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Fishing with Success · Stornoway Free Church of Scotland - Sermons

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We'll begin our worship by singing together in Psalm 25 in the Scottish Psalter version.
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We'll find that on page 231 of the Blue Praise Book.
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Psalm 25, Scottish Psalter, the first version, and singing there from verse 4 to verse 10.
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Words that may be familiar to us, words that teach us to follow Jesus, follow the words that are set before us in the Bible, that we'll be taught by them.
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Which will be a theme that we'll have considered in our sermon.
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The words there are,
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We'll sing from verse 4 down to verse 10.
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We'll stand to sing,
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Show me thy ways, O Lord, thy paths, O teach thou me.
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Amen.
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Show me thy ways, O Lord, thy paths, O teach thou me.
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Father, thy paths, O teach thou me.
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Let in my teaching be.
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For thou art, O thoughtless,
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Do ye shall be ye shall send.
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And I am only all the day,
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Expecting to attend.
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Thy tender mercy, O Lord,
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I may be to remember.
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And loving thy kindnesses for thee,
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Have ye of hope forever.
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My sins and faults of truth,
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Do thou art, O Lord, forget.
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After thy mercy,
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Have ye of me,
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And for thy goodness paid.
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God, who shall not be,
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Thou mayest,
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Thou mayest,
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In her soul.
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And for thy heart, O Lord.
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And for thy grace, O Lord,
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And for thy grace, O Lord,
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And for thy grace, O Lord,
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The hope has sought the Lord, our true and mercy due.
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The hope has sought the Lord, our true and mercy due.
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We'll now join together in a word of prayer. Let us pray.
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Our Heavenly Father, we give thanks that we can gather in this place on your day.
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The day where we remember the risen Lord Jesus.
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And so as we join together, all different people, all different places.
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Lord, we pray that you would speak to us.
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We pray that as we sing from your word, as we read from your word.
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As we call upon you in prayer and as we meditate upon what you say to us.
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We pray that we would hear you speaking to our hearts and to our souls.
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That we may be guided by your instruction.
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That you may lead us and keep us.
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And often we confess that we have gone astray.
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There are many faults and failings within us.
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But Lord, you welcome us to come.
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You tell us to come and draw near to you.
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And so let us draw near to you, O Lord.
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With reverence and honour.
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Mindful of whom we are approaching.
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Lord, we pray for our children.
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We pray for those that will go through into holiday tweenies.
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We pray for those that will lead them.
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We pray that you would speak to them also.
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We pray that you would teach them likewise.
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And guide them in their young lives.
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We pray for those who have been at camp.
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We pray for camps that are taking place.
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And we pray that you would be with the leaders there.
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And that you may reveal yourself to them in their young lives.
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That you may sow seeds in their hearts at such a young age.
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And that in your timing they would grow and flourish.
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And bring forth fruit for your glory.
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So Lord, we pray as we join together in worship and praise.
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That you would be pleased to bless your people.
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All this we ask in Jesus' name.
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Amen.
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Amen.
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I'd just like to say a word to the younger ones that are with us.
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You may have noticed as you are coming into the building.
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There's a few flags tied to the railings.
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And if you go into the hall after.
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You'll see there will be a few more flags in there too.
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That's for next week's holiday club.
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And we pray that it will be a time of fun that we have together.
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But every country has a flag.
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It's what identifies you as a country.
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You hold.
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I've got a flag here.
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It's got lots of different flags in it.
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It's still in its packaging.
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I hope no one's looking for it.
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It was lying on the table in next door.
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I was hoping to come out with a flag.
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But I've got this one that's got lots of different flags in it.
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You see Switzerland there.
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There's other ones there that I don't know.
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Great Britain's at the top there.
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America, Canada.
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Korea.
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All different flags.
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Identify people.
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When they go to the Olympic Games that are taking place and have started.
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They'll be flying their flag as a team walk in.
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It's telling them, this is where we're from.
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This is our people.
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This is my homeland.
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This is my country.
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This is my country.
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I was thinking about that.
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I was wondering, does a Christian have a flag?
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We don't have a flag to show the world.
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but Jesus says in his word
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in the songs of Solomon
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God says
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his banner over me is love.
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The Christian
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has his identity
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in the love of Jesus.
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The Christian's identity
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is in love.
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The Christian
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is from
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heaven.
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The Christian is going to heaven.
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The Christian belongs to their homeland
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which is heaven.
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And although they don't have a flag
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to fly like the countries
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of this world
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they can fly the flag of love
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for Jesus Christ.
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And you may know
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of grown-ups who are Christians
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that speak to you
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and love you like no one
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else could love you.
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Every Christian
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is welcomed
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into heaven.
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Every Christian
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is adopted
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into that place
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that they call home
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because Jesus
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died for them.
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They are adopted
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into this place
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of love
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because Jesus died
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in love
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for every single
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one of us.
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We love
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as Christians
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because Jesus
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first loved
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us.
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And when we go out
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into this world
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as Christians
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we don't have a flag
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to fly
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with lots of different
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colors in it.
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we fly the flag
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of love.
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We love one another.
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We love our neighbors.
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We help those
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who are poor.
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We look after those
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who are hurting.
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we fly the flag
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for Jesus
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in the way
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that we act.
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In the love
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that we show.
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So that people
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meet you
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and say to you
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why does that person
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love me so much?
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They can say
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well it's because
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Jesus loved me.
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when we go
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into the world
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fly the flag
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for Jesus.
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Love
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one another.
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That people
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would come
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and love
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Jesus too.
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So remember that.
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Love one another.
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Whoever it is
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when you
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when you're at school
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when you're at college
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when you grow up
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in this world
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keep loving
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one another.
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Keep loving the people
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that you don't know.
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And when people ask you
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why do you love me
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like you do?
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Tell them
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I'm flying the flag
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for Jesus
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because Jesus
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loves me
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and Jesus
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died for me
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on the cross
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at Calvary.
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So I pray
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these thoughts
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would be blessed
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to all of us.
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We'll join together
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in saying the Lord's
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prayer together.
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Our Father
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which art in heaven
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hallowed
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be thy name
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thy kingdom
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come
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thy will
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be done
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on earth
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as it is
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in heaven.
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Give us this day
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our daily bread
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and forgive us
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our debts
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as we
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forgive our debtors.
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And lead us
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not into temptation
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but deliver us
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from evil
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for thine
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is the kingdom
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the power
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and the glory
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forever.
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Amen.
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We'll continue
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in our praise
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and our worship
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by singing
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in Psalm 25
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of the Sing
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Psalms version.
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Psalm 25
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of the Sing
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Psalms version
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you'll find that
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on page 33
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33.
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And for this
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Psalm we'll sing
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the first verse
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and then we'll jump
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down to verse
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Mark 6
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and sing
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down to the end
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of that Psalm
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to verse 9.
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So we'll take
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verse 1 first
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and then we'll jump
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down to verse 6.
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The words there
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are to you
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I call
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O Lord
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my rock
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do not be deaf
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to my loud cry
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I'll be like those
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gone down to death
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if you are silent
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in reply.
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And then at verse 6
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Praise to the Lord
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for he has heard
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the plea for mercy
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which I made
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he is my strength
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he is my shield
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I trust in him
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who sends me aid
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my heart uplifted
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leaps for joy
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my thanks to him
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I gladly sing
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The Lord God
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is his people's strength
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a saving fortress
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for his king
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Lord save your people
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your own flock
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be pleased
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your heritage
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to bless
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be their good shepherd
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carry them
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forever
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in your faithfulness.
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We'll sing these
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verses to God's praise
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and while we sing
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the children
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going to holiday
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twenties will come out.
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So we'll stand to sing
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To you I call
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O Lord my rock
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to love the end
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to my love
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I use...
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is the Lord glory
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for all the eis
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to the son who are
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our service
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and war
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the ends
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on ourчик
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we sing
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of risk
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and the Holz
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and the hives
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in our life
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to bring our eyes
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to even
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to the rebel
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confusing
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and host
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down to the likeness
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alone and staff
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the て if you are silent
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Praise to the Lord for the matter,
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Love thee forever to which I am.
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He is my strength, he is my shield,
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Iは let him never change me in,
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My heart of there be for joy,
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I allow me to consist.
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The Lord's body is in the same
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As taking our prayer for his king
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Lord, Savior, leave a new
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Throne of the Lord's body
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Lord, Savior, leave a new
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As taking our prayer for his king
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Lord, Savior, leave a new
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And we'll turn now to read from Scripture
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We'll have two readings this morning
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And our first reading will be from the Gospel of Luke
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Chapter 5, the beginning of that chapter
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And afterwards we'll turn to John chapter 21
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So firstly, the Gospel of Luke
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Chapter 5, from the beginning of that chapter
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Down to verse 14
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Sorry, down to verse 11
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Let us hear God's word
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On one occasion, while the crowd was pressing in on him
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That's Jesus, to hear the word of God
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He was standing by the lake of Gennesaret
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And he saw two boats by the lake
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But the fishermen had gone out of them
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And were washing their nets
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Getting into one of the boats, which was Simon's
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He asked him to put out a little from the land
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And he sat down
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And he taught the people from the boat
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And when he had finished speaking
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He said to Simon
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Put out into the deep
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And let down your nets for a catch
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And Simon answered
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Master, we toiled all night and took nothing
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But at your word
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I will let down the nets
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And when they had done this
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They enclosed a large number of fish
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And their nets were breaking
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They signalled to their partners in the other boat
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To come and help them
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And they came and filled both the boats
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So that they began to sink
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But when Simon Peter saw it
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He fell down at Jesus' knees
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Saying, depart from me
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For I am a sinful man, O Lord
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For he and all who were with him
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Were astonished at the catch of fish
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That they had taken
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And so also were James and John
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Sons of Zebedee
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Who were partners with Simon
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And Jesus said to Simon
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Do not be afraid
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From now on
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You will be catching men
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And when they had brought
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Their boats to land
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They left everything
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And followed him
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Let's now turn to the Gospel of John
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Chapter 21
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Again we'll read from the beginning
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Of that chapter
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There's a resurrection appearance
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Of Jesus
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To the disciples
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On the shore
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Chapter 21
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Verse 1
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After this
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Jesus revealed himself
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Again to the disciples
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By the sea of Tiberias
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When he revealed himself
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In this way
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Simon Peter
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Thomas called the twin
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Nathaniel of Cana and Galilee
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The sons of Zebedee
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And two others of his disciples
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Were together
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Simon Peter
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Simon Peter said to them
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I am going fishing
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They said to him
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We will go with you
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They went out
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And got into the boat
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But that night
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They caught nothing
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Just as day was breaking
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Jesus stood on the shore
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Yet the disciples
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Did not know
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That it was Jesus
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Jesus said to them
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Children
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Do you have any fish?
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They answered him
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No
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He said to them
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Cast the net
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On the right side
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Of the boat
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And you will find some
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So they cast it
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And now they were not able
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To haul it in
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Because of the quantity
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Of fish
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That disciple
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Whom Jesus loved
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Therefore said to Peter
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It is the Lord
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When Simon Peter
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He heard that it was the Lord
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He put on his outer garment
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For he was stripped for work
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And threw himself
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Into the sea
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The other disciples
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Came in the boat
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Dragging the net
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Full of fish
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For they were not
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Far from the land
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But about a hundred yards off
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When they got out
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On land
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They saw a charcoal fire
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In place
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With fish laid out
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On it
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And bread
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Jesus said to them
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Bring some of the fish
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That you have just caught
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So Simon Peter
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Went aboard
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And hauled the net ashore
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Full of large fish
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A hundred and fifty three
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Of them
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And altogether
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There were so many
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The net was not torn
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Jesus said to them
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Come and have breakfast
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Now none of the disciples
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Dared ask him
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Who are you?
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They knew
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It was the Lord Jesus
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They knew it was
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The Lord Jesus
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Came and took the bread
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And gave it to them
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And so with the fish
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This was now
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The third time
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That Jesus was revealed
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To the disciples
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After he was raised
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From the dead
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Amen
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May the reading
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Of God's word
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Be blessed
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To those who have
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Heard it
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This day
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Let us join together
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Again in prayer
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Let us pray
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Our Father in heaven
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As we come near to you
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And draw near to you
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And read your word
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We pray that we would
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Have a mind upon you
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That is not distracted
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That is not led to and fro
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By the thoughts of this world
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And we pray that as we come
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To this passage
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And your resurrection appearance
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To the disciples
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We would learn from it
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And that you would teach us
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From your word
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Lord we pray that you would
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Humble us
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As we come before you
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And we acknowledge
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That we come before
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The Lord God almighty
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The creator of all
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And the sustainer
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Of our very lives
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That we would humble ourselves
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And be reverent
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To worship you
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And give you
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All glory
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Honor
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And praise
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And as we do so
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Drawing together
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As your people
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As different families
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From around the surrounding area
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Visitors that are here with us
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We pray that we would know
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The power of your spirit over us
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Guiding us
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In our understanding
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Helping us to see
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And see Jesus in a new light
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That we would be taught
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From his words
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That our ears would be unblocked
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To hear something new
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And fresh this morning
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That you would continue
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To instruct us
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And guide us
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As the good shepherd
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In our lives
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That we as your flock
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Would continually draw near
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To be gathered together
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But to be ultimately
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To rely on you
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To follow you
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To go with you
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To where you will lead us
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And so
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Lead us with your promises
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O Lord
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In our lives
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Let us hold fast
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To the promises
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That we have
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That you go
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And prepare a place
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For your people
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That you will hear
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Our prayers
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That you will not
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Forsake us
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So many
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That we can hold fast
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On to
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Give us confidence
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As we do so
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That we would not
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Disbelieve
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But believe
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In the risen Lord
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Jesus
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Who lives
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And ever will live
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And if we believe
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In him
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Though we die
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Yet we shall live
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Lord we pray
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That the gospel message
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Would be proclaimed
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Across this nation
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With faithfulness
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And you would
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Turn your people
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Back to you
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Knowing
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The plight
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Of the situation
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And where sin
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Has left them
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Knowing that they
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Are in need
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Of a saviour
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That they are in need
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Of being rescued
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Knowing that they
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Need the Lord
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Jesus Christ
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In their life
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That in him
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They can have
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Peace and purpose
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Lord
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Pray that you would
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Teach our nation
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Teach our
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Leaders in government
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That they
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Would come
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And trust in you
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And lead
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Our nation
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Our country
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In the ways
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Of God
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That we would
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Fly the flag
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For Jesus Christ
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And his word
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As truth
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Lord
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We pray
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For those
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Who proclaim it
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We pray
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That you would
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Give them the power
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Of your spirit
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We pray
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That you would
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Bring many more
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Men to
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Come and
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Devote their lives
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To you
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Consecrate their lives
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To the gospel
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And not just men
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That needed to
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Proclaim it
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But women
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Boys
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And girls
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That consecrate
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Their lives
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To the Lord
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Jesus Christ
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That you would
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Give them
25:36
Understanding
25:36
In their hearts
25:37
That they would
25:38
Cry out
25:38
Knowing
25:39
To whom else
25:40
Can we go
25:41
So let us
25:44
Come
25:44
And sit at the
25:45
Feet of the
25:46
Lord Jesus
25:47
This morning
25:48
Like Mary did
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That we would
25:50
Not busy
25:51
Ourselves
25:51
Like Martha
25:52
And lose out
25:54
On teaching
25:54
But give us
25:57
Peace in our
25:57
Hearts
25:58
As we come
25:58
To your word
25:59
We pray for
26:01
Our people
26:01
That we know
26:03
That are
26:04
Finding life
26:05
Difficult
26:06
That are
26:07
Anxious over
26:08
Their health
26:09
That are facing
26:10
Great changes
26:11
In the future
26:11
People that are
26:13
Mourning
26:14
We pray that you
26:15
Would draw near
26:16
To them
26:17
For your word
26:19
Tells us that you
26:19
Are near to the
26:20
Broken hearted
26:21
And lord
26:23
We just pray
26:24
That you would
26:25
Be our
26:27
Guide
26:28
Ultimately
26:28
In this world
26:29
That we would
26:31
Come back
26:32
To your words
26:32
That we have
26:33
In scripture
26:34
That we would
26:35
Understand them
26:36
As truth
26:37
And instruction
26:38
For us to
26:39
Follow
26:39
Be with us now
26:42
As we come
26:43
To your word
26:43
And consider it
26:44
Guide us
26:46
And keep us
26:46
From the evil
26:48
One
26:48
And all this
26:50
We ask in the name
26:51
Of the lord
26:51
Jesus Christ
26:52
Amen
26:53
We'll continue
26:57
In our praise
26:57
Before we come
26:58
Back to the
26:59
Passage
26:59
In John
27:00
Chapter 21
27:01
And we'll sing
27:02
In Psalm
27:03
145
27:04
Of the
27:05
Sing
27:06
Psalms
27:06
Version
27:06
You'll find
27:08
That on page
27:09
190
27:10
For time
27:17
I think
27:18
If it's okay
27:19
We'll just
27:19
Sing from
27:20
Verse Mark
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17
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To 21
27:22
17
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The lord
27:28
Is just
27:29
And good
27:29
In all his
27:30
Ways
27:30
He shows
27:31
His love
27:32
To all
27:33
That he
27:33
Has made
27:34
The lord
27:35
Is near
27:35
To all
27:36
Who call
27:36
On him
27:37
To all
27:38
Who call
27:39
In truth
27:39
To him
27:40
For aid
27:41
We'll sing
27:43
These last
27:43
Three
27:44
Verses
27:45
To god's
27:46
Praise
27:46
We'll stand
27:47
To sing
27:48
The lord
27:48
Is just
27:49
And good
27:50
In all
27:50
His ways
27:51
The lord
27:57
Is just
27:58
And good
28:02
In all
28:03
His ways
28:05
The Lord
28:07
Is just
28:07
And good
28:08
In all
28:08
His ways
28:09
The lord
28:10
Is just
28:18
The lord
28:19
Is here
28:20
To all
28:23
Who call
28:25
Him
28:26
To all
28:29
Who call
28:30
Him
28:31
To
28:31
Him
28:34
Come
28:37
And good
28:43
God
28:55
The Lord protects all those who love His name,
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A special to knock His wickedness.
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Thy lips will fade as some of the plans to go,
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I will be forever in His face.
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Let every preacher magnify the Lord,
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And may still slowly live now and always.
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I will turn back to the passage that we have read there in John chapter 21.
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I am reading there at verse 7.
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The last few times that I have been with you here and preached with you,
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We have looked at the importance and the impact of the resurrection appearances of the Lord Jesus in the Gospel of John.
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We have looked at the account of Mary.
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We have looked at the disciples in the locked room.
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We have looked at the account where he appeared to Dante and Thomas.
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And now this is the fourth appearance that John records.
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This is the appearance on the Shoah.
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And chapter 21 in John's Gospel is the conclusion.
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This is his final sign of.
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This is the last thing he has to say to the reader.
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We have this closing purpose at the end of chapter 20,
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Where he says he has written all these things so that you may believe in the Lord Jesus Christ,
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And have life in His name.
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But he has got one last thing to say.
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He has got one last thing to write.
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In order to believe.
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He has got one last thing for you to hear this morning.
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And the restoration of Peter falls through in this chapter and forms an important part of this chapter.
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But John clearly segregates this resurrection appearance in the way he writes.
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John wants you to notice this appearance of Jesus.
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You look at verse 21.
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He starts off by saying,
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After this, Jesus revealed himself again to the disciples at the Sea of Tiberias.
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He revealed himself in this way.
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He's emphasizing this revelation.
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And then at verse 14, he breaks it and says,
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This was now the third time that Jesus was revealed to the disciples after he was raised from the dead.
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The third time he revealed himself to the whole of the disciples.
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The gathered disciples.
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So what's the significance of this passage?
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What does John want us to notice?
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Because John is the only writer that records this passage.
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And if he wants us to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, why is he recording this?
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Well, Jesus is distancing himself from the people.
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Jesus cannot stay in the world any longer.
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His appearances seem to become less frequent.
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Jesus cannot stay in the world.
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Jesus cannot stay in the world.
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He's instructing them how to live their lives without him.
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So the disciples are here.
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Thankfully, they're not in the locked room anymore.
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They've opened the door.
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They've faced the world.
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They've faced whatever doubts they had in their hearts.
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They've placed their trust in the Lord's words.
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And I am sending you, as we have seen previously.
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But we see them here.
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They've gone out.
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But they seem to be a bit lost.
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They seem to be struggling to figure out what the next steps are in their lives.
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And as we look at this passage here, there are three expressions that really shape this appearance.
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And the first of these expressions that are said by the character Peter is,
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I am going fishing.
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The first thing to consider.
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What Peter says, I am going fishing.
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I'm sure there are many men in here that have exclaimed that.
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I am going fishing.
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Whether it's out of frustrations or maybe just to get a break.
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But how does Peter say it?
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He's speaking to the disciples there, those that are with him.
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And there's seven of them there.
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The passage lists them at the beginning.
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They're at the Sea of Tiberias.
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This is also the Sea of Gennesaret, that we read of in Luke 5.
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It is also the Sea of Galilee.
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It's the same place with three different names.
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Peter is here saying, I am going fishing to the seven disciples that are with him.
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And you might ask, well, why are they here at the Sea of Galilee?
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What has left them here?
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Well, if you look at the other Gospels, Jesus tells them to go to Galilee.
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You'll find that in Matthew 26 and Mark 16.
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He instructs the disciples, I'll see you again at Galilee.
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So the disciples here, they're on the right path.
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They're doing the right thing at this moment in time.
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And for these fishermen to return to Galilee, it would have been natural for them to return
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to their place in where they had worked.
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They would have probably delighted to come back to that place that they had left,
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to come back to the shore of the Sea of Galilee,
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to come back and see the people whom they were familiar with,
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to come back and tell them all that they had seen.
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But as they come back, they start going off course.
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They start to wander back into their old way of life.
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You can just imagine, you can almost see them there, these seven men,
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sitting at the banks of the shore, wondering, what are we going to do next?
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Jesus has told us to come here.
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What's next?
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They have no real plan set before them.
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They don't really know how to carry out the work of Jesus
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and how to continue it.
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They fall back into their old work.
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You can see them just sitting on the shore,
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watching all the other fishermen heading out to a night of work.
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That was the most opportune time for catching fish.
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Peter's just sitting there, and you can just see impulsive Peter just exclaiming,
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I'm going fishing.
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Whether it was for food, whether it was just for something for him to do, we don't know.
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But he's off.
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And others say, we will go with you.
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And the end of verse 3 sums up that endeavour that they went on.
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They went out, they got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing.
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They all followed Peter back into their old way of life, back to fishing.
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And surely deep down within themselves they knew fine that Jesus had not sent them to Galilee
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to go back to being fishermen.
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From day dot when Jesus had called them, as we saw in Luke 5,
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he called them to be fishers of men, to leave the fishing boat.
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They're at exactly the same place in which he first called them.
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But Peter here leads them astray.
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He leads them back into their old lives.
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They maybe think this is the best thing to do.
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And the disciples all follow the wrong voice.
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And this is a point that we must all come back to again and again in our lives.
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Personally asking ourselves, who am I following?
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Am I following my own voice?
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Am I following what I think is best?
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Am I following someone else?
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People in this world chase after having followers online.
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They want to have as many people following them.
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But what are they saying?
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What are these people doing?
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Who are we following in our lives?
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And truth be told, it can look far more attractive than following what Jesus has set aside for us.
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Because the devil will tempt you.
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Certainly tempt you.
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To divert you from following Jesus at all.
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You read Pilgrim's Progress and you see Christian there and the battles he had.
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Trying to follow the path that was set out for him and follow the light.
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And they're diverting and they're getting themselves into all different trouble.
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The devil will tempt us away with things that look attractive and things that look easy in this life.
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But who are you following?
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And where is that person taking you?
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Tomorrow?
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In the week ahead?
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In the year ahead?
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Into eternity?
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Who are you following?
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This is a lesson here to keep following the right voice.
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To keep reminding the disciples here.
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Listen to my words and remember my words that I taught you.
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Follow me.
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Do not follow man.
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Do not return into your old ways even when they do look attractive to you.
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Be faithful to me and what I have called you to.
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It's even evident when you go through this chapter.
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You can read it in your own time.
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Jesus says to the disciples when they're questioning and asking one another what will happen to them.
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Jesus says, what is that to you?
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You follow me.
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Who are we following?
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These seven disciples went out into the sea of Galilee with great efforts, with great diligence.
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We learn from this passage that they fished all night long and now day is breaking.
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Peter was stripped naked, making every attempt to succeed in the work that he wants to do.
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But he's getting nowhere.
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They've got nothing.
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They're exhausted.
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They're tired.
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They're empty handed.
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But Jesus stands at a distance on the shore.
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The disciples could not make out who he was.
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And we have this conversation recorded between them.
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And he addresses them as children in verse 5.
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Do you have any fish?
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And they say that this address as children is more like an informal address to shout lads or guys.
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Guys, do you have any fish?
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Fish.
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But if you go to the Greek, it puts a different slant on that phrase.
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It translates really, do you not have any fish?
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There's a negative in it.
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That makes a bit of a difference when you're asking someone that.
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If I ask you, do you have sweets in your pocket?
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Yeah, I've got sweets.
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It's like, do you not have any sweets in your pocket?
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You know, the second one with a negative in it, it's like, you're not expecting it.
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Do you not have any sweets in your pocket?
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It's implying you've got nothing in your pocket.
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Jesus is speaking to them, asking them, guys, do you not have any fish?
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And when he says fish, it's not even a full fish.
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It is the smallest bit of fish that you could imagine.
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Do you not have anything at all?
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He's asking them.
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And they say, nothing.
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As a fisherman returning to port with absolutely nothing is embarrassing.
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And Jesus is asking them to admit their complete failure.
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We don't have a bean to show for all the work that we have done.
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You see, what following the wrong man left them with?
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Nothing.
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Absolutely nothing.
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So it's a lesson for us to consider who we are following,
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and what we will be left with when we follow.
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We must follow Jesus.
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We must follow Jesus.
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So that at the end of our day, we'll not be left empty.
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You can exhaust yourself chasing after the things of this world,
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trying to gather as much as you can.
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But at the end of the day, what's it going to give you?
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Nothing.
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Follow Jesus.
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The second phrase that I want us to consider is,
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it is the Lord, in verse 7.
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This is a phrase that John exclaims to Peter when he recognizes,
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it must be the Lord.
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He says, it is the Lord to Peter.
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Have you ever thought how you would react if someone said that to you?
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And someone said, if you were about your day-to-day work,
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and someone said to you, it's the Lord.
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The Lord is here.
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The Lord has come.
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On the day when the Lord will come, people will exclaim that.
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When it is, we do not know.
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But we must consider how we will react when the Lord does come.
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And it is interesting that when you come back to this passage,
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and you see how the Lord Jesus is revealed to them,
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it is not made by his voice, as it was to Mary.
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It is not made by his sight, as it was to the disciples.
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But it is made by his work, and what Jesus does for them.
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And in our lives, we desire to see Jesus in the flesh.
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We wish we could hear his voice speaking to us so clearly.
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But it is often his hands at work that enables us to say, it is the Lord.
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Because Jesus is unnoticed in this passage.
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Which is interesting, because the disciples have already met him twice already.
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And when you go to verse 12, they are sitting with Jesus on the shore.
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The disciples dare not ask him, who are you?
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Jesus doesn't seem immediately obvious to them.
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They have a question in their mind.
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Who is this man?
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But they know fine.
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Deep down, it is really Jesus.
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There seems to be something different about his appearance.
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And if anything from this, it is Jesus instructing them to not rely on the visual.
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Thomas was there in this group.
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Thomas was the doctor that said, I will not believe unless I see him and touch him.
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But Jesus is...
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Jesus' identity isn't so clear here.
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We can't say exactly why, but we don't know.
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He is hidden.
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He said, don't rely so much on the visual and my appearances.
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I will be with you.
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I will continue with you.
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But you will see me in the works that I do.
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You won't physically see me.
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You won't audibly hear my voice.
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And that work that he told them to do was to cast the net on the right side of the boat.
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And it kind of sounds ridiculous for them to do.
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They have been fishing all night.
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They have not cost anything.
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Jesus gives them a promise to that word.
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You will find some.
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It emphasizes their complete inability, I think, that they listened to this man and they did not question it.
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Like they did in Luke's Gospel.
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He questioned, we've toiled all night.
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But they're here with nothing.
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They've got nothing else to try.
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This stranger saying, cast your net on the right side.
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Well, let's give it a go.
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What other options do we have?
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Time is running out.
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They try it and they receive a net full of fish.
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Time is running out.
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What option do they have?
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To whom else can they go to?
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We must follow Jesus.
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What other option do you have?
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Are time is running out?
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John is the first.
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John is the first.
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He has to put two and two together.
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Maybe he remembers that account in Luke.
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And when he says it is the Lord impulsive Peter jumps straight into the sea.
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But before he does that, he puts on an outer garment.
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Which is a strange thing to do if you're going to go swimming.
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To put on a jacket, a coat, a covering.
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But it is believed that he did this because he didn't want to appear before the Lord in his nakedness.
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In his shame.
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He came before the Lord Jesus with reverence when he knew it was him.
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And we must come before the Lord with reverence as well.
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In Luke 5, when Jesus was revealed in the catching of the fish, Peter said,
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Depart from me.
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He realized who he was before the Lord.
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And we must realize who we are when we see the Lord in our lives.
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It is the Lord.
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And the final saying that shapes this passage is,
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Come and have breakfast.
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I am going fishing.
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It is the Lord.
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Finally, come and have breakfast.
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This is a great phrase to hear if anyone ever says it to you.
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You're lucky enough to get that offer.
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Come and have breakfast.
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Come, it's provided for you.
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Come and enjoy it with me.
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This is what Jesus is saying to them.
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I will provide for you.
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And you will come and be with me.
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And although there was fish on the fire already prepared for them,
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he tells them to bring something of what they have.
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And though these disciples went off track, they went back into their old ways in life,
50:53
probably knowing themselves the foolishness of what they are doing.
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We know you didn't call us to be fishermen.
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Jesus used this lesson to feed them, to instruct them, to guide them.
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They themselves were nourished by the results of their own mistakes.
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It was used for their own building up.
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Jesus cannot stay with them.
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But they find a lesson in the works of Jesus in their lives.
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And I'm sure there are many of us here who have seen Jesus work in our lives and have learned great lessons from it.
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You can look back in your life, and it's often when you do look back,
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and you say to yourself, well, it was the Lord.
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The Lord was there.
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But you learn from it.
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And maybe it was that you had made a mistake in doing so.
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You look back and the Lord has restored you and taken you and guided you.
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It's a lesson for the future.
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Now, we can't see him physically.
52:14
We can't hear him audibly.
52:17
But he is at work in your life.
52:20
The Lord Jesus is at work.
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Maybe you have to look back to when he first called you.
52:28
That's what he did with the disciples here.
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He took them right back to where he first called them,
52:34
to be fishers of men.
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And they learned a lesson from it.
52:39
To trust in the words of Jesus Christ.
52:43
To follow him.
52:47
Not to try and earn things for themselves.
52:51
For Jesus will provide for them.
52:55
And often we do not know how Jesus will provide for us.
52:59
Often we have to, often we go, often we make the mistake of trying to do it all ourselves.
53:10
But Jesus went before them.
53:12
There was fish already on the fire there.
53:15
But Jesus used this lesson.
53:18
To build them up, to instruct them.
53:21
What a catch they had.
53:23
They had 153 fish.
53:25
And everyone asks, what does this mean?
53:29
Why 153 fish?
53:32
And I don't think anyone really knows.
53:35
Everyone's, people have tried in all sorts of mathematical things in order to reach the significance for the 153.
53:42
But I think it just simply means that the Lord provided for them abundantly.
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And the Lord will provide for you abundantly too.
53:56
Whether it be in this life, or certainly will in the next life.
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The Lord will provide for you.
54:04
And he will welcome you with warmth.
54:08
When you come to him today.
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And when you are welcomed to be with him.
54:16
In his glory.
54:18
In heaven.
54:21
Come and have breakfast with me.
54:25
Come and dine with me.
54:28
Come and enjoy what I have provided for you.
54:35
He has provided for you the most wonderful salvation.
54:42
It is already done.
54:45
We must come to him.
54:47
We must not resort back to following our old lives.
54:53
We must come before the Lord.
54:56
That we would see him.
54:59
And understand what he has done for us.
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And this passage.
55:05
It's all about fishing.
55:07
But it's not really about fishing at all.
55:11
It's not really about the success of the catch that they had.
55:16
It's a lesson on how to go on in the Christian life.
55:19
To trust in him and his words.
55:26
To follow Jesus no matter what.
55:30
To honour him.
55:32
To trust that he will provide for you.
55:38
We all want to be successful in life.
55:45
Success.
55:48
Success.
55:50
Is found in Christ.
55:52
True success is found in Christ.
55:54
the world will leave you empty.
55:59
The world might pat you on your back
56:01
and say you're successful.
56:05
But are you really?
56:07
What have you got to show it?
56:09
What will you have to show it
56:11
when you hear them say it is the Lord?
56:19
Following the world
56:20
will leave you empty handed
56:25
but following Christ
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will bring an abundance to your life.
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He will provide for you.
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So let us follow him.
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Let us trust in him.
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He is the resurrection
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and the life.
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Do you believe this?
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Amen.
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May these thoughts be blessed to us.
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We'll conclude by singing in Psalm 23
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of the Scottish Psalter.
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Find that on page 229.
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Psalm 23.
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Words that are familiar to us.
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Psalm 23.
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The psalmist says that the Lord is his shepherd.
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I'll not want.
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He makes me lie down in pastures green.
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He leadeth me the quiet waters by.
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He also says,
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My soul he doth restore again.
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And me to walk doth make
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within the paths of righteousness.
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Here and for his own name's sake.
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and yea though I walk in death's dark vale
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yet will I fear none ill
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for thou art with me and thy rod
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and staff me comfort still
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my table thou hast furnished
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in presence of my foes
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my head thou dost with oil anoint
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and my cup overflows
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goodness and mercy all my life
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shall surely follow me
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and in God's house forevermore
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my dwelling place shall be
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what a provision by such a shepherd
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that we can follow
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let us stand together and sing these words
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to God's praise the Lord's my shepherd
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I'll not want
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Lord's my shepherd's name
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it makes me down to life
58:51
and pastures be
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he leadeth me
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the quiet water shine
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thy soul be done
59:15
restore again
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and me to hope
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doth may
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within the paths
59:33
of righteousness
59:37
and me to hope
59:38
and yea though I walk in death's dark vale
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yet will I fear none ill
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yet though I walk in death's dark vale
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yet will I fear none ill
1:00:06
for thou art with me
1:00:13
and thy door
1:00:16
and staff me come for still
1:00:23
thy table
1:00:29
thy table
1:00:31
has furnished
1:00:32
thy table
1:00:33
has furnished
1:00:34
shed
1:00:35
in rest
1:00:38
of
1:00:41
thy woes
1:00:43
my
1:00:45
end
1:00:46
The Lord with oil and oil
1:00:54
And my cup overflows
1:01:03
Goodness and mercy
1:01:09
All my life
1:01:13
Shall surely follow me
1:01:21
And in the sun forevermore
1:01:32
My dwelling place shall be
1:01:40
Concluded prayer
1:01:42
Lord Jesus
1:01:47
As we depart from one another
1:01:50
We pray that you would be our shepherd
1:01:53
And that we would follow you
1:01:55
Into the uncertainties of this life
1:01:57
Lord we pray that you would correct us
1:02:00
And provide for us
1:02:01
And that we may see your hand at work within us
1:02:05
So that we may proclaim to one another
1:02:07
It is the Lord
1:02:09
He is still at work
1:02:12
He is still alive
1:02:14
And he still reigns
1:02:16
And will reign eternally forever
1:02:18
May we hold on to the resurrection promises of Jesus
1:02:24
That he has provided life for all who believe in him
1:02:30
So let us believe in the Lord Jesus
1:02:37
Watch over us as we part
1:02:40
Be with us as we gather later in this evening
1:02:42
And may you bless the gathering of your people
1:02:45
Amen
1:02:46
Amen
1:02:51
Oh
1:02:51
Amen
1:02:52
Thank you
1:03:10
Amen
1:03:11
Thank you.