The Healing Grace Of God Series

Sermon for September 06, 2009

Sermon Series: Sermons on the Grace of God:

Sermon # The Healing Grace of God:

Scripture Ref: Psalm 147:3

‘He heals the broken in heart & binds up their wounds.’

Introduction:

I BEGAN PREACHING when I was 17 YEARS OLD. My NEXT BIRTHDAY I will be 57 YEARS OLD. That’s 40 YEARS & in those 40 YEARS I have LEARNED ONE THING & that is; NOBODY SAILS THROUGH LIFE.We ALL have HURTS. We ALL have PROBLEMS. We ALL have some HIDDEN WOUNDS. We ALL have some EMOTIONAL SCARS that NOBODY ELSE SEES but they’re THERE & they HURT.

ONE of the DEEPEST CAUSES of those HURTS is REJECTION.

We ALL FACE REJECTION in our lives:

There is the REJECTION from PARENTS.

There is the REJECTION from CHILDREN.

There is the REJECTION from FRIENDS.

There is the REJECTION from CO-WORKERS.

There is even the REJECTION from SPIRITUAL BROTHERS and SISTERS in CHRIST.

EVERY DAY there is a PASTOR SOMEWHERE who THROWS in the TOWEL & RESIGNS to NEVER STAND BEHIND another PULPIT AGAIN. He has MINISTERED & MINISTERED to PEOPLE HE has POURED HIS LIFE into the PEOPLE, but then SOMETIME - SOMEWHERE - SOMETHING HAPPENS & HE is REJECTED by THE PEOPLE & THEY LEAVE & then GO SOMEWHERE ELSE to church. HE is REJECTED & he is HURT.

I KNOW a PASTOR who went to a CHURCH that DESPERATELY NEEDED a NEW BUILDING. The PASTOR was a very SKILLED CARPENTER & he WORKED HARD BUILDING them a NEW CHURCH BUILDING. For SEVERAL YEARS there were MANY NIGHTS he stayed there ALL ALONE WORKING. Finally the BUILDING was FINISHED & the PEOPLE were THRILLED. They BRAGGED & BRAGGED on the PASTOR. He was the GREATEST THING since HOT BUTTER..

SOON AFTERWARD the BUILDING was COMPLETED the PEOPLE began to FIND FAULTS with the PASTOR & EVENTUALLY they found ENOUGH FAULTS they GOT RID of him.

REJECTION: Some of you may RECALL THINGS that were SAID TO YOU on a PLAYGROUND 20, 30, 40, or even 50 years ago. We DON’T LET SOME THINGS GO LIGHTLY.

This morning I want us to take a LOOK at GOD’S HEALING GRACE & HOW GOD HEALS even the DEEPEST & the MOST HIDDEN WOUNDS of our HEARTS.

The HEALING GRACE of GOD:

Psalm 147:3 ‘He heals the broken of heart & binds up their wounds.’

HOW DOES GOD DO IT? HOW DOES GOD HEAL HIDDEN WOUNDS?

The BIBLE tells us that GOD does it by CHANGING the WAY we THINK:

GOD CHANGES OUR MINDS.

GOD CHANGES THE WAY WE SEE GOD, HOW WE SEE THE PAIN & THE BROKENESS & THE REJECTION & HOW WE SEE OURSELVES.

In Romans 12:2

‘Do not be conformed to this world, but be ye transformed by the renewal of your minds….’

If we WANT to CHANGE OUR LIVES & if we WANT to HEAL OUR HURTS--- then BEGIN the HEALING PROCESS by CHANGING the WAYS we THINK.

The BIBLE says in Proverbs 23:7 ‘As a man THINKS in his heart, so is he.’

If we SEE OURSELVES as LOSERS then we’ll TEND to BE a LOSER in life.

If we SEE OURSELVES as a VICTIM then we TEND to PLACE OURSELVES into SITUATIONS where we become VICTIMS.

If we SEE OURSELVES as a FAILURE then we TEND NOT to AIM VERY HIGH in life.

The BIBLE says OUR BELIEFS DETERMINE OUR BEHAVIORS.

The WAY WE THINK DETERMINES the WAY WE ACT.

Now there is a PROBLEM WITH THAT.

SOME of OUR BELIEFS are FALSE & WRONG & MISTAKEN.

Just BECAUSE SOMEONE said SOMETHING to us DOESN’T MEAN we ARE THAT WAY.

DUMB—STUPID—IGNORANT--SELF CENTERED--MEAN-- UNPOPULAR—UNLIKED—UNLOVED--FAILURE HYPOCRITE—GUILTY--TO BLAME.--NEVER AMOUNT to ANYTHING --CAN’T DO ANYTHING RIGHT.

PEOPLE can be SO CRUEL & so CRITICAL & so CONDESCENDING.

I wish we would SPEND MORE TIME LOOKING at OUR OWN FAULTS & OUR OWN FLAWS & WORK ON IMPROVING THEM rather than LOOKING at OTHERS’ FAULTS: We WOULD NOT BE nearly as CRITICAL or nearly as FAULT FINDING & IN THE END we would ALL BE MUCH BETTER PEOPLE.

So DON’T ACT UPON OTHERS JUDGEMENT as IF THEY WERE RIGHT.

That is EXACTLY WHAT the DEVIL WANTS.

This morning I want for us to LOOK at WHAT GOD THINKS & WHAT GOD SAYS ABOUT US:

IS THAT ALRIGHT?

Have you ever STOOD in FRONT of those MIRRORS that DISTORT YOUR IMAGE?

When we LOOK at a DISTORTED MIRROR then WHAT we GET is a DISTORTED IMAGE.

It GIVES us a DISTORTED PICTURE of OURSELVES.

We’re MUCH BIGGER or MUCH WIDER or MUCH TALLER or MUCH SHORTER or MUCH THINNER,

SOMETIMES OTHER PEOPLE are MUCH LIKE those DISTORTED MIRRORS.

The PROBLEM MAY NOT BE WITH US – the PROBLEM may be with THEIR DISTORTED VIEW.The PROBLEM is THEM! & NOT ALWAYS US!