Well, good morning, church.
We are picking up our series in the Gospel of Luke, looking at chapter 13 today, verses
1 through 9.
That's page 819 in the Pew Bible.
Let me invite you to turn there with me as we look at this next section in the Gospel
of Luke.
Let me read chapter 13, verses 1 through 9 for us.
There were some present at that very time who told him, that is Jesus, about the Galileans
whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices.
And Jesus answered them, do you think that these Galileans were worse sinners than all
the other Galileans because they suffered in this way?
No, I tell you.
But unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.
Or those 18 on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them, do you think that they were
worse offenders than all the others who lived in Jerusalem?
No, I tell you.
But unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.
And he told this parable.
A man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard, and he came seeking fruit on it and found none.
And he said to the vinedresser, look, for three years now I have come seeking fruit on this
tree and I find none.
Cut it down.
Why should it use up the ground?
And he answered him, sir, let it alone this year also until I dig around it and put on
manure.
Then, if it should bear fruit next year, well and good.
But if not, you can cut it down.
Let's pray together.
Father, we ask this morning that you would give us ears to hear and hearts to receive
what you're saying through your son this morning.
Lord, we need a word from outside of us to tell us what is good and right and beautiful.
Lord, we need a word from outside of us to rescue us.
So, Father, would we hear your word this morning?
And would you get the glory?
We pray this in Jesus' name.
Amen.
Well, the theme of our text this morning is repentance.
And in particular, Jesus teaches us two things about repentance in this passage.
The first thing we see is that the need for repentance is universal.
And the second thing that Jesus teaches us is that the time for repentance is now.
We see the first in verses one through five.
The need for repentance is universal.
Now, to understand what's going on in this paragraph, we have to see the context.
In fact, we won't really understand what Jesus means by repent unless we take a step back
and catch the larger story.
About a week ago, I watched the new Avengers movie.
What was it called?
Infinity War.
Has anyone seen that?
And if you've seen that, you know that the opening of that movie starts with like Thor's
missing an eye.
His brother gets killed.
There's this purple guy who's just wrecking havoc in the universe.
And I haven't seen some of the other movies of the Avengers series.
So, I had absolutely no clue what was going on.
You know, when we come to a passage like this, it can feel a bit like that.
We hear these commands, but we don't know the context.
So, we need to take a step back and catch the larger story.
At the end of chapter 12, if we just look at the literary context, starting in verse 49,
Jesus has been teaching that in his ministry, in his presence, the great time of crisis,
of division, and decision has come for Israel.
Will they accept him as Messiah, as King, or not?
The signs are all there, his teaching, his miracles, but are they willing to pay attention
and read those signs?
That's the point of verses 54 through 56 of chapter 12.
Are they willing to open their eyes and see who Jesus really is, just like they're willing
to read the signs of the weather?
Then Jesus concludes with an illustration in verses 57 through 59.
He says, if you were on your way to court and you had to settle things with your accuser
before going to the judge, before getting thrown into prison, you would settle things before
you got there, right?
Jesus' point is that God's judgment is coming, and it's time for his audience to make things
right while they still can.
Of course, the idea of God's judgment isn't exactly a popular idea.
I get that.
But, you know, it's helpful for us to see that the reality of judgment and the need for repentance
is something that Jesus himself taught.
You know, this isn't an idea that some particularly sinister Puritans came up with in the 17th century.
This isn't something that medieval theologians concocted in their monasteries.
The idea of God's judgment isn't something that the apostle Paul invented, though we like
to blame him for a lot of our issues with religion.
No, it was Jesus himself who spoke more than anyone else in the Bible about the reality of
divine judgment and the need for everyone to repent.
But it's even bigger than that.
You see, the context of Jesus' call to repentance is the whole sweeping biblical story itself.
What we're listening into here in this passage from Luke 13 is the crux of the entire message of the Bible.
That message, that story that the Bible unfolds for us, that there's one true God, a God of holy love,
who created absolutely everything, who created everything to display his glory,
and created everything to participate in his joy.
Do you sometimes catch the sense of glory and joy at times in creation?
Do you get a whiff of that wonder in the world around you?
And the biblical story says that God created humans, God created you and me,
to actually occupy a special place in creation.
That amidst all of the wonder and beauty that God created,
he made humanity in his own image,
to reflect his glory in a unique way.
And more than that, to be vice regents in God's good world,
to be as it were sort of stewards or under kind of rulers,
to cultivate and steward creation under God's good rule.
This is what he's made us for.
To bear his image in that way.
Don't we kind of feel that responsibility today,
even as we consider something like ecological justice,
and humanity's unique role in caring for creation?
There's something that we know that we are responsible for,
a part and above, and that has an impact on everything else.
But you know, this picture of humans sort of ruling joyfully under God,
their creator, of flourishing, of bringing praise and honor to him,
that's not how things remained.
And as we look out in the world, we see that's not how things are, right?
Rather than glorifying God as God, humanity rebelled against God's good rule.
And in an act that the Bible pictures as an act of cosmic treason,
we chose to be our own kings instead.
And we chose to ignore God and the world God has made,
and put ourselves in the center of things.
And that is what the Bible means by sin.
You see, sin doesn't necessarily mean doing lots of really bad things.
You can actually be very, very moral,
and still be living for yourself,
rather than for God.
You can be a quote-unquote good person,
and yet still be rejecting God's kingship.
And the penalty for sin is death.
Just like a light bulb,
being unscrewed from the socket eventually goes dark.
So humanity, cut off from God,
the source of all life and goodness and grace,
so humanity, cut off from God,
faces the dark of physical and spiritual death.
All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,
and the wages of sin is death.
And this is where Jesus' call to repentance comes in.
Repentance, you see, is not trying to clean up your act
so God will accept you.
Don't you see, if you're trying to earn God's favor
through being a good person,
then you're still trying to be your own king
and your own master and run things your way.
Because you're thinking you can fix the problem,
and you can overcome the breach that's opened up
between you and God.
You can be the fixer.
You can still be the king.
But that's not what repentance is.
That's not what Jesus is telling us we need.
Repentance doesn't mean reform your life.
It literally means change your mind.
Repentance, it means admitting.
You've been living as your own master,
worshiping the wrong things,
violating God's law.
And to repent is actually to turn.
It's transferring your allegiance,
your priority from yourself as king
to Jesus as king.
It's willingly laying down your arms
in the cosmic revolt
and coming home to God.
But here's the problem.
When we hear Jesus' call to repent,
to lay down our arms and receive him
as God's rightful king,
we can easily think that that call
does not apply to me.
We don't think it applies to us.
And that brings us back
to the heart of Luke chapter 13.
Jesus has just said that divine judgment is coming,
but rather than consider
what that means for themselves,
some people in the audience
bring up a saucy piece of recent news.
It's just blown up the Twitterverse
in early Palestine.
The news that Pilate,
the Roman governor,
who was a butcher
and a cruel man,
has just done something
completely in character
and murdered some Galileans in Jerusalem,
sent his troops right in to kill them
while they were worshiping
and sacrificing in the temple.
And such a gruesome death,
Jesus' audience thinks,
such a gruesome death like that
must prove that those Galileans
were really bad sinners.
Right, Jesus?
Isn't that the sort of judgment
you're talking about, Jesus?
Isn't it those sort of people
who really need to repent?
The ones who get what's coming to them?
But how does Jesus respond?
He reads right through.
Do you think they were worse sinners
because they suffered in this way?
No.
You see, it was a commonly held belief
in the first century
that tragedy and suffering
was a result of personal sinfulness.
In other words,
if you were a bad person,
bad things happen to you.
But Jesus completely rejects
that line of thinking.
He says these people
did not suffer this way
because they were worse
than anyone else.
But more than that,
Jesus won't allow his audience
to deflect their own need
for repentance
by pointing to some group of people
over there
who they think must be really bad
because of what's happened to them.
You see what's happening here?
It's as if the people in the crowd
are actually saying,
well, Jesus,
we believe what you're saying
about judgment.
Surely there's going to become a time.
The midnight hour
is going to get struck
when all of our masks come off,
as Kierkegaard said, right?
We all know that at some point
we're going to face our maker
and the true selves
are going to be exposed.
Of course,
we believe what you're saying
about judgment, Jesus,
but surely that doesn't apply to us.
Surely you must be talking
about those Galileans
who got what they deserved.
Now,
I'm sure
that you don't share
the mistaken first century belief
that suffering and tragedy
only happen to those
who deserve it.
That's a wrong belief
and we should,
along with Jesus,
rightly reject it.
But at the heart level,
don't you and I feel
that same tendency
to deflect
our own need
to repent?
Maybe you think,
well,
I'm not that bad.
I mean,
I make mistakes,
but I'm not as bad
as those people.
And for you,
it's not the hapless
victims of tragedy
that you point to,
no,
but it's some other
seemingly notorious
group of people
how we happen
to define it today.
And yet,
Jesus will not
let us
play
the comparison game.
Perhaps
your outward life
is more moral
than another person.
Maybe you have it
all together
for the most part.
Maybe your life
is successful
and things are going well.
Maybe you haven't
broken any laws.
Maybe you haven't
done anything
that's sort of
especially terrible
in the world's eyes.
But have you given
to God
the glory
he deserves?
God has given us
every breath
in our lungs,
every talent
and skill
we possess,
every opportunity
we enjoy.
God holds us
in being
every moment.
We are completely
and utterly
dependent upon
him
every single
second.
And yet,
most of the day,
we utterly
ignore him.
We put our own
desires
and our own
wants
and our own
agenda
at the center
of our affections
and drive
that ship
exactly as
we choose.
And then,
if things
don't go our way,
we finally
find the decency
to think of God
if only to
blame him
and question
his goodness
because things
haven't gone
the way
we wanted
them to.
I know this,
friends,
about you
because it's
true of me.
I do the exact
same thing.
Though the outward
degree of sin
may be different
from person
to person,
the inner
presence of sin
is the same
for us all.
We all need
to repent
because we're
all sinners
and unless
you repent,
Jesus says,
you will all
likewise
perish.
like a ship
sailing
straight
for the cliffs.
Unless we
turn
and chart
a new course
and follow
a new captain,
we will all
crash upon
the rocks
of God's
goodness
and holiness.
Jesus is telling
us loud and clear
that the need
for repentance
is universal.
But that's
not the end.
Jesus goes on
in verses 6
through 9
to tell us
that the time
for repentance
is now.
Throughout this
whole section
of Luke,
this whole middle
section of Luke's
gospel,
Jesus has been
pleading with
Israel,
with his own
people,
with the people
of promise
to turn back
to God
and acknowledge
him as their
Messiah before
it's too late
and to drive
that point
home,
he tells a
parable
about a
barren fig tree
in a garden
and there are
three observations
we need to make
about this
parable.
The first thing
we see in this
parable,
friends,
is that God
is making
time for us.
The owner
of the vineyard
comes to his
own garden
and to his
own fig tree
looking for
fruit and he
finds none
and then we
learn that it's
actually been
three years
in a row
that the owner
has been
patiently waiting
for this tree
to bear fruit
and still
none.
Surely
the time
has come
to cut
this tree
down
and plant
something else
in its place
to make room
for a more
productive tree.
But the
vinedresser,
the gardener
comes and
says,
let's give
it one
more year.
we'll dig
around it
so water
can get
down to
the roots,
we'll
fertilize
it.
And so
together
the owner
and the
vinedresser
agree they'll
extend one
more year
to this
barren fig
tree.
And you see
Jesus'
point.
Right now
God is
making a
time for
us.
He would
be fully
within his
rights to
call us
to account
right now.
And yet
God
still
makes
time.
The
apostle
Peter writes
this in
his second
letter.
He says,
God is
patient
towards you,
not wishing
that any
should perish,
but that
all should
reach
repentance.
patience.
And this
patience of
God means
that there's
hope.
The parable
Jesus tells
here holds
out the
possibility
of fruit
bearing,
holds out
the possibility
of becoming
a vibrant
tree when
before there's
been nothing
but a history
of barrenness.
There's hope
that even if
a life has
been lived
utterly
fruitlessly
to this
moment,
while God
makes time,
there's still
hope for
the about
face of
repentance
and for
the new
spiritual
life and
vitality
that God
gives with
repentance.
In other
words,
your past
does not
need to
determine
your future
with God.
There is a
gardener
who has
done a
costly work
on your
behalf so
that you
might come
alive.
You know,
in this
story,
the owner
of the
vineyard
and the
vine dresser
of this
parable,
they make
a costly
decision,
don't they?
They make a
costly decision
to work
and to dig
up the soil
around the
tree,
to spend
time caring
for this
tree,
to fertilize
it,
and perhaps
even more,
they absorb
the cost
of allowing
this fruitless
tree to
remain
and use
up the
ground
when another
more profitable
tree could
be put in
its place.
It was a
costly decision
for the owner
and the
vine dresser
to make
time for
this barren
fig tree.
But friends,
how much
more costly
was a
decision
made
between God
the Father
and God
the Son
to make
time for
us.
At the
end of
Jesus'
journey to
Jerusalem,
he would
be faced
by the
most
barren
tree
imaginable,
a Roman
cross.
And rather
than turn
away,
Jesus
identified
fully with
us.
By being
nailed to
the cross,
Jesus would
literally take
the place
of the
fruitless
and
unrepentant.
Do you
see it
there?
That
utterly
stripped
down
piece
of
wood
and
Jesus
allowing
himself
to be
pinned
there
in the
place
of the
fruitless
and
unrepentant
to
literally
take
our
place,
to be
cut
down,
to
undergo
the
perishing
we
deserve
so that
you and
I
would
never
have
to
Jesus
faced
God's
judgment
for us
so that
we might
receive
God's
favor.
Through
the
cross,
God
has made
time
in the
most
costly
way
so that
everyone
who
repents
and
trusts in
Christ
can receive
pardon
and new
life.
But the
second observation
from this
parable is
this,
God has
made
time
but the
time won't
be forever.
The
parable
ends with
another
year being
given to
the fig
tree but
if the
year ends
and there's
still no
fruit that
will be the
end.
The
time of
God's
mercy,
the
opportunity
to turn,
to repent,
to receive
Christ as
king,
this time
for you
and for
me,
it won't
extend
forever,
Jesus
says.
Friends,
Jesus is
warning us
not to
presume on
God's
mercy and
patience.
Our
end could
come at
any moment.
Life is
fleeting and
fragile.
There are no
guarantees that
you or I will
live out even
this year.
Does that
sound a bit
morbid to
you?
And yet,
what good
does it do
to live in
denial of
the fact?
If you had
a medical
condition that
threatened to
take your
life, you
would want
to know,
right?
So you
could get
your affairs
in order
before it
was too
late.
Jesus is
the great
physician and
he's telling
us that our
spiritual
condition is
just the
same.
Sin will
result in
spiritual
death.
But if
we turn
to him,
if we turn
to Christ,
we can be
made right
with God,
our debt
can be
forgiven,
and we
can actually
face death
and judgment
with confidence.
Friends,
there's time.
God's made
time for you.
But Jesus
is very clear
that time
is not going
to extend
forever.
The third
observation to
make about
this parable
is that it's
open-ended.
Jesus doesn't
tell us
whether the
fig tree
bears fruit
or not,
does he?
And that's
intentional,
you see.
The parable
is meant
to challenge
us.
Jesus is
trying to
exhort us,
to persuade
us.
He's trying
to press
home the
question,
what will
you do?
The owner
has made
time for
you.
That time
will not
last forever.
How will
you respond?
the parable
is a bit
of a
cliffhanger,
isn't it?
How will
you respond?
Will you
acknowledge
that as
Jesus says,
you too
need to
repent?
Perhaps
you're a
person of
high moral
ideals.
Perhaps
you're here
and you're
a person
of another
faith
altogether.
Maybe the
idea of
repentance
hasn't
seriously
crossed
your
mind
before
now.
Maybe
you've
never
felt
the
need.
But for
just a
moment,
friend,
consider
the
cross
of
Jesus.
The
cross
of
Jesus
demonstrates
both
the
unbelievable
love
of God
and the
terrible
sinfulness
of sin.
The
cross
demonstrates
the
love
of
God
because
Jesus
was
willing
and
glad
to
come
and
die
for
you.
But
the
cross
also
demonstrates
the
sinfulness
of our
sin.
Jesus
had to
die
in order
for our
sin
to be
forgiven.
If
there
was any
other
way
to be
reconciled
to
God,
if
there
was any
other
path
that could
be
tread,
if
there
was
any
other
way
through
the
dilemma,
why
on
earth
would
Jesus
die
if
there
was
some
other
way?
Why
would
God
send
his
son
in
this
way?
Surely
we
must
need
a
radical
redemption
only
Jesus
can
give
and
that's
why
Jesus
tells
everyone
to
repent
and
trust
in
him.
But
what
about
you
if
you're
a
long
time
church
attender?
Maybe
you've
been
coming
to
Trinity
for
some
length
of
time
and
if
so
you've
probably
heard
most
of
what
this
passage
has
to
say
along
the
way.
If
you've
been
coming
to
Trinity
maybe
you've
grown
up
here
maybe
this
is
your
church
where
you've
been
coming
your
whole
life
maybe
you've
been
coming
here
ever
since
you
moved
to
town
maybe
you
come
because
your
spouse
or
your
friend
keeps
dragging
you
along
you've
heard
the
gospel
of
Jesus
preached
you've
heard
the
good
news
of
forgiveness
of
sins
and
new
life
to
all
who
repent
and
trust
in
Christ
but
let
me
ask
you
friend
have
you
actually
repented
have
you
made
the
decisive
turn
or
do
you
just
come
and
participate
in the
service
and
make
friends
over
coffee
maybe
even
serve
in a
ministry
all
those
things
are
good
things
but
it's
possible
to
do
all
that
and
still
not
repent
repentance
is a
surrendering
of the
whole
heart
to
Christ
do
you
sit
week
after
week
under
God's
word
without
any
real
turning
to
him
do
you
see
any
fruit
any
evidence
of
repentance
in
your
life
what
does
fruit
of
repentance
look
like
here's
how
J.C.
Ryle
described
it
he
said
real
repentance
starts
to
look
like
this
it
begins
with
a
knowledge
of
sin
you
see
it
you
acknowledge
it
and
it
goes
on
to
sorrow
for
sin
you
grieve
it
leads
to
confession
of
sin
before
God
you
start
to
admit
it
and
call
out
to
God
for
forgiveness
but
then
it
starts
to
bear
other
fruit
it
starts
to
show
itself
before
others
by
a
thorough
breaking
off
from
sin
you
want
to
not
just
has
your
mind
changed
your
heart
changed
but
you
want
to
change
your
life
too
it
leads
to
a
new
direction
and
it
results
in
producing
a
habit
of
deep
distaste
for
all
sin
it
loses
the
savor
that
it
once
had
and
above
all
repentance
is
inseparably
connected
Ryle
says
with
a
lively
faith
in
the
Lord
Jesus
it's
a
turning
from
one
thing
unto
him
has
repentance
begun
to
produce
that
sort
of
fruit
in
your
life
has
the
about
face
from
self
to
God
the
surrender
of
your
whole
self
to
him
begun
to
look
like
that
there's
a
difference
you know
between
merely
professing
Christ
and
really
possessing
Christ
if
you've
been
coming
to
church
for
some
time
can
you
say
you
really
possess
him
maybe
so
maybe
by
God's
grace
you
can
point
to
the
fruit
of
repentance
in
your
life
for
many
of
you
here
I
know
that's
true
and
if
that
is
true
in
your
own
life
then
Christian
thank
God
for
it
and
go
on
repenting
to
the
end
of
your
earthly
life
perhaps
one
of
the
greatest
signs
that
repentance
is
starting
to
take
root
is
that
you
realize
how
much
you
always
needed
that
you're
never
exempt
even
if
you've
been
a
genuine
Christian
for
a
long
time
friends
our
repentance
will
continue
all
the
way
into
glory
when
finally
we're
made
new
in the
very
presence
of
our
triune
God
but
responding
to
Jesus'
parable
doesn't
just mean
acknowledging
our need
to
repent
it
means
seeing
our
need
to
repent
now
to
really
feel
the
urgency
of
it
do
you
remember
that
scene
from
the
screw
tape
letters
if
you're
a
CS
Lewis
fan
early
on
I
think
the
main
character
is
sitting
in
the
library
I
imagine
him
sitting
in
the
in
the
Bodleian
in
Oxford
staring
up
maybe
he's
in
Radcliffe
camera
sort
of
admiring
the
glass
window
and
suddenly
has
this
thought
oh
my
goodness
God
is
real
and
I
need
to
get
right
with
him
and
it
strikes
the
main
character
as
the
most
important
question
in
the
universe
but
then
he
gets
hungry
and
he
has
to
go
get
something
to
eat
by
the
time
he
makes
it
out
to
the
street
and
sees
the
bus
is
going
by
and
sees
the
new
books
he
wants
to
buy
oh
he's
on
to
something
else
but
friends
do you
see
the
urgency
of
repentance
why
would
you
wait
it's
a very
foolish
thing
to put
it
off
you
know
some
people
think
that
they'll
have
their
fun
now
and
then
when
they're
old
they'll
come
to
terms
with
God
but
that
is
a
very
foolish
agenda
friends
after
all
what
makes
you
think
that
in
old
age
you'll
have
any
desire
to
come
to
terms
with
God
and
what
guarantee
do
you
have
that
God
will
allow
you
to
tarry
that
long
and
moreover
don't
you
see
that
a
life
lived
for
God
in
Christ
is
where
your
deepest
purpose
and
joy
is
found
repentance
is a
transformation
from
death
to
life
from
sleeping
to
waking
from
captivity
to
freedom
from
the
dangerous
rocks
of the
cliff
ridden
shore
to the
open
seas
of
God's
kingdom
repentance
isn't
a
turning
into
some
sort
of
dark
alley
and
biding
our
time
it's
stepping
out
into
the
light
and
finding
the
real
reason
for
which
we
were
made
communion
with
God
and
a
life
lived
as
a
part
of
his
loving
redemptive
liberating
reign
in the
world
why
on earth
would you
want to
wait
are there
questions or
doubts you
still have
about
Christianity
maybe that's
what's
holding you
back
then
explore
them
without
delay
the
stakes
are
too
high
to
keep
putting
those
questions
off
and
maybe
you
need
to
consider
whether
some
of
your
doubts
and
questions
might
better
be
explored
inside
the
faith
rather
than
outside
of
it
you
know
you
can
learn
how
a
bike
a bicycle
works
by
riding
it
just
as
well
as
by
studying
it
some
questions
about
Christianity
may be
better
answered
in a
living
relationship
with
Christ
than
far
apart
from
him
maybe
you
need
to
take
a
step
and
keep
exploring
that
way
but maybe
it's not
the questions
or doubts
maybe it's
the cost
of following
Jesus that
causes you
to delay
perhaps the
idea of
transferring
your allegiance
to Christ
makes it
seem like
the very
thought of
that seems
like you'd
lose
just too
much
friends
reputation
pursuits
maybe
maybe you
feel like
you'd
lose
a
key
part
of
your
very
identity
in
giving
your
life
over
to
Christ
and
transferring
yourself
to
him
the
cost
seems
too
high
but
if that's
true
for you
friend
remember
all that
Christ
has done
for
you
if
he
gave
up
his
own
life
if
he
climbed
the
barren
tree
for
you
then
nothing
we
lose
for
him
will
compare
to
what
we
stand
to
gain
God
has
made
time
for
you
his
kindness
is
meant
to
lead
you
to
repentance
don't
delay
let's
pray
why don't
we
take a
few
moments
in
the
quiet
of
this
moment
together
just
to
reflect
silently
on
what
God
may
have
been
speaking
to
our
hearts
this
morning
for
some
of
us
this
morning
it's
a good
opportunity
to give
quiet
thanks
in
our
heart
that
our
eyes
have
indeed
been
opened
and
God
has
granted
us
the
gift
of
repentance
would you
thank him
this
morning
if that's
you
for
some
of us
there's
still
things
we're
grappling
with
as we
consider
the
claims
of
Christ
I
wonder
this
morning
if you
would
ask
God
to help
give
you
wisdom
and
clarity
on
some
of
those
questions
God's
a
speaking
God
Jesus
says to
ask
and seek
and knock
and it
will be
opened
to
us
would
you
ask him
this
morning
I
wonder
if
some
of
us
are
ready
to
make
the
decisive
turn
that
Jesus
talks
about
in
this
passage
if
that's
you
maybe
you
could
pray
something
along
these
lines
father
I
see
that
I'm
more
flawed
and
I'm
more
sinful
than
I
ever
dared
believe
but
I
also
see
that
I'm
even
more
loved
and
more
accepted
than
I
ever
dared
hope
father
I
turn
from
my
old
life
of
living
for
myself
I
have
nothing
in
my
record
to
merit
your
approval
but
now
I
rest
in
what
Jesus
did
and
ask
to
be
accepted
into
God's
family
into
your
family
father
for
his
sake
if
you
can
make
that
prayer
your
own
this
morning
would
you
tell
someone
after
the
service
maybe
the
friend
you
came
with
you
can
talk
to
me
afterwards
take
a
step
of
being
known
as
a
follower
of
Jesus
father
we
pray
that
you
would
take
all
that
we've
heard
this
morning
you
would
seal
it
into
our
hearts
and
above
all
Lord
we
pray
that
you
would
give
us
a
deep
gladness
in
Christ
who
has
opened
the
door
of
repentance
for
us
so
that
all
might
go
in
Jesus
we
give
you
praise
and
glory
this
morning
for
the
great
Savior
and
Lord
that
you
are
and
we
surrender
our
lives
to
you
amen
well
friends
one of
the
first
public
steps
that
we
take
when
we've
committed
our
lives
to
Christ
is
to
make
a
public
profession
of
faith
in
baptism
is
a
symbol
of
our
union
kingdom
the
organization
to
Creator
is
responsible
to
our
empel
that
has
our
가족
in
this
entering
place
and
another
going
next
to
your
example
is
opening
this
morning