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[no audio] (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music)

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(gentle music) (gentle music) ♪ Oh, bless DC and gallery ♪ ♪ It carries a mighty name ♪

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♪ Oh, goodness me ♪ ♪橋に登り站 Grass on the bridge ♪ ♪ Where the colors of grace merge ♪ ♪ He shall watch the boys and girls ♪

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♪ God protect our Lord forever ♪ ♪ Oh, let them sing our proud chorus ♪ ♪ Of peace and Moses ♪ ♪ Of the Lord ♪

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♪ He heard my cry ♪ ♪ And did in heav'nly power ♪ ♪ Long as I live ♪ ♪ And troubled minds ♪

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♪ Are hastened to ♪ ♪ Through ♪ ♪ Is strong ♪ ♪ I love the Lord ♪

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♪ He heard my cry ♪ ♪ And pity every groan ♪ ♪ Every groan ♪ ♪ Long as I live ♪

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♪ And troubles rise ♪ ♪ I'll hasten to you ♪ ♪ To ♪ ♪ His throne ♪

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♪ Amazing grace ♪ ♪ How sweet the sound ♪ ♪ Oh, how sweet the sound ♪ ♪ That saved a wretch ♪

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♪ Like me ♪ - Sing the song now. Sing it now. ♪ I once was lost ♪

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♪ But now I'm found ♪ ♪ Now ♪ ♪ Was blind but now ♪ ♪ Now ♪

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♪ I see ♪ ♪ I love the Lord ♪ ♪ He heard my cry ♪ ♪ He heard my cry ♪

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♪ And did in vain ♪ ♪ Every groan ♪ ♪ Every groan ♪ ♪ Long as I live ♪

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♪ Live ♪ ♪ And troubles rise ♪ ♪ I'll listen to ♪ ♪ His call ♪

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♪ I love the Lord ♪ ♪ Oh yes I do ♪ ♪ He heard my cry ♪ ♪ Oh thank you Lord ♪

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♪ And pitied every groan ♪ ♪ Long as I live ♪ ♪ And troubles rise ♪ ♪ I'll hasten to ♪

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♪ To ♪ ♪ His throne ♪ ♪ The Lord of the Lord ♪ ♪ The Lord of the Lord ♪

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♪ He heard my cry ♪ ♪ He heard my cry ♪ ♪ I'm getting better ♪ ♪ Every, every bone ♪

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♪ Weep wrong ♪ ♪ Long as I live ♪ ♪ And for us ♪ ♪ I'll listen to ♪

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♪ Oh I'll hasten, I'll hasten to this throne ♪ ♪ I'll hasten to ♪ ♪ Said I'll hasten ♪ ♪ I'll hasten to this throne ♪

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♪ I'm gonna get in a hurry 'cause I wanna see my Jesus ♪ ♪ I'll hasten to this throne ♪ ♪ Said I'll hasten, I'll hasten ♪ ♪ I hasten ♪

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♪ His throne ♪ ♪ Oh I hasten, I hasten, I hasten ♪ ♪ To His throne ♪ (audience applauding)

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- Let's all say amen. - Amen. - Amen. Amen.

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Amen. Our Scripture lesson is found in the book of the prophet Jeremiah, the ninth chapter,

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the first eleven verses. "Oh, that my head were watered, ♪ In my eyes ♪ ♪ In man eyes ♪

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♪ From his consolation ♪ ♪ There he waited ♪ ♪ Unto the mercy ♪ ♪ He had been giving ♪

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♪ Heavenly King ♪ ♪ Here brings the moon and stars ♪ ♪ Here cares the wretched ♪ ♪ Here quenches the sorrows ♪

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♪ The sorrow that can never heal ♪ ♪ Joy of the desert ♪ ♪ Light of the straying ♪ ♪ Lord of the heaven ♪

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♪ Greatest and pure ♪ ♪ Peace peace the comfort ♪ ♪ In truth be safe ♪ ♪ And it is no sorrow ♪

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♪ That man may have you ♪ ♪ Here sing a prayer ♪ ♪ For you see what I have done ♪ ♪ We want His glory ♪

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♪ Welcome the throne of God ♪ ♪ King of all ♪ ♪ Come to the feast of love ♪ ♪ It's the world ♪

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♪ I'll never know ♪ ♪ Every day's a sorrow ♪ ♪ That they can't remove ♪ When I would comfort myself against sorrow, my heart would be filled with joy.

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My heart is faint within me. Behold the cry of my people because of them that dwell in a far country. Is not the Lord in Zion? not the king in her? Why have they provoked me to anger with their graven images and with

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strange vanities. The harvest is past, the summer has ended, and we are not saved. For the hurt of the daughter of my people, am I am black. Astonishment has taken hold on me. Is there no balm in Gilead? Is there no physician there? Why then is not

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is not the health of the daughter of my people recovered? Oh, that my head were waters, and mine eyes a fountain of tears, that I might weep day and night for the slain of the daughter "Daughter of my people."

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This passage of scripture we read earlier in the book of Jeremiah, beginning with the eighth chapter, the 18th verse, and closing with the ninth chapter and the first verse.

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There is another scripture that is appropriate for this time of the season in our religious calendar. As Jesus approached Jerusalem and saw the city, he wept over it and said, "If you, even you had only known on this day that would bring peace to you but now it is

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hidden from your eyes. Luke chapter 19 verse 41 rather than 42. The subject Weeping over Jerusalem. Weeping over Jerusalem. Weeping is often considered a sign of weakness. Parents often say to their their children when they're growing up,

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be a big boy, don't cry. I felt that I had taken a long stride toward adulthood when I was able to take a whipping and not cry.

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People often cry when they are hurt. The depth of their hurt determines the burden of their grief. During this Lenten observance,

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we focus on penitence, godly sorrow, for wrongs committed against humanity, and against God.

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The scripture passages which are the focal point of the message today are based on one Old Testament character, Jeremiah, and the other

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New Testament character, Jesus. Both Jeremiah and Jesus wept over the condition of the people that they sought to help. They both wept over Jerusalem.

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Customarily people weep over the dead. And both of them are regarded, both of them regard Jerusalem as being dead spiritually. Oh, that my head were waters,

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and mine eyes a fountain of tears, that I might weep day and night by the slain of the daughter of my people. Some scholars attribute these words to Jeremiah.

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Jeremiah 9 and 1, they said possibly Jeremiah is speaking here, these are his words. There are other scholars who say that these are the words of God.

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God is talking directly. So let us consider in this message, first of all, let's look at it as if Jeremiah is speaking these words.

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Now traditionally, Jeremiah is called the weeping prophet. He appears to cry at the drop of a hat. And it may be that his contemporaries referred to him as a cry baby.

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Weeping, however, is not a sign of weakness necessarily. Jeremiah weeps. But in the case of Jeremiah, we may well say that weeping is a sign of strength.

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He feels so strongly about the condition of God's people that he's willing to weep day and night. Several years ago we had a presidential Democratic, a vice presidential democratic candidate from the east.

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And there was a remark made about his family that caused him to weep publicly. And after that, the press said that he was too weak. Any man who would weep in public, they said,

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It's too weak to be the president of these United States. So they discounted him because of the fact that he wept. Jeremiah weeps. But I said, it is not a sign of weakness,

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it's a sign of strength. Oh, that my head were waters and mine eyes a fountain of tears that I might weep day and night

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for the slain of the daughter of my people. Now, some people weep for various reasons. Sometimes some people weep because they're glad. Others weep because they're sad.

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And there are those who weep because they're mad. All of these reasons people weep. So the people of God have degenerated spiritually to the point that they have turned their back on the Lord. The people of God have degenerated spiritually to the point that they have turned their back on God

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and they feel that they have nothing to live for, they have no hope, they have no future. And because they have come to this condition, Jeremiah weeps day and night. So if, if my head were waters and mine eyes a fountain of tears, I'd weep day and night for the slain of the daughter of my people.

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Wherever there is weeping, there is pain. There is the cry of separation and estrangement. And we cry when we are abandoned, when we approach the obstacles of this life, they seem too much for us, we cry, we weep. Now, Jeremiah has

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no wife. He has no children. He's alone. His family has turned against him. We dealt with the message earlier about how the the kinsmen of Jeremiah and Anathoth engaged in a plot against his life. So his countrymen don't listen to him, the king, the nobles, the people who really matter

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who have the power, they don't listen to what he has to say. And he cannot be satisfied by the false comfort of his comrades. Some people seek to console the bereaved family by saying, "Don't cry, honey. It's going to be all right. Everything's going to be

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all right. Don't cry. Don't cry." It's a kind of false comfort. It's just natural to cry. Wherever there is sorrow, let me put it this way, wherever there is love there will be an occasion for sorrow. If you never love you'll never be sorry. But if you really love there will be an

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for sorrow. Now Jeremiah has done what God told him to do, but the people are still walking in their own willful way. They are on a collision course with God. Tears are the only appropriate response here. You know, sometimes crying it all

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all we can do. Some people, when I was a boy, used to attend the funeral and they would just be looking to see how the wife was gonna take it. And they'd come back and say, "Well, she didn't seem to take it very hard because she didn't cry." But we can't measure the depth of one's grief merely by the tears.

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You can't do that. Dr. Jackson of the United, of the convention, told a story that he was going away to speak and he was going to be flying. His wife was weeping because she didn't want him to fly. And then he took out an insurance policy.

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She said, "What's that?" He said, "This is just a policy for $100,000 "in case something should happen to me "in the course of this flight."

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And she took her handkerchief and she began to wipe away the tears. changed the picture. Jeremiah is weeping because tears are the only appropriate response for him. "Oh, that my head were

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and nine eyes a fountain of tears that I might weep day and night. All those words for the slain of the daughter of my people. Now Jeremiah has his grief and we have ours. Every one of us here has something that we grieve about, some We cry when we are injured.

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We cry when we are disappointed. We cry when we are frustrated. And we cry when we are lost. Kagawa writes that the swallows know how to take their trackless journeys

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journeys in the air and then come home again. But here the people of God don't have swallow sense. They leave, they turn their backs on God and they don't come back. So we have our sorrow. The individual has his sorrow. The nation has sorrow.

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we all have our sorrows. And some of the most gripping words in Scripture for me is that passage where it says there in the Gospel of John, "Jesus went." That's all. That's enough. Jesus wept. The Son of God in tears, Jesus wept. Now that's part of the passion as we look toward the celebration of Easter as we retrace the steps of

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the Master as he goes to Jerusalem to be crucified and surrounding all of this is to the word that is occurred, leading up to it saying, Jesus wept.

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And the very fact that he goes into the garden of Gethsemane, where he prays, the garden of sorrow.

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There he spends time with his disciples. And he goes on from Gethsemane to be tried and then he faces the cross. Sort of reminiscent of what the psalmist says there when he says, "My tears have been my food day and night."

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Then he goes on to say, "Why art thou cast down, O my soul, "Why are you disturbed within me?" We have to cry, I said, sometimes. It provides an emotional outlet.

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It provides release for our pent up feelings. The Son of God in tears, what a picture. My Lord Jesus, the happy-go-lucky fellow, But Jesus, the Son of God, in tears, he weeps.

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He identifies with our sorrow. He identifies with our grief. The Son of God weeping over Jerusalem. Weeping over the sins of the world.

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If we only knew, he said, the things that pertain to our peace. Weeping. I attended a conference a number of years ago,

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1963 to be exact. Martin Luther King spoke and Whitney Young spoke and a number of other, there were a number of other speakers but then one of the last speakers was William Stringfellow

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who was an outstanding lawyer who, after finishing law school went and established his law firm in Harlem where he was serving Tepou.

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Here was an Anglican, or an Anglo rather, who went right into the depths of poverty and was burning himself up. He had an incurable disease,

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and yet he was burning himself up working with Tepou. And he spoke last in the conference. He said, "We ought to all go home and weep. We ought to leave this conference, go home and weep.

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When we think about the relations between the Jews and the Muslims and the whites and the blacks, we ought to all just go home and weep and bring about true repentance in our hearts

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and in our minds and our lives in order to work to make this world a better place in which to live. The son of God in tears,

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is in tears because he is our eternal companion who shares our burdens, who shares our griefs, who is really our friend. One lady said to another that she had employed

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in her service. She said, "Aren't you and Kelly friends?" She said, "No, we're not friends. We never cried together." To be a friend, to be willing to cry with another, to share with another, that's what it means to weep over Jerusalem. We got our Jerusalem. Somebody has a son that you weep over, that's your Jerusalem.

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Somebody else has a daughter, another may have a husband, another a wife, weeping over Jerusalem. Weeping over what could have been but is not, and yet somehow it brings tears from my eyes.

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Oh, oh, oh that my head were waters and tears. and my eyes a fountain of tears that I might weep day and night for the slain of the daughter of my people." Godless sorrow. That's the way of salvation. God himself weeps for his people.

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And God's repentance, we spoke earlier with the children in their sermon, repentance, repentance is really godly sorrow. To be sorry enough over our sins to weep, to weep. This prodigal who goes to the far country, wastes his father's substance and riotous living,

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and finally comes to himself and goes back home. I can imagine him weeping as he comes back home, in rags, weeping before the father, and the father tells him to kill the fatted calf. killed a fatted calf, this my son who was lost is home again, home again. I can imagine this woman who lost the coin and she cleans the house searching for the coin.

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I can imagine how she rejoices, she was weeping because she had lost that coin, but when she finds it, I can imagine her rejoicing. And the man who has the ninety and nine sheep that are there, one goes astray, he had a hundred to begin with, but now one is gone, he's left with ninety and nine, he goes out searching for that one. It's hard and heavy with grief until he finds it, but when he finds it, he puts that sheep on his shoulder and comes back rejoicing.

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Oh, that my head were waters, my eyes a fountain of tears, that I might weep day and night for the slain of the daughter of my people. Isaiah, the prophet, many years before, centuries before, takes up the refrain. And he's talking about the suffering servant of history. And he says of him that he was wounded for our transgressions.

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He has carried, oh yes, he's carried our sorrows. And that's good news. Oh yeah, there are so many sorrows that others may never know about,

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but there is one who carried our sorrows and the chastisement of our sins upon him. That's good news. That's good news.

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So as the prophet said that of him, Surely, surely, surely he has done this. This is not some guess. This is something we can rely on. Surely, surely, surely he has done it for our salvation. The one who does this is the fulfillment of Scripture who says

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"As weeping may endure in the night, "a joy comes in the morning." Isn't that good news? - Amen.

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- Weeping may endure. Near where I stayed in Dallas, there was a sewage and it was a short way right by the railroad track. You could go through that sewage place and get home quicker.

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It was dark, deadly. But I often took that way home because it was quicker. But at the end of the tunnel, there was a bright light.

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We're going through a tunnel now. Many times in our lives, burden is heavy and tears stream down. but after a while we'll come to the end of the tunnel and we can shout and say

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"Thanks be to God who brought us through!" And we praise your name for it. Oh that my head were waters. What I like about this is that there is there is an end of the way. There is a place where there is no more sorrow. No tears as the song says in heaven, no tears there, but all the joy for the Lord

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God himself will wipe away all tears and we can praise his name and tell others how we got over. What a friend. What a friend to cry with us. We can always depend on one who will be with us. What a friend we have in Jesus. And as we sing this song, we invite you to accept Jesus Christ, the man of sorrows who's acquainted with grief. Accept him as

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your Savior, the one who leads us through the sorrow of the night and gives us the joy of the morning. Come, accept Him. He waits for you to come. He pleads with you to come. Angels in heaven say come! We invite you now to become a part of the family of God here at as we extend the invocation to Christian discipleship.

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Come. [MUSIC] ♪ We have in Jesus ♪ ♪ All our sins and griefs to bear ♪

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♪ All our privileges to bear ♪ ♪ Everything ♪ ♪ Everything ♪ ♪ To God in praise ♪

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♪ Now my knees ♪ ♪ Will offer ♪ ♪ Praise ♪ Oh, what means this pain to them?

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All because we do not care. ♪ Everything to call it ground ♪ ♪ Every trial and temptation ♪ ♪ Is there's no limit to the power of God ♪

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anywhere. [MUSIC] Krishna, never be this

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sad. [MUSIC] We're full of love

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and prayer. ♪ Jesus ♪ ♪ Help me find a friend so faithful ♪ ♪ Who will all my sorrow share ♪

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♪ Jesus, Lord, my every need ♪ ♪ And I'll stand in truth, the Holy Grail ♪ ♪ I'll live in the heaven and the earth ♪ ♪ In heaven ♪

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♪ Come and lift the Lord up ♪ ♪ Precious Savior still our prayer ♪ ♪ Still our prayer to you ♪ ♪ Take it to all who pray ♪

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♪ To thy Prince, despite our slavery ♪ ♪ Christ our Savior ♪ ♪ King unto the Lord ♪ ♪ In praise ♪

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♪ In His arms ♪ ♪ Till He takes His sheep ♪ ♪ How will I trust on this prayer ♪ - Let's all say amen.

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- Amen. - The word has been declared, the invitation has been extended, and the response has come.

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Let's listen now to the report of our church clerk brother Terry Steele. - First we have coming to Christ to reunite herself is Lorraine Smith and she'll be in consultation

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with you pastor about what to do in her connection with that. And a candidate for baptism, Sister Wilhelmina MacArthur, Sister Norman's granddaughter.

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- All right, will you stand. - Nine years old. - She comes as a candidate for baptism. - You accept Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior

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and you want to be baptized as an expression of your faith? All right, that's good. She says yes. All who are in favor of accepting her say aye.

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- Aye. - We're glad you've made this decision. This is the most important decision you can ever make in life.

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The decision for Jesus Christ. And we join with you and trust that you will be ready when we have the baptism service on next Sunday. God bless you and you may be seated.

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Number first, do you wanna say something? All right, just you may turn around here and say whatever you. - Hello, my name is Lorraine Smith

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and I'm a member of the David Chapel Baptist Church. - Could you turn that up a little bit please, the mic? [ Silence ]