We all have things in life that MATTERS a great deal to us.
• How we spend our TIME in life MATTERS to us.
• How we spend our MONEY MATTERS to us.
• How we spend our ENERY in life MATTERS to us. Especially if you are over sixty-five years of age because in the middle of the day you feel like you need to take a nap.
I want to ask two questions when it comes to what really MATTERS IN LIFE.
I will deal with this in two ways…
(1) What matters to you?
(2) What matters to God?
Again, we all have things in life that MATTERS a great deal to us.
But as we look at the life of some folks there are somethings that MATTERS to them if you examine these things closely, they really should not matter.
Let me give you two examples…
I am probably going to get in trouble for saying this but so be it!!!
(1) Take the game of football to some folks this game really MATTERS in their life.
But let me say this about football, it is called a GAME!
That is all it is, just a game that people play.
You would never know it is just a game as for as for some people.
Football game really MATTERS to them.
In a few weeks if their team wins or loses but WHAT DOES IT MATTER!
It will soon go down in the history books and forgotten.
Let me give you another example, I picked on the football fans, let me pick on myself.
(2) Take the example of watching cowboy movies.
I was raised around horses growing up. My dad boarded horses, and he had twenty-two horses he boarded.
So, I like horses, and I guess that is why I like cowboy movies.
I used to adjust my time schedule to watch certain cowboy movies because they MATTERED A LOT TO ME!
And as I was watching one of the movies one day I began to think about it was only grown men pretending to be cowboys and all of a sudden, I came to realize watching cowboy moves really does not MATTER THAT MUCH.
It was only a MOVIE!
Illus: When it comes to what MATTERS in life I thought about Clovis Chappell, used to tell the story of two paddle boats.
They left Memphis about the same time, traveling down the Mississippi River to New Orleans.
As they traveled side by side, sailors from one vessel made a few remarks about the snail's pace of the other.
· Words were exchanged
· Challenges were made
And the race began!!!
Competition became vicious as the two boats roared through the Deep South.
One boat began falling behind. Not enough fuel. They had been plenty of coal for the trip, but not enough for a race.
As the boat dropped back, an enterprising young sailor took some of the ship's cargo and tossed it into the ship’s furnace.
When the sailors saw that the cargo burned as well as the coal, they fueled their boat with the material they had been assigned to transport.
They ended up winning the race, but they burned their cargo. (Max Lucado, In the Eye of the Storm, Word Publishing, 1991, pp. 97-98.)
A lot of folks have done the same thing with their life. God has entrusted them with life, and they have taken the one life God has given them and consumed it on things that REALLY DOES NOT MATTER IN LIFE.
Illus: For example, many believe that the god of sports is the number one God in America.
Think about it:
• This is all some talk about
• This is all some read about
• It is all some folks care about.
It is probably true that the god of sports is the number one God in America.
Many Americans can tell you all about the games, scores and the players, but cannot tell you very much about the God of heaven THAT CREATED THEM!!!
But generally, women do not play football, so they are illiterates when it comes to football and how it is played.
Illus: They are like the two elderly sisters who donated $5 to a charity and, to their surprise, won two tickets to a football game.
Since they had never seen a live football game before…
• One of the sister Madge thought the free tickets would provide an excellent opportunity for THEM TO ATTEND A GAME.
• The other sister, Mabel said "Let's go!"
• They soon found themselves high in a noisy stadium overlooking a large, grassy field.
• They watched the kickoff and the seemingly endless back-and-forth struggles that comprised the scoreless first half.
• They enjoyed the band music and cheerleader performance that followed.
• Then came the second half. When the teams lined up for the second-half kickoff, Madge nudged her sister. "I guess we can go home now, Mabel," she said. "This is where we came in."
Many people today can tell you all about the different kinds of sports because these are the things that MATTERS to them.
The world in which we live is full of things that really do not MATTER that people have made them to be their gods they faithfully serve.
The devil has miss-led PEOPLE about what really matters in life.
We have talked about what MATTERS to mankind but let us talk about what MATTERS TO GOD.
And as Christians what matters to God should also MATTER TO US!!!
For example, with God we see-
I.THE HEART MATTERS
Look at verse 18 in our text; He said "He hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted"
He was not only SENT to heal the broken hearted, BUT HE ALSO HEALED the broken hearted.
Look at Psa. 147:3, “He healeth the broken in heart, and bindeth up their wounds.”
Illus: As a pastor, I visit the hospitals often. Sometimes the folks I visit have a broken arm, leg or toe.
These things are serious but not life threatening.
But many times, when I visit those who have heart problems, they are in the INTENSIVE CARE UNIT.
This kind of problem requires INTENSIVE CARE.
There are a lot of folks today that have a BROKEN HEART, and physically they are not in the INTENSIVE CARE UNIT at the local hospital, but I can assure you their HEART IS BROKEN.
It’s safe to say that in this congregation of this size today there are hearts that are broken.
• Some have a broken hearted because of a domestic condition in the home.
• Some have a broken heart because of a rebellious child.
• Some are broken hearted because of a job they were hoping to get was given to someone else.
• Some are broken hearted because they have failed God miserably.
• Some are broken hearted because their spouse cheated on them.
Did you know God cares about how you feel about the things that bother you?
• In I Peter 5:7 to CAST ALL OF OUR CARES UPON HIM BECAUSE HE CARES FOR US.
• Look at Psalm 34:18, we read, “The LORD is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart; and saveth such as be of a contrite spirit.”
Notice, the Bible says God the Father is drawn to those of a BROKEN HEART.
Illus: There was a mother with five children.
A Psychologist asked her one day, which one of the five she loved the most.
The mother said, “I love them all the same.”
The psychologist said, “It is impossible to love them all the same because they are not the same.”
She said, “No, it is not impossible to love them the same because:
· When one is sick, I love that one the most
· When one is hurt, I love that one the most
· When one is sad, I love that one the most
Whichever one is most in need; I LOVE THAT ONE THE MOST!”
God the Father loves every one of us equally, but He is very near to the ones with a broken heart today.
WHY IS IT NECESSARY THAT WE HAVE BROKEN HEARTS IN THIS LIFE?
Why can’t life just be one big belly laugh every day?
For several reasons:
(1) IT IS IMPOSSIBLE TO APPRECIATE THE GOOD IF WE HAVE NOT EXPERIENCE THE BAD
Illus: For example, I love strawberry ice cream.
But did you know if I ate it long enough, eventually I would get tired of it and would lose my appreciation for it?
Sometimes you have to eat a little vanilla and chocolate to appreciate the STRAWBERRY!
God has to allow us to have a broken heart every now and then so we can fully appreciate the blessings of God in our life.
(2) IT IS IMPOSSIBLE FOR US TO APPRECIATE THE GOD OF HEAVEN UNLESS WE EXPERIENCE THE BAD.
Illus: When my car is running well, I never think about a mechanic, but when it breaks down, the most important person in my life is a mechanic.
Illus: The same thing is true in the ministry. There are folks that can see a preacher coming and they will run and hide.
But when a crisis comes up, guess who they want to talk to. They want to talk to the minister.
All of a sudden, he is the most important person in their life.
God allows us to have a broken heart sometimes because it is the only time that God is important to some folks.
Illus: Did you hear about the ninety-year-old man sitting on a park bench crying with a broken heart?
A policeman noticed this and asked him why he was crying.
• "Well," says the old fellow, "I just got married to a twenty-five-year-old woman recently.
• Every morning, she makes me a wonderful breakfast, (I miss her so much!) she is so good to me.
• In the afternoon she makes me a wonderful lunch, she is so good to me. (I miss her so much!)
• At dinner time she makes me a wonderful supper, she is so good to me. (I miss her so much!)
• The policeman looks at the old man and said, "You shouldn't be crying! You should be the happiest man in the world!"
• The old man said, "I know! I'm crying because I don't remember where I live!" (I miss her so much!)
There is something in the tears that God likes.
I believe what God likes about tears is that tears mean we have lost control.
Illus: Some of us older preachers can remember the times when we preached on Hell, and God the Holy Spirit would be working in the hearts of the unbelievers, and sometimes they were under such heavy conviction that they could not stand it any longer. They would jump up in the service and cry out, “Oh God, I am sorry I have sinned, please forgive me” as they came running down to an old-fashioned altar for salvation with tears flowing down their cheeks.
Sometimes when people are crying, we tell people, “Don’t cry, you have got to get hold of yourself,”
This is the worst advice we can give them.
As long as I am in control, God cannot be in control!
That’s why God had to bring David right down to his knees before He could get a hold of his life again!
God cares about the broken hearted.
Look at verse 18 again in our text, He said, "He hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted"
We have seen that THE HEART MATTERS WITH GOD---PEOPLE!!!
It breaks the heart of God that people are lost.
In Matthew 23:37 Jesus stood on a hillside overlooking Jerusalem and we read, O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not!
He had these people in His Heart they really mattered to Him.
Also, we see what matters to God…
II. THE HOME MATTERS
Vs. 18 "He hath sent me…to preach deliverance to the captives"
Satan has captured many of our homes today. Dad, Mom, and all the children have been captured by Satan.
God meant for the HOME to be a place of great joy, but SATAN has made it a place of great misery.
Illus: Did you know when parents choose not to attend church, they are making the decision for their children also not to attend church.
The Lord is concerned about this and wants to bring deliverance to the home.
HOW DOES HE BRING DELIVERANCE TO OUR HOMES?
There are three things for us to consider from the scriptures, such as:
For a family to get on the right track, someone in the home has got to get on the right track and…
A. DO RIGHT
Someone has to DO RIGHT and get their relationship right with God.
To function successfully, we have to DO THE RIGHT THING and get right with God.
It saddens the heart of God today when He sees so much misery and sadness in the home, when He intended for it to be a place of joy and contentment.
But before you can get THE RELATIONSHIPS IN THE HOME STRAIGHT, someone must first get their RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD STRAIGHT and let God make them a missionary to that family!
We must DO RIGHT, THE HOME MATTERS TO GOD.
And we must -
B. ACT RIGHT
The Bible says we are to HONOR ONE ANOTHER.
Remember, I told you that one thing the Bible show us clearly is that God cares about PEOPLE.
It is essential that we care about people, but most of all we should care about our family members.
And if we can not honor them, how can we honor anyone?
Romans 12:10 says, “Be kindly affectioned one to another with brotherly love; in honour preferring one another.”
It is not enough for us to assume that someone in the family knows we love them, SHOW THEM! TELL THEM!
God’s Word says, “Be kindly affectioned one to another…”
Illus: Many of us are like the woman who was sad because her husband never told her he loved her. She was crying about this, and he told her, “Listen, I told you I love you when I married you twenty-five years ago, how many times must I tell you…!”
· When we honor a particular person by the words we say and the things that we do, we are in effect saying to that person that they are important to us, that they are worthy of our time and our attention
· When we dishonor someone through the things we do and the words we say, we are in effect saying to that person that they are of no value to us. We are telling them that what they say, and think is insignificant, and they are not worth our time or effort
For the HOME TO MATTER, we have to ACT RIGHT and show AFFECTION ONE TO ANOTHER!
Illus: Gary Smalley is a Christian family counselor and a great author.
He came home and his wife was sad and said to him, “Gary, I feel like everything on this earth is far more important to you than I am...I feel that all the football games you watch on television are more important than I am, the newspaper, your hobbies, your counseling at the church. I can even farm out the kids to a babysitter and have a candlelight dinner all prepared for you, and the phone will ring, and you’ll say, ‘Oh, I’m not doing anything important. I’m just eating. Sure, I’ll be right over.’ Then you’re gone, telling me to keep something warm for you in the oven.” She said, ‘I’m not saying that your counseling isn’t important, but many of those couples you talk to have struggled with their problems for years! Taking one night to spend with your wife isn’t going to bother them - but it’s killing us! It’s like I don’t matter to you, but other people do. In fact, sometimes I feel that you’re more polite to total strangers than you are to me. You’ll say the most awful things to me, but never to anyone else”.
Gary writes, “She went on, but you get the point - and so did I!”
We are to DO RIGHT, ACT RIGHT and -
C. TALK RIGHT
Listen, the Book of James teaches us some things that could save marriages from the divorce courts.
Look at James 1:19, we read, “Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath.”
Did you know the way we say something makes a difference?
Illus: Little Jeanette came home from third grade all excited.
• "Daddy, we learned cursing in school today!"
• "Wh-a-a-a-t?" my husband said, unable to hide his shock.
• "Da-a-a-d," Jeanette replied sweetly, "You know, making those curvy letters." (Jeanette Dalton, Greenville, South Carolina. Christian Reader, "Kids of the Kingdom.)
Listen, when we learn to TALK RIGHT, it can keep us out of trouble.
Illus: It was his first day on the job. He was a new clerk in the green goods department of a supermarket. A lady came up to him and said she wanted to buy half of a head of lettuce.
He tried to dissuade her from that goal, but she persisted. Finally, he said, "I'll have to go back and talk to the manager."
He went to the rear of the store to talk to the manager, not noticing that the woman was walking right behind him.
When he got into the back of the store, he said to the manager, "There's some stupid old woman out there who wants to buy half a head of lettuce. What should I tell her?"
Seeing the horrified look on the face of the manager, the store clerk turned about and, seeing the woman, added, "And this nice lady wants to buy the other half of the head of lettuce. Will it be all, right?"
Considerably relieved, the manager said, "That would be fine."
Later in the day, he congratulated the boy on his quick thinking. He then asked, "Where are you from, son?"
The boy said, "I'm from Toronto, Canada, the home of beautiful hockey players and ugly women."
The manager looked at him and said, "My wife is from Toronto." The boy said, "Oh, what team did she play for?" (Bruce Thielemann, "Because" Preaching Today, Tape No. 105.)
Illus: Peter Drucker said, “The most important thing in communication is to hear what isn't being said.” (Leadership, Vol. 16, no. 4.)
We are all good at reading something into something that someone never intended.
A lot of the misery and sadness could be removed from the home if the family members could learn to TALK RIGHT!
Homes are in chaos because people are CAPTIVE to destructive behavior.
We have seen that…
THE HEART MATTERS - PEOPLE
THE HOME MATTERS, - FAMILY
Also, we see that...
III. THE HARVEST MATTERS
Vs. 19 "To preach the acceptable year of the Lord."
When is the “acceptable year of the Lord”?
Look at 2 Cor. 6:2, “…BEHOLD, NOW IS THE ACCEPTED TIME; behold, now is the day of salvation.”
Salvation MATTERS TO GOD and it should MATTER to the Believer.
The Holy Spirit enables us to witness.
Illus: Next to the Apostle Paul, perhaps the greatest personal worker of all time was a man familiarly known as Uncle John Vassar.
In a large railroad station one day he saw a lady with a serious look on her face sitting by herself.
He went to her and began to talk to her; found she was unsatisfied with life. He witnessed to her about salvation. She did not yield although her eyes were filled with tears.
Just as he left, her husband came up and, seeing the tears, demanded to know what was going on.
She told him that a man had just been telling her of her need to be saved.
• "Why didn't you tell him to go about his business?" said the indignant husband.
• And she answered, "Husband, if you had only been here, you would have seen that he was about his business." ("Choice Illus." W.W. Clay pg. 48)
Conclusion:
We have looked at what MATTERS to mankind. When we MATURE as a Christian, we began to recognize some of these things in life do not really MATTER.
Also, we have looked at what MATTERS to God. And what MATTERS to God should MATTER to us as Christians.
The Lord knows what really MATTERS!
I. THE HEART MATTERS (People)
II. THE HOME MATTERS (Home)
III.THE HARVEST MATTERS (Souls)
These are THREE of the many things that should MATTER TO US ALSO!
Remember, if they mattered to God they should matter to us.
