INTRODUCTION — The World Is Exhausted… And It Shows
I saw a shirt the other day that said:
“Running on coffee and a playlist of coping mechanisms.”
It felt a little too accurate.
Our world is full of people who… • are overwhelmed by their calendars
• carry silent battles in their minds
• keep smiling emojis on the outside while they’re fraying on the inside
• scroll through a thousand voices yet feel like no one actually knows them
We have more information than any generation before us…
and more confusion than ever about who we are.
Tons of connections.
Not much community.
A flood of content.
A famine of compassion.
So the question almost asks itself:
What does the world actually need right now?
Not more noise.
Not more arguments.
Not more performance.
What the world needs now… is Jesus
and Jesus always shows up through His people.
You and me.
This church.
Here. Now.
Esther 4:14 whispers into our century:
> “Who knows whether you have come to your royal position for such a time as this?”
You’re not alive by accident.
Our church is not located here by coincidence.
We aren’t waiting for better days.
These are the days God planned for us.
We don’t need to go back to the first century.
We just need to live the first-century Jesus in the twenty-first century.
And when Jesus reached people, He did it in five simple, beautiful moves.
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1. Jesus MINGLED
He got close enough to care.
Luke 15:1–2 paints the picture:
> “Now the tax collectors and sinners were all gathering around to hear Jesus…”
Translation: Jesus was in the middle of their lives.
Not across town with binoculars.
Not behind a pulpit hoping they’d show up.
Jesus put His address near people who needed hope.
If Jesus lived in your neighborhood, He wouldn’t hide in a bubble.
He’d show up at… • the Friday night game
• the coffee shop table
• the troubled coworker’s lunch break
• the neighbor’s driveway after a long day
• the family reunion with all the complicated dynamics
He wouldn’t wait for people to “get their act together.”
He’d bring peace into their chaos.
Modern Disciple Step: Think of the people you naturally see every week.
Don’t rush past them.
Be present. Notice them.
Sometimes the miracle is just showing up and not walking past someone’s pain.
Simple Prayer:
“Jesus, help me see who is right in front of me.”
Because mission doesn’t begin with a sermon…
It begins with presence.
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2. Jesus FELT What People Felt
Sympathy before solutions.
Hebrews 4:15 says:
> “We do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses…”
Jesus didn’t just step into our neighborhoods.
He stepped into our pain.
He wept with Mary and Martha. (John 11:35)
He noticed the lonely and listened to the hurting.
People trusted Jesus…
because they felt understood.
Today, the world doesn’t need a church that wins arguments.
It needs a church that wins hearts.
We don’t lead with answers.
We lead with empathy.
Modern Disciple Step:
Ask one curious question every day:
“How are you… really?”
Then do something our culture has forgotten how to do:
Listen.
Let compassion do its quiet work.
Key reminder:
People open their hearts when they know yours is open first.
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> “What the world needs now… is a church full of people who will show up and care.”
Not complicated.
Not exhausting.
Not a thousand new programs.
Just people willing to follow Jesus across the street,
into the break room,
onto the bleachers,
into someone’s story.
That’s where revival begins.
Not in the sanctuary…
but in the everyday life God already gave us.
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3. Jesus MET REAL NEEDS
Love took action.
Acts 10:38:
> “He went around doing good and healing all who were under the power of the devil…”
Jesus didn’t ask people to climb a ladder to Him.
He climbed down into their struggle.
He fed the hungry.
He touched the untouchable.
He restored dignity to the pushed aside.
He proved that God cares about everyday pain.
When the church steps into the needs around it…
the gospel stops feeling theoretical
and starts tasting like hope.
Modern Disciple Step: When God shows you a need, ask: “What can I do, however small, to help right now?”
A meal.
A ride.
A gift card.
A handwritten note.
A few hours of your Saturday.
It doesn’t have to be spectacular.
It just has to be love.
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4. Jesus WON THEIR CONFIDENCE
Trust grows on consistency.
John 10:14:
> “I know My sheep and My sheep know Me.”
People trusted Jesus because He didn’t leave when life got messy.
Our world has trust issues.
We’ve been ghosted, used, judged, and disappointed.
People are not asking: “Is your doctrine flawless?”
They are asking: “Are you safe? Are you for me? Are you real?”
Modern Disciple Step: Be the same person in every room.
Show up again.
Keep showing up.
Trust is built like a brick wall.
One loving choice at a time.
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5. Jesus INVITED People to Follow
Love always points to Jesus.
Matthew 4:19:
> “Come, follow Me…”
Jesus didn’t simply improve lives.
He transformed destinies.
He didn’t say, “Try harder.”
He said, “Walk with Me.”
This is where many of us freeze.
We do the caring, the listening, the helping…
and then we stop short of the invitation.
But when hearts are open
and trust is strong
and love has been seen
the simplest words become powerful:
“I’d love to share a Bible promise with you.”
“Would you like to come with me to church?”
“Can I pray with you right now?”
Invitations don’t force.
Invitations welcome.
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WHY THIS MATTERS RIGHT NOW
Esther 4:14 keeps calling:
> “For such a time as this…”
Not another time.
Not another place.
Not another group of people.
This one.
Nineteen rows of ordinary-disciples-right-here right now.
> God has just the right people
and the right church
in the right community
for what He needs to accomplish…
for such a time as this.
Your gifts matter here.
Your story carries weight here.
Your friendships are on purpose here.
We are not waiting for a move of God.
We are living in one
when we love like Jesus loves.
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MONDAY MORNING CHALLENGE
Put this on one index card. Simple. Doable.
Every day this week…
1. Show up (mingling)
2. Listen well (sympathy)
3. Help someone (need)
4. Keep a promise (trust)
5. Invite gently (follow)
Five small steps.
One big Savior.
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CLOSING WORD
What the world needs now
is not a busier church
or a louder church
but a loving church.
A Jesus-shaped church.
A church that says: “We will not let our neighborhood wonder if God cares.”
Because we’re here.
And Jesus lives here.
And that changes everything.
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CLOSING PRAYER
Jesus,
Thank You for placing us in this moment and in this place.
Fill our eyes with compassion and our hearts with courage.
Take our ordinary weekday lives and make them sacred.
Use us to show Your love
to a world that desperately needs You.
For such a time as this,
here we are.
Amen.
