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Due to the large amount of sermons and topics that appear on this site I feel it is necessary to post this disclaimer on all sermons posted. These sermons are original to the author and the leading of the Holy Spirit. While ideas and illustrations are often gleaned from many sources including those at Sermoncentral.com, any similarities and wording including sermon title, that may appear to be the same as any other sermon are purely coincidental. In instances where other minister’s wording is used, due recognition will be given. These sermons are not copyrighted and may be used or preached freely. May God richly bless you as you read these words. It is my sincere desire that all who read them may be enriched. All scriptures quoted in these sermons are copies and quoted from the Authorized King James Version of the Holy Bible.
Pastor James May
GOD REALLY CARES
Ephesians 2:4-8, "But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved); and hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus: That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus. For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:"
Very early this morning I was awakened by the Holy Spirit, and as I began to think of all of us and the things that we are facing in our lives, God began to impress upon me just how much He cares for each of us and the extent of His grace and mercy that is given to each of us.
For some time I lay there, as each face passed before me and God’s love began to remind me that you are His Kids and that He is very much concerned with what is happening in every life.
All of us are guilty of walking in our own desires and sometimes forgetting about God for a while. The cares of this life, working, cooking, cleaning, tending to children and all of the demands that are placed upon us as responsible people, can become a heavy burden to carry.
I believe that the message I have for each of us this morning is that God Really Does Care about each of us and about the circumstances we face in life.
It is a marvelous thing to know that God loves us so much that He would devise a plan to allow us to be a part of His family. It was God’s original plan that every man, woman and child who would ever be born into this world would live in a perfect state of peace and beauty forever. Because of our own rebellious heart, we fell into a sinful condition where God could not allow us to be His children any longer.
In an event that can only be described as the “Ultimate Crime against Humanity and Against God”, we left the loving arms of our Father in Heaven and were grafted into the family of Satan and then given a sentence of eternal death. I believe that the heart of our Father was grieved when sin entered into His perfect creation. Even though God knew it was coming, it was still so very hard to bear. God knew the price for our redemption would be high but it was a price that He was willing to pay because of His great love for mankind.
It has often been asked, “Why would a loving God create man in His own image, give man a living, eternal soul and then allow man to fall into sin and face eternal death in the flames of Hell?”
I know that it is a concept that is hard to grasp at times but it was actually God’s great love for us that gave Satan the chance to get to us through temptation.
God desired not only a creature that He could love, but He also wanted a creature that could return that love to God, willingly, of his own choice. It would not have been any harder for God to create a race of men who were robotic in their love for Him, but that was not God’s intention. He loved man so much that He gave us the ability to choose for ourselves whether we would love Him in return or not. God did not want slaves to serve Him but children who would love Him and desire to have Him as their Father and their God.
We all know the scripture in John 3:16 where it says, "...God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. " You see, God loved you and I so much that, even when we had forsaken Him and had not even the slightest knowledge of Him, God had already formulated the plan of the sacrifice of His only Son, Jesus, on the cross, as a payment for our sins so that we could be reunited with the family of God and taken back from the power of sin and of Satan.
…God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved); and hath raised us up together…
We didn’t deserve, and we still don’t deserve, anything from God except his wrath and judgment – BUT, THANK GOD, WE ARE GIVEN HIS LOVE; HIS MERCY AND HIS GRACE INSTEAD!
We were “Dead Men Walking” as we traveled this life, moving headlong into that great precipice called death and eternity without God. There was no turning back, no way out, no escape from that terrible sentence. We could not do one thing to reverse the power of sin that held sway over our lives. Not only could we do nothing about it; we cared not to do anything about it within ourselves, until the mercy of God reached down and began to draw us back to Him in love.
Then we respond to that drawing and God, so loving and eager to receive us back, extends his grace to us and through the blood of Jesus washes and cleanses us from sin and reinstates us into our position of being a Child of God just as the father welcomed the prodigal son back home in the 15th chapter of the Book of Luke.
…And made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus…
Because God, our Heavenly Father, really cared for us, He has fore-ordained that we should enjoy the wonders and beauty of Heaven and that we should dwell with Him forever and ever. Oh what a wonderful God we have! What a privilege to be able to love Him and be called a Child of God!
How many of us, this morning, are resting with God in heavenly places? How far below the place of peace and joy do we live? The Children of God often seem to be in despair and act as though there was no answer and there was no hope for their deliverance out of the hand of Satan, but it is not God’s fault that we are not resting in Him for He has already paid the price for our peace and joy at the Cross.
That is not to say that we shall never face hardship or trouble. God’s love, mercy and grace are supplied to us, as we need them to help us to overcome those troubles so that even in the middle of them we can be at rest in Jesus because we know He has it all under control.
How many times do we lay down to rest in the night, when all seems lost and the blackness of the night adds to feeling of despair, and we wonder where God is? Friend, God is just as close as a whisper or a prayer. He is never far though it may seem that He is a million miles away.
When there is no money to pay your bills and no way possible to make it to the next paycheck – God cares. His mercy will see you through. Somehow God will make it work out. He has never failed me yet and He will never fail.
When sickness and pain rack your body and the doctors have been unable to do anything to ease the sickness, that’s when the caring and loving God steps in and showers us with His mercy. Its often hard to see the Hand of God as He moves upon the pain and sickness but He always gives us the grace we need to be an over comer in every situation.
Does God care if you can’t pay your rent? Does God care if there is no food in your house? Does God care if you are depressed or oppressed? YES, God Cares!
Hebrews 4:15-16, "For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need."
In my spirit, I can sense the pain and concern that God feels for each of us this morning. As I lay there for a long while, my mind and heart was filled with concern for each face that God brought before me.
I saw those who knew that God was leading them but they didn’t know where He was leading – so they lived in a sort of limbo, spiritually speaking, not knowing which way to go or what to do next. I say to you this morning, Hold On! Stand still and listen to the voice of the Lord. Let go of your worry and let God do the leading in His time and in His way. If the cloud or the pillar of fire doesn’t move then you should be still and wait upon the Lord too.
I saw those who lives have been deeply hurt through the uncaring attitudes of other people. Some who have seen their hearts ripped apart and their lives left in shambles because another person mistreated you and forsook you and left you dying within as they walked away. God would say to you this morning - Matthew 11:28, "Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest."
God really cares about your hurting heart and He knows your concerns for the future. Put your future in His hands. God will not fail you. He will take those burdens of depression, doubt and fear of being left alone and He will give you peace. God has always had great dreams for your life and His dreams for you will yet come to pass, no matter what may have happened to derail your life. God is able to put you back on track again if you will just wait upon the Lord and let Him do the work in your life.
I saw those children and teenagers whose parents don’t act like parents and those whose parents are split up. Some of our kids have never known what it was to have a loving mother and father to watch over them and protect them and provide for them. In our society, broken homes and wrecked marriages abound and there are countless kids who wonder what happened and was it my fault?
I don’t know who hurts the most, the kids who once had both a loving mother and father and lost that family relationship, or those kids who have never known what it was like to have both parents who really cared! Either way, it is always the kids who seem to get the worst end of a wrecked family relationship.
To each of you kids who have face this situation and been so deeply hurt by the words and deeds of parents who don’t get along with each other and often take it out on you – God says, Matthew 19:14, "… suffer little children, and forbid them not, to come unto me: for of such is the kingdom of heaven."
To those kids who suffer, the Love of Jesus Christ is ever reaching out and His arms are always wide open to welcome you to come to Him for He is your Father. Jesus can fill the emptiness and give you the love that you are missing. He can calm your fears and bring peace to your life.
You may face the troubles of a broken home but through it all God cares and He will see to it that you find a place of peace and rest and you will overcome by the power of the Cross and the Blood of the Lamb.
I saw those who are concerned about the uncertainty of their future in the financial and employment realms. God’s message to you comes from Psalms 37:25, "I have been young, and now am old; yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed begging bread."
You don’t need to worry about your job, your finances or what the future may hold for those things are in the hands of your God who really cares and He will never let you suffer or fail. He always provides the things we need and He will never forsake you.
Even when it seems hopeless, God brings hope. He will bring about the changes that are needed in your job and in your finances in His own time. Just lean upon Him and let Jesus carry that burden before it destroys your victory. You can’t do much about it anyway, but Jesus can take care of it all and still give you a happy, joyous, and victorious life.
I saw those whose body is racked with pain and who suffer days on end. The passing of the years are not kind to this body of flesh and the power of sin over this earth often leave many nearly incapacitated and unable to enjoy life the way that we would want to. It seems that so many of our elderly, and so many of those who cannot physically be in the mainstream of life, are left out and soon forgotten. Day after day, lonely hours pass and there seems to be no one left to care. The zest of life has fizzled away and now it is just a matter of survival from one day to the next.
God would say to you this morning that He Cares for you too. He has already planned the day of your Coronation. He will give you the grace to get through whatever it is that you are facing. I cannot say whether God will choose to heal you and deliver you out of your pain and suffering, but if God chooses to allow the pain to continue we can only bow to His sovereign will. No matter what comes, God will give you the grace to over come that too.
Jesus is that Great Physician – He is your doctor, your psychiatrist, your physical therapist, and your healing medicine and there is no limit to His power to heal any disease or any problem you face in your body. More importantly, Jesus is the Great Physician of your heart and soul. He can give you a heart of peace and joy in the midst of the pain. He can give you encouragement in face of disappointment and disillusionment. He can replace the feelings of despair with His love and life can and will still have a purpose for you.
For some of us this morning, God has been so gracious and kind and we are blessed to not be facing these times of trouble and sickness on a personal basis. Yet we are burdened for our brothers and sisters in Christ who are facing them.
Romans 12:5 says, "So we, being many, are one body in Christ, and every one members one of another."
If we are all of one body then we will all hurt for one another. We must also Care as God Cares! If you are experiencing the best of life right now, thank God for it, but don’t forget to pray for your fellowman. One day, you may need them to lift you up so be a blessing and do what you can to lift them up right now.
Finally, God brought the faces of many before me who do not know Him as their loving Father right now. You are the ones that God Cries For the Most of all!
The soul that is in the most pain, the most danger and the most despair – even though they may not always realize it – is that soul who has not been given eternal life through Jesus Christ and the power of the Cross.
God’s greatest tears are falling for you right now. He begs, pleads, entices and beckons you to come to Him in repentance for a life of wasted years. I know that God is reaching out to you in Love this morning because God cares for you. You are just like the rest of us once were. God had to send His son, Jesus, to die on the Cross, just to give you a way home. It’s time now to turn back toward home before it’s too late.
God can take that life that seems to be going nowhere and give you a real purpose and a life worth living. God can make the confusion, fear and hurt to go away and replace it with His love and mercy. The choice is yours so choose to come to Him right now.
You see, GOD REALLY CARES! God’s desire is that we all have a wonderful, joyful, peaceful and happy life. He has already prepared that kind of life eternally for all who will follow Him.
Wherever you fit into this message this morning, I want you to know that God knows all about it. God already has the answer for you. Will you come to Him this morning as we open these altars and let God show you just how much HE REALLY CARES?
Peace in all of these circumstances is here for you this morning. God’s greatest gifts to men are without price. You can’t earn them. You can’t pay for them. You just surrender your will to God and then accept them as His free gift to you.
The Free Gifts of peace, mercy, love, grace and provision for your lives are gifts that come from your God, who REALLY CARES!
