I mean it, He is. Funny though how wording and pre-conceived ideas can alter a phrase like that in the way we hear or perceive it.
God. Is. Out. To. Get. You.
“I came to seek and to save the lost.” – Jesus (Luke 19:10)
Then Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching...and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every sickness and every disease among the people.
When He saw the multitudes, He was moved with compassion for them, because they were weary and scattered, like sheep having no shepherd. (Matt. 9:35-36)
God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, BUT...that the world through Him...might be saved. (John 3:17)
Have you ever read there in John 1 how Jesus was/is the Word, who became flesh and dwelt among us? Guess what God did back in the OT when He saw His people suffering, as a result of their sinful rebellious ways and incurred the consequences of their sins...”He sent His word and healed them, and delivered them from their destructions.” (Ps. 107:20) These were the same folks, as we read there, who ‘sat in darkness and in the shadow of death bound in affliction and irons because they rebelled against the words of God and despised the counsel of the Most High.” (10)
Let’s read in that same psalm: “He brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death and broke their chains in pieces.” (14)
“Fools, because of their transgression, and because of their iniquities, were afflicted.” (17)
“Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble, and He saved them out of their distresses.” (19)
As I have asked before and will ask you again here: When did God change? (Mal. 3:6)
That same ‘word’ that God sent to heal back in Ps. 107 is the same ‘Word’ who became flesh and dwelt among us. (John 1:1,14).
Peter was sharing there at the house of Cornelius in Acts 10 that “The word which God sent to the children of Israel, preaching peace through Jesus Christ (who is Lord of all)...that ‘word’ was proclaimed throughout all Judea”...telling all “how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power, who went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with Him.” (36-38)
God. Never. Changes.
And here is even a more profound truth that has been lost on so, so, many people today:
God. Means. What. He. Says.
Over the years, I’ve been in many, many schools taking pictures. I also taught for over 20 years.
One thing I have noticed when classes file in, for example, to have their pictures taken is you can quickly tell which class the kids truly believe that their teacher means what she says. Other classes...meh...not so much. Same could be said about parenting styles when you see families out in public. I don’t think I need to elaborate here...you should know what I’m talking about. ;- )
It saddens me to state this observation as well, and it is arguably an opinion, but I fear that more folks than not who profess to be ‘believers’ in Christ today fall in to that category of not really believing God means what He says. I mean, we do gather from scripture that the professing church at the end of the ages will have ‘fallen away’ or ‘fallen asleep’. (2 Thess. 2:3; Matt. 25:5). Or been led astray by deceiving spirits and a plethora of ‘other gospels’. (1 Tim. 4:1; 2 Cor. 11:2-3; Matt. 24:4,5,11,24)
God’s people continue...to be destroyed for a lack of knowledge. (Hosea 4:6). And Jesus came...to ‘get us’. And if we are not being destroyed, so many are hanging on by a thread and terribly weary, disillusioned, and many were like me for so long, on ‘life support’ or ‘auto-pilot’.
We had a ‘form of godliness devoid of the true power of God working in our lives’ (2 Tim. 3:5). We knew how to ‘talk the talk’, but it was ‘walking the walk’ where we fell short.
We were like those disciples in the boat in the darkness in the middle of the sea. And the wind was blowing and the wind was against them. And we read there in Mark 4:47-51 that Jesus came to them walking on the sea and ‘would have passed them by’.
But they cried out. (49). And as He drew near He spoke peace to them and the wind ceased. And they were greatly amazed.(51)
Does Jesus still do that today? You better believe He does. But you also better believe He means what He says as well. We seem to have more of a problem with being willing to hear what He has to say. (How much time do you spend digging through His word to hear? More on this later.)
Remember this passage?- “How often I wanted to gather your children together as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing!” (Matt. 23:37)
Or what about this one: -“A certain king sent out his servants to call those who were invited to the wedding; and they were not willing to come,” offering up a host of excuses about how busy they were...or simply ‘making light of it and went their own ways’. (Matt. 22:1-5)
Sigh. I’ve been there and done that. (I just never got the t-shirt)
Yet God...is still out to ‘get you’.
“Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavily burdened and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you WILL find rest for your souls.” - Jesus (Matt.11:28)
Where the message gets hijacked is, what does it really mean to ‘come to Jesus’. If you are out in that boat...at night...fighting against all the elements of the world and darkness and are still unwilling to come to Him with your whole heart....Jesus will just keep walking and pass you by. But He never stops looking for hearts that are ‘ripe and ready’ to truly commit so that He can ‘show Himself strong’ to you. (2 Chron. 16:9)
God. Means. What. He. Says.
So why are so many still struggling in that boat worn out from all the adversity and darkness and ‘contrary winds’ that seem to be increasing? I would submit to you that it is not because they are not aware of all the promises of blessings...that the word is filled with.
It’s the warnings. The serious warnings. The ‘other side of God’, that really is not preached about anymore.
Paul wrote: “Consider the goodness...AND...the severity of God: on those who ‘fell’, severity; but toward you (those who follow Him with a whole heart) – goodness....IF...you continue in His goodness. Otherwise you also will be cut off. (Rom. 11:22)
The rich, young ruler that we talked about last week? Did he come to Jesus with his ‘whole heart’? No. Was ‘ninety percent’ good enough? No. When that man turned away because he was unwilling to ‘surrender all’, Jesus did not chase after him asking to reconsider.
God means what He says.
Oh, and about that ‘wedding’ we read about there in Matt. 22 where everyone seemed to be too busy to respond to...there really is a wedding that is fast approaching. And in Matt. 25:10, we read that “when the bridegroom came, those who were ready went in with him to the wedding; and the door was shut.”
There really is more to this ‘getting ready’ than reciting a short prayer and getting on some local church’s membership rolls. You might want to join me tomorrow.
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