for churches and congregations to function from
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  administration to road us to serving in different ways to door duty and visiting and so many other
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  different aspects of the congregation so much that goes on quietly and hidden and yet oh lord so
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  important and so precious that we would see that nature of serving each other and in that serving
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  you as our lord and as our god we thank you for those who are elders and deacons as well we thank you for
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  those who have been called to these positions and we pray for help and wisdom and guidance towards them
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  we thank you for those who help in preaching we know that especially at such times of vacancies as we
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  have just now that there is a great burden on on different people to be involved in helping with the
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  preaching whether it's ministers of congregations helping retired ministers or elders or lay preachers
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  we do thank you for those who go out with the gospel and pray that it will be blessed that you would use
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  each one and the hearers of it lord to be under your word and under your truth and help to grow in
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  faith and knowledge of christ jesus we thank you too lord for those who serve the church far and wide
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  throughout the world we think of muriel this evening thankful for the connections that there are with her
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  month by month able to meet with her online and just pray for her and with her and see her and
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  hear from her and all the different aspects of the work that she's involved in and we thank you for
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  the many encouragements that you have given to her we thank you for the the delight that she has in
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  serving you the joy that is so evident in her and we pray lord that you would continue to make that joy
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  her strength in serving you and that she'll be used not just to encourage the people there in
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  cambodia but also ourselves as we hear from our lord that would encourage us in our hearts not just to
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  pray for her but to pray for our own service in the lord as well that we would have that joy in serving
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  you whatever you places and whatever you have for us we remember too lord our people who of our
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  communities at this time lord as we prayed this morning so many going through the the valley of the
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  shadow of death at this time knowing the grief that it brings and the the pain and sorrows of heart and
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  we just ask lord for your comfort and blessing to each one we pray for those who are unwell and laid
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  aside at this time as well and just ask for your hand upon each one for good as well we thank you for
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  the care homes around us in their town and further afield as well thank you for the privilege of worship in
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  them as well and we pray that residents and staff there would be blessed under the ministry of the
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  gospel as well this day too lord we remember a day that is marked as mother's day and think of
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  the blessings that that entails the blessing and privilege of mothers who encourage and who love and
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  care for us in different ways but we recognize too lord that it can be a day that is difficult for
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  many as well those who have lost mothers those who mothers who have lost children and we think of the
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  pain and sorrow that these reflections can bring as well we remember those who may be who are unable to
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  have children and we recognize the pains involved in this as well and we just pray lord that in a day
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  that is marked with joy that would we also remember lord that there is comfort needed in us well and we
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  thank you that you are one who is able to supply in every need that we have so remember us lord we pray
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  watch over us we pray in these coming weeks as different preachers will come to the pulpit here we pray for
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  them as your word to be ministered even thinking of next lord's day thankful for reverend calum mcleod and
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  remembering him today in open as he preaches there and in his role as moderator of our denomination
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  just now lord we pray for strength and help to him remember donald mckinnon as well we thank you for
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  his willingness to come and preach the word and just pray for him as he prepares for that thankful too for
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  those from our own number who who preach here as well both in english and gaelic and help in the
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  prayer meetings and the sunday services for our own elders as well lord may you bless them and be with
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  them too so may you encourage us in prayer lord and strengthen us in our faith this evening and
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  continue to watch over us lord bless us our homes our families and us all together as we look to you for
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  help and strength in all things we do pray above all lord that you will hear us as we confess our sins
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  and you as well we recognize our shortcomings we recognize the sin that is within us lord and that
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  comes through in our in our speech in our actions and even in our thoughts and we just pray lord that
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  you will forgive us and pardon us anew so lord continue with us now in the praising of your name
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  in the hearing of your word and as we worship you together that all would be to your glory as we ask
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  all in the precious name of jesus our lord and savior amen
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  we'll sing again to god's praise this time in the scottish psalter version of psalm 103
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  psalm 103 page 369
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  we'll sing from verse 1 to verse 5 the tune is london new psalm 103 at verse 1
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  o thou my soul bless god the lord and all that in me is
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  bestowed up his holy name to magnify and bless we'll sing from verse 1 to 5 to god's praise we stand
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  to voy forbade voy forbade
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  voy
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  !
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  voy
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  !
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  voy
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  !
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  He said in the darkest holy name to magnify and bless.
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  Let all thy soul, the Lord thy God, and not forgetfully.
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  Of all his gracious benefits he hath bestowed on thee.
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  All I need in it, when he stood out, most gracious be forgiven.
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  To my dear Jesus, all and grace, not healed and healed.
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  To thou redeem thy life, but thou to death mayst not go down.
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  To thee with loving kindness, the hand of mercy's crown.
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  With abundance of good things, thou satisfy thy mouth.
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  So that dear lasting evil sage, renew it is thy good.
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  Amen.
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  We'll turn together to read in the New Testament in Paul's letter to the Galatians.
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  And we're reading in chapter 2.
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  Galatians chapter 2.
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  And we can read the whole of this chapter.
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  As Paul is writing to the church in Galatia, he's writing to a people who have been led astray and led in different ways to turn away from the Lord Jesus.
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  But he comes reminding them of what they have in Christ.
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  But he also comes defending his own standing, his own faith.
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  He has to almost prove himself, and especially before the church at Jerusalem.
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  But he says here that he has stood before them and that his gospel is the true gospel in Jesus Christ.
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  And we see as we read on, he also has words with Peter.
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  Peter, who he sees as having almost compromised himself by being a hypocrite before people and doing one thing in front of some,
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  but then another thing in front of others.
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  So he challenges Peter in the midst of that as well.
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  But at the end of the chapter, he says, this is how we are to live.
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  He's a reminder to all.
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  You think of Peter and his standing with the Lord, one who was restored by Jesus and who served Jesus.
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  But even Peter needed to be told at times, look, you live for Christ, not to impress others or to be in favor with others.
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  You live for Christ.
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  And that's the great reminder we have at the end of this chapter.
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  So we read the whole chapter together.
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  Then after 14 years, I went up again to Jerusalem with Barnabas, taking Titus along with me.
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  I went up because of a revelation and said before them, though privately before those who seemed influential,
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  the gospel that I proclaim among the Gentiles in order to make sure I was not running or had not run in vain.
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  But even Titus, who was with me, was not forced to be circumcised, though he was a Greek.
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  Yet because of false brothers secretly brought in, who slipped in to spy out our freedom that we have in Christ Jesus,
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  so that they might bring us into slavery, to them we did not yield in submission, even for a moment,
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  so that the truth of the gospel might be preserved for you.
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  And from those who seemed to be influential, what they were makes no difference to me.
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  God shows no partiality.
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  Those, I say, who seemed influential added nothing to me.
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  On the contrary, when they saw that I had been entrusted with the gospel to the uncircumcised,
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  just as Peter had been entrusted with the gospel to the circumcised,
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  for he who worked through Peter for his apostolic ministry to the circumcised,
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  worked also through me for mine to the Gentiles.
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  And when James and Cephas and John, who seemed to be pillars,
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  perceived the grace that was given to me,
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  they gave the right hand of fellowship to Barnabas and me,
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  that we should go to the Gentiles and they to the circumcised.
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  Only they asked us to remember the poor, the very thing which I was eager to do.
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  But when Cephas came to Antioch, that's Peter,
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  I opposed him to his face because he stood condemned.
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  For before certain men came from James, he was eating with the Gentiles.
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  But when they came, he drew back and separated himself,
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  fearing the circumcision party.
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  And the rest of the Jews acted hypocritically along with him,
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  so that even Barnabas was led astray by their hypocrisy.
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  But when I saw that their conduct was not in step with the truth of the gospel,
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  I said to Cephas before them all,
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  If you, though a Jew, live like a Gentile and not like a Jew,
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  how can you force the Gentiles to live like Jews?
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  We ourselves are Jews by birth and not Gentile sinners.
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  Yet we know that a person is not just justified by works of the law,
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  but through faith in Jesus Christ.
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  So we also have believed in Christ Jesus in order to be justified by faith in Christ,
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  and not by works of the law.
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  Because by works of the law, no one will be justified.
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  But if in our endeavor to be justified in Christ,
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  we too were found to be sinners,
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  is Christ then a servant of sin?
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  Certainly not.
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  For if I rebuild what I tore down,
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  I prove myself to be a transgressor.
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  For through the law I died to the law,
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  so that I might live to God.
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  I have been crucified with Christ.
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  It is no longer I who live,
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  but Christ who lives in me.
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  And the life I now live in the flesh,
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  I live by faith in the Son of God,
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  who loved me and gave himself for me.
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  I do not nullify the grace of God.
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  For if justification were through the law,
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  then Christ died for no purpose.
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  Amen.
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  And may God bless that reading from his word.
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  Before we turn back to look at this passage,
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  we'll sing again to God's praise in Psalm 37,
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  the Scottish Psalter version,
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  page 252, Psalm 37 at verse 1.
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  For evildoers fret thou not thyself unquietly,
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  nor do thou envy bear to those that work iniquity.
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  And then verse 3,
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  set thou thy trust upon the Lord,
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  and be thou doing good,
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  and so thou in the land shalt dwell,
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  and verily have food.
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  We'll sing from verse 1 down to verse 6
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  to God's praise at Tunis, St. Andrew.
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  For evildoers fret thou not thyself unquietly,
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  nor do thou envy bear to those that work iniquity.
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  For eeder,
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  Like the green, a tender hair, they withered shall away.
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  Let thou thy trust upon the Lord, and with thy doing good.
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  And so thou in the land shall dwell, and there he hath food.
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  Delight thy strength, and God will give.
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  Thine heart's desire to lead.
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  Thy way to God forbid him trust, and bring to pass shall he.
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  And like unto thy light he shall, thy righteousness display.
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  And he thy judgment shall break forth, and in time of the day.
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  Amen.
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  We can turn back to our reading in Galatians chapter 2, and we're going to look at the end of the chapter, verse 20 and 21.
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  I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me.
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  And the life I now live in the flesh, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.
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  I do not nullify the grace of God, for if justification were through the law, then Christ died for no purpose.
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  There are many people in the scriptures who may be your go-to place.
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  Different characters, different people that we see in the scriptures, and we maybe can relate to them in different ways.
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  Maybe we can relate to them because of the kind of life they've had, or the things that they've done that very much speak to us.
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  And we can relate and learn from them.
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  For example, in the Old Testament, you have Moses, you have David, you have Esther, you have all these people, and you read about them,
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  and you think of all the different things that they did and experienced in life.
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  You look at the New Testament, and you see people, as we mentioned here, Peter, someone who was restored by the Lord Jesus, who denied knowing Jesus.
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  You see Lydia, a businesswoman who was converted so remarkably.
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  You see Bartimaeus, a blind beggar at the side of the street who was called by Jesus to follow him.
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  The list goes on.
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  And perhaps you've got your own individual, or maybe a few that you'd like to go back to and read their story again and again,
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  just because there's so much encouragement we can take from real people in real situations.
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  They're not just characters that we put on a pedestal.
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  They're ordinary people like you and I.
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  And what their lives tell us is the same thing.
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  They all point us towards Jesus and the need that we have of Jesus.
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  And the one I often come back to personally is Paul.
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  Paul's life is something I tend to go back to again and again and just see his own experiences that he had in life,
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  the different challenges that he came through, the different experiences that he had.
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  And despite, it's not just about himself, but it's always about Jesus.
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  And despite how he sees himself so often, he sees himself as chief of sinners and the least among all people,
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  as he looks to his past and even as present, he says the same thing.
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  But he always has his focus on Jesus.
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  And there's so many words that he brings to us that help us just to see his focus is on Jesus.
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  We live in a world where there are so many things grabbing for our attention.
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  So many adverts that come up on television or online or in magazines or on the phone.
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  We see them again and again and again, all grabbing for our attention.
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  And it's often just short slogans that they have just to try and catch our attention and keep a hold of us
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  and make us think that's something that I need.
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  For example, you have the sports manufacturer Nike.
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  And they have the slogan, just do it.
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  And if you watch their adverts so often, their adverts can be quite long, but those words keep appearing, just do it.
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  And it's maybe someone who starts training and gets up early.
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  And it's always about what they're wearing, what they're using, and not exactly what they're doing.
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  Just do it.
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  So in the sense that you'll go out and buy the shoes, the trainers, the boots, whatever it is.
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  You'll buy all the gear.
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  And that's what's going to help you to just do it.
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  But there's another slogan that often comes in that sort of goes against the grain in that way.
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  It's all the gear but no idea.
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  So you can have everything that you need.
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  And you can see this from time to time when you see people.
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  They can buy everything that's needed for doing or what they think is going to help them do something,
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  whether it's running a marathon, being the best footballer or rugby player, whatever it is.
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  They can have all the gear but just no idea what they're doing.
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  And so there's these kind of slogans that we see that we think,
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  well, that's what I need to be able to run a marathon.
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  I need these trainers.
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  That's what's going to do it.
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  But it's not.
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  It's what we are in and of ourselves and the work that we put into it in terms of training and listening
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  and all of these things and seeking to do it.
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  It's not just the trainers that are going to do it.
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  We need more than that.
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  But what about when it comes to the Christian faith?
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  When you hear about being a Christian,
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  when you hear what it is to live for Christ and the blessings that there are,
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  the joy that there is,
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  is that what grabs your attention when it comes to being a Christian?
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  You think, yes, that's something that I want to live as.
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  I want to live as a Christian.
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  But you've not grasped what it really means.
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  Because so often, even as we were looking at this morning,
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  and we were thinking of Jesus and speaking to the scribes about all these laws,
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  and they were thinking, well, it's all about what I can do.
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  Just do it.
• 34:05
  Just do this.
• 34:06
  Do that.
• 34:06
  Do the next thing.
• 34:08
  And that's what will make me good with God and right with God.
• 34:11
  But it's not.
• 34:13
  There's got to be more to it than that.
• 34:17
  And you think of the people that we see in the Scriptures,
• 34:21
  whether it's in the Old Testament or the New Testament,
• 34:24
  and you see the kind of words that are applied to them.
• 34:28
  And it reminds us that it's not about the individual, but the one who was with them.
• 34:33
  For example, David.
• 34:36
  If you look at the life of David, you see all the ups and downs in his life.
• 34:41
  There's certain words that you can relate to him,
• 34:43
  and you think there is just something that speaks so wonderfully.
• 34:47
  David.
• 34:48
  The apple of his eye, as it speaks of in front of God.
• 34:52
  The apple of God's eye.
• 34:53
  How precious he was to God.
• 34:56
  And you think, oh, that's just amazing.
• 34:58
  Or Esther.
• 35:00
  You think of Esther, and it's probably these words for such a time as this.
• 35:05
  There's these words that just, you can relate to her.
• 35:09
  The same with the New Testament people with Peter.
• 35:13
  We often think of Jesus asking, do you love me?
• 35:16
  That's what maybe comes to us.
• 35:19
  Or Bartimaeus, what do you want me to do for you?
• 35:22
  Jesus asked him.
• 35:25
  And when we look at that,
• 35:26
  we realize that there's so much in the Christian life
• 35:29
  that's more than just having all the ideas in our head.
• 35:34
  It's more than just having a knowledge of it.
• 35:37
  But it's about putting these things into practice.
• 35:41
  And when you look at the Christian faith,
• 35:44
  there are blessings, there are joys.
• 35:46
  But there are also many different challenges
• 35:48
  that we have to come up against as well.
• 35:51
  For example, when we hear these words
• 35:53
  that you are to take up your cross, deny yourself,
• 35:55
  and follow him.
• 35:58
  Does that change your outlook on what the Christian life means?
• 36:03
  The plans that the Lord has for us
• 36:06
  that interfere with our own plans,
• 36:08
  our own desires.
• 36:10
  When the rubber hits the road as it is,
• 36:12
  when we think the going gets hard,
• 36:14
  what are we going to do?
• 36:14
  Are we going to carry on in the faith?
• 36:16
  Or think, this isn't what I was expecting.
• 36:18
  We need to see that the Christian life,
• 36:23
  yes, is one of great joy
• 36:24
  and will be eternally one of great joy.
• 36:27
  But there is also a life that has a need for commitment,
• 36:32
  for sacrifice, for faith,
• 36:34
  in the midst of everything that comes our way.
• 36:37
  And that's what Paul's life so often shows us
• 36:40
  and highlights for us as well.
• 36:42
  When you think of the kind of things
• 36:44
  that Paul says as he's writing to the different churches,
• 36:49
  he writes to the church at Ephesus
• 36:51
  and says you were dead in your trespasses and sins,
• 36:54
  but you're made alive in Christ.
• 36:58
  You have these words that remind us
• 37:00
  of what we were dead in our trespasses and sins,
• 37:03
  but made alive together with Christ.
• 37:06
  You know, it was led to the Philippines
• 37:07
  and how often in that letter you see him
• 37:10
  just saying a few words and you think,
• 37:12
  well, there's the blessing of the Christian life,
• 37:14
  but also the challenges of it as well.
• 37:18
  For example, in Philippians 4,
• 37:20
  I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.
• 37:23
  You can have these words and think,
• 37:25
  there is a slogan for me.
• 37:27
  I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.
• 37:30
  But what's he talking about?
• 37:33
  He's talking about poverty and persecution
• 37:36
  and shipwreck and slavery
• 37:37
  and all of these kinds of things,
• 37:39
  as well as the joys.
• 37:42
  But he can do it all through Christ who strengthens him.
• 37:45
  There's the promise of Christ with him.
• 37:47
  It's not about himself.
• 37:50
  In Philippians 1, he says these words as well,
• 37:52
  for me to live is Christ and to die is gain.
• 37:57
  Again, can we take these words to heart ourselves?
• 38:01
  Can we apply them to ourselves and our own,
• 38:04
  seeking to walk with Christ?
• 38:05
  For me to live is not myself, it is Christ.
• 38:11
  And something very similar that we have here
• 38:12
  in Galatians as well,
• 38:14
  in verse 20 and 21.
• 38:18
  And you read here that the Christian life
• 38:21
  is all about Jesus.
• 38:24
  I have been crucified with Christ.
• 38:27
  It is no longer I who live,
• 38:30
  but Christ who lives in me.
• 38:33
  And the life I now live in the flesh,
• 38:34
  I live by faith in the Son of God who loved me
• 38:37
  and gave himself for me.
• 38:41
  So we see here he's not living the Christian life by himself.
• 38:46
  He's not living it just doing it himself.
• 38:49
  He is living it looking to the Lord Jesus Christ
• 38:53
  and knowing that it is only through him that he lives.
• 38:56
  And as we think of a time of year when we remember
• 39:01
  the death and the resurrection of Jesus Christ,
• 39:05
  we think this evening of the significance of that.
• 39:08
  We always have it to mind,
• 39:09
  but we think of just the significance of the life
• 39:12
  that we have in Christ this evening.
• 39:16
  Can we say, can you say this evening with Paul these words,
• 39:20
  it is no longer I who live,
• 39:22
  but Christ who lives in me.
• 39:27
  It's not about me.
• 39:28
  It's about Christ who lives in me.
• 39:32
  That is the key to the Christian walk.
• 39:36
  Self decreases and he increases.
• 39:41
  And so there's three things I want us to look at
• 39:44
  in these verses, these two verses.
• 39:47
  I wish you think of the life that we have in Christ.
• 39:50
  First of all, we live by Jesus.
• 39:54
  We live by Jesus.
• 39:56
  Secondly, we are to live like Jesus.
• 40:00
  And then thirdly, we are to live for Jesus.
• 40:04
  We have life by Jesus, life like Jesus, and life for Jesus.
• 40:14
  And that's really what Paul is highlighting to us here
• 40:16
  in these two verses.
• 40:18
  It's very much in the context of what's come before us well,
• 40:22
  both defending his own gospel ministry to the Gentiles.
• 40:26
  And you see in verse 9 that James and Peter and John
• 40:31
  had perceived, they were the pillars of the faith,
• 40:35
  but they had given the right hand of fellowship.
• 40:37
  They'd given the blessing to him
• 40:39
  to go and minister to the Gentiles.
• 40:42
  But yet in the next few verses,
• 40:43
  you've got this opposition against Peter,
• 40:47
  who was living hypocritically in front of the Gentiles.
• 40:51
  And then when the Jews arrived,
• 40:52
  he changed the way he lived.
• 40:54
  So it's all in light of that.
• 40:57
  And that's a challenge to ourselves as well.
• 40:59
  How are we going to live not just before God,
• 41:03
  but before man as well?
• 41:06
  Are we going to be the Christian who's comfortable in here,
• 41:10
  but who goes out there,
• 41:11
  and then we suddenly live a different life?
• 41:15
  Well, not if we live as Paul describes here.
• 41:18
  It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me.
• 41:23
  That is when we live for Christ in every place that we go,
• 41:27
  in everywhere that we are.
• 41:29
  So we are to live by Jesus, first of all.
• 41:34
  And the question here is,
• 41:35
  do you realize the life and power that we have in Jesus?
• 41:40
  Do you realize the power that there is in the life that Christ gives to us?
• 41:46
  Not the life that the world has to offer,
• 41:48
  where it offers all these slogans and things
• 41:51
  that can grab our attention and make us live to that end of,
• 41:55
  just do it, just go and live your life,
• 41:58
  live it to the full,
• 42:00
  do what you want,
• 42:01
  do what you please.
• 42:03
  But the very fact that we live by Jesus,
• 42:07
  that Jesus is the author of life,
• 42:10
  that is in him,
• 42:11
  we live,
• 42:12
  move,
• 42:13
  and have our being.
• 42:15
  So that's the first thing that Paul is addressing here in these verses to the Galatians.
• 42:21
  The people there who are being pulled away from faith in Christ,
• 42:26
  being pulled back to the law and living their life by the law
• 42:29
  and being under the burden of the law,
• 42:32
  where it's all about keeping all the laws.
• 42:35
  Well, Paul is almost calling them back again and saying,
• 42:40
  no,
• 42:41
  it is to live by Jesus,
• 42:44
  to live by Christ.
• 42:46
  And that's not about keeping all the laws.
• 42:49
  It's by living by faith.
• 42:52
  And you see that how he says in verse 20 here,
• 42:56
  I have been crucified with Christ.
• 43:00
  Christ.
• 43:01
  And it's all the difference as we see this.
• 43:05
  We see the focus is moved away from just keeping the law
• 43:08
  to living by Jesus,
• 43:11
  to living by Christ.
• 43:14
  That we are in Christ,
• 43:17
  we live by him.
• 43:20
  And it starts with these words,
• 43:23
  I have been crucified with Christ.
• 43:27
  I have been crucified,
• 43:28
  I have been put to death.
• 43:30
  With Christ.
• 43:32
  So there's almost like a past position here
• 43:34
  as to how we are living.
• 43:36
  I am crucified.
• 43:37
  It's referring back to the crucifixion of Jesus.
• 43:42
  Very much so in that we live because he gave his life for us.
• 43:48
  And that's what affects her life.
• 43:51
  Even now,
• 43:51
  as we can read in the book of Romans,
• 43:55
  chapter 6,
• 43:57
  here it outlines just the significance for us.
• 44:00
  In verse 4 to verse 6.
• 44:05
  We were buried,
• 44:06
  therefore,
• 44:07
  with him by baptism into death,
• 44:09
  in order that,
• 44:10
  just as Christ was raised from the dead
• 44:12
  by the glory of the Father,
• 44:13
  we too might walk in newness of life.
• 44:16
  For if we have been united with him
• 44:18
  in a death like his,
• 44:20
  we shall certainly be united with him
• 44:22
  in a resurrection like his.
• 44:24
  We know that our old self was crucified with him.
• 44:28
  In order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing.
• 44:32
  So that we would no longer be enslaved to sin.
• 44:37
  He's written it to the Romans as well.
• 44:39
  We are crucified with Christ.
• 44:42
  And if we deny that,
• 44:47
  if we say that we can live by the law ourselves
• 44:50
  and fulfill all the law by ourselves,
• 44:53
  well,
• 44:53
  we are deceiving ourselves.
• 44:55
  But more than that,
• 44:56
  as you see in verse 25,
• 44:59
  we nullify the grace of God.
• 45:01
  For if justification were through the law,
• 45:05
  then we're saying Christ died for no purpose.
• 45:10
  Christ's death means nothing
• 45:12
  if we feel we can live for ourselves,
• 45:15
  if we can just do it ourselves.
• 45:20
  But instead we are to see
• 45:21
  we are crucified with Christ.
• 45:24
  His death was for us.
• 45:26
  That once for all death.
• 45:29
  And because we died with him,
• 45:34
  it's a sense of we died too.
• 45:36
  We died to our sin there.
• 45:39
  And yet we know that through that we have hope
• 45:43
  that Christ died for sinners.
• 45:46
  And so like you read in Psalm 56, verse 3 and 4,
• 45:49
  when I am afraid,
• 45:51
  I'll trust in thee.
• 45:52
  In God I'll praise his word.
• 45:53
  I will not fear what flesh can do.
• 45:56
  My trust is in the Lord.
• 45:59
  The one who died for our sins.
• 46:01
  The one we are crucified with.
• 46:05
  We live by Jesus through his crucifixion.
• 46:10
  But we see it's not just the death of Christ.
• 46:12
  It's the fact that we live in him as well.
• 46:17
  Because he was crucified with him.
• 46:20
  But he says,
• 46:21
  it is no longer I who live,
• 46:23
  but Christ who lives in me.
• 46:26
  So there is life.
• 46:29
  There's the past that Christ died for our sins,
• 46:31
  but the present as well.
• 46:33
  We live by Jesus, by Christ even now.
• 46:38
  Died for our sins,
• 46:39
  but he rose again on the third day
• 46:41
  to give us life.
• 46:44
  That we might live to him.
• 46:46
  And so we have that hope.
• 46:50
  That hope of life in Christ
• 46:52
  that's also life eternal.
• 46:54
  When you think of eternal life,
• 46:56
  when do you think of that being?
• 47:00
  It's in the future, I'm sure you think of it.
• 47:02
  Eternal life is something in the distance,
• 47:05
  ahead in the future.
• 47:07
  When we pass from this world,
• 47:08
  we go into glory,
• 47:10
  if we're believing in the Lord,
• 47:11
  and there is eternal life.
• 47:14
  But eternal life we have now.
• 47:17
  We have that hope now.
• 47:18
  So that even as you read in Psalm 23,
• 47:22
  yea, though I walk in the valley
• 47:24
  of the shadow of death,
• 47:25
  I will fear no evil,
• 47:27
  for you are with me.
• 47:28
  There is that hope for now.
• 47:31
  John 10, verse 28,
• 47:33
  he says,
• 47:33
  I give them eternal life,
• 47:35
  and they will never perish,
• 47:36
  and no one will snatch them
• 47:38
  out of my hand.
• 47:40
  We live eternally,
• 47:42
  even now,
• 47:43
  because we have that assurance,
• 47:45
  that promise,
• 47:46
  that we live by faith in Christ.
• 47:50
  Crucified to him,
• 47:52
  and we live by him.
• 47:55
  We are alive in Christ,
• 47:58
  and through him.
• 48:00
  And there is the joy of the Christian faith.
• 48:03
  There is the hope of the Christian faith,
• 48:05
  that there is life in him.
• 48:07
  Again,
• 48:08
  we live by Jesus.
• 48:11
  We live by Christ.
• 48:14
  And then we read on,
• 48:16
  and we see we are to live like Jesus.
• 48:20
  I have been crucified with Christ.
• 48:22
  It is no longer I who live,
• 48:23
  but Christ who lives in me.
• 48:25
  And the life I now live in the flesh,
• 48:27
  I live by faith in the Son of God,
• 48:29
  who loved me,
• 48:31
  and gave himself for me.
• 48:36
  You may be familiar with the phrase,
• 48:39
  what would Jesus do?
• 48:42
  For a number of years,
• 48:44
  there were these bands you used to see
• 48:46
  on so many people's wrists,
• 48:47
  WWJD,
• 48:49
  what would Jesus do?
• 48:52
  But it's not just,
• 48:53
  we ask ourselves,
• 48:53
  what would Jesus do?
• 48:55
  Like,
• 48:56
  what would he do if he was here and now?
• 48:58
  But what did Jesus do?
• 49:01
  How are we to live
• 49:02
  in light of this life
• 49:04
  that he has given to us?
• 49:06
  We are to live like Jesus.
• 49:09
  And what does that mean for us today?
• 49:12
  Well,
• 49:13
  when we think of how Jesus lived,
• 49:14
  we know we can never accomplish
• 49:16
  that perfect life ourselves.
• 49:18
  We can never reach that,
• 49:20
  but it doesn't mean we are not to live like him.
• 49:22
  And live towards his glory.
• 49:27
  Paul goes on to remind us here
• 49:29
  that we are able to live through him,
• 49:33
  but that we are also to live like him,
• 49:36
  because we have the power
• 49:38
  of the resurrection in us as well.
• 49:41
  It is no longer I who live,
• 49:44
  but Christ who lives in me.
• 49:48
  Again, we go back to what we were thinking of
• 49:50
  this morning.
• 49:52
  And the challenge that Jesus gave
• 49:54
  to the scribes,
• 49:57
  as he was saying to them,
• 49:58
  what's the greatest commandment?
• 50:00
  Well, the greatest commandment is this,
• 50:02
  that you love the Lord your God
• 50:03
  with all your heart,
• 50:04
  with all your soul,
• 50:05
  with all your mind,
• 50:06
  with all your strength.
• 50:09
  Well, how can we do that?
• 50:12
  Well, it is only through Christ
• 50:14
  that we can do that.
• 50:16
  And therefore,
• 50:17
  we are to live like him.
• 50:19
  We are to live like him
• 50:21
  and in all the ways
• 50:22
  that he shows us
• 50:23
  through his word.
• 50:25
  When you think of Paul writing
• 50:28
  to the Philippines,
• 50:29
  he wrote about the humility
• 50:30
  of Jesus,
• 50:31
  who humbled himself,
• 50:34
  who thought others
• 50:35
  more important than himself.
• 50:37
  We have that example
• 50:38
  given to us there.
• 50:40
  Is that how you live?
• 50:41
  Is that how I live?
• 50:43
  Looking to others
• 50:44
  and having them thinking
• 50:45
  more importantly of them,
• 50:46
  or humbly living before God.
• 50:52
  When we think of faith,
• 50:54
  we are to come humbly,
• 50:55
  but we receive powerfully.
• 50:57
  Just think of these words.
• 50:59
  It is no longer I who live,
• 51:01
  but Christ who lives in me.
• 51:05
  Do you know that yourself,
• 51:06
  the power of that salvation
• 51:08
  in your heart?
• 51:11
  That he lives,
• 51:11
  he is a resident in you.
• 51:13
  That by faith,
• 51:15
  he comes into you.
• 51:17
  You have that promise
• 51:18
  that Jesus gave
• 51:20
  in the Gospel of John
• 51:21
  that as he goes,
• 51:22
  he is going to leave
• 51:23
  his comforter,
• 51:24
  the Holy Spirit,
• 51:25
  the one who is called
• 51:27
  alongside us
• 51:28
  and the Spirit
• 51:30
  who lives in us.
• 51:33
  We are not alone.
• 51:35
  It's not a case of saying to us,
• 51:38
  just do it yourself.
• 51:40
  No, it is like Paul says,
• 51:42
  I can do all things
• 51:43
  through Christ
• 51:44
  who strengthens me,
• 51:46
  the Christ
• 51:46
  who lives in me.
• 51:49
  That is the joy
• 51:50
  that the Christian has.
• 51:55
  Peter himself
• 51:56
  knows that joy too.
• 51:58
  Although he was
• 51:59
  clashed with Paul here,
• 52:02
  he too knew the joy
• 52:05
  of salvation in Jesus.
• 52:07
  In 1 Peter 1, verse 3,
• 52:09
  he says,
• 52:09
  he has caused us
• 52:10
  to be born again
• 52:11
  to a living hope
• 52:13
  through the resurrection
• 52:14
  of Jesus Christ
• 52:15
  from the dead.
• 52:17
  Born again.
• 52:18
  There's that newness.
• 52:19
  There's that life
• 52:20
  in us
• 52:21
  that's not our own
• 52:21
  but the Christ
• 52:22
  who lives in me.
• 52:26
  And it's that life
• 52:27
  that gives hope
• 52:28
  and it's through
• 52:28
  the resurrection
• 52:30
  of Jesus Christ
• 52:31
  from the dead.
• 52:32
  Christ
• 52:34
  who lives
• 52:36
  in me.
• 52:39
  That is the hope
• 52:40
  that the Christian has.
• 52:42
  We are to live
• 52:42
  like Jesus
• 52:44
  through him
• 52:45
  who lives in us.
• 52:46
  And what impact
• 52:46
  does that have
• 52:47
  in our lives?
• 52:49
  Well, it should impact
• 52:50
  in everything
• 52:51
  that we do.
• 52:53
  But as you see,
• 52:54
  the example of Jesus
• 52:55
  as he gives us
• 52:56
  in prayer,
• 52:57
  we are to pray
• 52:58
  like Jesus.
• 53:00
  Always to pray
• 53:01
  and never give up.
• 53:03
  In our worship,
• 53:04
  that is to be our goal
• 53:06
  at all times,
• 53:07
  to live
• 53:07
  for the glory of God
• 53:09
  and to give glory
• 53:12
  and worship to him
• 53:13
  in all that we do.
• 53:15
  It should come into
• 53:16
  the way that we praise,
• 53:18
  the way that we sing
• 53:19
  our praise to the Lord,
• 53:21
  the way we lift up
• 53:21
  our voice.
• 53:23
  When we think of Christ
• 53:25
  who lives in us,
• 53:27
  should that not make us
• 53:28
  just want to burst out
• 53:29
  in praise to God?
• 53:32
  It should impact
• 53:33
  the way that we love
• 53:35
  as we were thinking
• 53:36
  about this morning.
• 53:37
  Love the Lord your God
• 53:38
  with all your heart
• 53:39
  because Christ lives in you.
• 53:42
  Surely as we have that,
• 53:44
  then we cannot
• 53:44
  but love God,
• 53:47
  but also love
• 53:48
  our neighbor
• 53:49
  as ourself.
• 53:52
  And as we live,
• 53:54
  it is no longer
• 53:55
  I who live.
• 53:57
  So it's not our priorities,
• 53:58
  it's not what we see
• 53:59
  as important.
• 54:00
  It is to live
• 54:01
  for Christ.
• 54:05
  So that everything
• 54:06
  that we do
• 54:06
  is with thanksgiving
• 54:08
  and praise
• 54:09
  to him.
• 54:13
  Christ in us,
• 54:15
  the hope
• 54:15
  of glory.
• 54:18
  When you think of why
• 54:19
  Paul had to rebuke
• 54:22
  Peter here,
• 54:23
  why was it?
• 54:24
  Well,
• 54:24
  because he was not
• 54:26
  showing Christ
• 54:27
  to others.
• 54:30
  He was okay
• 54:31
  when it was just
• 54:32
  the Gentiles there.
• 54:35
  It says in verse 12,
• 54:38
  for before certain men
• 54:39
  came from James,
• 54:41
  he was eating
• 54:41
  with the Gentiles.
• 54:43
  He was among them.
• 54:44
  He was eating with them
• 54:45
  quite happily.
• 54:47
  But when they came,
• 54:48
  he drew back
• 54:48
  and separated himself.
• 54:50
  So Paul rightly
• 54:53
  had to speak to him.
• 54:55
  He had to challenge him
• 54:56
  and say,
• 54:57
  you're not loving
• 54:58
  your neighbor
• 54:58
  as yourself.
• 55:01
  You're being hypocritical.
• 55:03
  And you're causing
• 55:04
  others to live
• 55:05
  hypocritical lives
• 55:06
  as well.
• 55:07
  So he challenges
• 55:08
  you're not living
• 55:09
  like Jesus.
• 55:13
  And sometimes
• 55:13
  we need that
• 55:14
  rebuke ourselves
• 55:15
  too,
• 55:16
  to live
• 55:17
  like Jesus.
• 55:20
  To give that example
• 55:21
  of what Jesus is
• 55:22
  to others.
• 55:25
  So we are to live
• 55:26
  by Jesus.
• 55:28
  We are to live
• 55:28
  like Jesus.
• 55:30
  And then thirdly,
• 55:31
  we see we are to live
• 55:32
  for Jesus.
• 55:35
  We are to live
• 55:36
  for Jesus.
• 55:40
  Who are you living for?
• 55:43
  That's the question
• 55:44
  that Paul addresses here.
• 55:47
  Are you living
• 55:47
  to please God?
• 55:50
  Or to please men?
• 55:51
  And again,
• 55:51
  you see this
• 55:52
  going back to Peter.
• 55:54
  Are you living
• 55:55
  to please God?
• 55:56
  Are you living
• 55:57
  to please those
• 55:58
  who will see you
• 55:59
  eating with Gentiles?
• 56:00
  And you might think
• 56:01
  you might upset them
• 56:02
  by doing it.
• 56:04
  Well,
• 56:04
  he's saying,
• 56:05
  it's no longer
• 56:05
  I who live
• 56:06
  but Christ
• 56:07
  who lives
• 56:08
  in me.
• 56:09
  And I live
• 56:10
  by faith
• 56:11
  in the Son of God
• 56:12
  who loved me
• 56:13
  and gave
• 56:14
  himself
• 56:15
  for me.
• 56:16
  are we living
• 56:18
  that kind
• 56:20
  of life,
• 56:20
  that sacrificial
• 56:21
  life?
• 56:25
  Because when we
• 56:26
  see this,
• 56:27
  we see that
• 56:27
  there is the supply
• 56:29
  of faith
• 56:30
  that God gives.
• 56:32
  And by that
• 56:33
  we are to live
• 56:34
  for Jesus
• 56:35
  as well.
• 56:37
  He will supply
• 56:38
  the faith
• 56:39
  that we need
• 56:40
  for our journey
• 56:41
  in this life.
• 56:42
  So it's not
• 56:43
  just you do it.
• 56:46
  It is Christ
• 56:47
  who lives
• 56:47
  in us.
• 56:49
  And we are
• 56:49
  to live
• 56:50
  for Jesus
• 56:51
  in that faith
• 56:53
  as well.
• 56:56
  Faith is a
• 56:57
  gift
• 56:57
  of God.
• 56:59
  And it's a gift
• 57:00
  of God
• 57:01
  that we are
• 57:01
  to flan
• 57:02
  into flame.
• 57:04
  By the grace
• 57:05
  of God
• 57:06
  you have been
• 57:06
  saved.
• 57:07
  And you have
• 57:08
  been saved
• 57:08
  for works
• 57:10
  to do
• 57:11
  for the Lord.
• 57:14
  And that
• 57:14
  we have
• 57:15
  that hope
• 57:15
  of the faith
• 57:17
  that dwells
• 57:18
  in us.
• 57:18
  And that
• 57:19
  that leads
• 57:19
  us to live
• 57:21
  for the
• 57:23
  Son of God
• 57:24
  who gave
• 57:25
  us life.
• 57:27
  Who loved
• 57:27
  me
• 57:27
  and gave
• 57:28
  himself
• 57:29
  for me.
• 57:32
  One person
• 57:33
  put it like
• 57:33
  this when you
• 57:34
  look at faith.
• 57:35
  You see faith
• 57:36
  is like a
• 57:37
  muscle.
• 57:38
  A muscle
• 57:39
  like in the
• 57:39
  body.
• 57:41
  And when
• 57:41
  it's taken
• 57:41
  into the
• 57:42
  gym of
• 57:42
  life it's
• 57:43
  weak at
• 57:44
  first.
• 57:44
  It can
• 57:44
  do little.
• 57:46
  But as
• 57:46
  it is
• 57:47
  exercised
• 57:48
  in the
• 57:48
  little
• 57:48
  things day
• 57:49
  by day
• 57:49
  it grows
• 57:50
  considerably
• 57:51
  until it's
• 57:52
  able to
• 57:52
  accomplish
• 57:53
  great
• 57:54
  things
• 57:54
  through
• 57:55
  Christ.
• 57:57
  So there
• 57:58
  is this
• 57:58
  exercise
• 57:59
  of faith.
• 58:00
  Putting
• 58:00
  our faith
• 58:01
  into
• 58:01
  practice
• 58:02
  on a
• 58:02
  daily
• 58:03
  basis.
• 58:05
  How do
• 58:05
  we exercise
• 58:06
  faith?
• 58:06
  Well faith
• 58:07
  comes by
• 58:07
  hearing.
• 58:08
  And hearing
• 58:09
  by the
• 58:09
  word of
• 58:10
  God.
• 58:10
  And so
• 58:11
  we live
• 58:11
  by this
• 58:12
  word of
• 58:13
  God.
• 58:14
  Growing
• 58:14
  in it.
• 58:17
  But there's
• 58:17
  also this
• 58:19
  living by
• 58:20
  the sacrifice.
• 58:22
  By the
• 58:23
  sacrifice that
• 58:24
  has been
• 58:24
  made for
• 58:24
  us.
• 58:25
  Our lives
• 58:25
  are to be
• 58:26
  sacrifices
• 58:27
  too.
• 58:28
  Paul says
• 58:28
  that as he
• 58:29
  writes to
• 58:30
  the Romans
• 58:30
  in chapter
• 58:31
  12.
• 58:31
  we are
• 58:34
  a people
• 58:34
  who are
• 58:36
  to live
• 58:37
  for him.
• 58:40
  And so
• 58:41
  we think
• 58:42
  of these
• 58:42
  three things
• 58:43
  that we
• 58:43
  have.
• 58:44
  We live
• 58:45
  by Christ.
• 58:48
  Are you
• 58:49
  this evening
• 58:50
  living in
• 58:51
  that way
• 58:51
  by Christ?
• 58:54
  We are
• 58:55
  to live
• 58:55
  like
• 58:56
  Christ.
• 58:58
  Are you
• 58:58
  living
• 58:59
  like
• 59:00
  Christ?
• 59:01
  Living for
• 59:02
  the glory
• 59:03
  of God.
• 59:04
  And are you
• 59:04
  living for
• 59:05
  Christ?
• 59:08
  Seeking not
• 59:09
  just glory
• 59:09
  for yourself
• 59:10
  but glory
• 59:11
  for God.
• 59:14
  Even in the
• 59:14
  ordinary things
• 59:15
  that we have
• 59:16
  in life.
• 59:17
  Everything that
• 59:17
  we do we are
• 59:18
  to do for
• 59:19
  the glory
• 59:19
  of God.
• 59:22
  And the
• 59:22
  day will
• 59:23
  come when
• 59:24
  we will be
• 59:24
  recognized for
• 59:25
  what we have
• 59:26
  done.
• 59:26
  when we
• 59:28
  will appear
• 59:29
  before God
• 59:29
  and he will
• 59:30
  have before
• 59:31
  him everything
• 59:32
  that we have
• 59:33
  done.
• 59:35
  And how we
• 59:35
  lived for
• 59:36
  him.
• 59:38
  During the
• 59:39
  Second World
• 59:40
  War
• 59:41
  Winston
• 59:42
  Churchill
• 59:42
  often had
• 59:43
  to go and
• 59:44
  speak to
• 59:44
  different people
• 59:45
  in different
• 59:46
  places.
• 59:48
  He spoke
• 59:48
  to soldiers,
• 59:49
  he spoke
• 59:50
  to sailors,
• 59:50
  he spoke
• 59:51
  to airmen
• 59:52
  to encourage
• 59:53
  them.
• 59:54
  And there's
• 59:54
  so many
• 59:55
  words that
• 59:56
  Winston
• 59:56
  Churchill
• 59:56
  spoke that
• 59:57
  still resonate
• 59:59
  to this
• 1:00:00
  day but
• 1:00:00
  he didn't
• 1:00:01
  just leave
• 1:00:01
  it to those
• 1:00:02
  who were to
• 1:00:02
  the forefront
• 1:00:03
  of the
• 1:00:03
  cause and
• 1:00:04
  that sense
• 1:00:05
  of soldiers
• 1:00:05
  or sailors
• 1:00:07
  or airmen.
• 1:00:08
  He spoke
• 1:00:09
  to those
• 1:00:09
  who were
• 1:00:09
  doing behind
• 1:00:10
  the scene
• 1:00:11
  work as
• 1:00:12
  it were
• 1:00:12
  as well.
• 1:00:13
  And there
• 1:00:13
  was a
• 1:00:13
  time when
• 1:00:13
  he had
• 1:00:14
  to speak
• 1:00:14
  to those
• 1:00:15
  who were
• 1:00:15
  involved
• 1:00:16
  in the
• 1:00:16
  mining
• 1:00:16
  of coal,
• 1:00:18
  the coal
• 1:00:18
  miners.
• 1:00:20
  Many of
• 1:00:21
  them thought
• 1:00:21
  that their
• 1:00:22
  job was
• 1:00:23
  almost
• 1:00:23
  meaningless,
• 1:00:24
  serving no
• 1:00:25
  purpose when
• 1:00:26
  it came
• 1:00:27
  to the
• 1:00:27
  cause of
• 1:00:28
  the war.
• 1:00:29
  But he
• 1:00:30
  had to
• 1:00:30
  go and
• 1:00:30
  speak to
• 1:00:30
  them and
• 1:00:31
  remind
• 1:00:31
  them that
• 1:00:32
  they were
• 1:00:32
  needed just
• 1:00:33
  as much
• 1:00:33
  as anything.
• 1:00:36
  Because
• 1:00:36
  without them
• 1:00:37
  none of
• 1:00:38
  the others
• 1:00:38
  could do
• 1:00:39
  the work
• 1:00:39
  that they
• 1:00:39
  were involved
• 1:00:40
  in.
• 1:00:41
  And they
• 1:00:42
  weren't to
• 1:00:42
  see themselves
• 1:00:43
  as insignificant
• 1:00:43
  in the
• 1:00:44
  cause of
• 1:00:45
  defending the
• 1:00:46
  nation,
• 1:00:48
  but to
• 1:00:48
  see themselves
• 1:00:49
  as vital
• 1:00:49
  to the
• 1:00:50
  defence of
• 1:00:51
  the nation
• 1:00:51
  because coal
• 1:00:52
  ran so
• 1:00:54
  much.
• 1:00:56
  Everything
• 1:00:56
  depended on
• 1:00:57
  fuel,
• 1:00:59
  whether it
• 1:00:59
  was to
• 1:00:59
  help the
• 1:01:00
  soldiers,
• 1:01:01
  the sailors,
• 1:01:01
  the airmen,
• 1:01:02
  coal was
• 1:01:04
  essential.
• 1:01:05
  And he
• 1:01:06
  spoke to
• 1:01:06
  them in
• 1:01:06
  ways that
• 1:01:07
  they recognised
• 1:01:08
  the importance
• 1:01:09
  of what they
• 1:01:10
  were doing.
• 1:01:11
  And he
• 1:01:11
  said at
• 1:01:12
  one point
• 1:01:12
  that,
• 1:01:13
  yes,
• 1:01:13
  there will
• 1:01:13
  be those
• 1:01:14
  who would
• 1:01:15
  say,
• 1:01:15
  I fought
• 1:01:16
  in the
• 1:01:17
  war on
• 1:01:17
  the front,
• 1:01:18
  on the
• 1:01:18
  front,
• 1:01:19
  I fought
• 1:01:19
  at sea,
• 1:01:20
  I fought
• 1:01:21
  in the
• 1:01:21
  air,
• 1:01:22
  but he
• 1:01:24
  says you
• 1:01:24
  will be
• 1:01:24
  able to
• 1:01:25
  say,
• 1:01:26
  we fought
• 1:01:26
  at the
• 1:01:27
  coal
• 1:01:27
  face,
• 1:01:28
  we cut
• 1:01:29
  the coal.
• 1:01:31
  And they
• 1:01:31
  began to
• 1:01:32
  realise the
• 1:01:32
  importance
• 1:01:33
  of it.
• 1:01:35
  And when
• 1:01:35
  we see the
• 1:01:36
  importance
• 1:01:36
  of faith,
• 1:01:38
  it's faith
• 1:01:39
  to live
• 1:01:39
  for Christ.
• 1:01:41
  Whatever
• 1:01:41
  we have,
• 1:01:43
  whatever we
• 1:01:44
  are able
• 1:01:44
  to do
• 1:01:45
  for him,
• 1:01:46
  what we
• 1:01:47
  can say
• 1:01:47
  is it
• 1:01:48
  is no
• 1:01:48
  longer I
• 1:01:49
  who live,
• 1:01:50
  but Christ
• 1:01:51
  who lives
• 1:01:52
  in me.
• 1:01:54
  And as
• 1:01:54
  Christ
• 1:01:55
  lives
• 1:01:56
  in us,
• 1:01:58
  we will
• 1:01:58
  do
• 1:01:59
  for him
• 1:02:00
  and not
• 1:02:01
  see anything
• 1:02:02
  as unimportant
• 1:02:03
  or little
• 1:02:04
  in the scheme
• 1:02:05
  of things,
• 1:02:06
  but all
• 1:02:07
  things working
• 1:02:08
  together for
• 1:02:08
  the glory
• 1:02:09
  of God.
• 1:02:11
  But it
• 1:02:12
  begins by
• 1:02:13
  recognising
• 1:02:14
  what it
• 1:02:15
  is to
• 1:02:15
  have faith
• 1:02:16
  in him,
• 1:02:18
  faith
• 1:02:19
  in the
• 1:02:20
  son of
• 1:02:20
  God
• 1:02:20
  who
• 1:02:21
  loved
• 1:02:21
  me
• 1:02:22
  and
• 1:02:23
  gave
• 1:02:23
  himself
• 1:02:24
  for
• 1:02:25
  me.
• 1:02:26
  When we
• 1:02:26
  see his
• 1:02:27
  sacrifice,
• 1:02:28
  we see
• 1:02:29
  our lives
• 1:02:30
  as a
• 1:02:30
  living
• 1:02:30
  sacrifice
• 1:02:31
  for him.
• 1:02:33
  So we
• 1:02:34
  are to
• 1:02:34
  live
• 1:02:35
  for him.
• 1:02:37
  We live
• 1:02:38
  by him.
• 1:02:40
  We live
• 1:02:41
  by him
• 1:02:42
  in the
• 1:02:42
  sense of
• 1:02:43
  he is
• 1:02:43
  the one
• 1:02:44
  who gives
• 1:02:45
  us
• 1:02:45
  life.
• 1:02:46
  we live
• 1:02:47
  to give
• 1:02:48
  glory
• 1:02:49
  to him.
• 1:02:51
  We live
• 1:02:52
  for him.
• 1:02:54
  So we
• 1:02:55
  be able
• 1:02:55
  to say
• 1:02:56
  like this
• 1:02:57
  when Paul
• 1:02:58
  says here
• 1:02:59
  that this
• 1:03:00
  is what
• 1:03:01
  apply to
• 1:03:02
  me,
• 1:03:03
  that this
• 1:03:04
  is what
• 1:03:04
  I would
• 1:03:04
  see as
• 1:03:05
  important
• 1:03:06
  for my
• 1:03:06
  life and
• 1:03:07
  for the
• 1:03:08
  glory of
• 1:03:08
  God and
• 1:03:09
  for his
• 1:03:09
  church,
• 1:03:11
  that I
• 1:03:12
  have been
• 1:03:12
  crucified
• 1:03:13
  with Christ.
• 1:03:14
  it is no
• 1:03:16
  longer I
• 1:03:16
  who live
• 1:03:17
  but Christ
• 1:03:20
  who lives
• 1:03:20
  in me.
• 1:03:22
  And the
• 1:03:23
  life I
• 1:03:23
  now live
• 1:03:24
  in the
• 1:03:24
  flesh,
• 1:03:25
  I live
• 1:03:25
  by faith
• 1:03:26
  in the
• 1:03:27
  Son of
• 1:03:27
  God who
• 1:03:28
  loved me
• 1:03:29
  and gave
• 1:03:30
  himself
• 1:03:30
  for me.
• 1:03:33
  Are we
• 1:03:34
  living
• 1:03:34
  for Christ?
• 1:03:37
  Because if
• 1:03:37
  we are not,
• 1:03:39
  then what
• 1:03:40
  we are doing
• 1:03:40
  is saying
• 1:03:41
  that Christ
• 1:03:42
  died for
• 1:03:43
  no purpose.
• 1:03:44
  if we
• 1:03:46
  think we
• 1:03:46
  can do
• 1:03:46
  it
• 1:03:46
  ourselves,
• 1:03:48
  we are
• 1:03:49
  saying his
• 1:03:49
  death does
• 1:03:51
  not matter.
• 1:03:53
  So let
• 1:03:53
  us see by
• 1:03:54
  faith the
• 1:03:55
  importance of
• 1:03:57
  the fact that
• 1:03:58
  Christ died
• 1:03:58
  for us,
• 1:04:00
  that we be
• 1:04:01
  crucified with
• 1:04:02
  him and
• 1:04:03
  live for
• 1:04:05
  him.
• 1:04:06
  Let us
• 1:04:07
  pray.
• 1:04:09
  Our
• 1:04:10
  Father in
• 1:04:11
  heaven, may
• 1:04:11
  you help
• 1:04:12
  us to
• 1:04:12
  have that
• 1:04:14
  mind in
• 1:04:14
  us that
• 1:04:15
  is in
• 1:04:15
  Christ,
• 1:04:16
  that we
• 1:04:16
  would live
• 1:04:17
  in all
• 1:04:18
  things for
• 1:04:18
  him and
• 1:04:19
  for his
• 1:04:19
  glory.
• 1:04:20
  Help us,
• 1:04:21
  Lord, to
• 1:04:21
  have these
• 1:04:23
  words even
• 1:04:23
  in our
• 1:04:24
  hearts as
• 1:04:24
  we go from
• 1:04:25
  here this
• 1:04:26
  evening,
• 1:04:27
  recognising
• 1:04:27
  that it is
• 1:04:28
  nothing that
• 1:04:28
  we do in
• 1:04:29
  and of
• 1:04:29
  ourselves,
• 1:04:30
  that we
• 1:04:31
  can only
• 1:04:31
  live through
• 1:04:32
  him and
• 1:04:33
  that we are
• 1:04:34
  to live like
• 1:04:34
  him and
• 1:04:35
  for him.
• 1:04:36
  And so
• 1:04:36
  help us,
• 1:04:37
  Lord, that
• 1:04:37
  we would
• 1:04:38
  see that we
• 1:04:39
  have life
• 1:04:40
  in Christ
• 1:04:41
  and he
• 1:04:41
  lives in
• 1:04:42
  us as
• 1:04:43
  we come
• 1:04:44
  to him
• 1:04:44
  by faith.
• 1:04:46
  May we
• 1:04:46
  go on
• 1:04:47
  strengthened in
• 1:04:48
  our faith,
• 1:04:49
  able to
• 1:04:50
  live for
• 1:04:51
  him and
• 1:04:51
  all things
• 1:04:52
  for his
• 1:04:52
  glory as
• 1:04:53
  we ask
• 1:04:54
  it in
• 1:04:54
  his precious
• 1:04:55
  name.
• 1:04:56
  Amen.
• 1:05:02
  We'll
• 1:05:03
  conclude by
• 1:05:04
  singing to
• 1:05:04
  God's
• 1:05:05
  praise and
• 1:05:05
  sing
• 1:05:06
  Psalms
• 1:05:06
  version of
• 1:05:07
  Psalm 56
• 1:05:08
  at verse
• 1:05:10
  9,
• 1:05:11
  page 73
• 1:05:12
  of the
• 1:05:13
  psalm
• 1:05:13
  books.
• 1:05:16
  Psalm 56
• 1:05:17
  at verse
• 1:05:17
  9,
• 1:05:19
  singing down
• 1:05:19
  to the end
• 1:05:20
  of the
• 1:05:20
  psalm.
• 1:05:21
  When I
• 1:05:21
  call on
• 1:05:22
  you to
• 1:05:22
  help me,
• 1:05:23
  then my
• 1:05:24
  foes will
• 1:05:25
  turn aside.
• 1:05:26
  This is
• 1:05:26
  how I
• 1:05:26
  will be
• 1:05:28
  certain
• 1:05:28
  that my
• 1:05:29
  God is
• 1:05:30
  on my
• 1:05:31
  side.
• 1:05:31
  We'll
• 1:05:32
  sing from
• 1:05:32
  verse 9
• 1:05:33
  down to
• 1:05:34
  the end
• 1:05:34
  of the
• 1:05:34
  psalm
• 1:05:35
  and the
• 1:05:35
  tune is
• 1:05:36
  Sussex.
• 1:05:37
  Sussex.
• 1:05:43
  If I
• 1:05:45
  call on
• 1:05:46
  you to
• 1:05:48
  help me
• 1:05:49
  and my
• 1:05:51
  foes will
• 1:05:53
  turn
• 1:05:54
  aside,
• 1:05:56
  this is
• 1:05:58
  how I
• 1:05:59
  will be
• 1:06:01
  certain
• 1:06:02
  that
• 1:06:04
  my
• 1:06:05
  God is
• 1:06:06
  on my
• 1:06:08
  side.
• 1:06:11
  In
• 1:06:11
  the
• 1:06:12
  Lord's
• 1:06:14
  word
• 1:06:15
  I
• 1:06:16
  honor,
• 1:06:17
  in
• 1:06:18
  my
• 1:06:19
  God
• 1:06:20
  I
• 1:06:21
  praise
• 1:06:22
  his
• 1:06:22
  word.
• 1:06:24
  I
• 1:06:25
  will
• 1:06:26
  trust
• 1:06:26
  and
• 1:06:27
  God
• 1:06:28
  be
• 1:06:29
  !
• 1:06:30
  I
• 1:06:31
  will
• 1:06:32
  be
• 1:06:34
  !
• 1:06:34
  I
• 1:06:35
  will
• 1:06:36
  be
• 1:06:36
  true
• 1:06:37
  !
• 1:06:38
  I
• 1:06:39
  have
• 1:06:40
  taken
• 1:06:41
  my
• 1:06:42
  speed
• 1:06:43
  for you
• 1:06:45
  tell my
• 1:06:47
  God
• 1:06:48
  I
• 1:06:48
  will
• 1:06:49
  be
• 1:06:50
  true
• 1:06:51
  sacrifice
• 1:06:52
  !
• 1:06:52
  I
• 1:06:54
  will
• 1:06:55
  give you
• 1:06:56
  !
• 1:06:57
  I
• 1:06:58
  will
• 1:07:00
  gladly
• 1:07:01
  get
• 1:07:02
  get
• 1:07:02
  to
• 1:07:03
  you!
• 1:07:06
  For
• 1:07:07
  you
• 1:07:07
  kept
• 1:07:09
  my
• 1:07:09
  feet
• 1:07:10
  from
• 1:07:11
  stumbling
• 1:07:12
  and
• 1:07:13
  from
• 1:07:14
  death
• 1:07:15
  to set
• 1:07:17
  me
• 1:07:17
  free
• 1:07:18
  so
• 1:07:20
  that
• 1:07:21
  I
• 1:07:21
  will
• 1:07:22
  walk
• 1:07:23
  before
• 1:07:25
  you
• 1:07:25
  and
• 1:07:27
  the
• 1:07:27
  light
• 1:07:28
  of
• 1:07:29
  life
• 1:07:30
  next
• 1:07:31
  to
• 1:07:31
  me
• 1:07:33
  after
• 1:07:34
  the
• 1:07:34
  benediction
• 1:07:35
  I'll
• 1:07:35
  go to
• 1:07:35
  the
• 1:07:35
  door
• 1:07:35
  to
• 1:07:36
  my
• 1:07:36
  left
• 1:07:36
  we'll
• 1:07:36
  close
• 1:07:37
  with
• 1:07:37
  the
• 1:07:37
  benediction
• 1:07:38
  now
• 1:07:38
  may
• 1:07:39
  grace
• 1:07:39
  mercy
• 1:07:40
  and
• 1:07:40
  peace
• 1:07:40
  from
• 1:07:41
  God
• 1:07:41
  Father
• 1:07:42
  Son
• 1:07:42
  and
• 1:07:43
  Holy
• 1:07:43
  Spirit
• 1:07:43
  rest
• 1:07:44
  upon
• 1:07:44
  and
• 1:07:45
  abide
• 1:07:45
  with
• 1:07:46
  you
• 1:07:46
  all
• 1:07:46
  now
• 1:07:46
  and
• 1:07:46
  forever
• 1:07:47
  more
• 1:07:47
  Amen
• 1:07:59
  voy
• 1:07:59
  !
• 1:08:02
  voy voy voy
• 1:08:20
  !
• 1:08:02
  voy
• 1:08:20
  voy
• 1:08:22
  !
• 1:08:20
  voy
• 1:08:22
  Thank you.