The Healing Word

Pastor Jack Morris: Hebrews 13:5, never will I leave you, never will I forsake you. Friend, you can be an overcomer in him, but you can't be an overcomer without him. But you can resist anything, yes, anything, anything!

Guest (Male): Welcome to the Healing Word. Here is Pastor Jack Morris with today's message that will grow your faith in God and lead you to a closer walk with Jesus.

Pastor Jack Morris: 1 John chapter 4 verse 16. God is love. Friend, God sent his word and healed them, and God is sending his love to you today through his word to bring blessing and healing to you physically, mentally, emotionally, and in every way. God is love. Hear this message, it's a message that tells us that God's love is a healing love.

God's with you friend, he's going to heal you today. Believe the message and let the message build faith in your heart and God's will will be done in your life. I'm Pastor Jack Morris, I'm going to the pulpit. Come into the sanctuary now and hear the word of God and be healed.

The word of God for the hurting. The word of God. Now two things I want to mention today. First is Jesus is always with us. Never leaving us, never forsaking us. He is always with us. Secondly, I want to talk about Jesus coming in a special way when there is a special need. Even though he's with us all the time, he does break forth in special ways at certain times, certain circumstances.

So hear the word of God. Be blessed by the word of God. Be healed by the word of God. Be delivered and liberated by the word of God. Friend again, I'll say it again, this is your day. Hear the word of God and let it come in because God is here to do something beautiful for you, something wonderful.

Jesus is always with us. Say that. Jesus is always with me. Now say this, Jesus is always with me. Now read the scripture that is there. Never will I leave you, never will I forsake you. Now he is always there, always. When I feel his presence and when I don't feel his presence.

There are times you're going to feel the wonderful comforting presence of the Lord and that is a wonderful feeling to know that Jesus is there. The feeling of security, the feeling of warmth and comfort, the feeling of knowing that he's giving guidance and you're not walking alone.

Oh I wish I could go on and I wish I had a vocabulary to tell you how it feels to feel his presence and those of you who have felt his presence know what I'm talking about. It just is beyond words to feel the presence, the very presence of Jesus just standing right there, arm in arm, linked with you, with me, going through whatever we're going through.

He's always there. Notice what the scripture says, the promise. Never, we've underscored it. Never, never will I leave you nor forsake you. Never. How long is never? Whether you feel him or whether you don't feel him, it's still never will I forsake you. There are times that you're not going to feel the presence of God.

You're going to feel the absence or a feeling of the absence. But listen, listen friends, your feelings don't count. Your feelings do not dictate the terms. Your feelings are like the temperature out there. One day it's 92, the next day it's 67. Your feelings are like a thermometer, they go up and down like a yo-yo.

Feelings don't count. That's what counts. This is what counts. The promise of God is forever the same. So whether you feel him or whether you don't feel him, he doesn't change at all, he hasn't moved. He is with you all the time. Let me tell you this little story. I like to tell little stories.

This guy was driving along in his car and his wife was way over there to the passenger side and they were driving along and they were in an old pickup truck, that's really what it was. And then finally she spoke up, they were so quiet, she spoke up and she said, "It was never like this before. Remember when you and I were just all snuggled up together?"

"We were so close, we were touching each other, feeling each other. Now look at us. Look at the separation. What's gone wrong?" He just looked, he said, "I haven't moved." I'll explain that to you when you shake hands with me.

Friends, God doesn't move. If there is a movement, it's our movement away from him because he's always there. Never will I leave you, never will I forsake you. And in Psalm 118 he says this, his steadfast love endures forever. Now you just read that a moment ago in your call to worship.

It's in your bulletin, the call to worship. His steadfast love endures forever. Three times it says that. His steadfast love endures forever. Come on, say it. His steadfast love endures forever. Come on again. His steadfast love endures forever. One more time. His steadfast love endures forever.

Three times for emphasis. Maybe it's because of the trinity. The Father, his steadfast love endures forever. The Son, his steadfast love endures forever. The Holy Spirit, his steadfast love endures forever. God is saying it over and over again, you're hearing it over and over again.

Let us hear it like we're hearing it again for the first time. Let it get down deep into our hearts where we'll know that his steadfast love endures forever. Steadfast simply means it's fixed in place. It's solidly fixed in place and the word endure means it continues in that fixed state.

So regardless of how I feel, that love is on me, that love is over me, that love is surrounding me. I'm covered by his love, I'm filled with his spirit. He is with me all the time. Never will I leave you. In temptation, he's there. When temptation comes on, I feel that I'm overpowered by another power, another force greater than my power, greater than anything a human man can do to resist it.

He's there, never will I leave you. Oh that is so comforting to me. Friend, let me tell you something, fellows and ladies, when temptation comes, put that scripture in your mind, memorize it. If you can't memorize it, write it on a three by five card, put it on your dashboard of your car, put it in your pocket, put it in your purse and when that temptation is there and those thoughts are going through your mind, quote it.

Let it come out verbally, loudly. Hebrews 13:5, never will I leave you, never will I forsake you. Friend, you can be an overcomer in him, but you can't be an overcomer without him. But you can resist anything, yes, anything, anything, any power, any force.

Too many of God's people are succumbing to doubts, to fears, to evil thoughts, to evil behaviors. We're giving in, we're giving in because we can't fight the devil. The devil has power. We can't fight evil, evil is a terrible force in the world today.

But when you have Jesus and you know you have Jesus and when you feel his presence and when you don't feel his presence, you still have Jesus. He's there with you all the time blessing you. And when trouble comes, and trouble will come friend, let me say it again, life is going to hurt you.

Many of you have already been hurt by life. Life is hurting some of you right now. And so when that trouble comes and you just feel pressed down, pressed down, a heavy weight, a heavy burden, a cloud, a grayness in your thinking, it's like a cloud over you. Say those words of Jesus, say, "Jesus, you said I will never leave you nor forsake you."

And regardless of how I feel and how the trouble is upon me, you are greater than my problem. You're greater than my trouble. You're with me. When I'm sick, never will I leave you nor forsake you. When misfortune comes, never will I leave you nor forsake you. Friend, you're hearing it, you're hearing it, you've heard it so many times before, but hear it again today and be blessed by it. He is always with us, always with us.

Well now here they are, so defeated, these two disciples of the Lord. Now watch Jesus come near. He comes now in a very special way just like he's going to come to you this morning in a very special way. I'll tell you, I feel almost tingly right now because I know somebody's going to get something today that you have been longing for, praying for, hoping for.

It's going to come in an answer to prayer. I feel it inside me, I really do. It's happening because somebody is not just hearing but you're listening with an open heart and an open mind and the word of God is like seed that's being planted and it's going to happen, something's going to come forth that's going to be beautiful and wonderful.

Well here comes Jesus to these men who are saying, "He's dead. We saw him crucified. We saw the stone. He's dead. He's dead." You keep saying the same thing, "He's dead, he isn't here, he doesn't answer prayer, I've been praying for years about that." No, I'm praying again like I'm praying for the first time. I'm taking it to the Lord in prayer.

Well here's this stranger that comes in a very specific way like he comes to all of us in specific situations in a very specific way. He comes to them and look what happens. He walks with them, he talks with them, he opens the scripture to them, he breaks bread with them.

Hey are you getting this? This is the formula. This is the formula that I'm to give you today. This is a formula. Now you and I want a quick fix. Of course we do. You know, I want Jesus to do it right now, right now. I've been waiting, I wish he'd have done it yesterday, but I want it right now.

But here's a formula. For the ladies you're going to bake a cake, you have to have a recipe, a formula. Whatever you're going to do, you have a formula, a recipe, whatever it is. Now watch him. Jesus comes and he walks. Okay, you see the word walk underscored? He walks.

Now this is what he's telling us in this scripture, that he desires to walk with us daily. Daily we need to claim his presence. We need to absolutely out loud say, "Thank you Lord, you never leave me, you never forsake me, you're with me." We need to say it to him. We need to affirm that in our hearts that he is walking with us.

Now the second thing is what? Talks. He's talking with them. This is prayer. Jesus is talking to them. Not only is prayer me talking to God, but God talking to us. And even this sermon now is a form of prayer, God talking to the hurting. He talks with us. Now the third is what? He opens scripture.

The word of God comes forth in mighty power. It's the bread of life, it's the water of life, it's the meat of life, it's the manna from heaven, it's our strength. He begins to open the scripture and then he breaks bread, which is a form of Holy Communion. Now communion is not going to mean anything unless there is that daily walk with the Lord.

It's going to be a ritual. You're going to come up here, there are people today who they'll come out perhaps on a communion Sunday to take communion, but they haven't walked with God, they haven't had a daily prayer life with God, they haven't had the scripture taught to them, either privately reading it, in a small group learning it, in a Sunday school class learning it, in a worship service learning it.

I mean the scripture is just sort of a hit and miss thing and then, and then, and then he breaks the bread. So first he walks with us daily. He talks with us daily. He opens the scripture to us daily and then communion service is when we really meet the Lord in a very unusual wonderful way, appreciating his broken body and his shed blood and we know the power of his broken body, his shed blood and his resurrection.

There's the formula. You need to look at your bulletin, take it home, memorize it, read the scripture again. Friend, you may have to go through a little exercise to get to where you want to be, to get that temptation broken, to move beyond that troubled situation.

The scripture needs to be opened to you, it will open to you and then God will have communion with you in the breaking of bread, the Lord's supper, the fruit of the vine, the wafer. It will come alive. It'll be meaningful to you and it won't be just a ritualistic service that you're going through.

When sickness comes, you have been walking with the Lord, you've been talking with the Lord, you've had the scripture open to you, you've been taking communion. When misfortune comes, you've been walking with the Lord, you've been talking with the Lord, you've had the scripture open to you, he's now going to break the bread and have spiritual communion with you.

You have already been prepared. Sometimes we get sick, "Oh, get the church to pray for me!" Yeah that's wonderful, you need to do that, but you need to have personally been walking with God, talking with God, having scripture open with God, breaking bread with God. Friend, you've got to do something. You've got a formula. It's a formula in the word of God for our healing and our deliverance and our wholeness in Christ.

Does anybody know what I'm talking about or trying to talk about today? Now these men said as they walked that way, they said when he opened the, began to open the scripture to them, they said, "Did not our hearts burn within us?" That's the kind of heartburn we all want. Don't need an Alka-Seltzer for that one.

Now did not our hearts burn? As I was preparing this over and over again, I felt almost like, no not almost, it was true. Every time I would go back and begin looking at this scripture and I've been looking at it for days, there was like a wave of glory would come over me, a wave of presence would come over me.

I'd have to stop and pray for a moment, walking with God, talking with God, scripture opening to me, God breaking bread with me. God was there. Friend, today your heart will burn within you. There's a little pilot light that's in side every Christian today.

The flame may have gone out, but I truly believe that that pilot light is there. But the Holy Spirit wants to breathe upon that pilot light and blow it into a flame of glory, of Pentecostal glory, of upper room glory. God is here to bless. Oh how he cares and how he loves and how he wants to bless.

Now notice, notice this, one more thing. Oh one more thing. I'm so glad you're here today. I'm so glad you're here. He walks with them, he talks with them, he opens the scriptures to them, he breaks bread with them, he does one more thing. Look at the bottom one. He sends them back to church.

Friend, God's not going to do anything with you until you and I recognize we are part of a redeemed company of people. You are not a solo redeemed individual. You are redeemed in a company. Jesus said, "I will build my church." That's the theme of the 45th anniversary of the Largo Community Church.

Yes he builds individuals as he builds them into the body of Christ and he's building you into the body. People say, "Oh I can stay home, I don't need the church." Friend, you're weak, you're puny, you're nothing without Jesus. You can't fight battles without Jesus, you can't fight temptations, you can't fight sickness.

There's really nothing you can do. Now the Lord has given us a prescription. A prescription, you don't need a prescription, a doctor's prescription, you can't take this to the pharmacy or to the drugstore and get it filled out. There's something deep inside where that little pilot light is that no prescription, no medication, no one can get to it but the Holy Spirit.

But when the Holy Spirit gets to it, the Holy Spirit can touch you where you're hurting, where your greatest need is, where your doubt is, where your fear is, where your insecurity is, where your lossness is. Friend, you're not long for this world.

Jesus is coming and you're going to go to heaven in company. You're not going to a solo heaven. You're not going to say, "Oh I can be in heaven without the body of Christ. I can be in heaven without God's people." Friend, you are an intelligent, smart person. What kind of reasoning is that?

Friend, if you don't know God's people now and have that warm near fellowship, touching one another, shaking hands with one another, laughing and loving and hugging one another, friend, there is just something missing in your life. You need the formula. Follow the formula.

And when you don't follow the formula it's like the doctor says, "Jack, if you don't take the prescription, I can't sit behind my desk and do anything for you." Friend, if you don't take the prescription—walking, talking, opening scripture, breaking of bread, and going back to the church—Jesus sent those two disciples, he said, "You don't need to be out here alone on this road by yourself, sharing your doubt and amplifying your doubt. You need to get back where there's faith.

You need to get back to the house of God. You are a people of God then be with the people that you claim to be like. Be with the people that you are." That's why you're here today. So I'm preaching to the choir right now. You're here in the house of the Lord.

Now these are holy habits. Some habits we think of habits as being wrong, wanting to be delivered from habits. But these are holy habits. These are things that we need to do consistently and regularly daily—walking, talking, having the scripture open, communing with God, being part of the people of God.

Friend, do let me ask you a question. Do you know who you are and do you know who you belong to? Hey you've been running with the wrong crowd. Amen? Yes, that's right, you're my kind of people. I want to be with you. You're my spiritual family. You're the people that strengthens me and helps me and I need you and so Jesus sends them right back to the people of God.

Now Jesus shares his resurrection with all of us. You know those disciples on that road had a resurrection experience? They went back to church, their church, the twelve disciples, the eleven disciples, and the ladies that were following and there were other people.

They went back and they identified with them and said, "I'm one with you, you're one with me, the spirit of God that's in you, the spirit of God is within me. I can't leave you out there and me over here and say we're one because we're not one, we're never together only on rare, rare occasions."

Well maybe on rare, rare occasions God's going to heal you. Friend, life's going to hurt you, troubles are going to come, follow the formula and know his resurrection power within you. He will bless you. Now the resurrection is not ours. The resurrection is his.

He's the one that rose from the dead. It is totally his. But here's the good point. He arose, now you can arise above that temptation, that doubt, that family problem, that difficulty, that hurt that has come into your life.

You can rise above it in resurrection because he will share it with you. Remember who you are and remember to whom you belong. You belong to Jesus. Do you know that? Do you know that? How many of you will say, "I do know that, I do know that."

Oh I'm so glad that you do. Now live in victory. Follow the formula. Watch your prayers start answering. Now if your prayer hasn't been answered, look at the formula again and say, "Hey here's where I need to shore up a little bit. I need to shore up in my daily walk, I need to shore up in my scripture reading, I need to shore up in wherever I need to shore up."

And step in there and shore up. Your prayer, listen, it may be a day, it may be a week, it may be a month, I don't know when it's going to be answered, but when you follow the formula, listen, he doesn't have a formula for one person and somebody else have another formula.

Listen, if everybody served God, went to church, or didn't go to church like you did, what kind of church would this church be? There wouldn't be a church. Friend, be the person that God has redeemed you to be and the blessing will come. Blessing will come. Amen. Everybody say praise the Lord. Praise the Lord. All right let's bow together.

Guest (Male): If today's message strengthened your faith, we invite you to stand with The Healing Word through your prayers and your generous support. Every gift helps us take the gospel to more people who desperately need to hear that Jesus still saves. Join us tomorrow for another Healing Word message. Until then, blessings on you.