Sign Date

Water into wine Feb 23rd

Healing an official’s son Mar 2nd

Healing a paralytic Mar 9th

Feeding the 5000 Mar 16th

Walking on water Mar 23rd

Healing a blind man Mar 30th

Raising Lazarus April 6th

This morning’s Theme is one of the Seven Signs

from John’s Gospel

Water into wine

Healing an official’s son

Signs so far

Be with JesusShare your problems

“Do whatever Jesus tells you”Wait

See the signs & believe

Goshen

Sinai

Kadesh

R JordanMed Sea

Red Sea

19Then, as the LORD our God commanded us, we set out from Horeb and went towards the hill country of the Amorites through all that vast and dreadful desert that you have seen, and so we reached Kadesh Barnea.

Deuteronomy Chapters 1&2

Dead Sea

Goshen

Sinai

Kadesh

R JordanMed Sea

Red Sea

19Then, as the LORD our God commanded us, we set out from Horeb and went towards the hill country of the Amorites through all that vast and dreadful desert that you have seen, and so we reached Kadesh Barnea.

Deuteronomy Chapters 1&2

Dead Sea

20Then I said to you, "You have reached the hill country of the Amorites, which the LORD our God is giving us.

21See, the LORD your God has given you the land. Go up and take possession of it as the LORD, the God of your fathers, told you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged."

22Then all of you came to me and said, "Let us send men ahead to spy out the land for us and bring back a report about the route we are to take and the towns we will come to."

23The idea seemed good to me; so I selected twelve of you, one man from each tribe.

Obey God:Don’t be afraid

We seek knowledge

24They left and went up into the hill country, and came to the Valley of Eshcol and explored it.

25Taking with them some of the fruit of the land, they brought it down to us and reported, "It is a good land that the LORD our God is giving us."

26But you were unwilling to go up; you rebelled against the command of the LORD your God.

27You grumbled in your tents and said, "The LORD hates us; so he brought us out of Egypt to deliver us into the hands of the Amorites to destroy us.

28Where can we go? Our brothers have made us lose heart. They say, 'The people are stronger and taller than we are; the cities are large, with walls up to the sky. We even saw the Anakites there.'"

Obey God: Don’t be afraid

We seek knowledge

Future is good

Future has difficulties

29Then I said to you, "Do not be terrified; do not be afraid of them.

30The LORD your God, who is going before you, will fight for you, as he did for you in Egypt, before your very eyes,

31and in the desert. There you saw how the LORD your God carried you, as a father carries his son, all the way you went until you reached this place."

32In spite of this, you did not trust in the LORD your God, 33who went ahead of you on your journey, in fire by night and in a cloud by day, to search out places for you to camp and to show you the way you should go.

Obey God: Don’t be afraid

We seek knowledgeFuture: mix of good & bad

Past: good overcame bad

34When the LORD heard what you said, he was angry and solemnly swore:

35"Not a man of this evil generation shall see the good land I swore to give your forefathers,

36except Caleb son of Jephunneh. He will see it, and I will give him and his descendants the land he set his feet on, because he followed the LORD wholeheartedly."

37Because of you the LORD became angry with me also and said, "You shall not enter it, either.

38But your assistant, Joshua son of Nun, will enter it. Encourage him, because he will lead Israel to inherit it.

39And the little ones that you said would be taken captive, your children who do not yet know good from bad-- they will enter the land. I will give it to them and they will take possession of it.

Obey God: Don’t be afraid

We seek knowledge

Future: mix of good & bad

Past: good overcame bad

Lack of trust has consequences

1:40But as for you, turn round and set out towards the desert along the route to the Red Sea."

2:1Then we turned back and set out towards the desert along the route to the Red Sea, as the LORD had directed me. For a long time we made our way around the hill country of Seir.

Goshen

Sinai

Kadesh

R JordanMed Sea

Red Sea

Dead Sea

Lack of trust has consequences

2Then the LORD said to me,

3"You have made your way around this hill country long enough; now turn north.

8So we went on past our brothers the descendants of Esau, who live in Seir. We turned from the Arabah road, which comes up from Elath and Ezion Geber, and travelled along the desert road of Moab.

Goshen

Sinai

Kadesh

R JordanMed Sea

Red Sea

Dead Sea

We don’t have to repeat the mistakes of the past

R Zered

Goshen

Sinai

Kadesh

R JordanMed Sea

Red Sea

R ZeredDead Sea

13And the LORD said, "Now get up and cross the Zered Valley." So we crossed the valley.

14Thirty-eight years passed from the time we left Kadesh Barnea until we crossed the Zered Valley. By then, that entire generation of fighting men had perished from the camp, as the LORD had sworn to them.

15The LORD's hand was against them until he had completely eliminated them from the camp.

We don’t have to repeat the mistakes of the past

Med Sea

Red Sea

Desert

RiverZered

R JordanLive life

in all its fullness

Don’t be afraid of future problems

Remember God’s past deliverances

Don’t repeat past mistakes

The Lord’s my shepherd

Ambiguities of Life38 Years

Disobedience of a previous generation and/or hisBethesda:

House of Loving Kindness and/or Disgrace“Do you want to get well”

Encouragement and/or RebukeI have no one to help me

Plea for Help and/or ConfessionWaters stirring

Faith in God and/or Superstition (Asclepius)Arise

Accept new Life and/or be healed

c

c

c

c

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Sign 3/7 from John 51Some time later, Jesus went up to Jerusalem

for a feast of the Jews.2Now there is in Jerusalem near the Sheep Gate a pool,

which in Aramaic is called Bethesda and which is surrounded by five covered colonnades.

3Here a great number of disabled people used to lie-- the blind, the lame, the paralysed.

45One who was there had been an invalid for thirty-eight years.6When Jesus saw him lying there

and learned that he had been in this condition for a long time, he asked him, "Do you want to get well?"

7"Sir," the invalid replied, "I have no-one to help me into the pool when the water is stirred. While I am trying to get in, someone else goes down ahead of me.“

8Then Jesus said to him, "Get up! Pick up your mat and walk."9At once the man was cured; he picked up his mat and walked.

Thank God for his written Word to us

Med Sea

Red Sea

Desert

RiverZered

R Jordan“Do whatever Jesus

tells you”

AriseDon’t be afraid

I will change your name

From Amen to ActionWho shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine

or nakedness or danger or sword?As it is written: "For your sake we face death all day long;

we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered."No, in all these things we are more than conquerors

through him who loved us.For I am convinced that

neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers,neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

(Romans 8:35-39)

Our Gathered worship ends, our Worship continues, our Service begins