Does God Really Care? | Jentezen Franklin

0:00 Hello, this is Jensen Franklin, and thank you so much for joining us for this week's podcast. Our goal is to provide you with biblically-based teachings that will challenge, inspire, and equip you to live for Jesus. If you haven't already, I'd love for you to go ahead and subscribe today to this podcast so you can get the latest updates from us and you don't ever have to miss a new message. Let's go right into the service. Record it at Free Chapel. I believe it's going to bless you today. John chapter 6. I'll begin reading with verse 5. The setup, the previous verses describe thousands of people following Jesus into a wilderness area. and after he had taught for hours and held them spellbound with his words and his teachings, he was concerned about their need for food and drink.

1:05 And verse 5, then Jesus lifted up his eyes and seeing a great multitude coming toward him, He said to Philip, where shall we buy bread that these may eat? Now listen to this part. But he said this to test him. For he himself knew what he would do. I have never quite seen that line like that, that he put a challenge out to his disciples. There's thousands of hungry people, 5,000 men plus women plus children, easily 15,000 people. And they all need something to eat. And one of the disciples spoke up to the challenge that Jesus had presented them with.

2:04 And he said, well, Lord, if we had 200 days wages, because that's what he's when he said, if we had 200 penny worth, which was 200 days wages, it wouldn't be enough to buy even small morsels of bread. Jesus, he did this. He asked him. He put a challenge before him to test him, to prove him. I want to see if you really understand who I am. I want to see if you really trust me when you don't know what to do, but I know what to do. And then the text said, he did this to prove them for he himself knew what he would do. That brings me great consolation.

3:04 I'm preaching today to you that he knows what he's doing. And that he does care. He really, really does care. And he knows what he's doing. For he knew. They didn't know. All they saw was challenge. All they saw was need. All they saw was overwhelming.

3:30 Overwhelming circumstances that they were not adequately equipped to deal with. They knew there was no convenience store. They knew that they couldn't even afford to buy a pack of crackers. to pass out. They knew, but he knew before they ever got in the problem, he knew what he would do.

3:59 You see, he knows everything. He controls everything. The Bible said by him all things exist. He was in the world and the world was made by him. Before time there was God. Before angels, there was God. Before space and galaxies, there was God. Before creation, there was God. He spoke everything into existence. This God who could not die, he was eternal. He was the beginning and the end, and there is no end to him. But this God who could not die found a way that he could die and taste death for every one of us. This God who could not be tempted was tempted like all of us yet without sin. This God who had no blood, who had no bones, who had no skin. He was a spirit. He found a way that he could be just like us and yet be God inside of skin bones with blood. And he knew what he would do without controversy. This is the great mystery of God. The text said that God was manifest in the flesh in Jesus Christ. And when When 5,000 women and 5,000 men were hungry, he challenged them for he knew what he would do.

5:36 And I don't know what kind of challenge you're facing. And I don't know what kind of circumstance you're dealing with. And I don't know how many of you are wringing your hands and you're walking the floor and you're having sleepless nights, tossing and turning, worrying about your babies or worrying about your children, worrying about your life, your finances, your health. Whatever the issue is, you don't know what to do. And you even wonder, because it's been a while since you've heard anything, God gets mighty solid, it seems like, when we need Him the most. He has a tendency to just try us and prove us and see how much we'll really trust Him. But He knows what He's going to do and knew before you ever got in your circumstances, He knew what He would do about it. he does have a plan and he always knows what he will do. Matthew 12 and verse 25, the Pharisees were saying he cast out devils by Beelzebub. They were thinking that, and the Bible said he knew their thoughts. Luke 6 and verse 8 said that when they were in the temple on the Sabbath and a man with a withered hand was there and Jesus started to heal. And the scripture said he knew their thoughts, how they wanted to criticize him on the Sabbath for healing a man's hand in the temple because John chapter two said he knew all men and he knew what was in them. John five in verse six, the man at the pool of Bethesda who had been there 38 years, the text said he knew he had been a long time in that condition. The enemy wants you to think that Satan wants you to think that God has forgotten about you, but he knew for a long time that he had been and he knew he didn't forget him.

7:31 He knew where he was and what he was going through. And then in John 6 61, when Jesus knew within himself, his disciples murmured. And then John 6, 64, some of you believe not for Jesus knew from the beginning who they were that believe not and who should betray him. He knew, he knew all men. He knew what was in their hearts. John 13 and one, Jesus knew that the hour had come that he should depart out of this world. He knew the timing. He knew all things. He, he still knows the timing. He still knows what you're going through. He still knows exactly where you are and how long the condition and the circumstances have been going on. He knew, he knew John 16, 19. he knew that they were desiring to ask him.

8:32 Some of the words you never want to hear Jesus speak over you are found in Matthew 25 and verse 12. Verily I say unto you, I know you not. Luke 3, 27, I know you not. Depart from me, you worker of iniquity. Luke chapter 5 and verse 42, But I know you that you have not the love of God in you. I'm telling you, you cannot fool God. He looks beyond the surface of religiosity. He looks beyond what we see and people see on the outside. And he knows the hearts of men. He knows whether you have the love of God in you right here, right now. every one of us, he knows what's our, what we're thinking about, what our questions are, where we are, what we're going through, where we live. He knows when he sees us, if the love of God is in us.

9:34 And when you understand that in John eight and verse 14, he said, my reward is true for I know where I came from and I know where I go. And I want you to know that he, the two things you should never, ever not know is where you came from and where you're going. Don't ever forget the pit from whence he dug you out of. Don't ever forget the condition you were in. Don't ever get to the place that you start feeling like that you deserve all the blessings of God in your life. You don't other than the blood of Jesus Christ is worthy of it. And never forget where you came from and never forget where you're going in the middle of your present trial. You're going to the other side. John 10 in verse 14 says, I am the good shepherd and I know my sheep. He knows us. He knows where we are. He said in verse 27 of the same chapter, my sheep hear my voice and I know them. John 13, 18. I speak not to you all. I know who I have chosen. I know who I have called. I know who I have put my hand upon. Thank you, Lord. Thank you for that. John 14, seven and nine. If you had known me, you would know my father. For if you have seen me, you have seen him. Mark 13 and three, heaven and earth will pass away, but my word shall not pass away. But of the day and the hour, when I will come again, is what he's referring to knoweth no man, but the father knows and he will reveal it to the son. You know, he's coming again, but we don't know when, but he knows, he knows what he's going to do. He's not worried about the antichrist. He's not worried about,

11:43 uh, the six, six, six number. He's not worried about artificial intelligence. He's not worried about Iran, Russia, or any of them. He said, I know what I'm going to do and man can't stop it. Nobody can stop it. You see, when you understand that, he's always known what he would do. There's never been a circumstance. And let's just make it more personable. I want to take you to the book of Job for a moment. Here's this man named Job. He's the most blessed man in the land. He's got 10 children. And all of a sudden, his world is turned upside down. And all of a sudden in one day, messenger after messenger brings bad news on top of bad news on top of worse news. And it gets so bad. His messenger comes and says, we were raided. And all of your flocks, everything that you had, the thousands and thousands of cattle and sheep and everything that you had, it's been stolen.

12:47 And all your servants were kidnapped too. And by the way, the barns have been lit on fire and you've lost all of your savings. Everything is gone. You're a poor man. It happened in one day. And then on the heels of that comes another messenger. Your 10 children were feasting in the home and a whirlwind came and they're dead. All of them. 10 funerals you've got to go to. Ten children, you and Miss Job must go and bury ten of your children in one day. And then comes the bulls. And he did not know what was going on. He couldn't find God. He didn't understand God. He didn't know why. He didn't know God told him nothing. But God knew what he would do. When he was at his darkest night, when he was walking the floor, when he was scraping himself with pottery, broken pottery, and dealing with sickness, and dealing with grief, and a broken heart, and missing his babies, and missing his children.

13:53 These things happen in life. No one is exempt from tragedies, and trials, and deep valleys, and situations that leave you in such a fog spiritually that you're numb and you don't know what to do and you don't have any answers. But God knows what he's going to do in every circumstance. And if you can't shout over your present circumstance, I want you to shout over a God who says, I take even what the enemy sent Job for your evil and I'm going to turn it for your good. He knew when he was covered with bulls, he knew when he was crying all by himself cause his friends had deserted him and his wife had said, curse God and die. Not because she was a mean, bad person, but because she was disillusioned.

14:56 She didn't understand how can a life start out so beautiful and end the family in this kind of tragedy, in this kind of pain? How can it happen? And she had so many questions they didn't know. They were wringing their hands and he didn't have any answers. God wouldn't speak. But God knew what he was doing. God knew that there was a conclave going on in heaven. And God knew that Satan had come in and God had challenged him and said, have you considered my servant Job? And Satan said, oh, yeah, you got it. He's got it made. You've got a hedge around him. Take down the hedge. Lift all the blessings and watch him curse you. And God said, I take this deal. And the angels are watching and the demons are watching. Job didn't know. He didn't know. He didn't understand.

15:47 But God knew I'm going to I'm going to use this right here to confound principalities and powers. I'm going to use this right here to show the devil that even though he couldn't live right when he was in heaven, that there's a man down there that can be in miserable conditions. And at the end of the day, he'll say the Lord gives the Lord takes away. There goes that arm up and he'll praise me with his breath. if that's all he's got left. And that's exactly what happened. And God gave him double. And God gave him 10 more children. And he had 20 because he had 10 in heaven and he had 10 on earth. And God blessed him double with everything that he had. And God let him write a book that would bless even now while I'm preaching.

16:42 It would give hope to people who feel like God has forgotten about you. The Lord sent me to tell you, if you're in a prison, if you're in a hospital, if you've been diagnosed, I don't care who you are, where you are, if your marriage is falling apart, if you're lonely and you're broken and your family is broken, God knows what he will do. And his will for you is I will restore. Clap your hands and praise him. When life feels out of control, God's still on the throne.

17:19 Hallelujah. One day when I get to heaven, I'm going to ask Job, was it worth it? my God, you went through hell. Was it worth it? I think he'll turn and say, I don't know. Answer that everybody. And there'll go up a large roar of praise because how many times have we've been walking through similar circumstances and pick up the book of Job and hear a man who seems cursed by God, but he's not cursed. He's just going through something he doesn't understand. And the devil's whispering, God doesn't care. Curse him. God doesn't care. Curse him. God doesn't care. Lose your faith, your trust, your confidence. No, no, no, Job. Don't do it. Angels are saying, don't do it. They're holding their breath and everybody's wondering what you'll do in heaven. Oh, Andre Crouch wrote a song. I had it. There it is. Andre Crouch. Y'all don't even know who he is, but, uh, I do. And, uh, he shaped my life with his music and he wrote a song. And And when I was studying this little message, I remembered and I started singing it to myself.

18:28 And I couldn't remember the words, so I make up the words and I would wing it. I did in the first service, but I got the real words in front of me. And it says this, Oh, Job was sick. Oh, so long till the flesh fell from his bones, his wife, cattle and children. Everything he had was gone. But Job in his despair, he knew that God still cared. sleepless days and sleepless nights but job said that's all right because here's the course i've got confidence god is going to see me through no matter what the case may be i know he's going to fix it for me isn't that a good song let me give you let me give you the second verse. Some folks wonder how I smile. This is the one I want you to get before you leave because God knows what he's going to do.

19:27 Some folks wonder how I smile even when I'm going through trials. They say, he put his name in his own song. They say, Andre, how can you have a song? They say, Jensen, how can you have a song? Everybody put your name in there. They say, how can you have a song when everything is going wrong? but I don't worry, I don't fret. I love this. I'm gonna spit in the devil's eye. I don't worry, I don't fret. My God has never failed me yet. Troubles come from time to time but that's all right. I'm not the worrying kind because I've got confidence.

20:18 God is gonna see me through. No matter what the case may be, I know he's going to fix it for me. Do you know that? Do you believe that? That's called faith. And it's impossible to please God without faith. Faith is a substance of things hoped for. The evidence says you can't see it, but God's still doing it. And that's faith when you believe it. take a praise break and praise him on faith. Wow. he knows what he's going to do. Acts 15 and verse eight known unto God is all his works from the beginning of creation, from the very beginning of the situation that you may find yourself in.

21:19 He already knew what he was going to do. And one day we need to understand that he's going to, He's going to make all things new. When I thought about the fact that Joseph was in the will of God when he was thrown into the pit, Joseph in the Old Testament was in the will of God when he was incarcerated for a crime he did not commit. And he was suffering an injustice that you can't believe and I can't believe. But God knew what he would do. God knew that in order to get them to move, and I pointed this out in the first service, you see, you see, you got to understand God's in every detail. And Esau married a Canaanite woman and Jacob and Esau, whose Jacob's name, they were twins and Jacob's name was changed by God to Israel. He changed his name from Jacob to Israel.

22:22 But the mother of these two twins, when Esau married a Canaanite, meaning an idol worshiper that did not worship or serve God, It's so grieved his mother that she said, I cannot stand. And I pray that God, you will take me if Jacob marries a woman like that, that doesn't worship God. And because she knew that those children had destiny. So when Jacob got in a wrestling match and God changed his name to Israel, had they stayed where they were? they would have married the Canaanite women and there would have never come the nation of Israel. So watch God now. Watch now. Jacob is going to be called Israel. He's going to have 12 sons. One of those sons was Joseph that got kidnapped after he got put in a pit by his own brothers.

23:29 They take him away from that land to Egypt. He's in Egyptian prisons for 13 years. He doesn't know what's going on. He doesn't understand. God didn't send an angel and tell him, now I'm about to form a nation out of a prophecy off of your father. And son, you just need to understand that this is what God gave no explanations. He goes through hell, even though he's got a code of favor and a dream that God was going to really raise him up and bless him. And he doesn't understand. And he's so low and he's so down and he doesn't know. But God knows what he's doing. Because when Joseph was pulled up out of the pit and he was put in the palace and put in a time of famine, worldwide famine, he had the keys to the corn. He sends for his family.

24:32 Watch God. Who was his family? Jacob and all the rest of the tribes of Israel. Bring them out of that land, the Canaanite land, and bring them over here to Goshen. and I'm going to get them here. And there's a scripture that says that the Egyptians saw shepherds as an abomination and would not have anything to do with them. And so God knew that if I get them out of that land and I bring them here and then Joseph, he turns around and he gives them land and he says, he gives his family land, he gives his kids land, or his brother's land, the ones that tried to kill him. He gives them all ranches. The Bible says he gave them all land. And there the old man is, Jacob, Israel. And he, suddenly the plan of God, an entire nation, they start reproducing. They start reproducing. And a nation is being born called that would eventually become the nation of Israel. And God had this plan. And then another Pharaoh rises up that knew not Joseph nor his God. And he started saying, they're growing too fast. They're reproducing and they're reproducing that bloodline. And out of that bloodline, eventually Moses would bring them out. You know, all the stories. The bottom line is this out of that pit, out of that sorrow that Joseph went through out of that prison would be born a nation called Israel that only those trials could produce because God knew what he was doing. He's always moving.

26:27 Even when you don't understand, go to the mountain that I will show you, Abraham switch gears with me. and Abraham doesn't understand even where he's going. He said, I'll show you when you get there. And he just happens to get finally on a three-day journey to a mountain called Mount Moriah. And there God said, go up on that mountain and offer the boy you've been waiting for for 25 years. And he takes that young man. He was not a kid. He was a young man. He was strong enough to carry the wood for three days climbing. They didn't have the convenient little stuff we have. There was nothing there but hard work for three days climbing up a mountain. And then the boy lays down on the altar, surrenders his life.

27:25 He could have knocked the dad away and said, I'm not doing this. But he laid down. He tied him up. He raised the knife. He knew God had told him and he said, God stopped him with an angel and said, I know now I know. I was testing you. I was proving you. He was about to stab Isaac in the heart and God said, don't do it. The Lord himself will provide a sacrifice. God knew what he was doing. Abraham didn't know. Isaac didn't know. They didn't know Calvary would come. They didn't know Jesus would come. They didn't understand it, but God knew what he would do. Then I want you to go fast forward. There is this story in the old Testament of David. And in the middle of this story, the Bible said that he displeased the Lord by numbering Israel and 70,000 Israelites were slain. And it was a terrible, terrible crisis.

28:33 And David in desperation falls down and repents. And God tells him, he says, go to the threshing floor. This is, this is hundreds of years later. Go to the threshing floor of Ornan. Well, what was that? It was a piece of property that a man named Ornan owned. And David went there and he said, sell me that property. And he said, I'll give it to you if you want to offer a sacrifice. He said, no, I can't offer God something that costs me nothing. Now watch this. And he bought the land and he built the altar and he burned the sacrifice. And God stopped the plague instantly.

29:23 And it was on the mountain, the same exact, this is not even a disputed fact. It is the same mountain, Mount Moriah, the same spot that his son Solomon would build the temple. which was the same spot that Abraham had raised a knife to offer Isaac, the same piece of real estate. They didn't know. They were unconnected for centuries. They did not know what was going on. Abraham didn't know Moses, and they didn't know Joseph, and they didn't know all of this. God knew what he was doing. And what I'm preaching to you this morning is when God gives you instructions and God tells you, you may not know, but he knows what he's doing. When he, when he, when he called me to preach.

30:27 When he called me to preach, I didn't know. I didn't know if I'd make it. I didn't know if I'd ever. be a preacher. All I knew is that he had laid his hand on me. I couldn't shake it. I couldn't, I couldn't get away from it. but God knew what he would do. I look back over this church, over this ministry. I look back over our lives and so many times we were in the fire. So many times we were walking through serious, serious troubled waters.

31:22 I didn't know. I didn't know how we were going to make it I didn't know how we were going to do it I didn't know but God knew what he would do trying to preach confidence into somebody I'm trying to say to somebody when you don't know doesn't mean God is up there ringing his hands I want to preach to you he's a good God and all things are working together for the good even when you don't know. He knew what he would do. He knew what he would do. All those, all those trails of, I used to go to Riverside and, and I would walk every morning out there that the, the guy over there that was the leader at that military school, I guess they would call him the president of it or whatever they call commander. And, and he, uh, he liked me for some reason. And he gave me a special pass to go walk. And I would get to go walk back there on those woods. I'd walk through those woods day after day. And I can remember so many times praying.

32:36 I didn't know what God was going to do the early days. I didn't know, but he knew, he knew. Does this resonate with anybody that you can be confident that you can say, like Job, I have confidence. I don't know why things happen and stuff happens, but I know he knows what he's doing. and he's got the answers and if you trust him at some point it comes down to Jeremiah 29 and verse 11. I don't know, but God says, this is God speaking to a man and a nation that is in rubble. There's nothing left. They have been conquered by Nebuchadnezzar and his armies. And God speaks in the middle of it. And he says, but I know the plans that I have for you declares the Lord plans to prosper you. Do you hear me? If you're watching me right now, if you, if I'm preaching to you and you've been through a divorce and your life is rubble and you lost your way, if you've gone through bankruptcy, if you've gone through some kind of horrible ordeal, God says, you don't know, but I know what I am going to do about it.

34:25 And here it is. I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans to prosper you, not to harm you. Everybody say not to harm you. Say it again, not to harm you. Tell somebody God is not against you. God is not out to harm you. He got harmed on the cross. So all you have to do is receive forgiveness.

34:54 Plans to give you a hope. and a future. And don't wait until everything becomes that. Now come back to me. Don't, don't, don't wait until everything's perfect because most of life is going from one thing to another. And at some point you have to say, I don't know, but God knows. God knows what he's doing. And therefore, I will glory in my tribulation. Therefore, I will just say, well, I don't know and I don't have to know because I trust God. And if I trust God, he'll take me by the hand. And this is what the Lord told me to tell you and I'm done. He said, tell them, don't stop talking to me when they don't know. Don't stop walking with me when they don't know.

35:50 And don't stop singing to me and praising me when they don't know. and don't stop trusting me. Don't stop talking to me when you don't know because he knew what he would do. don't they give you peace well hmm that means I'm wasting a lot of time worrying about stuff that I don't know I don't know what to do I don't know I don't know what we're gonna do I don't know I don't he knew what he would do in every one of those lives they did never had a clue but he knew when you don't have a clue, he always knows what he will do. Lift your hands. Praise him. Give him a Job praise. Give him a Joseph praise in the prison. Give him a thank you, Lord. I don't understand, but I will trust you. Now that is what Christianity is. It's not an exemption from trouble. It's when it comes, I'll stand knowing his plans for me ultimately and my family are good and not evil.

37:17 Hope and a future in the will of God. Please give me just a few more minutes to stand to your feet. No one moving. Bow your heads. and if you're in this room or if you're at any of our campuses and you would say, Pastor Jensen, I don't know what to do. I don't know where to go. I don't know how to change. Even, even the addictions can work for your good. the apostle Paul was a big bad sinner. He held the coats while they stoned Stephen to death. You think your son or your daughter or somebody in your family who's addicted or messed up, you think they're in bad condition.

38:19 His name was Saul of Tarsus. God changed his name. And he watched Stephen get stoned and they laid the coats at his feet. And he laughed about it. Grinned, grinning and walked off. This is an evil man. And he got on his horse and he says, I'm going to Damascus to find some more to kill. And Jesus shone and Jesus said to him.

38:47 When he cried out, who are you? He saw a bright light. And, and Jesus said, I am Jesus whom you persecute. Then he asked a question. Listen to me. He asked a question that every saved person asked when they get saved. What would you have me to do? The two questions in the book of Acts that the apostle Paul asked was, who are you, Lord? And once you find out who he is, the second question, when Jesus really saves you, the second question is what would you have me to do? No longer is my life my own. No longer is my plan my plan. I only want to live to please you. And if you don't ever ask that question, it's because you have never been born again.

39:45 And the words you don't ever want to hear is I never knew you. Because as soon as Jesus gloriously saved me at 15 years of age, I began asking without understanding and knowing that was in the scripture. Lord, what do you want me to do? I was so filled with amazement. I was so filled with the feeling that I had that my sins were forgiven. And he had filled me with the Holy Ghost. I was so overwhelmed that I kept asking, what do you want me to do? When you get Jesus in your heart, you'll ask that question a lot. if you're listening to me in this room and you're listening to me wherever you're watching this and you don't know you're right with God you can know it I know in whom I have believed that's all I gotta know I know in whom I have believed and I am persuaded he's able to keep me and keep that which I commit to him I really want to say thank you for joining us this week.

40:56 If you haven't already, make sure you click on the subscription button and leave us a review. It helps this podcast reach even more people when you comment, when you give us your feedback. For more messages and inspirational materials, download the Jensen Franklin app. Or you can head over to jensenfranklin.org. I want to thank all of you who give generously to help us produce weekly content like this to reach the world with the message of Jesus. God bless you and we'll see you next time.