The Healing Word

Announcer: The Healing Word Ministry on One Place is brought to you by the generous donations of people like you. At any time during today's message, feel free to send a prayer request or make a donation using the links provided. Now, I pray you will be blessed as Pastor Jack Morris delivers a message from the Word of God that will encourage and strengthen your faith in him.

Pastor Jack Morris: We live in a world of insecurity, and there is insecurity in our thoughts and in our heart, but God will help us because in Christ there is absolute security.

Announcer: Welcome to The Healing Word, a ministry dedicated to offering strength and encouragement through God's Word for anyone facing life's challenges, bringing hope and renewing your faith. Now, here's Pastor Jack Morris.

Pastor Jack Morris: God has you covered. I thought about maybe using the title for this message is, I've got you covered. But I thought, no, that wouldn't look good at the sign at the street. So I always think of that sign at the street. So I put God has you covered, and actually this is more accurate. God has you covered. There is so much insecurity in today's world, and I'm not telling you something that you don't already know and have personally experienced, because all of us have had feelings of insecurity. And it seems to me that children are born with feelings of insecurity, that it comes in on the genes. Hospitals are asking mothers to stop by and give a half hour to just hold a baby and rock the baby because the baby, that infant, will feel more secure and more comfortable if somebody holds it near them and rocks it.

Then as children grow older, they have their little security blankets, some little pink blanket or a little blue blanket. I remember, I must, I'm sure I had some security toy or blanket, but as I can certainly remember, my sister had this little blanket that no, regardless of where we were going in the car or wherever, she always had that little blanket with her all the time. And you'll see children with a teddy bear. They're going to get in the car or on an airplane, and they're hugging that little teddy bear, and the inspector will take it and run it through the X-ray machine, that little teddy bear.

That child can hardly stand to let loose of that teddy bear in order for it to be X-rayed, and then grab it again and hold it. And then as we get older, we have our own security blankets or objects or things or even people that we hope in and we believe in that bring comfort to us. We live in a world of insecurity, and there is insecurity in our thoughts and in our heart, but God will help us because in Christ there is absolute security, and only in Christ. There is no absolutes in this world other than our salvation and our relationship to the Lord Jesus Christ. We're hearing of, and we've been hearing this for weeks or months of foreclosures on homes.

And just today, just today, before I came to church, before I have an office in my home, and on Sunday mornings I'll turn the computer on just to check to see if somebody has sent through a message or an email, prayer request. And a pastor or a minister friend, and this minister, almost as old as I am, told me that his home is going to be foreclosed upon, and he asked for prayer. I mean, it really got to me. It's really getting to me even now as I think about it. I mean, he's, he can't afford to do this, have this done to him. Nobody can, but I've known him for a long time, and he asked that we would pray for him.

But to have security in Christ is a comfort, is a blessing, is an absolute, because everything is changing. People are losing their jobs, they're trying to get new jobs, and they're hard to come by. Thank God we're in an area where we haven't been hit as hard as other parts of America, but we have been hit, and some of our people in our own congregation are feeling the effects of the recession. But feelings of insecurity. There are people who have good jobs, lots of money, beautiful homes, great bank accounts. They're using these as their security blankets now. They have all of this, and yet they still have these haunting, nagging feelings of anxiety, of insecurity, when they seem as though they have everything, and yet they feel so vulnerable when it comes to having trust and faith and feeling relaxed and feeling secure.

But to know that you're loved by God, that you may lose everything. Job said, the Lord gave, the Lord has taken away. Blessed be the name of the Lord. But if you have the Lord and you have his love and you know his love is there. I want to tell you a little story about a little 5-year-old girl. Now, I try my best before I use illustrations up here to check them out as thoroughly as I possibly can. And this story comes from Dr. James C. Brown, MD. He tells the story. He says, Mary, a 5-year-old girl, she has a tumor on the brain. She had a stroke. One side of her body is completely paralyzed. She lost her mother and father.

She doesn't have a home to go to, and they rushed her into the hospital to do an MRI on her. Now, I didn't get the rest of the story. I don't know what happened to her mother and father, but Dr. Brown only told this much of the story. And they said they were, they put her in this MRI, and apparently there must be new procedures now because he said back then, used what he said back then, he said the child had to remain perfectly still for five minutes, and they X-rayed, they were X-raying her brain, and they told her, they said, now Mary, do not talk for five minutes. Don't talk. And so they put her in there and said in about two minutes, they looked on the monitor on the video and her mouth was working.

And they heard a muffled noise. And so they pulled her out and they said, they explained to her again, said, Mary, it's distorting the images. Do not talk, do not talk. And said she would smile, but her smile was crooked because one part of her body was paralyzed. So they put her back in again and started. Now the technician was very anxious. There were several of them. They were a little bit upset because this was an emergency, and there were a number of people waiting, had appointments, and they had to get this done. And they looked in again, and there her mouth was moving again. So they pulled her out, and rather gruffly, the technician said, Mary, we ask you, please don't talk in there.

We can't take the pictures. And she had that little twisted smile on her face. She said, I wasn't talking, I was singing. She said, you said don't talk, and I didn't. I was singing. And the technicians, they said they looked at each other and they said, we felt so silly. And they said, well, what were you singing? She said, I was singing Jesus loves me. Now here's a little girl. She lost her mother and dad. I wish I knew the rest of the story. I could tell that to you. she had a tumor, has a tumor on the brain, and she was had a stroke, and she was singing, yes, Jesus loves me. You know, there are a lot of people, they're healthy, they're strong, they have seemingly everything in materially speaking, and they don't know that Jesus loves them.

Announcer: We'll be back with the conclusion of today's message in just a moment. But first, here's an invitation for you to make an impact on reaching souls with God's word.

Unidentified Speaker: Hello friends, I'm Pastor Jack Morris. I just want to take a moment to thank you for your prayers and your donations, in that order, prayers and donations. I need both from you, and if this ministry is to continue, and I believe it's God's will for it to continue, I'm going to need your partnership more so than ever before. I thank God for you. I trust that the Healing Word is a blessing. Pray that God's Word will go forth in mighty power to the saving of souls and to the healing of lives, emotions, and bodies. God bless you, dear one. In Jesus' name, amen.

Announcer: If the Healing Word has blessed you or someone you love, we invite you to prayerfully consider pledging your financial support. Simply visit thehealingword.com and click on donate now to make your tax deductible contribution. Together, let's continue to share the beautiful blessings of God's word with a world in need.

Pastor Jack Morris: Today I'm going to talk to you about the 10, you may be seated, the 10 plagues. Not the 10 plagues, but the 10th plague that God sent upon Pharaoh and the Egyptians in order to soften Pharaoh's heart so the Egyptians would release the Hebrews and let them go to the land of Canaan that God had given to them, the land that they originally came from. Now they could go back to that land. We're going to look at the screen now. We're going to read together Exodus chapter 12, verses 12 and 13. together in unison. On that same night, I will pass through Egypt and strike down every firstborn, both men and animals, and I will bring judgment on all the gods of Egypt.

I am the Lord. The blood will be a sign for you on the houses where you are, and when I see the blood, I will pass over you. No destructive plague will touch you when I strike Egypt. Now God was going to keep his promise as he always does. He makes promises, he keeps promises, his word is sure, it's infallible, it's perfect, it's going to happen just as he said. And now here is the 10th plague to soften the hearts of the Egyptians, particularly Pharaoh, that he would let the people of Egypt go. Now, here is something very important, and I want you to think about it, and I want you to get it. All the other nine plagues, the Hebrews were exempt.

There was water turned into blood, the plague of flies, the plague of gnats, the plague of frogs, the plague of boils, the plague of hail, the plague of darkness, and on and on. All of those plagues, the Hebrews were exempt. It only came on the Egyptians. But here, the 10th plague, everybody who lived in Egypt, who lived in that piece of land or property of geography, including Hebrews, everybody was under this judgment. And so God had to tell the Hebrews as well as the Egyptians, your only escape, your only place of safety and security is under the blood. There you're secure. There you are safe.

There you have nothing to fear. There is where I am with you to bless you. Now, the Bible tells us that they, in the New Testament, that a number of the Jews were talking to Jesus, and they said, we are Abraham's seed. Jesus was talking to them about repentance, coming to God, making their hearts right with the Lord through confession and repentance, and they went back to Abraham, and they say, basically, and I'm paraphrasing, repentance and confession. Why? We're Jews. We're Hebrews. We are the seed of Abraham. Jesus said in so many words, don't be fooled thinking that you have Abraham's genes in you and you're secure.

Don't be fooled. Repent. John the Baptist came. John the Baptist preached repentance to all people, regardless of nationality, regardless of race, regardless of tribe, regardless of tongue. All people must repent, turn from their sin, turn to Jesus, confess their sin, and in so doing, his blessing of security and prosperity will come upon them. Now, it's a decision that we must make. We don't have to repent. We don't have to confess. We can think, hey, I'm a good American or whatever. I can, I've been good, I've done right, and use all of that, that ridiculous humanistic rationality, but it won't work with God.

It just won't fly. Jesus said, only the blood, only repentance, only confession, only turning to him. Paul the Apostle said, there are none who are righteous. Absolutely no one is righteous, meaning this, no one is right with God until they get right with God. And they get right with God when they choose to turn to Jesus and confess and repent of their sins, then they are right with God. And that door is open to all people. People said, you mean your way is the only way? No, Jesus died for everyone. He died for the world, and all who come to him can receive him and truly be saved. It is a universal judgment.

God's judgment of condemnation is going to come upon all people, and so we need now turn to Jesus, and there we're going to find security, there we're going to find blessing and protection. Friend, my prayer and my concern is that you, your spouse, your children, or you as an individual, that you have personally asked Jesus to come into your heart, that you have in your heart, in your mind, looked to Calvary and the precious blood that he shed there and said, it was for me, and I accept that blood over me to cover me from all my sin. I can live life with security. I know I'm protected. I know I'm okay.

I'm under his care. I am in his pavilion. I'm in his shelter. Do you know him this morning? If not, this is your opportunity to come to him, turn to him, and truly receive him as your personal Lord and Savior. This is a universal salvation. I want you to look at the screen, and we're going to read Exodus 12:3. Exodus 12:3, in unison. Tell the whole community of Israel that on the 10th day of this month, each man is to take a lamb from his house. Okay, that was verse 3. Now I'm just going to go quickly. Verse 5 said, the animal you must choose must be without defect. The animal you must choose must be without any spot, any defect, anything wrong, as perfect as perfect can be, that animal must be.

You must keep the animal so many days, inspect it, and make sure that it is without defect. That's verse 5. Verse 6 says, that animal then is to be slaughtered. And then in verse 7, and here it is on the screen, I want you to read verse 7. Then they are to take some of the blood and put it on the sides and the tops of the door frames of the houses where they eat the lamb. So now notice, they must choose a lamb without defect. They must slaughter the lamb, and then they must take the blood of that lamb and put it on the houses and over the door and on the doorway, which is the sign of the cross.

This was a prefiguring or a prophecy of the coming of the true Lamb of God, Jesus Christ. Now, for centuries and millennia thereafter, the Jews would celebrate the Passover. For many years, hundreds of years, thousands of years, they would celebrate the Passover by taking a lamb, knowing that this had to be repeated over and over, and another lamb, another lamb, next year another lamb. But there was a lamb that was coming that was going to give himself for the sins of the world. These only spoke of the true lamb that was going to come in that day, and that lamb we know to be Jesus Christ. We look at point C in our outline, the universal, all-sufficient caring.

This lamb that the Israelites took was to be put over the top of the door on either side, and then the Israelite was to go in. Now, judgment was going to come on the religious and the non-religious, on those that had the promise and those who didn't have the promise. Those who had the promise must believe the promise and act upon the promise. One thing to have a promise, to hear a promise, but now to receive it and to do something. You've got to do something. You can't just say, I'm a church member, I'm a baptized church member, I'm a communion-taking church member. No, you must turn to Jesus and have a personal experience and personally know his love, just like little Mary knew his love.

You must know it that sincerely. He will give you that assurance. The Jews kept looking forward, not knowing when the true Lamb of God would come, but they knew that this act, this Passover, that tonight, when the death angel begins to pass through the land of Egypt, Egyptian, Hebrew alike, no one is exempt, no one. The death angel is coming, and the firstborn, whoever was born first in the family, if you didn't have blood on your door, on your house, on your home, on your family, and everybody could, If you did, your children are safe and the firstborn are safe. If you don't, the death angel's coming.

Listen, friends, God is a righteous God. God is a true God, but we cannot play around with God. God is a sincere God. He is an almighty God. He does not excuse anybody, but he includes everybody who will come to him and believe on him. You're included if you will believe. He encourages you to come. He yearns for you to come. He wants you to come. He gave his son so that you could come into his kingdom. You have a lamb. His name is Jesus. Say that. His name is Jesus. His name is Jesus. You have a lamb. His name is Jesus. For centuries and millennia, the Jews were looking for this lamb, and then John the Baptist comes, and John the Baptist is baptizing converts in Jordan.

When he puts them down into the water, that signified death to an old life. When he pulled them up out of the water, that signified a new life. I died to my old life of sin, my old habits, my old lifestyle, my old selfish ways, my own humanistic reasoning, and I've come up a new person in Christ. And John the Baptist was baptizing. He puts, I don't know how many down, but one he was bringing up, and when he was bringing that one up, he looked up, and there standing on the shore of the Jordan River was the Lamb of God. And John said, there he is. You've looked for centuries. Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.

It's Jesus. Jesus is the one. And in turning to Jesus, there is security. Friend, this world is not going to last that much longer. And if it does last long, when you go, you don't take nothing with you, anything at all. But you can have Jesus. You can take Jesus. You can have Jesus now, the security of Jesus now. You can lose everything like little Mary. You can have that childlike, simple-like faith and know that you're secure in him. You don't need all these toys and things and entertainment to keep you happy, making you feel safe, making you feel secure. You can feel secure in Jesus, and that's a perfect security.

Now, I want you to read Colossians chapter 1, verses 12, 13, and 14 in unison. Giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the kingdom of light. For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. You don't have to be subject to the fear of death, to the fear of the kingdom of darkness, for today he's going to transport you into the kingdom of light. Give your heart to the Lord Jesus Christ. And if you have already done so, do it again, giving thanks to the Father who has qualified you.

Shall we bow before the Lord? Amen.

Unidentified Speaker: Father God, I thank you for your holy word that tells us of your grace, your mercy, your peace. I pray, Lord, for your people, many people today, your people included, feelings of insecurity, feelings of doubt, feeling helpless, and the world is acting upon them with all of the darkness, doubt, misgiving, anxiety, and now it's seeping into our own mind, into our own hearts, into our own emotions. God, help your people to believe and to trust and to know that they're secure, wonderfully secured by the love of God and the blood of the Lamb, the Lord Jesus Christ. I pray, Lord, for those who do not know you as their Savior, that today will be the day they will turn.

They will look to the Lord. Their champion will come and deliver them since they cannot deliver themselves. They will find deliverance in Jesus Christ, who defeated death, hell, and the grave for them. I give you praise in our Savior's dear name.

Announcer: We pray that you were blessed by today's message, but before we go, are you seeking a way to start your week filled with hope and inspiration? Every Monday morning, receive a fresh devotional delivered right to your inbox to uplift your spirit and encourage you throughout the week. Pastor Jack Morris carefully crafts each message with scripture that speaks to the heart, reflections to inspire growth, and practical steps to help you live out your faith every day. These are words of hope and strength, meant to meet you right where you are. Ready to begin? Just visit thehealingword.com and click the banner to sign up.

Start each week with renewed purpose, feeling connected to God and ready for what lies ahead. We love to hear from you. Your thoughts, questions, and testimonies are so important to us. They truly bless Pastor Morris and the entire Healing Word ministry team. Please email us at contactus@thehealingword.com. Again, that address is contactus@thehealingword.com. Join us tomorrow for another Healing Word message. Until then, blessings on you.