00:23Let us pray.
00:48Let us pray.
00:54And that all sinful passion and affection being destroyed within me, I may be renewed in perfect innocence of life.
01:26Let us pray.
01:34Praise and honour and glory be to you, O Christ, who, out of your affection for me, granted me to
01:40be born in the true Christian faith.
01:47May my heart find no relish except in and through you.
01:59May you alone possess my innermost soul.
02:03May I exceedingly hunger for you, the bread of heaven, and thirst for you, the fountain of life.
02:09So that this life's exile ended, I may deserve to be satisfied with the joys of your eternal perfection.
02:19Praise, honour and glory be to you, O Christ, who, up until this time, has preserved and delivered me from
02:26countless dangers of soul and body, even when I abused your gifts, not deserting me.
02:35Illuminate my heart, I beseech you, with the brightness of your grace, the truly perceiving your goodness to me and
02:44my own ingratitude toward you.
02:47I may be moan myself, I may be hateful in my own sight, but I may please you, my creator
02:56and my only redeemer in all things.
03:01Praise, honour and glory be to you, O Christ, who, when I lie immersed in the most loathsome vices, and
03:09was leading a most ungodly life, in your long-suffering, bore with me for such a long time, and brought
03:16me to repentance.
03:18Grant, that my acceptable contrition and holy works, I may expiate the stains of my past sin, and that from
03:27now on I may lead a life of purity, and love you above all things, with most burning love.
03:36Praise, honour and glory be to you, O Christ, who, when I was on the brink of the very precipice,
03:42and just within the jaws of hell, did not permit me to perish, but called me, though deaf, and trying
03:49to run from you to the way of salvation.
03:54Grant, that from now on, I may follow after you with humble devotion, and with a joyful heart, correspond to
04:02your holy inspirations, with, from my heart, farewell to all things, and may cleave inseparably to you alone.
04:14Praise, honour and glory be to you, O Christ, who always directed me, the vilest of sinners, has protected me,
04:23has looked upon me with the eyes of mercy, and still so fondly supports and cherishes me with your goodness,
04:30despite my daily transgressions, as if forgetful of all others, you cared for me alone.
04:39Grant, that I also may love you most ardently, leaving all transitory things for your sake, and may think of
04:47you alone, and may, with a ready mind, and in all places, follow and perform your holy will. Amen.
05:00O Lord, open our lips, and our mouths shall sing your praise.
05:12O Lord, open our lips, and remain ."
05:13O Be joyful in the Lord, don't be in love, serve the Lord with gladness, and come like light, breath,
05:25and Ferguson strong.
05:28Be sure that the Lord is God,
06:02CHOIR SINGS
06:32CHOIR SINGS
07:02CHOIR SINGS
12:30Jesus spoke out again I am the light of the world the one who follows me will
12:36never walk in darkness but will have the light of life so the Pharisees
12:43objected saying you testify about yourself so your testimony is not true
12:51Jesus answered even if I do testify about myself my testimony is true because I
12:58know where I came from and where I am going but you people do not know where I
13:03came from or where I am going you judge by outward appearances I do not judge
13:10anyone but if I do judge my evaluation is accurate because I'm not alone when I
13:17judge but I and the father who sent me do so together it is written in your law
13:24that the testimony of two men is true I testify about myself and the father who
13:30sent me testifies also about me then they asked him who is your father Jesus
13:40answered you do not know either me or my father for if you knew me would know my
13:46father too Jesus spoke these words near the offering box while he was teaching
13:54in the temple courts and no one seized him because his time had not yet come then
14:03Jesus said to them again I am going away and you will look for me but will die in
14:09your sin where I am going you cannot come so the Jewish leaders began to say perhaps he is going
14:19to kill himself because he says where I am going you cannot come Jesus replied you people are from
14:29below and I am from above you people are from this world I am not from this world thus I
14:36told you that you will
14:37die in your sins for unless you believe that I am he you will die in your sins so they
14:47said to him who are you Jesus replied what I have told you from the beginning I have many things
14:56to say and to judge about you but the father who sent me is truthful and the things I have
15:02heard from him I speak to the world they did not understand
15:07that he was telling them about his father then Jesus said when you lift up the son of man then
15:16you will know that I am he and I do nothing of my own initiative but I speak only what
15:22the father taught me the one who has sent me is with me he has not left me alone because
15:29I always do the things that please him while he was saying these things many people believed in him
15:38this is the word of the Lord thanks be to God
15:50this well then passage carries a couple of important lessons for us
15:56first of all there is the issue of being tempted to judge others
16:02it is not for us to sit in judgment on those around us but what gives us the right to
16:07do so
16:09the worst form of judgment is of course gossip
16:12and we know that this is completely forbidden in Christian circles
16:17the issue for us is very simple
16:20we simply do not know the facts of the case
16:25only God knows all the facts
16:26and most important of all
16:28he knows and understands our motives
16:33sometimes something really bad can happen
16:36but because of the good intentions of the perpetrator
16:41not only do we not have all the information
16:43but judgment is the prerogative of God himself
16:47for he alone
16:48has a pure heart and is without sin
16:53the problem here in this particular case
16:55is that not only was the woman caught in the act of sin
17:00but her accusers were so angry and caught up in the matter
17:03they were lusting for her death
17:07in verse 9
17:09we read that they were conscious of what was in their hearts
17:14it is easy for us to get angry
17:16and to forget our principles of love, compassion and mercy
17:22in the years before television
17:24brought the news graphically into our living rooms
17:29it used to be a legal principle in trials
17:31in high profile criminal cases
17:34that they would not be heard
17:36in the region where the crime was committed
17:40this was because it was considered difficult
17:42to find a jury that was unaware of the hype and hysteria of the case
17:47and who as a result
17:49had probably already prejudged the defendant
17:54nowadays this is virtually impossible anywhere
17:57because the details are force fed to us
18:00every few moments over the media
18:05finally we have the conversation between the woman and Jesus
18:10he shows us an insight into his boundless mercy and compassion
18:16again offering us an example of how to live our own lives
18:22Jesus could see that the woman had been so scared
18:25that there was no way she was going back to her life of sin again
18:30but nevertheless he gave her a warning not to do this
18:35there was no need for him to sit in judgment over her
18:38for she had already sat in judgment over herself
18:41and condemned herself
18:45you can almost hear Jesus saying
18:47it's ok
18:48let's forget all about it
18:51but don't do this again
18:54this is the forgiveness of Jesus in action
18:58forgiveness is wiping the record clean
19:04there is also a warning here
19:07summed up in verse 21
19:09to those who persist in their stubbornness of unbelief
19:13Jesus told the Pharisees he was about to leave them
19:16and although they would come looking for him
19:18they would die in their sin
19:20because they would not find him
19:24how could this be
19:26for Jesus told us that if we seek we shall find
19:29Matthew 7.7 and Luke 11.9
19:35the problem for the Pharisees and also for some of us
19:38is that we have to genuinely accept just who Jesus is
19:44if we truly accept Jesus as the Son of God
19:46then we know where to go looking for him
19:51the Pharisees on the other hand
19:53refused to accept Jesus as being the Son of God
19:56and so if they went looking for him
19:58as they often did
20:00they would be unable to find him
20:05unless we look for Jesus in the right place
20:07by lifting our eyes upwards and towards heaven
20:11we are left looking downwards
20:13and continue our lives of sin
20:17Jesus told the Pharisees that they could not come
20:20where he was going
20:22why?
20:23because they had not accepted him
20:25unless we accept Jesus
20:27and place him at the centre of our lives
20:30constantly looking up to him in heaven
20:32we will continue in our sinful state
20:35and be refused entry
20:38the Pharisees were vain
20:39and full of their own importance
20:42to a greater or lesser extent
20:44many of us today suffer from the same problem
20:47and sadly
20:47it can become a block to their spiritual well-being
20:53if we look to ourselves
20:54and see only what is good and worldly
20:56how can we ever hope to see our sin
20:58and the things that are heavenly?
21:01until we accept our sin
21:03and approach Jesus in genuine humility
21:06we can never even begin to hope to find him
21:09and invite him into our hearts
21:11following him home to the place
21:13he has prepared for us in heaven
21:34we praise your God
21:38we praise your God
21:42all year now
21:45all year now
21:46we wish to see the Father
21:48ever-lasting
21:50till all angels cry out
21:55and to all of us may be
22:00to his heaven and his heaven
22:03God said glory to God.
22:08Lord, we are the people of God.
22:13Sardar me, Lord.
22:16And then we are the people of God.
22:19And now we are the people of God.
22:23God, we are the people of God.
22:33God bless you.
23:06God bless you.
23:37God bless you.
24:18God bless you.
24:35God bless you.
25:03Lord, have mercy upon us, have mercy upon us.
25:10O Lord, have mercy upon us, as our trust is in you.
25:18O Lord, have mercy upon us, have mercy upon us.
25:27Amen.
25:35Let us pray.
25:39Lord, we beseech you, let your continual pity cleanse and defend your church, because it cannot continue in safety without
25:49your help.
25:51Preserve it evermore by your help and goodness. Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
26:03May the Lord bless us and keep us from all evil, bringing us to everlasting life. Amen.
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