← ArchiveRescueLiving with Eyes Wide OpenDateApril 19, 2020SpeakerDr Josh BurnhamText—Passages in this sermonActs 213:17Luke 2438:31John 650:31TranscriptMachine transcribed. Click any line to jump there.0:00This has been a very interesting story for you. I have a great story about you. I have a great story about you. I have a great story about you. I have a great story about you. I have a great story about you. I have a great story about you. I have a great story about you. You have a great story about you. I have a great story about you. I have a great story about you. I have a great story about you. I have a great story about you. I have a great story about you.0:28I have a great story about you. I have a great story about you. I have a great story about you. I have a great story about you. I have a great story about you. I have a great story about you. I have a great story about you.0:56I have a great story about you. I have a great story about you. I have a great story about you. 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I have a great story about you. I have a great story about you. I have a great story about you.12:08I have a great story about you. I have a great story about you. I have a great story about you. I have a great story about you.12:36I have a great story about you. I have a great story about you. I have a great story about you. I have a great story about you.13:04We are so thankful that you have chosen to join us. We believe that from the beginning of time, God's people are gathering people. It was in Acts 2, when the Holy Spirit came down upon the church, they were gathered together. In Hebrews, we are commanded not to forsake the gathering together of one another. And right now, we can't be together physically. But we know that spiritually, God is shaping our hearts for His glory and for our good.13:31So we encourage you today to not think that this is normal, but to long to be together again. But in the meantime, pray with conviction, give generously, sing loudly and boldly, and share the gospel and live out the good news in your community, at your workplace and among your family. So join us as we sing a song and sing the gospel with our first song today, "Open Up the Heavens."14:00Well, good morning, church. Let's unite our hearts together. Would you sing this with us? Sing, "We've waited for this day." We've waited for this day14:28We're gathered in Your name Calling out to You Your glory like a fire Awakening desire We'll burn our hearts with truth You're the peace You're the peace We're here You're the peace We're singing Open up the heavens14:57We wanna see You Open up the floodgates Our mighty river Flowing from Your heart Filling every part of our prayer Your presence in this place Your presence in this place Your glory on our face We're looking to the sky15:26Descending like a cloud You're standing with us now Lord, unveil our eyes You're the reason we're here You're the reason we're singing Open up the heavens We want to see you Open up the floodgates15:55A mighty river flowing from your heart Filling every part of our grace So open up the heavens Open up the heavens We want to see you Open up the floodgates A mighty river flowing from your heart Filling every part of our grace16:22So show us your glory Show us, show us your glory Show us, show us your power Show us, show us your glory Just keep singing that Show us your glory Show us, show us your glory16:48Show us, show us your power Show us, show us your glory Lord Open up the heavens We want to see you Open up the floodgates A mighty river flowing from your heart17:17Filling every part of our grace So open up the heavens Open up the heavens We want to see you Open up the floodgates Open up the floodgates Open up the heavens Open up the heavens Open up the heavens Open up the heavens Open up the heavens Open up the heavens Open up the heavens We want to see you Open up the heavens Open up the heavens We want to see you Open up the floodgates Show us, show us your glory17:46Show us, show us your glory Show us, show us your power Show us, show us your glory Lord Wherever you're at this morning That's our prayer That God would come And he would show us his glory So would you sing this over your homes18:15Sing this over your family Sing this over your children Sing this over our church Over our community That God would come And show us his glory Let's sing that again Show us, show us your glory Show us, show us your power Show us, show us, show us your glory18:44One team, Lord One team Come thou fount of every blessing To my heart you sing thy grace Streams of mercy never ceasing Come thou fount of every blessing19:13To my heart you sing thy grace Streams of mercy never ceasing Call from songs of loudest praise Call from songs of loudest praise And teach me some melodious sonnet Sung by flaming songs above Praise the mount I'm fixed upon it19:40Mount of God and greeting Mount of God and greeting me love Mount of God and greeting me love Mount of God and greeting me love Mount of God and greeting me love Mount of God and greeting me love Mount of God and greeting me love Mount of God and greeting me love Mount of God and greeting me love Mount of God and greeting me love Mount of God and greeting me love Mount of God and greeting me love And here I raise my heaven and greeting me love And here I raise my heaven and greeting me love Here I raise my heaven and eager Hither by thy hope I hope I've come And thy home by thy good pleasure20:08Safely to abide at home Jesus saw me when a stranger Wandering from the fall of God He to rescue me from danger It's supposed his precious blood Don't you grace how great a debtor20:37Daily I'm constrained to be Led by grace, Lord, like a better Bind my wandering heart to thee Throne to wander, Lord, I feel it21:05Throne to leave the God I love Here's my heart, Lord, take and seal it Seal it for thy course above Here's my heart, Lord, take and seal it Seal it for thy course above For those that are just now joining us21:35I'm Pastor Josh, lead pastor of Bethel We're so thankful that you're worshiping with us right now This is the part of our service where we regularly give and pray as a family of Christ We believe that the people of God should be known for many things22:03But two of those are generosity and bold, convictional prayer So we're going to ask you to be generous to the Lord Be generous to the local church and be generous to your community We don't ask you to give out of obligation or compulsion We simply believe what the Word of God teaches That to those who understand that God has been faithful and generous We should be generous unto the Lord22:31So I encourage you to give as the scripture says That God loves a cheerful giver And I want you to feel the love of God upon you As you give with a bold heart Knowing that He is your provider At Bethel we've provided three ways for you to give You can give online like our family That's a great platform to give We simply believe that we schedule what's important in our family22:57And giving online helps us schedule generosity to the local church You could also give through the mail You can mail in your tithes and offering as many of you do And you also could give There's a lockbox located near the front office doors And many have used that as an avenue We simply want to say thank you for being a generous church I hear story week after week of how you have changed this community23:23Because of your faithfulness Thank you Because God loves a cheerful giver We also want to encourage you in this moment to pray boldly So wherever you're listening to this Wherever you're watching We encourage you right now to pray To seek the face of the Lord If you are with your family or with others23:48Maybe you designate someone to pray over a different theme If you are worshiping by yourself We pray I ask that you pray loudly and vocally It might seem awkward at first But we know that God hears you And we want to hear your prayer rise to the heavens So take a moment now with us As we pray And we're going to use the word of God24:18The Lord's prayer To guide our moment of prayer Right now So join me, join us As we enter into the presence of God And boldly ask for him to change our hearts To change our community And to stir our affections For he and his kingdom And we're going to use the word of God24:39And we're going to use the word of God25:09And we're going to use the word of God And we're going to use the word of God And we're going to use the word of God And we're going to use the word of God And we're going to use the word of God And we're going to use the word of God And we're going to use the word of God And we're going to use the word of God And we're going to use the word of God And we're going to use the word of God And we're going to use the word of God And we're going to use the word of God And we're going to use the word of God And we're going to use the word of God And we're going to use the word of God And we're going to use the word of God We're going to use the word of God And we're going to use the word of God And we're going to use the word of God And we're going to use the word of God And we're going to use the word of God And we're going to use the word of God And we're going to use the word of God And we're 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word of God29:24And our Father in heaven As we come back to this time of worship We declare that you are great And you are greatly to be praised Jesus, your name is above every other name29:54You are the king of kings You are the lord of lords You are good You are faithful You are worthy And in this moment of worship We give you glory God, your word tells us that One day in your courts Is better than a thousand days anywhere else So this morning we lean into your presence God, in our homes we lean into your presence30:22God, would you make your name great among us God, would you fill our homes? Would you fill our church? Would you fill our community? God, would you fill our hearts with your grace and your mercy? This morning we want to hear from you So we're leaning in30:51So God, would you open up our eyes to see? Would you open up our ears to hear? Would you open up our minds to understand? And would you open up our hearts to receive? Oh God, you are good and we trust you We thank you that you sent Jesus to die on a cross for us So that we can be reconciled to you as sons and daughters God, we are no longer slaves31:19But we are adopted into your family So God, we thank you and we give you all the glory And we turn our hearts to you and worship now31:41You unravel me with a melody You surround me with a song A deliverance from my enemies Till all my fears are gone I'm no longer a slave I'm no longer a slave to fear32:08Cause I am a child of God I'm no longer a slave to fear Cause I am a child of God I'm no longer a slave to fear Cause I am a child of God From my mother's womb32:33You have chosen me Your love has called my name I've been born again I've been born again Into your family33:02Into your family Your blood flows through my name I'm no longer a slave I'm no longer a slave to fear I'm no longer a slave to fear Cause I am a child of God I'm no longer a slave to fear Cause I am a child of God God just declare that33:29I'm no longer a slave to fear I'm no longer a slave to fear Cause I am a child of God God no longer a slave to fear Cause I am a child of God God no longer a slave to fear I'm no longer a slave to fear Cause I am a child of God33:57God no longer a slave to fear Cause I am a child of God I am a child of God. We're no longer slaves, but we are free in Christ. So we sing together. We sing.34:33We're used with the sea so I can walk around free. My fears will drown in perfect love. You rescue me so I can stand and sing. I am a child of God. We sing in faith. We use with the sea so I can walk around free.35:00My fears will drown in perfect love. You rescue me so I can stand and sing. I am a child of God. I'm no longer slave. I'm no longer slave to fear.35:28Cause I am a child of God. I'm no longer slave to fear. Cause I am a child of God. I am a child of God.35:56Thank you.36:09Thank you. So on behalf of every man in the world, I have a confession to make to you right now.36:39We cannot find anything ever, actually. So last week, my wife, who is named Casey, decided to organize the garage because we have more time together during the social distancing isolation time.37:00And my first comment was, why are you organizing the garage? Which I have made a mess over the last several months with my tools in the garage. And my comment was, why have you made a mess? Why are you organizing my tools? I will not be able to find anything. I believe the Lord has given the female gender a unique spiritual gift.37:32The gift to actually open their eyes and find things. The gift to see what is right in front of their face. And I believe there are many times when all of us shout to God, like I shouted out at my house, God, why are you organizing my life? If you do, I will not be able to find anything at all. How would your life change if your spiritual eyes were open to what Jesus wanted you to see in every situation?38:01Today in the Word, we encounter two disciples who walked with Jesus. But as they were walking with Jesus, they could not see the Messiah because they walked with their spiritual eyes closed. So today's message from Luke chapter 24, beginning in verse 13, is about living with our eyes wide open.38:31So I invite you to turn to the Word of God in Luke 24, the Gospel of Luke. Beginning in verse 13, I will read that for us and I invite you to follow along at home. The Word of the Lord says this. Now that same day, two of them were on their way up to a village called Emmaus. The one named Cleopas, which is about seven miles from Jerusalem.39:01Together they were discussing everything that had taken place. And while they were discussing and arguing, Jesus himself came near and began to walk with them. But they were prevented from recognizing him. Then Jesus asked, what is this dispute that you're having with each other as you were walking? And they stopped walking and they looked discouraged. The one named Cleopas answered Jesus, are you the only visitor in Jerusalem who does not know the things which happened in these days?39:27What things? Jesus asked them. So they said to him, the things concerning Jesus of Nazareth, who was a prophet, powerful in action and speech before God and all of the people. And how our chief priest and leaders handed him over to be sentenced to death and they crucified him.39:52But we were hoping that he was the one who was about to redeem Israel. Besides all this, it's now the third day since these things happened. Moreover, some women from our group astounded us. They arrived early at the tomb. And when they did not find his body, they came and they reported that they had seen a vision of angels who said that Jesus was alive.40:23Some of those who were with us went to the tomb and they found it just as the women had said. But they didn't see him. So Jesus said to them, how foolish you are and how slow to believe all that the prophets have spoken. Was it not necessary for the Messiah to suffer these things and enter into his glory?40:49Then, beginning with Moses and all the prophets, he interpreted for them the thing concerning themselves in all of the scriptures. They came near the village where they were going and he gave the impression that he was going farther. But they urged him saying, stay with us because it's almost evening and now the day is almost over. So Jesus went in to stay with them.41:18It was as he reclined at the table with them that he took the bread and blessed it. He broke it and he gave it to them. Then, the Bible says, their eyes were opened and they recognized him. But he disappeared from their sight. Living with eyes open. Easter is a monumental day.41:47Good Friday and Holy Sunday is the weekend that radically changed the entire world. So much so that we count our time from this day. But, what happens next? I feel as though we often focus our hearts around resurrection day and then we often go back to business as usual.42:10We read in Luke 24 that this transpires the same day that Jesus had risen from the dead. But, these two men that we see in Luke 24 are part of the same group in verse 9 that has heard from the ladies that the tomb was empty.42:30It wasn't for them business as usual the next day. They were going back to their life the same day. And what we have just read finds them journeying back home to their small village, a village called Emmaus. Now, we don't know exactly where this village is located.42:58Even today, scholars debate on the locale. But we do know that Dr. Luke locates it roughly seven miles from the center of the metropolis, Jerusalem. But, here's what we exactly know. This journey, especially for these two men, this seven mile journey represents a long road traveled. A road filled with broken dreams and broken hopes.43:29See, they were going back home because they thought the testimony of the empty tomb was nonsense. We see that in verse 11. They rejected the testimony of the ladies. They were discouraged, we see in verse 17. Because their hopes for what God would do in their lives did not come true. And I have to ask, and I wonder in my heart, have you ever been discouraged?43:56Maybe you feel like these two men walking a road of brokenness and a road full of hopelessness in your life right now. Have you ever felt that God has let you down? You see, if you've ever felt that way, you are not alone. These two men felt exactly how you feel.44:24This seven mile road in Emmaus reminds that you will always be disappointed when your hopes for Jesus are different than God's plan for your life. That's exactly what's going on right here in the scripture. The hopes and the dreams of these two men was not the will and the plan of the Father for their life. But when your hopes and your plans align, you live with eyes wide open to the glory of God.44:52And what a beautiful and powerful moment in your life when your dreams and the hopes of God align for you. And that's our prayer in your life today, that you would see what God sees for you and that you would see how God sees in your life as you live for him and him alone. We encourage you to live with eyes wide open.45:20If you've ever been discouraged, know that God loves you and he has a plan for your life, as we will see shortly. Let's continue on. In this scripture, God is looking for wide-eyed followers to change the world through his spirit. So as they were walking this seven mile road of discouragement, something amazing happens. We see right here in the text that as they were discouraged in arguing and speaking, Jesus Christ himself shows up.45:47First, these two men began to have a conversation. And if we know anything about men, if two men are having a conversation, it must have been intense. So much so that Luke uses two Greek words that mean an emotional dialogue. It's as if these two men were arguing over the best plays of a passionate rivalry in sports or the best player on their favorite sports team.46:16They are engaged to the tilt. And in that moment, as they were debriefing from a dramatic and traumatic weekend, the Messiah himself shows up. And guess what? We see this in the text. Jesus Christ shows up and they have no clue who he is. Look at verse 15.46:46While they were discussing and arguing, Jesus came near. But they were prevented from recognizing him. Yet we see from the Bible that the resurrected Jesus obviously had a normal human appearance. But here he's different enough that they do not initially recognize him. There's a spiritual element missing in their sight. Jesus graciously joins the conversation and asks the modern equivalent.47:12He basically asks, so what are y'all talking about? Cleopas, the bold one of these two men, mentions to Jesus. And Cleopas is not mentioned anywhere else in the Bible. But he looks at the risen Lord and he answers Jesus this way. He says, are you the only one in Jerusalem who doesn't know what's happened? Now think of the irony at this moment.47:40These men were astounded that Jesus has not heard about the empty tomb. But at the same time, these two men fail to recognize Jesus as Savior. And so for the next seven miles, they have this ironic discussion and dialogue. But all the time, their eyes have been kept from recognizing Jesus Christ.48:05We see in verse 16. And Jesus is asking them for more than spiritual or intellectual enlightenment. You see, these two men had spiritual myopia. The Bible often uses sight to mean comprehension or faith or even salvation. And I believe the seven mile road reminds you and reminds me that it is possible to know the story of Easter and not know the Savior.48:35That's exactly what's happening to these two men. They know about the empty tomb. They know Jesus Christ personally, but they don't know him as Savior. They don't accept him as the risen Lord. And if these men walked with Jesus and could not see, is it possible that you have spiritual blinders?49:01Is it possible that I have spiritual blinders? You know, we are one week removed from Easter where everyone knows the story. But the Emmaus walk was the exact same day. I believe Judas, the man who betrayed Jesus Christ, heard every sermon that the Messiah preached.49:26I believe that he experienced almost every miracle that Jesus was empowered to do through the Spirit. I believe that Judas witnessed the power of the teaching and authority of Jesus Christ. And yet, he was not a son by faith. These men heard the testimony of the women. They walked with Jesus and they believed it as nonsense.49:57So what about you? Do you know the story of Jesus so well that you have missed the point of the story? That's what the seven mile road represents for these two men. Is it possible that you miss the glory of the Father in your life? Because your eyes are spiritually shut. If that's you, this is my prayer for you who do not believe right now.50:26John 6, 44 says, No one can come to Jesus unless the Father who sent Jesus draws him. So I ask you right now in this moment, will you by faith put your hope and your trust in the Messiah? He desires that no man perish but that all come to saving faith of Jesus Christ. And if that's you right now, we ask that by faith in Christ alone that you run to Jesus and say,50:52Jesus, I have missed the point of who you are. But today I believe, today my eyes are open. God loves you. And he sent Jesus to open your eyes. And if you have missed the point of the Messiah and the resurrection in your life, today can be the day of your salvation. That's our heart. And that's this church's prayer for your life.51:22But the beautiful truth for these two men is that they ultimately recognize Jesus Christ. Jesus is not a secretive Messiah. He wants you to know him and he wants you to live as part of his kingdom. So after Jesus hears their spiritual recap here in Luke 24, the Messiah rebukes them. And he says to these two men, he says, You foolish men,51:54why are you so slow to believe all that the prophets have spoken? You see, Jesus admonishes them because their failure to orient their lives around Jesus's teaching. They have heard his teaching, but they fail to live a life of full submission to Jesus Christ as the King of kings and the Lord of lords. The Messiah did not say, You need to learn more.52:24Jesus speaks to their hearts when he says this because they believe some things about Jesus, but they did not believe everything about the Messiah. That's why Jesus says how foolish you are that you are slow to believe in your heart. See, the empty tomb invites you to believe everything about Jesus. It is not enough to leave your hope nailed to the cross. That's exactly what these men did.52:53They believed part of who Jesus was and they left their hope dying and clinging to the cross. But your hope, my hope, a living hope must rest in the risen King. You must orient your life fully under the lordship of the King of kings. You see, the Father's desire for you is that you would be quick-hearted, not slow-hearted,53:19to have an elevated heartbeat for the things of Jesus Christ. Jesus here responds with such strong emotion because the resurrection for these men, the resurrection for you and for me, should not have been hidden. So I simply ask, are you spiritually short-sighted? Maybe you find yourself like these two men on the road to Emmaus. For these men, their hope remained on the cross,53:48not in Jesus, the risen Savior. Because Jesus was no longer on the cross and he was no longer in the tomb. Naturally, I have poor eyesight. If you see me without glasses, that's because right now I have contacts. At an early age, I realized that I could not see well, so I needed help. My myopia is a permanent condition.54:16So if I were to ever take my glasses off, my eyesight will forever be blurry until the Lord takes me home and gives me a glorified body. But for those in Jesus Christ, your loving Father has given you eternal spiritual glasses so that you never should have blurry vision again. He sent His Spirit in your life to live within you54:45and He has given you His Holy Word to light your path that way you might see clearly and give you perfect spiritual vision. That's God's heart for your life. So Jesus, for these men, immediately opens the Word in verse 27. So obviously, Christ believes that your faith should be a biblical faith. He explains the Word of life55:14because it gives life and sight to the blind. You see, the tomb was open and empty and the scriptures were open and fulfilled. This flies in the face of a culture that says faith is primarily personal. That says your faith is only experiential. I believe that the Messiah demonstrates here that your faith should not be rooted55:43in personal experience alone. He actually rebukes these two men for only believing what they have personally experienced. You see, your faith must be rooted in the Word of God. Any faith that is not biblically founded is not faith in Jesus Christ. These men were rebuked by the Messiah because they did not believe what the scriptures had said56:13about Jesus Christ. So how does this apply to our life? Jesus is saying, get into the Word and let the Holy Word of God give you 20-20 vision to see the beauty and the majesty of the Father in your life. The Word clarifies your spiritual vision. And as they approach the village, they beg this stranger,56:42this visitor, they say, stay with us a while. We're not sure how it happens, but here in Luke 24, Jesus goes from being the visitor to the host of this liturgical event. He breaks bread, he blesses it, and something amazing happens. And this is not the first time that Jesus has broken bread in front of a group of people. We see that at the feeding of the 5,000. We see Jesus around his disciples at the Last Supper,57:12breaking bread and blessing it. What is amazing about the King of Kings and our Messiah is that Jesus here reveals himself around a table, a place that was a place of fellowship in the ancient world. You see, Messiah reveals himself in the basic moments in the basic moments of life. A table, a garden, a walk, a house, or even in a house of worship.57:42If you are waiting on a Hallmark movie moment to have this shining moment for Jesus to visit you, maybe he already has. maybe at the table, maybe on a walk, maybe on a dirt road, a seven-mile journey, Christ has come into your midst. You see, the Lord works in the ordinary. He is the God of ordinary.58:12of ordinary. And the glorious truth of the gospel is that when their eyes were opened, Jesus disappears. But the power of the Messiah remained. And listen to how these men respond. They said, did not our hearts burn within us immediately after their eyes were opened? A modern way of saying what Luke is saying here is Jesus lit a fire58:40under these men. The power of the gospel is that there are no ordinary moments. for those who follow Jesus Christ. Every moment in your life because of the Holy Spirit is a God moment. So our prayer for you right now is that as Easter has passed, as Easter fades away, that your spiritual59:10sight becomes more clarified and more focused than ever before. You see, sometimes when Easter fades, our spiritual sight becomes blurry again. I remember singing a song growing up in our church that sounded like this. Very simple chorus but it said, open the eyes of our heart, Lord. Open the eyes of our heart. We want to see you. To see you high and lifted up. And what the story59:39on the road to Emmaus tells us, that in Jesus Christ there are no ordinary moments in your life. That in Jesus Christ there should be no more spiritually blurry moments because God has sent His Spirit to live within you to empower you and shape you. And during our time of response, what would your life look like if your one prayer, if my one prayer was simply, God, open the eyes1:00:08of my heart. I want to see you. Would you spend time praying that over your life, over your family, over your neighbors, and over our church and our moment of response. Maybe you've heard the gospel today that Jesus died, that He rose again. He did this all for you to forgive you of your sins and bring you new life. And maybe for the first time1:00:38you have realized that you were the spiritual blind person. Maybe you realize you're the one walking on the seven mile road and you knew the story of Easter but you have never actually received the point of the story and that is Jesus Christ Himself. Will you make Jesus the hero of your life? Will you make Him part of your story? You can do that right now and you can talk to Jesus through prayer. That's the language of faith.1:01:07of faith. And you can pray a prayer like this and we know from Scripture if you pray a prayer of authenticity from a genuine heart of repentance God will hear your prayer and He will call you unto Himself. Would you pray a prayer like this? Jesus I know that I have messed up. I know that I have sinned and it was my sin that put you upon the cross. And I believe for the first time I believe not only with my mind but with my heart that you died on the cross. that you rose again1:01:38to rescue me from my sin. Father forgive me because right now today I turn from myself and I turn from you and you alone. Today I believe that Jesus is my Lord and the King of my life. And Father today I will follow Jesus as Lord of Lords and as King of Kings because Lord today you have opened my eyes. If you have1:02:09prayed that prayer we would love to hear how God has redeemed you how He has saved you. Reach out to me at jburnham at bethelnet.com We would love to celebrate with you as a church and help you take your next steps of faith. And if God has worked in your way in any other aspect we would love to hear from that because there are no ordinary moments in your life because of Jesus Christ. Church live with eyes wide open that we might say our hearts1:02:38our hearts have burned within us because Jesus lit a fire among His people. God bless you as we enter into a time of response. May we pray Lord open the eyes of our hearts.1:03:00what gift of grace is Jesus my Redeemer there is no more for heaven now to give He is my joy my righteousness and freedom my steadfast love1:03:27my deep and boundless peace to this I hold my hope is only Jesus for my life is wholly bound to His oh how strange and divine I can sing all is mine yet not I1:03:57but through Christ in me the night is dark but I am not forsaken for by my side the Savior He will stay1:04:25I labor on in weakness and rejoicing for in my need His power is displayed to this I hold my shepherd my shepherd will defend me through the deepest valley He will lead1:04:53all the night has been won and I shall overcome yet not I but through Christ in me no faith no faith I tread I know1:05:22I know I am forgiven the future sure the price it has been paid for Jesus He has bled and suffered for my pardon and He was raised to overthrow the grave to this I hold my sin has been defeated1:05:52Jesus now and ever is my plea all the chains are released I can sing I am free if not I but through Christ in me with every breath1:06:15I long to follow Jesus for He has said that He will bring me home and day by day I know He will renew me1:06:45renew me until I stand with joy before the throne to this I hold my hope is only Jesus all the glory ever more to Him when the race is complete still my lives shall repeat1:07:14shall repeat yet not I but through Christ is in me to this I hold my hope is only Jesus all the glory ever more to Him when the race is complete still my lives shall repeat yet not I but through Christ1:07:43in me then the race is complete still my lives shall repeat yet not I but through Christ in me yet not I but through Christ in me yet not I but through Christ1:08:13in me church it is an honor to gather with you every single week so thank you so much for taking time to join with us this morning God bless we will see you soon Thank you.1:08:33Thank you. Thank you.1:09:03Thank you.← Previous in RescuePalm SundayNext in Rescue →To Be Continued