Video Shine (drop box)
Welcome
Slide #1
I think at one time or another in every person’s life…whether they are a Christian or not……they find themselves asking the question…
“Does God Really Care”
This question is either directed personally towards their life…or it’s directed generically about things happening all around the world.
And truth being told…in the times we live in today…it’s a very legit able question.
A person can’t turn on their T.V set….turn on their computer…read the newspaper…or simply travel out in their own community and not see things… that make a person begin to ask the question.
(Does God Care)
Slide #2 Banner
I don’t know how many of you noticed on your way into the church this morning…the new banners we have hanging on our marquee board out by the road.
“Does God Care...
As a person reads through the Bible they can’t help and read numerous stories about how He did care for people like… Abraham…Isaac…and Jacob…Moses…and King David.
But what about closer to home…
Does He care about me in general… Does He care about my family… Does He care about my finances…my health…my future?
Does He care that I’m currently unemployed…does He care that I’m losing the mortgage on my house…does He care that my car just got reposed…
Does He care that my parents are getting divorced…or that I’m secretly addicted to pain killers?
Does He care about the call I just got from the doctor telling me my time is limited?
Does He care that I live in a dysfunctional home…does He care that I was abused as a child?…………………………….does He care!
And the answer to these is yes!
God does care about each and every one of these concerns and hundreds of others that daily go unmentioned.
My hope and prayer is that in the next couple of weeks…if you are a person who is carrying around the question in your mind… “Does God Care”
That you will find out that the God that you are here to learn about today…is a God of Love…A God of Compassion…and a God who does care about you and each specific… situation you are dealing with.
Prayer
When life doesn’t go the way that we feel it should be going we automatically assume that God is out to get us.
I’m sure that there are very few of us here this morning that did not carry in with us some kind of concern that seems too big for you to handle.
Slide #3 Newspaper ad
You see God has a plan for you today…and if you are willing to let Him reveal it to you…your future will never be the same.
You can walk out of this building…a changed person…a person whose only concern is sharing what God has done for you with everyone you meet.
This reminds me of the story of Moses…
When the average person… here’s about Moses they automatically assume that he lived a care free lifestyle because he was chosen by God Himself.
But if you know about the story of Moses …you know that that is far from the truth.
Moses was Born a Hebrew slave (His mother and father were from the Levi tribe)
Pharaoh was the ruler in Egypt at the time of his birth…and because the Levi tribe was not of Egyptian blood…they were automatically placed into slavery.
(Pharaoh was not a God follower)…He assumed that he was a god…
His leadership was weak because of his lack of relationship with the Heavenly Father…the one and only God.
Pharaoh feared the Hebrew tribe would outgrow the Egyptians…so he ordered all Hebrew male children were to be put to death as soon as they were born.
Because of this Moses mother fearing his death…Gave him up for adoption…
(Nile River…woven basket with pitch)
(Daughter of Pharaoh was down by the river) …he was raised the son of the Egyptian Pharaoh…
(Finest schools…finest lifestyle…at the snap of his fingers had everything he ever wanted
(60 TV…I phone 4…PS 3…monster truck…the Lexus…the mansion on a hilltop…he had it all)
But what he didn’t have was…the relationship w/ God…the only thing in this life that TRULY matters.
I remind you that He was born a Hebrew slave…and as time always does…time revealed to him his birth right.
He chooses to return to Slavery…(WHY ) because he was called by God to lead the Israelites out of Egypt.
Just like many of us here today…we have been called to do bigger and great things for God…but were not willing to sacrifice our time to serve Him.
We’ve got a million excuses why we say we can’t do it…but in the heavenly court…those excuses will always get denied.
If anyone had a legit able excuse…it was Moses…he was the one who was neglected by his birth parents…put up for adoption…sent down the river in a basket.
Moses life was far from perfect… he had to work with many people.
As a result of his submissiveness he held the responsible of leading the Million + children of Israel… out of their bondage on the journey towards the Promised Land that God had prepared for them.
(Slow)
God is a God of Love and of Compassion… God had chosen which leader would lead the Israelites into the land Made of Milk and Honey.
Sounds nice doesn’t it?..(Milk and Honey) everything you ever wanted was there…
But this is where life becomes a problem.
Much too often all we think about 24/7 is obtaining our own milk and honey…and as a result…
God is the one who once again…suffers the consequences. (hasn’t He suffered enough for us)
What kind of relationship does God really desire from us?
Slide #4
Psalm 53:2 says…God looks down from heaven on the children of men to see if there are any who understand, who seek after God.
Do you love God…do you seek after God…Do you even believe in God?
I mentioned in the begging of my message that God created each of us for a purpose.
Let me share with you a few lines from Jim Cymbal’s new book called “You Were Made For More”
Listen to what he has to say about each person’s calling. (read pg.17-18)
Clearly God wants more from us than just a 2 hour commitment.
This is where we…fail miserably in Gods eyes…just like the Israelites who consistently went against the law. (Causing Him to reprimand them…)
Still today people are consistently pushing their relationship with God into the red zone.
(Close to the place where God is becoming frustrated with them.)
And then when God is left with no other option but to take action by getting our attention…we ask the question…Does God Care?
Yes He cares…He cared enough for the Israelites (a people who day after day took advantage of his love for them…Sound familiar?)
And even though they took advantage of Him… We still read in Ex. 14…that He provided an escape route for them with a seemingly impossible ending.
They had no idea that by God leading them to the edge of the Red Sea… He was again displaying His love and compassion and protection for them.
In Exodus chapter 14:1-9 God had told Moses to lead the people to the edge of the Red Sea and make camp there…
God had a plan to once and for all… show Egypt that He was the one true God.
He was showing once again to the people who daily disappointed Him that He does love them.
Slide #5 The Red Sea (Ex. 14:10-18)
How many of us here today have stood at our own Red Sea and begged God for help?
We want God to be there for us in our time of need…but we aren’t willing to give God our time in order for Him to help us.
Day after day we live our lives for our milk and honey.
But what we fail to realize is just like the Israelites…our promise land does not come without a cost.
For the Israelites…sometimes they won their battles in spectacular fashion…while at other times they made serious mistakes…that set them back.
For us…our pursuit of our promise land…might cause us to miss opportunities to spend time with God himself…causing us to miss out on much needed direction.
Each minute of every day…our time with God passes us by… And once the time passes by…we can never return to the missed moment.
Psalm 53:2 tells us that God desperately desires to have a personal relationship with you.
It is true…God is all about love and compassion.
Whether or not you chose to accept Him for who He is…He still loves you enough to provide you with…food…clothing…a job…a place to live…and most important…He thought enough of you to create you.
Your daily provisions will be met.
I challenge each one of you here today…for the next 30 days…place God first in your life…and see what a difference He can make.
I’m not asking any of you here today to stop living your dream…what I’m asking is that you include God in it.
God has a plan for each of us here today. And it’s time that that you begin you journey.
Your journey for the next (30) thirty days must include 2 primary objectives.
Slide #6 (first) Spread the gospel to all…
Slide #7 (second) Nurture those who receive it… so that they can grow into spiritual maturity.
I close today with (Matthew 28:19-20)
“Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
Our goal in life is captured in these two verses.
Our Mission statement here at VP says…
”We exist to GO into the world, WIN people to Jesus, and BUILD them to be fully devoted followers of Christ!”
Slide #8
