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We are one church. 
We love God, love people, love 

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His mission, and love His 
church. 

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Welcome to the One Church 
podcast. 

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Do you? 
Remember a time in your life 

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when you felt really alone or 
isolated? 

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As soon as I asked myself that 
question, I thought of two 

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incidents. 1 was the first day I
arrived at the Cambridgeshire 

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High School for Girls which was 
back in 1971. 

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Believe it or not it was the end
of my first year of secondary 

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school and my family had moved 
from being up in the northeast 

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in Whitley Bay. 
I had a lovely childhood, I was 

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at the local grammar school, 
loads of friends so settled and 

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my dad got a job in Cambridge. 
So the whole family moved down 

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to Cambridge and the first day 
in this school, not only was it 

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a very strict school, it was 
strict uniform, but I actually 

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didn't have a uniform at that 
point. 

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And my mum and dad in their 
wisdom decided, oh, we'll send 

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Susan for the last few days of 
the term after these girls that 

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had the whole year, you know, 
making friends and everything. 

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And there I arrived and it was 
days of mini skirts. 

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So I had this mini pink dress 
and it was covered in flowers. 

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And then in the office there 
they had this ridiculous thing 

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where they wouldn't let you take
money into school unless you had

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a purse belt. 
Anybody heard of a purse belt? 

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You had to wear this belt around
your waist, which was part of 

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the uniform and it had a little 
zip in it and you kept your bus 

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pass in there and your money and
everything. 

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And so they insisted I had a 
purse belt which made my dress 

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even shorter. 
And I was just stood there 

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feeling extremely like a fish 
out of water. 

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And of course, didn't really 
settle or make friends on that 

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very last couple of days of the 
term. 

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I'll tell you the rest of that 
story later. 

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The second incident I thought of
was Fast forward about 15 years 

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from there and sitting on a cold
day in a park in Beeston, just 

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on the outskirts of Nottingham, 
2 little boys playing on the 

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swings and just feeling like 
really at a low ebb and feeling 

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a bit isolated and alone. 
At that moment. 

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My oldest son Sam had just been 
diagnosed with severe autism. 

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Our younger son, Tom, he was 
just a little toddler at that 

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point and we weren't able to go 
to any groups or anything, even 

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though I'd set up some of these 
groups myself because Sam just 

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couldn't handle it. 
So we were there in the park and

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I just remember crying out to 
God at that moment on one of 

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those occasions, I didn't yet 
know the Good Shepherd on one. 

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I did know the Good Shepherd, 
but and I was surrounded by 

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people in both. 
But what was the question in my 

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heart was it was really, you 
know, God, do you see me? 

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You know in all these other 
millions of people of the in the

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world am I of value and I hope 
today is going to answer that 

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question for each of us that 
each one of us have amazing 

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value to God. 
So so far in our Jesus said 

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series we've looked at when you 
pray a prayer pattern. 

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I wonder how your devotions are 
doing after that wonderful 

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message we've thought of how 
Jesus said you are the light of 

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the world. 
How bold are we being? 

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Who have you invited to Mark 
Ritchie. 

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Let's let's all get out there 
and invite somebody, ask, seek, 

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knock. 
We looked at a couple of weeks 

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ago, being persistent in our 
prayers. 

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And then last week, the thief or
the shepherd, the thief who 

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comes to steal, kill and 
destroy. 

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And yet the Good Shepherd who 
came to give life to the full. 

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And today this is for you if you
want to know if you really 

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matter, if you're seen, if 
you're loved, if you're 

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celebrated. 
And it'll challenge us as well 

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to be like Jesus and to search 
for the one. 

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Because today the Jesus said is 
Jesus said, won't he search for 

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or won't he go after the 1? 
So here's the passage, Matthew 

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1812 to 14. 
Jesus said if a man has 100 

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sheep and one of them wanders 
away, what will he do? 

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Won't he leave the 99 others on 
the hills and go out to search 

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for the one that is lost? 
And if he finds it, I tell you 

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the truth, He will rejoice over 
it more than over the 99 that 

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didn't wander away. 
In the same way, it is not my 

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Heavenly Father's will that even
one of these little ones should 

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perish. 
So Jesus is speaking to his 

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followers. 
He's saying everyone matters 

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that God hears the cry of the 
most humble. 

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He's telling us because He's 
just brought a little child and 

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said we must come become like 
little children. 

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He's saying be like a little 
child, be like a helpless sheep,

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call out to God. 
And this story turns our ideas 

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of what is important and who is 
important on their head as well.

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Because what does God see? 
This shows us God's heart is for

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the hidden. 
God's heart is for the one who's

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in need, the one who knows their
need, the one who cries out. 

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And notice the shepherd doesn't 
go after the sheep because it 

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was the best sheep or the 
fattest sheep or the most 

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deserving sheep. 
In fact, he went after the 

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naughty 1, didn't he? 
He went after the one that 

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wandered away. 
He missed him or her. 

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He wanted them back in the 
sheepfold, safe in his care. 

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What an amazing story, just so 
simple, so deep and full of 

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revelation about the heart of 
the shepherd. 

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And I believe today we're going 
to just go on a bit of a journey

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into the heart of Jesus, which 
is for you. 

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So Jesus is speaking to people 
in the Middle East. 2000 years 

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ago, they would really 
understand the whole picture of 

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sheep and shepherds, probably 
more than most of us would. 

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They'd also understand that God 
often spoke about his people as 

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sheep and spoke about the 
leaders of the people as 

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shepherds and about himself as 
the great shepherd of his 

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people. 
And Jesus has already said I am 

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the Good Shepherd. 
He says he's the Good Shepherd. 

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So what does the Good Shepherd 
think and feel about the one 

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sheep that wanders away that 
gets lost? 

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Well, firstly, he cares for the 
one. 

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Jesus said if a man has 100 
sheep and one of them wanders 

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away, what will he do? 
Now I always imagine like 100 

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lovely fat fluffy sheep and one 
of them has has got, you know, 

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wandered off, got lost. 
Sheep can wander. 

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I remember going through a walk 
with David on the Cliff top path

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in North Yorkshire and the coast
and seeing a sheep that had 

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obviously wandered away from its
flock and obviously been curious

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of the Cliff and fallen down. 
It was on the ledge. 

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We weren't able to reach it 
anyway and I hope the farmer 

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managed to find it. 
But an eastern shepherd would 

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have had this very close 
personal relationship with his 

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flock of sheep. 
Probably knew by name. 

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So when it says the shepherd 
calls his sheep in the Bible, 

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you know, you can imagine the 
shepherd having names for a 

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sheep, like maybe spot because 
they've got a spot on their back

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or curly top because they've got
curly hair or something like 

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that. 
And, you know, did the shepherd 

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say here, oh, well, you know, 
I've got 99 sheep, I can spare 

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one, especially one that goes 
wandering off. 

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No, it doesn't say that at all. 
He cares. 

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Jesus is letting us see 
something of his beautiful, 

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caring heart. 
You think of a person who's dear

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to you, maybe your husband, your
wife or a friend. 

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How would you describe them to 
somebody else? 

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Well, you might describe, oh, 
their height, their hair colour,

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their mannerisms, their hobbies,
their gifts, their background. 

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And it's one thing to describe 
them in all those ways, but it's

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another thing, a deeper thing to
describe their heart, especially

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their heart for you. 
How could I describe? 

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I was thinking about my 
relationship with David, my 

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husband. 
You know, how would I describe 

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his heart for me? 
It's more than just something 

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that you can write down. 
It's maybe expressed in a look 

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or a glance or a moment where 
you just catch each other's eye.

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You may know and you may say 
things about Jesus that Jesus 

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died for you. 
He rose from the dead. 

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But how can we describe his 
heart? 

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And do we have any real idea of 
the depth of his love for us? 

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And here Jesus is saying his 
heart cares. 

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And far from caring, especially 
for the ones that we might view 

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as worthy of being cared for or 
deserving, actually in a very, 

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very special way, He's drawn to 
our sin. 

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He's drawn to our shame. 
He's drawn to our need. 

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It only takes the cry for him to
come running. 

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So take heart today because 
Jesus, the Son of God, Jesus, 

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who's the all powerful, who's 
able to save the lion and the 

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lamb, the Alpha, the Omega, the 
beginning, the end, He cares for

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you. 
Now each little section through 

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this message, I want it to be 
quite devotional. 

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We're just going to stop and 
we're going to pray. 

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We're going to lift our hearts 
to him. 

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So will you pray with me? 
Let's just pray this out loud, 

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just for a moment. 
Jesus, thank you that you care 

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for the one, thank you that you 
care for me. 

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Just think about that for a 
moment. 

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Thank you, you care for me. 
Give me your heart to care for 

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the one too. 
So this turns us outwards as 

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well. 
So the Good Shepherd cares, and 

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because he cares, he goes after 
the 1. 

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Won't he leave the 99 others on 
the hills and go out to search 

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for the one that is lost? 
Now, for some reason, when I 

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think of this story, I think of 
the 99. 

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They're sort of in sunshine on 
the green grass and having a 

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lovely time eating the grass 
and, and just contented. 

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And then as soon as I think of 
the picture of the shepherd 

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going after the one, it's like 
he goes into a sort of 

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microclimate and there's the 
storm is coming and the rain's 

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coming and the wind's coming and
he's fighting against the 

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elements to get to this sheep. 
Do you ever think like that? 

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I don't know when you think 
about this story and actually I 

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think that's not a bad way of 
thinking about this picture that

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reflects the heart of Jesus 
because his heart has always 

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been moved by the one and he's 
always acted in response. 

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And this is what compassion is. 
When it says Jesus in the Bible 

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had compassion, you know, he saw
the crowd. 

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They were like sheep without a 
shepherd. 

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They were helpless. 
And it says he had compassion on

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them. 
That word compassion actually is

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like being cut to the heart. 
It's like you're inside is being

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turned over. 
It's a a complete emotional 

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reaction. 
You know, Jesus is God and man 

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and he is now forever man. 
He's man in the heavens now 

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interceding for us, and he will 
brave the elements to reach us. 

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And you know, even though tired 
and grieving at times, when he 

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was on the earth, he had mercy 
on the 1. 

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He didn't just wave his hand 
over people, He individually 

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went to people. 
He healed them, He touched them.

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And back in Exodus, you can see 
this through the whole Bible, 

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how God feels and hears the cry 
of his people and does something

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in Exodus. 
He says I've heard the cry of my

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people and I have come to rescue
them. 

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And he sends Moses and rescues 
his people out of Egypt. 

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Jesus came after all the ones 
just after he'd called and 

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saved. 
One called Zacchaeus, a tax 

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collector. 
He sums up his ministry and he 

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says this for the Son of man 
came to seek and to save the 

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lost. 
This is how he summed up what 

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his life was for. 
And he did. 

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He did everything needed. 
It was his heart of love that 

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caused him to come down to die a
criminal's death, to carry the 

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weight of your sin and my sin to
rise, to ascend to the highest 

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place and now to make 
intercession for us. 

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So can we really sit here and 
say, oh, I'm not good enough? 

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Or can we sit here and refuse 
that gift? 

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Or can we even be a little bit 
blase? 

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You know, he's gone to the 
greatest lengths possible to 

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save us. 
Let that touch us today. 

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Let's pray this little prayer. 
Jesus, thank you that you go 

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after the One. 
Thank you that you come after 

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me. 
Just see him coming to you in 

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your need. 
Give me your heart to go after 

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the One too. 
So he cares he goes after, and 

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he hears the cry of the One. 
And if he finds it again, we 

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imagine this shepherd up on the 
hills around the crags, looking 

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under the bushes, searching. 
How is he going to know where 

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the sheep is? 
Well, just maybe he's going to 

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hear that little cry. 
You know, maybe the silly sheep 

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00:12:46,920 --> 00:12:50,880
is stuck in a thorn Bush, 
stranded in a stream somewhere. 

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00:12:52,640 --> 00:12:54,960
If any of you who've got 
children ever lost one of your 

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00:12:54,960 --> 00:12:57,960
children? 
Yes, I think probably most of 

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us, at least for a little while.
We've had that horrible panic 

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00:13:00,560 --> 00:13:03,040
moment. 
I remember having it at Skegness

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00:13:03,040 --> 00:13:06,400
on a crowded beach, it was a 
kids trip to the seaside and 

232
00:13:06,400 --> 00:13:09,600
asked Samuel, our oldest son, 
who was the one definitely most 

233
00:13:09,600 --> 00:13:11,680
prone to getting lost and 
wandering off. 

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00:13:12,400 --> 00:13:15,960
He wandered off and for a moment
it was like Oh no, where is he 

235
00:13:15,960 --> 00:13:19,160
and you're running around 
looking just praying that you 

236
00:13:19,160 --> 00:13:22,000
find him. 
I remember after dinner once on 

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00:13:22,000 --> 00:13:24,360
a Sunday we were at David's mum 
and dad's house. 

238
00:13:24,360 --> 00:13:27,560
We used to go every Sunday for 
Sunday lunch and great grandma 

239
00:13:27,600 --> 00:13:31,400
used to give the boys 20P pocket
money and grandma and granddad 

240
00:13:31,400 --> 00:13:33,480
used to give them a pound so 
they used to have £1.20. 

241
00:13:34,200 --> 00:13:39,280
Samuel unbeknown to us took his 
20P and something twigged in his

242
00:13:39,280 --> 00:13:42,320
little brain and we looked 
around and said where's Samuel 

243
00:13:42,800 --> 00:13:46,160
And we only found him actually 
coming back from having gone 

244
00:13:46,160 --> 00:13:51,200
across the village green across 
the road and had a ride for his 

245
00:13:51,200 --> 00:13:55,480
20P on the little horse that was
outside the Co-op and then he 

246
00:13:55,480 --> 00:13:59,160
was on his way back. 
He got into numerous scrapes, 

247
00:14:00,920 --> 00:14:04,800
but every time we would listen 
out for his cry when he was 

248
00:14:04,800 --> 00:14:07,760
stuck in my friend's water 
bottle up to his neck because he

249
00:14:07,760 --> 00:14:10,680
loved water. 
But we listen for that cry, you 

250
00:14:10,680 --> 00:14:13,640
know, and the shepherd listening
for the cry, maybe he's calling 

251
00:14:13,640 --> 00:14:18,120
out, you know, curly top, curly 
top, and there's a little bar 

252
00:14:18,280 --> 00:14:22,040
and it's enough. 
The God we serve is not far off.

253
00:14:22,040 --> 00:14:25,080
It says in Psalm 145, this isn't
just the Jesus of the New 

254
00:14:25,080 --> 00:14:28,000
Testament because there isn't a 
a difference. 

255
00:14:28,240 --> 00:14:33,480
God is God through the whole of 
the Bible, and Psalm 145 says 

256
00:14:33,480 --> 00:14:37,720
the Lord is near to all who call
on him, to all who call on him. 

257
00:14:37,720 --> 00:14:40,240
In truth, our God, the true God,
he doesn't wait till we're 

258
00:14:40,240 --> 00:14:43,120
cleaned up, till we're doing 
well, till we're obeying all the

259
00:14:43,120 --> 00:14:45,520
rules. 
This wandering sheep wasn't all 

260
00:14:45,520 --> 00:14:49,640
that. 
Romans 10/13 says everyone who 

261
00:14:49,640 --> 00:14:52,960
calls on the name of the Lord 
will be saved. 

262
00:14:53,400 --> 00:14:55,080
You know, could that be any more
clear? 

263
00:14:55,120 --> 00:14:57,000
If you're wondering today, is it
possible? 

264
00:14:57,000 --> 00:15:00,800
Can I be saved? 
Everyone who calls on the name 

265
00:15:00,800 --> 00:15:04,560
of the Lord will be saved, as 
simple as that. 

266
00:15:04,560 --> 00:15:08,360
And that's the only difference 
between whether we will find our

267
00:15:08,360 --> 00:15:11,600
way into that sheepfold or not 
is the call on the name of the 

268
00:15:11,600 --> 00:15:14,160
Lord. 
The message paraphrase of that 

269
00:15:14,160 --> 00:15:17,960
verse says everyone who calls 
help, God gets help. 

270
00:15:19,160 --> 00:15:25,280
You know, do we really get that?
Let's pray Jesus, thank you that

271
00:15:25,280 --> 00:15:31,560
you hear the cry of the one. 
Thank you that you hear my cry. 

272
00:15:32,640 --> 00:15:36,080
Give me your heart to hear the 
cry of the one too. 

273
00:15:37,760 --> 00:15:40,720
And Jesus sees the one, the 
shepherd sees the one. 

274
00:15:40,720 --> 00:15:42,960
And if he finds it, the 
shepherd's gone out. 

275
00:15:42,960 --> 00:15:46,160
He's searched, he's heard the 
cry, and now he sees the one. 

276
00:15:46,160 --> 00:15:47,840
He's been looking for the 
wandering sheep. 

277
00:15:47,840 --> 00:15:51,000
Maybe he sees a little bit of 
fluffy wool sticking out from 

278
00:15:51,000 --> 00:15:55,120
behind a Bush. 
Recently my Bible reading led me

279
00:15:55,120 --> 00:15:59,800
to Hagar back in Genesis, the 
servant to Sarah who was the 

280
00:15:59,800 --> 00:16:02,600
wife of Abraham, and she's 
forced to have a child by 

281
00:16:02,600 --> 00:16:04,680
Abraham in their attempt to have
a son and heir. 

282
00:16:05,960 --> 00:16:09,920
In all accounts, quite an 
abusive situation, and she gives

283
00:16:09,920 --> 00:16:13,840
birth to a baby called Ishmael. 
Eventually, Abraham and Sarah 

284
00:16:13,840 --> 00:16:17,920
have their own miracle baby, and
a bit later, Sarah sends Hagar 

285
00:16:17,920 --> 00:16:23,160
out into the wilderness, facing 
starvation, alone, afraid, with 

286
00:16:23,160 --> 00:16:26,880
a baby. 
And an Angel of the Lord visits 

287
00:16:26,880 --> 00:16:31,040
her, saves her life, gives 
promises about her son, 

288
00:16:31,040 --> 00:16:34,760
potentially an appearance of 
Jesus in the Old Testament, and 

289
00:16:34,760 --> 00:16:37,320
she's told to return. 
And this is what it says in 

290
00:16:37,320 --> 00:16:39,800
Genesis 16, right back at the 
beginning of the Bible. 

291
00:16:40,360 --> 00:16:44,080
Thereafter, Hagar used another 
name to refer to the Lord who 

292
00:16:44,080 --> 00:16:47,920
had spoken to her. 
She said you are the God who 

293
00:16:47,920 --> 00:16:54,160
sees me in all the mess she's 
seen and all through the Bible 

294
00:16:54,160 --> 00:16:56,240
we can trace that theme that God
sees me. 

295
00:16:56,240 --> 00:16:58,440
He sees the individual. 
He sees the one. 

296
00:16:59,800 --> 00:17:01,480
Jesus sees the one turning 
around. 

297
00:17:01,480 --> 00:17:05,040
It says in John 1 when he saw 
some disciples or people who 

298
00:17:05,040 --> 00:17:08,480
wanted to be as disciples 
following him, Jesus saw them 

299
00:17:08,480 --> 00:17:11,040
following and asked, what do you
want? 

300
00:17:12,839 --> 00:17:14,760
Tax collectors and sinners? 
He saw. 

301
00:17:15,040 --> 00:17:18,079
Jesus went on from there, it 
says in Matthew 9 and he saw a 

302
00:17:18,079 --> 00:17:22,400
man named Matthew Nathaniel. 
He says I saw you under the fig 

303
00:17:22,400 --> 00:17:26,240
tree, even on the cross. 
Jesus saw John in the crowd. 

304
00:17:26,240 --> 00:17:29,560
He saw his mother. 
And in agony he says, here's 

305
00:17:29,560 --> 00:17:32,960
your son, here's your mother. 
He cares. 

306
00:17:33,200 --> 00:17:36,200
He sees the Good Shepherd sees 
the one. 

307
00:17:37,160 --> 00:17:39,560
Let's just pray this little 
prayer together. 

308
00:17:40,600 --> 00:17:43,280
Jesus, thank you that you see 
the one. 

309
00:17:47,280 --> 00:17:53,040
Thank you that you see me. 
Give me your heart to see the 

310
00:17:53,040 --> 00:17:59,040
One too. 
So he cares, He goes, he hears, 

311
00:17:59,200 --> 00:18:02,040
he sees, and he rejoices over 
the One. 

312
00:18:02,480 --> 00:18:06,080
He will rejoice over it more 
than over the 99 that didn't 

313
00:18:06,080 --> 00:18:08,960
wander away. 
Those of you who've experienced 

314
00:18:08,960 --> 00:18:12,840
losing a child who's wandered 
off, how did you feel when you 

315
00:18:12,840 --> 00:18:15,760
saw that child and when you held
them in their arms? 

316
00:18:15,760 --> 00:18:18,840
Again, if you're anything like 
me, you've felt a mixture of a 

317
00:18:18,840 --> 00:18:23,320
bit angry and and very happy at 
the same time because it's like,

318
00:18:23,320 --> 00:18:26,560
how could you wander off and yet
you're so happy that you've got 

319
00:18:26,560 --> 00:18:30,480
your child back? 
What gives Jesus joy? 

320
00:18:30,480 --> 00:18:32,880
Have you ever thought about 
that? 

321
00:18:32,920 --> 00:18:37,280
What makes Jesus happy? 
The Bible tells us that joy kept

322
00:18:37,280 --> 00:18:42,000
him going in his mission. 
Hebrews 12 says for the joy set 

323
00:18:42,000 --> 00:18:46,200
before him, he endured the 
cross, despising it's shame. 

324
00:18:46,200 --> 00:18:49,280
What was the joy that was 
waiting for Jesus after the 

325
00:18:49,280 --> 00:18:52,720
cross? 
Just imagine a very clever, very

326
00:18:52,720 --> 00:18:56,600
compassionate Dr going to a 
remote tribe somewhere like 

327
00:18:56,600 --> 00:19:00,000
Brazil maybe right deep in the 
jungle and they know they have 

328
00:19:00,000 --> 00:19:04,360
the cure for a terrible sickness
that these tribes people have 

329
00:19:04,360 --> 00:19:08,200
been facing. 
They have the the cure. 

330
00:19:08,200 --> 00:19:11,040
They have an injection they can 
give or pills they can give or 

331
00:19:11,040 --> 00:19:14,000
something. 
It's going to solve their 

332
00:19:14,000 --> 00:19:17,800
sickness. 
But because of fear, because of 

333
00:19:17,800 --> 00:19:22,240
mistrust, these jungle people, 
they don't want to receive. 

334
00:19:22,360 --> 00:19:25,840
But one day a young man steps 
out of the crowd and says, I'll 

335
00:19:25,840 --> 00:19:29,400
try. 
Because the others have all 

336
00:19:29,400 --> 00:19:31,840
relied on their own ways, their 
traditional ways. 

337
00:19:31,840 --> 00:19:35,120
They don't want to know. 
But this young man is prepared 

338
00:19:35,120 --> 00:19:36,320
to try. 
And as soon as he does, of 

339
00:19:36,320 --> 00:19:40,240
course, he's healed. 
And then others begin to try as 

340
00:19:40,240 --> 00:19:42,080
well. 
What, what joy does that doctor 

341
00:19:42,080 --> 00:19:46,600
feel that suddenly the mission 
that he's been on, he he people 

342
00:19:46,600 --> 00:19:50,720
are receiving what he can give. 
And you know, when you come to 

343
00:19:50,800 --> 00:19:53,160
Jesus in all your mess, you 
bring him joy. 

344
00:19:54,520 --> 00:19:56,640
He's done everything. 
He has the cure for sin. 

345
00:19:56,640 --> 00:19:59,760
He has the cure for suffering. 
And when we hold back in the 

346
00:19:59,760 --> 00:20:03,880
shadows, when we hold back 
fearful, we miss out and we deny

347
00:20:03,880 --> 00:20:07,600
him as well that joy. 
But he loves to scoop up 

348
00:20:07,600 --> 00:20:09,920
sinners. 
He loves to rejoice that they're

349
00:20:09,920 --> 00:20:12,360
found, and now he rejoices over 
you and me. 

350
00:20:12,360 --> 00:20:15,440
If we are found and we're in his
arms, he rejoices over us. 

351
00:20:15,440 --> 00:20:19,840
It says in the Bible with 
singing, the Lord your God is 

352
00:20:19,840 --> 00:20:22,760
with you, the mighty warrior who
saves, He will take great 

353
00:20:22,760 --> 00:20:26,040
delight in you, in his love. 
He will no longer rebuke you, 

354
00:20:26,040 --> 00:20:28,160
but will rejoice over you with 
singing. 

355
00:20:28,920 --> 00:20:30,800
You know, picture singing to a 
child. 

356
00:20:31,880 --> 00:20:35,120
If you can think, you know how 
much God rejoices over you, that

357
00:20:35,120 --> 00:20:39,400
he sings over you. 
Jesus, let's pray together. 

358
00:20:39,560 --> 00:20:42,200
Thank you that you rejoice over 
the One. 

359
00:20:43,040 --> 00:20:45,120
Thank you that you rejoice over 
me. 

360
00:20:45,920 --> 00:20:49,200
Give me your heart to rejoice 
over the 1-2. 

361
00:20:50,880 --> 00:20:53,600
And finally he gives life to the
One. 

362
00:20:54,960 --> 00:20:57,880
This is Jesus telling the reason
that He told this story. 

363
00:20:58,200 --> 00:21:02,880
In the same way, it is not my 
Heavenly Father's will that even

364
00:21:02,880 --> 00:21:04,920
one of these little ones should 
perish. 

365
00:21:06,000 --> 00:21:08,560
If that doesn't answer your 
doubts, maybe does God care? 

366
00:21:09,440 --> 00:21:12,200
I don't know what will. 
This is so clear. 

367
00:21:13,120 --> 00:21:15,120
And this sheep story, it has a 
happy ending. 

368
00:21:16,320 --> 00:21:19,000
It's a you story, isn't it? 
You know, it's open to all. 

369
00:21:19,000 --> 00:21:20,720
The sheep jumps into the 
shepherd's arms. 

370
00:21:20,720 --> 00:21:24,160
He's carried home on his 
shoulder, rejoiced over, safe. 

371
00:21:24,160 --> 00:21:28,840
And Jesus says this is so clear.
God's heart is that all would be

372
00:21:28,840 --> 00:21:33,600
saved, that none would perish. 
But this, the sheep, you know, 

373
00:21:33,600 --> 00:21:38,240
could have refused help, run 
away, stayed in the wilderness. 

374
00:21:38,240 --> 00:21:43,680
And we also can choose to perish
if we stay stubborn, if we 

375
00:21:43,680 --> 00:21:47,640
refuse to repent. 
God is just, you know, he can't 

376
00:21:47,640 --> 00:21:51,160
overlook, he can't ignore sin. 
And we will face the 

377
00:21:51,160 --> 00:21:54,040
consequences if we don't choose 
to go with the shepherd. 

378
00:21:54,040 --> 00:21:57,760
But he's done everything for us.
You know, often we say, well, we

379
00:21:57,760 --> 00:21:59,600
want God to get rid of evil in 
the world. 

380
00:21:59,600 --> 00:22:02,680
We look at the news and we say, 
wow, all those things that are 

381
00:22:02,680 --> 00:22:04,560
happening, Lord, will you deal 
with it? 

382
00:22:06,720 --> 00:22:09,600
But The thing is that we are 
infected by evil ourselves. 

383
00:22:10,800 --> 00:22:15,560
So we all deserve hell. 
We all deserve judgement and we 

384
00:22:15,560 --> 00:22:17,800
have a choice now. 
We've been given free will and 

385
00:22:17,800 --> 00:22:21,280
if we choose to reject Jesus 
offer of eternal life, he'll 

386
00:22:21,280 --> 00:22:25,440
take us at our word. 
The writer CS Lewis said, and I 

387
00:22:25,440 --> 00:22:27,680
quoted this last week, but I'm 
going to quote it again. 

388
00:22:28,440 --> 00:22:32,880
In the end, only two kinds of 
people, those who say to God, 

389
00:22:33,200 --> 00:22:38,560
your will be done, and those to 
whom God in the end will say 

390
00:22:39,360 --> 00:22:44,040
your will be done. 
You know, can we imagine the 

391
00:22:44,040 --> 00:22:48,240
terror of life forever without 
God, without anything good, 

392
00:22:48,720 --> 00:22:55,240
separated, alienated? 
But the good news of this story 

393
00:22:55,240 --> 00:22:58,560
is that God has done everything 
so that we don't have to face 

394
00:22:58,560 --> 00:23:02,280
that the offer still stands 
until our dying breath, and it 

395
00:23:02,280 --> 00:23:06,120
stands for the people around us 
as well, or until Jesus returns.

396
00:23:06,120 --> 00:23:07,960
His heart is for us to be 
rescued. 

397
00:23:08,920 --> 00:23:12,440
This is how God loved the world,
says John 316. 

398
00:23:12,720 --> 00:23:17,920
He gave his one and only Son so 
that everyone, everyone who 

399
00:23:17,920 --> 00:23:22,000
believes in him will not perish 
but have eternal life. 

400
00:23:22,400 --> 00:23:25,320
He's done everything for us to 
have life. 

401
00:23:25,800 --> 00:23:28,920
And this is the message as well 
that we share with others, with 

402
00:23:28,920 --> 00:23:34,160
everyone, everyone that we meet.
Let's just pray this little 

403
00:23:34,160 --> 00:23:37,720
prayer. 
Jesus, thank you that you give 

404
00:23:37,720 --> 00:23:42,080
life to the one. 
Thank you that you give life to 

405
00:23:42,080 --> 00:23:45,600
me. 
Give me your heart to share your

406
00:23:45,600 --> 00:23:51,880
life with the one too. 
Jesus said if a man has 100 

407
00:23:51,880 --> 00:23:54,560
sheep and one of them wanders 
away, what will he do? 

408
00:23:55,080 --> 00:24:00,360
Won't he leave the 99 on the 
hills and go out to search for 

409
00:24:00,360 --> 00:24:02,480
the one that is lost? 
And if he finds it, I tell you 

410
00:24:02,480 --> 00:24:05,400
the truth, he'll rejoice over it
more than over the 99 that 

411
00:24:05,400 --> 00:24:08,160
didn't wander away. 
In the same way, it's not my 

412
00:24:08,160 --> 00:24:11,800
Heavenly Father's will that any,
even one of those little ones 

413
00:24:11,800 --> 00:24:15,680
should perish. 
So first of all, think of 

414
00:24:15,680 --> 00:24:19,480
yourself as the one you know for
me. 

415
00:24:19,480 --> 00:24:22,400
And the stories from the start, 
let me tell you the end of those

416
00:24:22,400 --> 00:24:25,160
stories. 
Well, that school, the Cambridge

417
00:24:25,160 --> 00:24:29,560
High School for Girls, turned 
out to be an amazing school for 

418
00:24:29,560 --> 00:24:34,000
me, and it turned out to be the 
place where I was welcomed by an

419
00:24:34,000 --> 00:24:37,880
amazing group of people. 
The next year, and within a year

420
00:24:37,880 --> 00:24:40,880
and a half or a couple of years,
I'd given my life to Jesus. 

421
00:24:41,720 --> 00:24:47,000
I found Jesus at that school and
I'd cried out to him. 

422
00:24:49,960 --> 00:24:53,360
The story at the park, that 
moment is still a moment I 

423
00:24:53,360 --> 00:25:00,600
remember as a moment where I met
Jesus, a moment where Jesus came

424
00:25:00,600 --> 00:25:04,440
and told me that he loved me, 
where he told me that he cared 

425
00:25:04,440 --> 00:25:06,960
for me, where he told me that he
saw me. 

426
00:25:08,400 --> 00:25:11,000
And it certainly wasn't the end 
of any of our stories. 

427
00:25:12,680 --> 00:25:15,160
Just see the beautiful heart of 
Jesus, the Good Shepherd. 

428
00:25:15,160 --> 00:25:18,520
He goes after the 1. 
You know he cares. 

429
00:25:18,520 --> 00:25:23,000
He cares for you, he goes after 
you, hears your cry, he sees 

430
00:25:23,040 --> 00:25:25,560
you, he rejoices over you, he 
gives you life. 

431
00:25:26,280 --> 00:25:28,680
And this is life that goes 
beyond this life, beyond the 

432
00:25:28,680 --> 00:25:36,920
grave and lasts forever. 
So firstly, I'm speaking to 

433
00:25:36,920 --> 00:25:39,280
someone in this room. 
If you're listening to this and 

434
00:25:39,280 --> 00:25:43,000
you know that you're a wandering
sheep, maybe you're saying in 

435
00:25:43,000 --> 00:25:47,800
your heart, but I'm not a good 
person or even I don't really 

436
00:25:47,800 --> 00:25:51,240
matter. 
Well, you know, that's a good 

437
00:25:51,240 --> 00:25:54,560
place to start because we've 
all, every single one of us 

438
00:25:54,560 --> 00:26:00,680
fallen short of God's standard. 
But This is why Jesus is the 

439
00:26:00,680 --> 00:26:03,520
Shepherd who laid down his life 
for the sheep. 

440
00:26:04,320 --> 00:26:08,720
He's done it all. 
He sees you. 

441
00:26:09,400 --> 00:26:12,120
He's coming to find you. 
If you just call out to him, 

442
00:26:12,120 --> 00:26:19,920
even today, he comes running. 
So I invite you today to come to

443
00:26:19,920 --> 00:26:22,760
the cross and to receive this 
life. 

444
00:26:29,880 --> 00:26:33,680
The Lord bless you and keep you.
The Lord make His face shine 

445
00:26:33,680 --> 00:26:37,920
upon you and be gracious to you.
The Lord turn his face towards 

446
00:26:37,920 --> 00:26:39,600
you and give you peace.