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In Jesus name. Amen.
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We had a new experience in the
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Clayton household this
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past weekend.
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Our oldest son graduated
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from college.
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He's had several job interviews
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recently,
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and so we are aware that
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probably over the summer
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he will be moving away.
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There's a possibility for
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job in the Detroit area,
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but he just had a job interview
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for the St. Louis area.
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And we're really,
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really hoping that one comes
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through because we like to have
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our children close to us.
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And as we think about our oldest
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son maybe moving out to
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a job over the summer,
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I think back four years to when
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we took that son off to college
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for the first time.
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Now,
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I need to explain two
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things here. First,
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I like to keep careful account
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of everything.
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And we re blessed with
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six children.
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So along with my wife
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and myself,
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that makes eight of
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us in the family.
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So I m routinely counting
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anywhere we go to make sure that
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we have everybody 1234-5678.
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Yep, we re all here.
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We re good.
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And I remember
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dropping my son off at college
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that first time four years ago.
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And we went back out to the van
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and I said, Is everybody here?
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And accounted to seven?
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And I said much more quietly,
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no,
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not everybody is here.
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And we drove away.
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In separation,
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there's great sorrow.
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We love being together with
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those that we love.
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With that in mind,
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I wonder
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what was it like
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in Bethany on that day recorded
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in Luke, chapter 24.
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I wonder,
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did the disciples have somebody
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like me who's always trying to
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keep count on everything?
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Maybe Matthew,
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from his former as a tax
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collector was the numbers guy
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who did the count
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for everything.
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Maybe it was Peter or James or
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John with their accounting
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experience from their
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fishing business.
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I wonder if one of
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the disciples,
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as they were heading out,
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would count and make sure
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everybody was there
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before they left.
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And so they left Jerusalem
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with twelve.
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They got to Bethany
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and there were eleven.
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And that brings us to our text
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from Luke, chapter 24,
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verses 50 and 51.
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And He
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led them out as far as Bethany,
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and lifting up his hands,
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he blessed them.
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While he blessed them,
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he parted from them and was
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carried up into heaven.
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Can you see the apostles
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thinking, is everybody here?
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One, two, 3,4,11.
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No,
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not everybody's here.
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Separation is hard.
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I think we might see that in a
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way in the reading from Luke,
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chapter one. From Acts,
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chapter one.
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When Jesus said these things,
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as they were looking on,
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he was lifted up and a cloud
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took him out of their sight,
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and they were gazing
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into heaven.
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I wonder if that's because there
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was some sorrow at
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that separation.
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And as they were gazing
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into heaven, behold,
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two men came and stood beside
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them in white robes and said,
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men of Galilee,
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why do you stand looking
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up into heaven?
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This Jesus who is taken up from
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you into heaven will come.
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In the same way you saw
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him go into heaven.
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Was there some sorrow at that
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separation as Jesus was
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taken up into heaven?
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I suspect there might have been.
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I suspect that might have been
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why the disciples spent that
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time gazing up into heaven
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realizing that one of the ones
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that they loved so dearly was
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not with them in the same
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way he had been.
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Well,
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after we had dropped our oldest
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son off at college and then a
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second son two years later,
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we noticed that our late night
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telephone call quotient
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went up significantly.
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Because when do college students
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have time to talk after all the
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other day's activities are done?
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So it wouldn't be unusual.
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Several times a week,
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often around midnight
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or a little after,
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either my wife and I would text
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or our sons in college would
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text and say, hey,
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you want to talk for
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a little bit?
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And even though it was late.
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It was a joy to be able to
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talk with our children.
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We couldn't see them,
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but just knowing that we could
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hear their voice brought
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great joy.
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And even though I suspect there
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was probably some sorrow in the
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disciples at Jesus being
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taken from them,
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we're also told in Luke Chapter
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24 that they were filled
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with great joy.
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So Jesus was taken into heaven.
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And what do the disciples do?
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Where the disciples go is
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recorded in Luke chapter 24.
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We're told they were continually
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in the temple praising God.
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Why?
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Because the temple is where God
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had promised his people that he
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would be present with them.
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The temple is the location of
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the glory of God dwelling
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among his people. The.
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Temple is the presence
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of the kavod Yahweh.
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That is where God had said he
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would be with his people.
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The disciples had just seen God
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go into heaven so they went to
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the temple where God was
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with his people.
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The disciples had just seen
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God leave them in a way.
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So they went to the place where
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God had promised to be present
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into his temple.
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And they may not have been able
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to see the presence or the glory
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of God in the temple but God
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had promised to be there.
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And so the disciples went where
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God had placed himself and they
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were filled with joy even if
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they couldn't see him.
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But we know how much better
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it is when we can see.
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And so phone calls with our
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college kids were good.
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They filled us with joy.
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But how much better it is
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when our college students would
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come home for breaks
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for a visit.
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Both of our sons in college
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are at colleges
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about 5 hours away.
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And they would usually leave
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from college after their classes
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ended on a Friday afternoon,
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maybe 03:00 05:00.
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Add 5 hours to that,
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they would be getting back
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to our house about 08:00,
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maybe 10:00 at night.
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But being college students and
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being on the move all the time,
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they wouldn't stop for supper
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during that time.
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They would leave immediately
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after class,
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and by the time they got to our
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place at 08:00 10:00 at night,
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they hadn't had supper yet.
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So immediately we set
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out the table,
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we took the leftovers
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out of the fridge,
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put them in the microwave,
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and we sat down to enjoy a meal
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with our sons home from
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college and those
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are joyful times.
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Sharing a meal with those
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that you love,
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who are there with you.
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To this day
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It brings a smile to my face
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when I set eight plates
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out on the table.
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I set those plates around,
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I count them,
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and I get to you eight.
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Are we all here? Yes,
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we're all here.
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And a smile comes over my face,
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and I'm filled with joy because
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we're together and we're
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sharing a meal.
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And that is the very best way
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to be with Jesus, too,
00:08:44.010 --> 00:08:47.960
to share a meal with him.
00:08:49.050 --> 00:08:50.762
And that is what Jesus
00:08:50.826 --> 00:08:52.190
gives us today.
00:08:52.260 --> 00:08:53.742
It's better than being
00:08:53.796 --> 00:08:54.830
in the temple.
00:08:55.490 --> 00:08:57.742
Being in God's house today
00:08:57.876 --> 00:08:59.820
is better than just
00:09:00.090 --> 00:09:01.530
being where God has promised
00:09:01.610 --> 00:09:03.486
that his glory would dwell in a
00:09:03.508 --> 00:09:05.134
way that you couldn't see it or
00:09:05.172 --> 00:09:06.766
sense it, most of the time.
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We have the opportunity to come
00:09:08.388 --> 00:09:09.930
and share a meal with the Lord.
00:09:10.010 --> 00:09:12.122
Share a meal of the Lord.
00:09:12.266 --> 00:09:15.054
Jesus comes to be with us in the
00:09:15.092 --> 00:09:18.640
most precious way possible
00:09:19.010 --> 00:09:21.870
this side of eternity.
00:09:22.850 --> 00:09:25.430
As Jesus comes to be with us,
00:09:25.500 --> 00:09:26.470
in us, in,
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with and under the bread and
00:09:28.572 --> 00:09:31.554
wine of the Lord's Supper.
00:09:31.682 --> 00:09:32.962
Even after ascension,
00:09:33.026 --> 00:09:36.200
Jesus is with us.
00:09:37.690 --> 00:09:39.458
Jesus may have ascended,
00:09:39.634 --> 00:09:42.306
but Jesus is not absent
00:09:42.498 --> 00:09:43.800
from his people.
00:09:44.890 --> 00:09:48.470
Jesus remains with us,
00:09:48.620 --> 00:09:50.350
and we can be in His house,
00:09:50.420 --> 00:09:51.950
we can be in his presence.
00:09:52.850 --> 00:09:54.426
And being in his presence,
00:09:54.538 --> 00:09:55.438
we also,
00:09:55.524 --> 00:09:57.546
like the disciples in Luke
00:09:57.578 --> 00:09:59.820
Chapter 24, can be filled with
00:10:00.250 --> 00:10:05.854
Joy because a place is set
00:10:05.892 --> 00:10:08.640
at this table for you
00:10:10.450 --> 00:10:11.760
and with you
00:10:12.930 --> 00:10:14.510
and with our Lord.
00:10:14.930 --> 00:10:15.994
Being in His presence
00:10:16.042 --> 00:10:17.120
and being together.
00:10:18.370 --> 00:10:20.766
We can see that the
00:10:20.788 --> 00:10:22.000
table is full
00:10:23.250 --> 00:10:24.686
and we can have a smile on our
00:10:24.708 --> 00:10:27.890
face us and we can rejoice.
00:10:27.970 --> 00:10:29.046
We can be filled like the
00:10:29.068 --> 00:10:32.470
disciples with a great joy.
00:10:33.610 --> 00:10:35.394
Because while Jesus is ascended,
00:10:35.442 --> 00:10:37.750
He is not absent,
00:10:38.490 --> 00:10:42.280
He is with us.
00:10:43.530 --> 00:10:45.350
Separation is painful,
00:10:46.170 --> 00:10:47.590
but reunion,
00:10:48.810 --> 00:10:50.094
being together in each other
00:10:50.172 --> 00:10:52.830
presence is joyful.
00:10:53.410 --> 00:10:56.702
We are together and our Lord is
00:10:56.756 --> 00:10:59.210
with us like the disciples
00:10:59.290 --> 00:10:59.820
in his house.
00:11:00.330 --> 00:11:03.200
We also can be filled with great
00:11:03.810 --> 00:11:08.030
joy in Jesus name. Amen.
00:11:08.530 --> 00:11:10.474
The peace of God that passes
00:11:10.522 --> 00:11:11.578
all understanding.
00:11:11.674 --> 00:11:13.406
Keep your hearts and minds in
00:11:13.428 --> 00:11:15.002
true faith through Christ Jesus,
00:11:15.066 --> 00:11:17.230
our Lord. Amen.